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ALBANY — Tune out the noise.
Ignore the external pressure.
Perform as you have to get to this point.
That was Dan Hurley’s message to his Connecticut players throughout the week — not only with his words, but his actions.
“I loosened up this week,” he said. “I probably backed off a little bit of the live stuff, to keep these guys fresher because I probably trust them more than some past teams. I just tried to present myself a lot more loose, a lot more confident, a lot more excited, and it started right at the selection show.”
The message got through loud and clear.
The Huskies performed up to expectations in a pair of commanding victories that sent them to the school’s first Sweet 16 in nine years.
Two days after manhandling No. 13 Iona, fourth-seeded UConn took care of No. 5 Saint Mary’s, 70-55, in a West Region second-round game at Husky-heavy MVP Arena.
It was similar to the win over Iona: a solid first half followed by an overwhelming second half. Connecticut was dominant at both ends of the floor after halftime and cruised to victory, earning a Sweet 16 showdown with No. 8 Arkansas in Las Vegas on Thursday.
For Hurley, it is his first trip to the second weekend in his fifth NCAA Tournament, and washes away losing each of the previous two years in the first round as the higher seed.
“The last couple years, March Madness was not good for us,” junior forward Adama Sanogo said. “So [Hurley] made sure we are not thinking about that too much and he makes sure that we understand that this is a different team and this is one of the best teams he’s ever coached.”
Sanogo controlled the paint, scoring 24 points and grabbing eight rebounds, Tristen Newton added 13 points and five assists, and Jordan Hawkins had all 12 of his points after halftime.
Playing in his hometown, Andre Jackson Jr. was a two-way force, notching six rebounds and seven assists.
Over the final 16:06, UConn (27-8) outscored Saint Mary’s by 16, and shot a sizzling 65 percent from the field in the second half. Aidan Mahaney led the Gaels (27-8) with nine points.
“It feels like we’re unbeatable,” Hawkins said, referring to the Huskies’ second-half explosions of late. “The last two games in the second half, we just took off. When we’re playing like that, I think we have a really good chance to win it all.”
Hurley’s team pushed its lead to a high of 11 early in the second half on the strength of a 14-2 run that included a pair of baskets from Sanogo and Jackson, and an Alex Karaban 3-pointer.
Adding to the Gaels’ issues, center Mitchell Saxen picked up his fourth foul with 12:51 left and his team in the midst of a lengthy scoring drought.
Saint Mary’s never recovered, unable to slow down the Connecticut onslaught.
The Huskies twice won convincingly this weekend, looking the part of a legitimate Final Four contender.
Unlike recent years, there were no NCAA Tournament jitters.
“I think we had a better team [compared to past seasons],” Jackson said. “We all knew our identity, we all knew our roles and we all knew what we had to do to win a game. Coming in, it’s a [much] more confident team. A lot of guys stepped up in big moments, honestly.”
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