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SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) -- Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun won't talk about upsets, about mid-major conferences springing surprises on the big guys in the NCAA Tournament
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The Connecticut Huskies won their twelfth in a row in a battle where they
were in control against Southern Illinois. The Huskies shut down the
Salukis' perimeter game, contained them and forced them to shoot 1-for-14
from the trifecta -- that certainly played a big role in their victory.
Tony
Robertson, who has played well in the NCAA Tournament, tallied 10 points.
But it was backup "Gentle" Ben Gordon, off the bench with 12 points, who
sparked the Huskies. Caron Butler, one of the most brilliant sophs in
America, was the star of stars, scoring 19 points to lead the Huskies to the
Elite Eight.
For the Salukis, who made a superb effort getting to the Sweet 16, Rolan
Roberts was a monster on the interior with 24 points and 11 rebounds
(11-of-15 from the field), but he didn't get enough help. Bruce Weber's club
fought hard, scrapped and clawed, but the Huskies were too much.
This is a happy, joyous time in the Big East. They're jumping for joy in
Storrs, Conn.!
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"There are mild surprises, yes, but I don't think there are
upsets," he said. "We don't use the word 'upset.' We talk about
being the best we can be and taking advantage of our
opportunities."
So when the second-seeded Huskies had an opportunity against No. 11-seeded Southern Illinois in the East Regional on Friday night, Calhoun made sure they didn't miss out on it.
UConn simply would not yield to the Salukis, who had knocked off No. 6 Texas Tech and No. 3 Georgia in the first two rounds. Instead, the Huskies ended Southern Illinois' magical march, winning the regional semifinal 71-59.
It was a simple matter, Calhoun said.
"We don't have better players," he explained. "We just have more of them."
Caron Butler scored 19 points, and Emeka Okafor provided big
plays at both ends. Then there was Ben Gordon with 12 points and
five assists, Tony Robertson with 10 points and some all-around
court savvy. It was just too much for the Salukis to overcome.
Led by Rolan Roberts, who scored 24 points, Southern Illinois
thought they might sneak up on UConn much the way Kent State did on
Big East team Pittsburgh in the South regional the night before.
"They were a little better than we were," SIU coach Bruce Weber said. "Before the game, I said we had to play well and shoot well. We didn't shoot well."
Calhoun figured that if UConn could take away 3-pointers, Southern Illinois might struggle. And he was right. The Huskies concentrated on perimeter defense and held the Salukis to 1-for-14 from beyond the 3-point arc.
"We decided they would not beat us with great passing and
3-point baskets," he said.
And they did not.
UConn (27-6) displayed the grit that won the Big East
tournament, keeping its poise and holding on.
"We couldn't sleep on this team," Butler said. "Being a lower
seed, they were a dangerous team to look out for."
UConn moved into Sunday's East Regional championship game
against top-seeded Maryland, which defeated Kentucky 78-68 Friday
night. The winner advances to the Final Four.
UConn is back in the final eight for the first time since 1999,
when it won its only NCAA championship. The Huskies didn't even
make the tournament last year, and they were knocked out in the
second round by Tennessee in 2000.
|  | | Taliek Brown, right, and UConn proved too much for a stubborn group of Salukis. |
Both the 6-foot-9 Okafor and Robertson were vital for
Connecticut. Robertson's ballhandling kept UConn in control, and
Okafor's size eventually broke SIU's spirit.
At one juncture, Okafor, who set a school record with 136
blocks, batted away a shot by Jermaine Dearman. Then he followed up
by converting two opportunities under the basket with resounding
dunks.
After a shaky start, he also held Roberts scoreless for the last 17 minutes.
"I fed off his determination," Okafor said. "I said to myself, 'He's not going to score anymore"'
Soon, UConn's lead was back to double digits.
Southern Illinois (28-8) gave it a good try, cutting UConn's
lead to 61-55, but the Huskies' depth wore the Salukis down.
Dearman finished with 17 points, but Kent Williams, SIU's
leading scorer, was held to seven.
Roberts carried the Salukis in the early going, scoring their
first four baskets and seven of their first nine. But he missed his
easiest chance on an alley-oop pass when he mistimed his leap to
the basket.
Except for Roberts, who finished the first half with 16 points,
Southern Illinois was erratic from the field. There were three air
balls, two on the same sequence and a flurry of missed
opportunities.
Weber had said his team could not afford that against UConn, and
the Huskies took advantage of the errors.
Connecticut built its 40-28 halftime lead from the 3-point line.
They hit 5-of-9, while Southern Illinois was 0-for-6 in the half.
Except for Roberts' 8-for-10, the Salukis made just five of 21
field-goal attempts in the first 20 minutes. They also missed five
of seven free throws, mistakes they could not afford against the
Huskies.
The final mistake was made by Weber, when he drew a technical
foul with 1:32 remaining and SIU running out of chances.
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