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The Breakfast Buffet: The 2023 NCAA Tournament was a lot like the 2011 NCAA Tournament, Adama Sanogo, Tristen Newton

Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, the morning column on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.

Mangia!

Things To Sample

The 2023 NCAA Tournament was a lot like the 2011 NCAA Tournament
A Final Four in Houston with no one or two seeds? Check. An unforgettable run by UConn? Check. A rugged national title game between the Huskies and a non power conference opponent? You better believe it. In a bracket that unfolded in a very similar fashion to the way it did 12 years ago when UConn beat Butler — who was then in the Horizon League — 53-41 in the national title game, the Huskies out willed San Diego State 76-59 on Monday night to earn the program’s fifth national title. When you truly dissect things, this title run for UConn was very similar to the one that it had in 2011 under Jim Calhoun.

Adama Sanogo cements his place among the players to ever play at UConn
The broad shouldered junior was clearly the most dominant player in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and it wasn’t even close. Sanogo scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the title game against San Diego State and averaged 19.7 points and 9.8 rebounds in the NCAA Tournament. Sanogo joined Emeka Okafor — who won Most Outstanding Player honors when UConn won the 2004 national title in San Antonio — as the only big men in UConn history to win the award.

Tristen Newton played his best when it mattered most
Many people — including myself — were skeptical of how Newton would mesh with UConn after he transferred from East Carolina because he wasn’t a classic point guard. He showed on Monday night that none of that mattered when everything was on the line. While Newton did turn the ball over five times against San Diego State, he still played one of his best games of the season, finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists. The Huskies wouldn’t have beaten the Aztecs by double figures without him.

On The Side

  • UConn is the first team in the history of the NCAA Tournament to win six games by at least 13 points.
  • Four of UConn’s five national titles have occurred in the state of Texas. Two of them — 2011 and 2023 — came in Houston.
  • In six NCAA Tournament games, Andre Jackson had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 41:10.
  • Matt Bradley and Micah Parrish were the X-Factors for San Diego State against UConn. They finished a combined 2-14 from the field and 0-8 from three-point range.
  • Don’t be shocked if San Diego State’s NCAA Tournament expedites an invitation from the Pac-12. Yes, realignment is still far from over.

Leftovers