The energy was palpable at tip-off for what would be the first NCAA Tournament game at Madison Square Garden since 1961. The Huskies capped a five point victory by making 15 straight free throws down the stretch in a game in which they trailed for only 34 seconds. Connecticut's defense held Iowa State to 33% shooting in the first half, while holding the Cyclone's DeAndre Kane and Melvin Ejim to 23 points on 9-31 shooting.
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| Junior DeAndre Daniels (2) erupts for 27 points and 10 rebounds in win |
The atmosphere in the Garden elicited the feeling of a Huskies' home game, given the mere 139 miles between the stadium and UConn's campus in Storrs, Connecticut. Trailing 2-3 in the first half, Shabazz Napier hit a fadeaway three at the 18-minute mark and never looked back. Napier would hit his first four shots, all threes, but the star of the show for UConn offensively was DeAndre Daniels. Daniels got it going early hitting a three pointer followed by a spinning fadeaway jumper with 4:30 to go in the first half. Daniels would finish the night with 27 points and 10 rebounds on 10-15 shooting from the field, including a three that pushed the lead to 17 with 14:17 to play in the game. With 9:44 to play, Iowa State's chances to comeback looked bleak after senior Mevlin Ejim picked up his third and fourth fouls on consecutive possessions. However, the Cyclone's wouldn't go down without a fight. Led by DeAndre Kane and Dustin Hogue (who scored a game high 34 points), Iowa State got to within 4 points, but couldn't overcome the Huskies 90.9% mark from the charity stripe. Connecticut will face the winner of Michigan State-Virginia on Sunday night at the Garden.
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