UConn holds off Kentucky 2nd-half rush
Kemba Walker #15 of the Connecticut Huskies reacts towards the end of the game against the Kentucky Wildcats during the National Semifinal game of the 2011 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship at Reliant Stadium. (April 2, 2011) Credit: Getty Images
HOUSTON -- Connecticut made history in the Big East Tournament by winning five games in five nights for the title. The Huskies' fifth game of the NCAA Tournament was just as magical because their 56-55 win over Kentucky Saturday night in front of a Reliant Stadium crowd of 75,421 was their 10th straight postseason win and put them in Monday night's national title game.
The Huskies (31-9) will carry the power conference banner against mid-major power Butler (28-9).
UConn coach Jim Calhoun will be going for his fourth NCAA title.
Once again, junior Kemba Walker led the way for the Huskies with 18 points and seven assists, and freshman Jeremy Lamb had 12 points.
The Wildcats (29-9) were topped by freshman Brandon Knight, who had 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and they got 13 points from Doron Lamb and 11 from Terrence Jones.
UConn ran out to a 31-21 first-half lead, finishing on a 22-9 run that included six points by Jeremy Lamb and five by Walker. The Huskies held the Wildcats to 28.1 percent from the field (9-for-32) while getting in the paint on offense for a 22-12 advantage that resulted in a .519 shooting percentage.
Kentucky's veterans, Josh Harrellson, Darius Miller and DeAndre Liggins combined for only three first-half points, leaving the heavy lifting to freshmen Knight and Jones, who combined for 16.
Needing a spark, the Wildcats started the second half with a 14-2 run fueled by four three-pointers, the last two by freshman Doron Lamb for a 35-33 Wildcats lead.
But UConn responded with a 13-7 surge that began with five points from Walker before a Jeremy Lamb layup gave the Huskies a 46-42 edge. Kentucky tied it on a four-point possession when Jones made a layup but missed a free throw that the Wildcats rebounded leading to a Knight layup that tied the game at 46 with 7:59 left.
Late in the second half, Kentucky again began misfiring and the Huskies continued to go to the rim. Layups by Alex Oriakhi, Walker and an acrobatic reverse layup by Shabazz Napier at the 2:30 mark gave UConn control of the scoreboard, 54-48. Jones went to the line for Kentucky at 2:09, but he missed the front end of a one-and-one.
UConn couldn't capitalize on that trip down the court, and the Wildcats' Liggins nailed a right-wing three at 1:37 to cut the deficit to 54-51. After another empty Huskies possession, Liggins got defender Jeremy Lamb in the air and drew a foul with 49.7 seconds left, but he knocked down only the first free throw to make it a two-point game.
Freshman Napier then drove and lost control of the ball. Kentucky came up with it in a floor scramble with 16.6 seconds left. Liggins missed a three from the right side of the arc, and this time, Napier got to the rebound, was fouled with 2.0 seconds left and made both to secure the win.
