San Diego State Basketball: 3 keys to upsetting UConn in the Sweet Sixteen

The first weekend of the tournament is in the rearview mirror and there has been some chatter in the social media universe that the first couple of rounds lacked some of the upsets, drama, and high-anxiety endings that we’ve become accustomed to in the tournament. Because of that, the matchups we have on Thursday and Friday are that much more intriguing.

One of the matchups we get to witness is a rematch of last year’s national championship game with No. 1 Connecticut battle with No. 5 San Diego State at the TD Garden in Boston on Thursday night. The winner of this game will play for the East Regional championship and earn a trip to Phoenix for the final four.

Through the first two games, the Huskies have looked every bit of a team that can repeat as national champions. After defeating Stetson in the first round, they beat No. 9 Northwestern in a game in which they led 40-18 at halftime. The Aztecs escaped the dreaded 5-12 upset by beating UAB 69-65, after leading by just one with 44 seconds to play. They coasted to an 85-57 win over upset-minded Yale to set up this rematch.

Brian Dutcher and San Diego State will be looking to exact some revenge on UConn after the 2023 national title game. As well as the Huskies have been playing, gaining that revenge won’t be easy, but not impossible. For the Aztecs to knock off the tournament’s No. 1 seed they will have to play their best game of the year. For that to happen a few things will need to be done, here are the biggest keys to a San Diego State upset.