Clutch Free Throws Lead UConn to Sweet 16 Win Over Michigan State
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It seemed like the UConn Huskies were going to run away with their Sweet 16 matchup with the Michigan State Spartans, as the Huskies led by 19 at one point. But the Spartans fought all the way back till the very end, but the Huskies reigned victorious 67-63.
The Huskies will now meet the Duke Blue Devils in the Elite Eight for a trip to the Final Four in Indianapolis. But the Huskies would not have won this game if it were not for their veterans that head coach Dan Hurley trusts the most.
Tarris Reed Jr., Alex Karaban and Solo Ball all came up clutch and scored in double digits for UConn and helped lead the way. Reed Jr. finished the game with 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting and 4-of-6 from the free throw line with two of those free throws being in the last few seconds.
Karaban finished the game with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting and 3-of-8 from the 3-point line, and Ball finished the game with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting and 2-of-5 from the 3-point line.
The Huskies really needed their veterans to step up in this one and they did that plus more. Ball had been struggling for the first few games of the NCAA tournament, but picked a perfect game to figure things out and he was instrumental in his team moving on to the next round.
Malachi Smith also played a huge role and should get credit for the win over the Spartans
It will not show up much on the scoresheet, but the veteran point guard who runs the second unit for UConn played a phenomenal game. Smith finished the game, totaling 17 minutes with three points on 1-of-2 from the 3-point line.
But where Smith really excelled in this one was his defense and how suffocating it was for Michigan State to do anything with the veteran out there. Smith's big contributions in this one were seven assists and four steals, which are helpful outside of scoring points.
There are a lot of things that Smith does well on a nightly basis, game in and game out, that will not ever really show up on the scoresheet. The first unit mostly handles the scoring, as the second unit tries to score some but plays a lot of defense.
And whenever Smith is on the court, Hurley knows he can trust him a lot in the defensive aspect. Smith is going to be a major reason the Huskies keep advancing in this tournament, as he has been phenomenal.
Tyler is a 25 year old Journalism graduate from Georgia Southern University. Tyler is a big fan of hockey, baseball, basketball, and football, and also is a staff writer for Fansided.