Believe it! After a wild March Madness, Final Four teams look to conjure up more magic

INDIANAPOLIS — There was the scene of lovable courtside TV analyst Bill Raftery genuinely shocked as he tried to comprehend what had just unfolded before him. Moments later, there was the scene of UConn coach Dan Hurley’s mom — no professional lip readers needed — also not quite believing that shot went in.

The kid who took the shot — Braylon Mullins — not only earned UConn a trip to the Final Four, but bought himself a ticket home to play in it. He grew up right outside of Indianapolis, where it seems a new hoops star is born every minute if never quite like this.

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Those who believe college sports is losing its heart — being overtaken by money and negotiations and boardrooms — are not all wrong; this is not the same game your father, or even your older sister, grew up watching.

But the shot that filled out the bracket for the Final Four — Michigan, Arizona, Illinois and, yes, UConn, all of whom were in town to start college basketball’s biggest celebration — was one of many reminders over the past month that there’s some magic left in those nets.

Quite a lot of it, in fact.

“I spent time back on the flight back, and on the drive from the airport to the house, I was saying to Andrea, ‘Pinch me,’” Hurley said, talking about his conversation with his wife, after bringing the Huskies two wins way from their third title in four years. “It is so hard to do what we have been able to do, historical level things. She said, ‘Can I slap you instead of pinch you?’”

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Sure, Hurley seems slappable sometimes, but that’s part of the fun of college basketball, too. Hurley. Mick Cronin. Tom Izzo. Was there ever a great Final Four that didn’t have one guy in a suit (or pullover) lording over the media room, ranting in the locker room or pointing fingers on one of those sidelines?

For a more heartwarming story, check out 62-year-old coach Brad Underwood, a lifelong grinder with junior college roots who always dreamed of coaching…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/believe-wild-march-madness-final-153339188.html

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Publish date : 2026-04-02 15:33:00

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