UConn reaches 3rd national title game in 4 seasons, beating Illinois 71-62 behind Mullins and Reed

UConn got another critical 3-pointer from Braylon Mullins and coach Dan Hurley’s Huskies muscled their way back to the national title game, beating Illinois 71-62 in the Final Four on Saturday night as they seek their third championship in four seasons.

Tarris Reed Jr. had 17 points and 11 rebounds, while the fabulous freshman Mullins scored 15 for the Huskies (34-5), who rode strong inside play and tough defense to their 19th straight victory in the Sweet 16 or later rounds of the NCAA Tournament.

UConn will face Arizona or Michigan on Monday night as it seeks its seventh title, all since 1999, and third under Hurley, who would become the only active coach with more than two.

“You’re set up for success at UConn,” Hurley said. “Geno Auriemma, Jim Calhoun, Kevin Ollie, just some incredible coaches before me. I’ve got the best staff in the country. I’ve got an incredible group of players. And there’s nothing like the bus ride to the stadium on Monday night when you’re one of the last two teams standing.”

Mullins, whose buzzer-beating 3-pointer sent the Huskies past Duke and into the Final Four, hit a catch-and-shoot 3 with 52 seconds left — his only basket of the second half — to give UConn a 66-59 lead.

“We’re so ready for the national championship game,” Mullins said. “This is what I came here for. Let’s get it on Monday.”

Freshman Keaton Wagler had 20 points and eight rebounds to lead the Fighting Illini (28-9), who reached their first Final Four since losing the championship game to North Carolina in 2005.

Wagler and Mullins became the first pair of freshmen to top 15 points in a Final Four game since Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing in 1982.

UConn’s Alex Karaban had nine points on 1-of-8 shooting while adding four rebounds and four assists. He’s trying to become the first player since John Wooden’s dominant UCLA teams in the 1960s and 1970s to finish his career as a three-time champion. He also tied Hurley’s brother, Bobby, for second on the career list with 18 March Madness victories.

The Huskies haven’t lost a tournament game played past the opening weekend since 2009, when they fell in the national semifinals to Michigan State. With one more victory, they would break a tie with North Carolina and move into third place alone in national titles, trailing only UCLA (11) and Kentucky (eight).

Tomislav Ivisic had 16 points and seven rebounds for Illinois, but the Illini couldn’t replicate the blueprint that carried them to double-digit victories over Penn, VCU, Houston and Iowa. Illinois made just 3 of 14 3-pointers in the first half and finished 6 of 26 beyond the arc.

UConn took full advantage, even though the Huskies had two long scoring droughts — nearly six minutes in the first half and more than six minutes in the second. The latter allowed Illinois to charge back from its biggest deficit of the season, 57-43 with 9:43 to play, to get within 57-53 with 5:03 remaining.

But the Huskies answered and closed it out at the free-throw line for their fifth straight win in the series. UConn beat Illinois 74-61 on Nov. 28 in Madison Square Garden, and now the Huskies have held the Illini to their two lowest scoring totals and shooting percentages of the season. UConn also beat Illinois 77-52 in the Elite Eight two years ago.

The Huskies reached this Final Four by beating Furman and UCLA before outslugging Michigan State and toppling Duke, the tourney’s top seed, on Mullins’ 35-foot 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left. They didn’t need such heroics Saturday in Indianapolis.

Illinois reached the Final Four for the sixth time in school history but just the third since 1989 and the first since losing to the Tar Heels in the 2005 championship game.

Karaban extended his school records for games played (150), starts (149), wins (126) and 3-pointers (289).

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

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