For all the twists and turns, ebbs and flows, peaks and valleys, shocks and awe that populated this storybook 2025-26 college basketball season, here’s one last narrative shift that nobody saw coming:
Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies will be the underdog darlings at the Final Four.
For those who did not have an interest in that instant classic East Regional final on Sunday, I imagine it was hard to decide whom to root against harder. Should it be the ultimate blueblood Duke, which despite not having its villainous Laettner-Redick-Krzyzewski vibe is still the team that wins too much? Or the more recent blueblood UConn, with its snarling, ref-baiting genius of a basketball coach, the self-professed “best f—- coach in the game” driving for his third NCAA championship in four years?
Regardless of where you came down on that question, there is no doubt where we have ended up. Get ready for an all-time banger of a Final Four. UConn. Illinois. Arizona. Michigan. Whoever emerges from this gauntlet will be a worthy champion, giving this wonderful sport, and this riveting tournament, one more memorable story.
This NCAA Tournament has already had lots of iconic, indelible moments, from High Point guard Chase Johnston’s only-two-pointer-of-the-season to upset Wisconsin; to Kentucky guard Otega Oweh’s banked-in heave to send the Wildcats to an overtime victory over Santa Clara; to St. John’s guard Dylan Darling’s game-winning layup against Kansas in his only bucket of the game; to VCU’s stunning comeback win over North Carolina; to Iowa forward Alvaro Folguerias’ corner three to beat Florida (“March is for the dreamers,” he proclaimed afterward); to Nebraska’s my-team-is-on-the-floor defensive breakdown against Iowa; to Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn’s last-second tip-in to squeeze past Texas in the Sweet Sixteen. And yet, the best came on Sunday, when UConn freshman guard Braylon Mullins shot his way into NCAA Tournament lore, sending the Blue Devils packing and the Huskies on to the Final Four.
Now Mullins joins Lorenzo Charles, Christian Laettner, Kris Jenkins, Bryce Drew, Danny Ainge, Tyus Edney, Jalen Suggs, Tate George and so many others in the annals of dramatic shots that took place in the greatest sporting event on the planet. That’s all well and good. But first, we’ve got a Final Four to play.
The East Regional final was the only one of the weekend’s four games that was decided by single digits. Both of Saturday’s games were competitive for about 25 minutes until the two favorites, Illinois and Arizona, pulled away from Iowa and Purdue, respectively. The Midwest final between Michigan and Tennessee was over just about when the national anthem finished. The Wolverines sliced, diced and embarrassed the Volunteers en route to a 95-62 laugher.
Many will say that Saturday’s late game between Arizona and Michigan will be a de facto championship game. There is merit to that argument. Those two and Duke were the best three teams all season. The Wildcats and Wolverines are both big, physical teams that defend at an elite level. Arizona is more reliant on inside play and might not be able to win a game from behind the three-point line if it needs to. Michigan is more susceptible on the glass than its size should warrant. The outcome will come down to the little variables that always decide such games — health, foul trouble, shooting, 50/50 balls, and luck.
We don’t just have four great teams in this Final Four. We have four dedicated fan bases, and they’re starving for a title. Arizona hasn’t been to the Final Four since 2001. Illinois hasn’t been there since the Dee Brown-Deron Williams-Luther Head-led squad won it all in 2005. Michigan was there more recently, in 2013 and ’18, but in both cases the Wolverines lost in the final to Louisville and Villanova, respectively. Those last two teams are playing for more than just their own fan bases. They are playing for a Big Ten conference that has not claimed an NCAA championship since Tom Izzo and Mateen Cleaves cut down the nets for Michigan State in 2000. Yes, 2000.
Miracle Three Sends UConn to the Final Four
Mullins’ miracle three-pointer delivered the Huskies an unforgettable 73-72 win over Duke in the Elite Eight
If you’re looking or a one-size-fits-all template for building a team, you’ll find four difference versions convening in Indianapolis. Arizona starts three freshmen and has a fourth coming off the bench. Illinois is loaded with international imports. Michigan turned over almost its entire roster for the second straight season. Five of UConn’s top eight players, including four starters, were on the team last season.
It is notable that while there is no shortage of NBA talent heading to Indianapolis, none of the big three freshmen that dominated the conversation all season (Cameron Boozer, A.J. Dybantsa and Darryn Peterson) will be there. Other surefire top-of-the-lottery prospects like Darius Acuff Jr. and Kingston Flemings will also be home. The top remaining pro propects — Illinois freshman guard Keaton Wagler, Arizona freshmen Koa Peat and Brayden Burries, Mullins — are really good pieces in really good puzzles. Great players, all, but they got to the Final Four with a lot of help from their friends.
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The college freshman was supposed to be an endangered species, but this crop of freshmen is reminding coaches of the value of high school recruiting
Finally, the coaches. Hurley is the most decorated of the four, and the only one to have won a championship. (Two, actually.) That means we’ve got a three in four chance to see a coach win his first title. Michigan coach Dusty May is making his second trip to the Final Four. The first came in 2023 when he was at FAU and his Owls lost to San Diego State on a buzzer beater by Lamont Butler. May is a native of Terre Haute, Indiana (where Larry Bird played in college), went to Indiana (where he worked as a student manager for Bob Knight) and has quickly ascended to the top of his profession behind a studious, polite, earnest personality that belies a vicious competitiveness within. It would be poetic for him to claim the big trophy in his native state.
Tommy Lloyd is in his fifth season at Arizona. He’s also low-maintenance, cheerful and smart, and he was instrumental in building a dynasty at Gonzaga as a longtime assistant to Mark Few. Lloyd took over a proud, successful program that was reeling from NCAA sanctions and quickly put it back on a winning track. The Wildcats lost as a No. 2 seed to Princeton in Lloyd’s second season, and he took them to the Sweet Sixteen in his other three. He’s only 51 years old, and you get the feeling that it’s only a matter of time until he wins a national championship. Given the way his team has been playing, no one should be surprised if it happens this weekend.
Finally, there’s the self-described “old juco coach” himself, Illinois’ Brad Underwood. The Kansas native and Kansas State alum entered the coaching profession in 1986 as a Graduate Assistant at Hardin-Simmons, a Division III school in Texas. His first head coaching job was at Dodge City (Kan.) Community College and he later spent three years as the head coach at Daytona Beach (Fla.) Community College. He returned to his alma mater in 2006 as an assistant coach, and seven years later he finally got a Division I head coaching opportunity at Stephen F. Austin. That’s 27 years of hard grinding before he got his big break. And now he’s coaching in the Final Four. March is for the dreamers, indeed.
It was fitting, to say the least, that the biggest shot of this tournament was launched by a native of Greenfield, Indiana. Moments after that incredible turn of events, Hurley was pointed out that when he was recruiting Mullins, he told Mullins that he wanted to bring him back to his home state to play in the Final Four. Now they will have their storybook ending.
Only the storybook has not quite ended. We’ve got four teams and three games remaining in the 2025-26 season. The Final Four has something for everyone. Here’s hoping we get some more drama this weekend. Early April is for the dreamers, too.
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