BOSTON (AP) — The rematch turned into another UConn mismatch.
Stephon Castle had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the defending NCAA champions, and the top-seeded Huskies advanced to the Elite Eight with another double-digit victory, beating San Diego State 82-52 on Thursday night in a rematch of last year’s title game.
Cam Spencer scored 18 points and Tristen Newton added 17 points and seven rebounds for UConn (34-3), who will play the winner of the other East Region semifinal between No. 2 Iowa State and No. 3 Illinois for a spot in the Final Four in Glendale, Arizona.
A year after cruising to their fifth national championship — winning their six NCAA Tournament games by an average of almost 20 points — the Huskies followed up blowouts last weekend with their ninth straight double-digit March Madness victory.
They have won by 39, 17 and 30 points in this tournament.
“We suck at winning close games,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “You’ve got to go with the alternative.”
Backed by a virtual home crowd at TD Garden — Boston is about 90 miles from their Storrs, Connecticut, campus — the Huskies made it a double-digit lead early in the second half, 20 with about seven minutes left and 30 in the final minutes, after the teams sent in their benches. Hurley’s son Andrew even got into the game with 1:44 left, drawing a celebratory cheer.
“It means a lot just to be able to travel with our fans. … I feel like it gives us kind of a boost, a little bit of an advantage,” Castle said. “We tried to make it like ‘Storrs North.’ They showed out for us, and it was definitely electric in there tonight.”
Seven-footer Donovan Clingan, who played just 23 minutes after getting into foul trouble, had eight points and eight rebounds for UConn, which matched a school record for victories. The Huskies trailed for just 28 seconds in the game and earned the largest victory in the Sweet 16 since Kansas beat Purdue 98-66 in 2017.
“I think the group, we have killer instincts. We play every possession with great desperation,” Hurley said. “Obviously, we’re very comfortable in tournament play.”
San Diego Statefollowed up the only Final Four appearance in school history with another Sweet 16 run.
But for the second straight year, the Aztecs (26-11) ran into UConn.
“It’s not the ending we’re going to remember; it’s the journey. Because the journey is everything,” San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher said. “We’ve been on an incredible journey together.
“They’re 7-2 on college basketball’s biggest stage over the last two years. It’s something to take great pride in,” Dutcher said. “If losing a basketball game is the worst thing that’s going to happen in your life, you’re going to have a fantastic life.”
UConn is the first defending champion to reach the Elite Eight since Florida won it all in 2006 and ‘07. No team has won repeat titles since.
“It’s kind of been against the odds in terms of the season we’re having, following up the national championship with an even better season,” Hurley said. “This team has defied what past champions have done and taken this program to a completely different level.”
UConn won it all again in 2014. Last year, the Huskies made it five, pulling away after leading by five points with five minutes left to beat San Diego State 76-59.
“Either they’re better or we’re worse, I don’t know,” Dutcher said. “Yeah, they’re good. They’re connected. … They’re an outstanding team and will be very dangerous down the road.”