University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn MBB, a No. 4 seed, Meets No. 13 Iona In Albany On Friday
3/12/2023 9:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UConn Athletic Communications / March 12, 2023
The UConn men's basketball team will begin its quest for the program's fifth NCAA national championship on Friday, March 17, at MVP Arena in Albany, N.Y.
The #11/#14 Huskies (25-8) were given a No. 4 seed in the West Region and will take on 13th-seeded Iona University on Friday at 4:30 p.m. (TBS). Also in UConn's mini-pod are No. 5-seed St. Mary's and No. 12-seed Virginia Commonwealth, who will tangle at 2 p.m. on Friday at MVP Arena in the first half of the afternoon doubleheader.
Friday's winners will meet on Sunday, March 19, in Albany at a time to be determined for the chance to advance to the West Region semifinal and championship at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
"It's a thrill to be a part of it," UConn Coach Dan Hurley said. "It's what you play for the whole year – to put yourself in the tournament and get the best possible seed. It's a rush,"
UConn is fresh off reaching the BIG EAST Tournament semifinals and has won six of its last seven and nine of its last 11 games.
"This is a day like Christmas for a college coach," Hurley said. "When I was a high school coach, the only reason I got into college coaching was to coach in this tournament. I played in it (at Seton Hall), played in the Sweet 16, and I wanted to coach in it. It's a dream come true for a coach."
Iona (27-7), the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion out of New Rochelle, N.Y., comes into the tournament as one of the hottest teams in the country, riding a 14-game winning streak. The Gaels are coached by Hall of Famer Rick Pitino, who in three years at Iona has a 64-21 record, to go with his 711 career victories.
UConn has an all-time record of 4-1 against Iona, all the games at home, and the last meeting was in the 2019-20 season. Â
Also on the Iona staff is former UConn team captain Taliek Brown, who served as UConn's director of player development for four years under Hurley. Â Â
"I should have made Taliek shred all the stuff he had," Hurley joked. "But at this time of year all are good teams with good coaches. All are very challenging games."
UConn will be making its 36th NCAA Tournament appearance and owns an overall 59-32 record in the tournament, with four National Championships, five trips to the Final Four, 11 Elite Eights, and 17 Sweet 16s. Of the Huskies' four national titles, three came as West Region champions.
It is the third straight NCAA appearance for UConn, a feat it hadn't accomplished since 2004, 2005, and 2006. Â
Since the seeding process began (1979), the Huskies have only been a No. 4 seed once, in 2008.
UConn was one of five BIG EAST teams to make the tournament – also including Marquette, Xavier, Creighton and Providence.  Â
