INDIANAPOLIS — Brad Underwood had trouble getting the words out, the emotion of the moment finally overcoming him.
The Illinois coach stood in a tunnel at Lucas Oil Stadium underneath giant blow-up photos of his players. Keaton Wagler, shooting with a look of easy focus. David Mirković, his mouth in a straight line, looking to pass with urgency. Andrej Stojaković, bellowing with joy. And more.
Underwood and those players had led the Illini back to the Final Four for the first time in 21 years.
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They captured the attention, first of the Illinois fan base and then of the country during this NCAA Tournament, with their skill, chemistry, personalities and stories. They drew tens of thousands of Illini fans to Indianapolis — people dressed in orange streaming through the streets hours before the game and then showing up early to the stadium, spreading across half of the lower bowl of seating and all across the upper deck.
And now, four hours later, it was all over, a dream season, one of the best in Illinois history, cut a game short after Connecticut’s 71-62 victory to advance to the national championship game against Michigan.
That the end came via a dizzying array of missed shots — layups and 3-pointers bouncing around the rim and rolling out — for a team known for its efficient offense was maddening. That the Illini couldn’t complete their comeback attempt despite cutting it to four in the final minutes was dismaying.
But what made Underwood crack, tears filling his eyes, was that the loss cut the memories short.
“To see the orange and blue out, I can’t thank them enough,” he said. “I hope this team created memories that last a lifetime for a lot of people. No matter what age. It did for me.”
For the second time this season, Connecticut got the better of the Illini, but this time there was no moving on from the loss for the Illini (28-9).
The Huskies (34-5), six-time national champions, rattled them on both ends of the court for three-quarters of the game and led for all but a short stretch in the first half on the way to the title game. They will play for their third title in four years after winning in 2023 and 2024.
After trailing by as many as 14 points in the second half, Illinois tried to mount a comeback, using a 10-0 run to cut UConn’s lead to four with 5 minutes, 2 seconds to play. Illinois freshman Keaton Wagler’s layup with 1:38 to play also cut it to four.
UConn freshman Braylon Mullins and Wagler traded 3-pointers in the final minute — Mullins’ shot off an offensive rebound. But Silas Demary Jr. made two free throws to extend it to six, and UConn hung on from there with its free-throw shooting.
As the clock ran out on their comeback attempt, Tomislav Ivišić bent over, hands on his knees. Wagler broke into tears, putting a towel over his head as he made his way through the handshake line.
“I felt sad, didn’t want the season to end,” Wagler said. “A lot of tears. Just wish we could have had another game, played Monday night. But it still was a really good season. We should all hold our heads high.”
Illinois had a vaunted offense all season. But there were too many moments early in the game in which the Illini looked out of control, badly missing shots, tripping on their drives. The Illini had trouble getting in an extended flow and at times looked deflated.
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Wagler and fellow freshman Mirković combined for three turnovers in the first 4:30 of the second half as UConn pulled ahead by 11 points. Mirković picked up this third foul early in the half and covered his face in frustration. At one point midway through the half, Stojaković missed on a fast-break attempt, got the rebound and then watched as his putback balanced on the back of the rim before rolling out.
It felt like that kind of cruel night for much of the game.
Illinois shot 33.9% from the field and 23.1% from 3-point range.
“We got a lot of open shots, especially at the 3-point line, a lot of open layups we just didn’t make,” Mirković said. “The ball didn’t want to go our way. We just missed a lot of open shots we wanted. If we made just one of them, even made one open 3 that we missed, we are in the game. That’s a one-possession game.”
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Meanwhile, the Huskies showcased what Illinois had all season — an offense capable of punishing with any number of players. Tarris Reed Jr. had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Mullins had 15 points and Solo Ball added 13 for the Huskies.
Wagler had 20 points and eight rebounds and Ivišić had 16 points and seven rebounds for the Illini.
“I just always feel like if they play one-on-one, I can score on anybody,” Ivišić said. “I see that we struggle a little bit, and I just tried to tell the coach to pass me the ball down, and I’ll try to get a foul at least or score. Missed a couple of layups. Scored a couple of times. But it definitely wasn’t our night.”
The loss ended a memorable run for a fun group of Illini players.
The Illini became media darlings on their NCAA Tournament run with their interesting mix of U.S. and European players, big personalities and intense competitors.
A CBS Sports reporter called them the most fun team in the Final Four. The Athletic dubbed Mirković “The Most Interesting Man in the Final Four,” recounting a handful of hilarious stories about the Montenegrin.
Underwood, at 62 years old and in his 39th year of coaching, was making his first Final Four appearance, leading an Illini team to the big stage for the first time since the 2005 run to the national championship game. The stars of that team, Deron Williams and Dee Brown, sat together at Saturday’s game, drawing huge cheers when they were shown on the video board.
But Illinois couldn’t make it back to the final game. The Illini will have to wait another year to try for their first national championship, though it will have to be with some new pieces with seniors Kylan Boswell and Ben Humrichous graduating and Wagler likely off to the NBA.
“Honestly, it’s not even stuff with basketball,” Boswell said of what he’ll miss from his final season. “It’s nice to make it to the Final Four. That’s what you work for. But it’s this group of people. These are my best friends.”
Reed had been dominant in this NCAA Tournament heading into the Final Four, and it was no different early against Illinois. He had 11 points and five rebounds as UConn took a 37-29 halftime lead.
Mullins, who hit the winning shot to knock off top-seeded Duke in the Elite Eight and is from Indiana, made his first two 3-pointers and had 12 first-half points.
The Illini started cold from deep, missing their first six 3-point attempts before Wagler ended the drought with 10:30 to play in the first half, sending a roar through the Illini crowd. Ivišić later made a 3 without a defender on him to give Illinois its first lead at 22-21 with 7:54 to play in the first half, its only lead of the game.
Illinois came up with defensive stops but couldn’t build a bigger lead in the half, missing seven of its next eight shots. The Huskies used an 8-0 run to build its halftime lead.
When the teams met earlier this season on Black Friday, UConn easily handled Illinois in a 74-61 victory.
In the days leading up to the rematch, Underwood and all of the Illini players talked about how they were a different team this time around.
That game had forced the Illini to examine what they were doing on offense with Wagler, who scored three points on three shots in 14 minutes in the game. They decided to put Wagler on the ball more, and the freshman changed the face of the Illini offense in the months that followed. His rise to becoming a second-team All-American coincided with Illinois’ rise to becoming one of the best offenses in the country.
But UConn was also a different team. Reed and Mullins were both coming off ankle injuries in that first game and combined for four points. They were a big reason why UConn pulled ahead early Saturday.
“It doesn’t feel very good at the moment,” Underwood said. “I think we’re a national championship-caliber team who didn’t have a very good day. That’s not to discredit UConn. I have so much respect for Dan (Hurley) and the job he has done, but it doesn’t feel very good right now.”
There was big buildup to the game for the Illini, who had beaten Penn, VCU, Houston and Iowa to make it to the Final Four.
During an open practice Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium, thousands of Illini fans showed up in orange to watch, while large groups of kids on field trips sat in the end zone, cheering.
Underwood said afterward that was why he came to Illinois, to go to a place where basketball was important to fans.
“If that doesn’t touch you, then you’re not human,” Underwood said.
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The follow-up Saturday just fell short of also being special.
“We felt the love,” Boswell said. “We were trying to do this for them. We know how much it means to them, the success this team has had throughout the season. We’re more than thankful we have a fan base like that going into the future. … It just makes it so much more fun.”