1998–99 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team

1998–99 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball
1998–99 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball
NCAA tournament National Champions; Big East tournament champions; Big East regular season champions
National Championship Game, ; W 77-74 vs. Duke
Conference	Big East Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 1
AP	No. 3
Record	34–2 (16–2 Big East)
Head coach	Jim Calhoun (13th season);
Assistant coaches	Karl Hobbs; Tom Moore; Dave Leitao;
Home arena	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion; Hartford Civic Center
	Seasons ← 1997–98 1999–2000 →

1998–99 Big East men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 3 Connecticut†	16	–	2	.889	34	–	2	.944
No. 10 Miami (FL)	15	–	3	.833	23	–	7	.767
No. 9 St. John's	14	–	4	.778	28	–	9	.757
Syracuse	10	–	8	.556	21	–	12	.636
Villanova	10	–	8	.556	21	–	11	.656
Rutgers	9	–	9	.500	19	–	13	.594
Providence	9	–	9	.500	16	–	14	.533
Notre Dame	8	–	10	.444	14	–	16	.467
Seton Hall	8	–	10	.444	15	–	15	.500
Georgetown	6	–	12	.333	15	–	16	.484
Pittsburgh	5	–	13	.278	14	–	16	.467
West Virginia	4	–	14	.222	10	–	19	.345
Boston College	3	–	15	.167	6	–	21	.222

† 1999 Big East tournament winner As of March 29, 1999^[1] Rankings from AP Poll

The 1998–1999 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 1998–1999 NCAA Division I basketball season. Coached by Jim Calhoun, the Huskies played their home games at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and on campus at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut, and were a member of the Big East Conference. They won their fourth Big East tournament. On March 29, 1999, they claimed their first national championship by defeating Duke 77–74.

Roster

Listed are the student athletes who were members of the 1998–1999 team.^[2]

Name	Position	Year
Khalid El-Amin	G	SO
Kevin Freeman	F	JR
Richard Hamilton	G/F	JR
E.J. Harrison	G	SR
Rashamel Jones	G/F	SR
Antric Klaiber	F/C	SR
Ricky Moore	G	SR
Albert Mouring	G	SO
Edmund Saunders	F	SO
Ed Tonella	G	JR
Jake Voskuhl	C	JR
Souleymane Wane	C/F	JR
Richard Moore	G	FR

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular Season
11/15/1998* WTXX	No. 2	Quinnipiac	W 102–60	1–0	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
11/19/1998* ESPN2	No. 2	Richmond	W 77–57	2–0	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
11/24/1998* WTXX	No. 2	Hartford	W 95–58	3–0	Hartford Civic Center (16,192) Hartford, Connecticut
11/27/1998* WTXX	No. 2	Wagner	W 111–46	4–0	Hartford Civic Center (16,024) Hartford, Connecticut
12/1/1998* ESPN	No. 1	vs. No. 14 Washington Great Eight Basketball Classic	W 69–48	5–0	United Center (19,124) Chicago
12/5/1998* CBS	No. 1	No. 9 Michigan State	W 82–68	6–0	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
12/9/1998* ESPN	No. 1	at Massachusetts MassMutual UGame	W 59–54	7–0	William D. Mullins Memorial Center (9,493) Amherst, Massachusetts
12/12/1998 WTXX	No. 1	at No. 18 Pittsburgh	W 70–69	8–0 (1–0)	Fitzgerald Field House (6,798) Pittsburgh
12/23/1998* WTXX	No. 1	Fairfield	W 102–67	9–0	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
12/30/1998 WTXX	No. 1	Villanova	W 100–76	10–0 (2–0)	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
1/2/1999 WTXX	No. 1	Georgetown Rivalry	W 87–64	11–0 (3–0)	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,077) Storrs, Connecticut
1/6/1999 WTXX	No. 1	at Boston College	W 91–78	12–0 (4–0)	Conte Forum (8,606) Boston
1/9/1999 WTXX	No. 1	at West Virginia	W 80–45	13–0 (5–0)	WVU Coliseum (10,118) Morgantown, West Virginia
1/12/1999 WTXX	No. 1	Notre Dame	W 101–70	14–0 (6–0)	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
1/16/1999 WTXX	No. 1	Pittsburgh	W 81–58	15–0 (7–0)	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
1/20/1999 ESPN	No. 1	at No. 25 Miami	W 70–68	16–0 (8–0)	Miami Arena (15,147) Miami
1/23/1999 WTXX	No. 1	Seton Hall	W 62–47	17–0 (9–0)	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
1/25/1999 ESPN	No. 1	at Georgetown Rivalry	W 78–71	18–0 (10–0)	MCI Center (15,964) Washington, D.C.
1/30/1999 CBS	No. 1	at No. 9 St. John's	W 78–74	19–0 (11–0)	Madison Square Garden (19,528) New York City
2/1/1999 ESPN	No. 1	No. 16 Syracuse Rivalry	L 42–59	19–1 (11–1)	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
2/6/1999* ABC	No. 1	at No. 4 Stanford	W 70–59	20–1	Maples Pavilion (7,391) Stanford, California
2/10/1999 WTXX	No. 2	Boston College	W 66–50	21–1 (12–1)	Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut
2/13/1999 WTXX	No. 2	at Seton Hall	W 53–48	22–1 (13–1)	Continental Airlines Arena (14,851) East Rutherford, New Jersey
2/16/1999 ESPN2	No. 2	Rutgers	W 77–64	23–1 (14–1)	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
2/20/1999 CBS	No. 2	No. 15 Miami	L 71–73	23–2 (14–2)	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,027) Storrs, Connecticut
2/22/1999 ESPN	No. 2	at Providence	W 72–65	24–2 (15–2)	Providence Civic Center (12,993) Providence, Rhode Island
2/28/1999 CBS	No. 4	at No. 20 Syracuse Rivalry	W 70–58	25–2 (16–2)	Carrier Dome (30,367) Syracuse, New York
Big East tournament
3/4/1999 ESPN	(1) No. 3	vs. (9) Seton Hall Quarterfinals	W 57–56	26–2	Madison Square Garden (17,540) New York
3/5/1999 ESPN	(1) No. 3	vs. (4) Syracuse Semifinals/Rivalry	W 71–50	27–2	Madison Square Garden (19,548) New York
3/6/1999 ESPN	(1) No. 3	vs. (3) No. 10 St. John's Championship	W 82–63	28–2	Madison Square Garden (19,548) New York
NCAA tournament
3/11/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (16 W) UTSA First Round	W 91–66	29–2	McNichols Sports Arena (16,237) Denver, Colorado
3/13/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (9 W) No. 24 New Mexico Second Round	W 78–56	30–2	McNichols Sports Arena (16,237) Denver, Colorado
3/18/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (5 W) No. 20 Iowa Sweet Sixteen	W 78–68	31–2	America West Arena (17,957) Phoenix, Arizona
3/20/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (10 W) Gonzaga Elite Eight	W 67–62	32–2	America West Arena (18,053) Phoenix, Arizona
3/27/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (4 S) No. 14 Ohio State Final Four	W 64–58	33–2	Tropicana Field (41,340) St. Petersburg, Florida
3/29/1999* CBS	(1 W) No. 3	vs. (1 E) No. 1 Duke National Championship	W 77–74	34–2	Tropicana Field (41,340) St. Petersburg, Florida
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Schedule Source:^[3]^[4]

Game officials

Non-conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
1	November 15	#2/#2	Quinnipiac	NR/NR	Tom Lopes, Jim Luchansky, Joe Vagna
2	November 19	#2/#2	Richmond	NR/NR	Jim Burr, Jim Haney, Michael Kitts
3	November 24	#2/#2	Hartford	NR/NR	John Cahill, Joe Adams, Bernard Clinton
4	November 27	#2/#2	Wagner	NR/NR	Tim Higgins, Joel Plunkett, Joe Mingle

Great Eight Basketball Classic

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
5	December 1	#1/#1	Washington	#15/#14	Mike Wood, Zelton Steed, Karl Hess

Non-conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
6	December 5	#1/#1	Michigan State	#9/#9	Ed Hightower, Tom Rucker, Jim Burr

MassMutual Game

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
7	December 9	#1/#1	@ Massachusetts	NR/NR	Michael Kitts, Tim Higgins, Ted Valentine

Big East Conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
8	December 12	#1/#1	@ Pittsburgh	#20/#18	John Cahill, Steve Weimer, Ed Corbett

Non-conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
9	December 23	#1/#1	Fairfield	NR/NR	John Cahill, Joe Mingle, Pat Driscoll

Big East Conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
10	December 30	#1/#1	Villanova	NR/NR	Jody Sylvester, John Clougherty, Jeff Plunkett
11	January 2	#1/#1	Georgetown	NR/NR	Ted Valentine, Michael Kitts, Tom Lopes
12	January 6	#1/#1	@ Boston College	NR/NR	Jim Burr, Will Bush, John Hughes
13	January 9	#1/#1	@ West Virginia	NR/NR	Tim Higgins, Ed Corbett, Mike Brophy
14	January 12	#1/#1	Notre Dame	NR/NR	John Cahill, Frank Scagliotta, Curtis Shaw
15	January 16	#1/#1	Pittsburgh	NR/NR	Jim Burr, Bob Donato, Tony Greene
16	January 20	#1/#1	@ Miami (FL)	#25/NR	Will Bush, Michael Kitts, Curtis Shaw
17	January 23	#1/#1	Seton Hall	NR/NR	Jody Sylvester, Pat Driscoll, Donnee Gray
18	January 25	#1/#1	@ Georgetown	NR/NR	Jim Burr, Frank Scagliotta, John Cahill
19	January 30	#1/#1	@ St. John's	#9/#10	Tim Higgins, Michael Kitts, Will Bush
20	February 1	#1/#1	Syracuse	#16/#16	Jim Burr, Bob Donato, John Clougherty

Non-conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
21	February 6	#1/#1	@ Stanford	#4/#4	Ted Valentine, John Cahill, Donnee Gray

Big East Conference Regular season

Game	Date	Rank	Opponent	Opp Rank	Officials
22	February 10	#2/#2	Boston College	NR/NR	Bob Donato, Jody Sylvester, Tim Hutchinson
23	February 13	#2/#2	@ Seton Hall	NR/NR	Rusty Herring, Ed Corbett, Jeff Plunkett
24	February 16	#2/#2	Rutgers	NR/NR	Tim Higgins, Tony Greene, Curtis Shaw
25	February 20	#2/#2	Miami (FL)	#15/#16	John Cahill, Tom Lopes, Gene Monje
26	February 22	#4/#4	@ Providence	NR/NR	Jim Burr, Frank Scagliotta, Ted Hillary
27	February 28	#4/#4	@ Syracuse	#24/#20	Tim Higgins, Donnee Gray, John Clougherty

AT&T Big East men's basketball tournament

Game	Round	Date	Seed	Rank	Opponent	Opp Seed	Opp Rank	Officials
28	Quarterfinals	March 4	(BE #1)	#3/#3	Seton Hall	(BE #9)	NR/NR	John Cahill, Curtis Shaw, Donnee Gray
29	Semifinals	March 5	(BE #1)	#3/#3	Syracuse	(BE #4)	NR/#20	Tim Higgins, Jody Sylvester, Ed Corbett
30	Championship Game	March 6	(BE #1)	#3/#3	St. John's	(BE #3)	#10/#9	Jim Burr, John Cahill, Bob Donato

NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

Game	Round	Date	Seed	Rank	Opponent	Opp Seed	Opp Rank	Officials
31	First Round	March 11	(W #1)	#3/#3	Texas–San Antonio	(W #16)	NR/NR	Mark Whitehead, Larry Lembo, Robert Staffen
32	Second Round	March 13	(W #1)	#3/#3	New Mexico	(W #9)	#25/#24	Frank Scagliotta, Gerald Boudreaux, Phil Bova
33	Sweet Sixteen	March 18	(W #1)	#3/#3	Iowa	(W #5)	#21/#20	Jody Sylvester, Frank Bosone, John Sweeney
34	Elite Eight	March 20	(W #1)	#3/#3	Gonzaga	(W #10)	NR/NR	Andre Pattillo, Larry Rose, Bobby Hunt
35	Final Four	March 27	(W #1)	#3/#3	Ohio State	(S #4)	#14/#14	Jim Burr, Larry Rose, Mark Whitehead
36	National Championship	March 29	(W #1)	#3/#3	Duke	(E #1)	#1/#1	Tim Higgins, Gerald Boudreaux, Scott Thornley

Media

Local Radio
Flagship station	Play–by–play	Color commentator	Studio host
WTIC–AM 1080	Joe D'Ambrosio	Wayne Norman

Awards and honors

Richard Hamilton, NCAA Men's MOP Award^[5]

Team players drafted into the NBA

Year	Round	Pick	Player	NBA Club
1999^[6]	1	7	Richard Hamilton	Washington Wizards
2000^[7]	2	33	Jake Voskuhl	Chicago Bulls
2000	2	34	Khalid El-Amin	Chicago Bulls

References

^ "1998-99 Big East Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
^ "1998-99 UConn Huskies Roster and Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
^ 2015-16 Connecticut Basketball History (PDF). UConn Huskies. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
^ "Connecticut Men's Basketball Archive Schedule". UConn Huskies. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
^ "Final Four Most Outstanding Players". cbs.sportsline.com. Archived from the original on September 7, 2008. Retrieved March 31, 2008.
^ "1999 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on May 22, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
^ "2000 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on June 13, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2013.

[1] "1998-99 Big East Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 1, 2019.

[2] "1998-99 UConn Huskies Roster and Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 1, 2019.

[cstv-3] 2015-16 Connecticut Basketball History (PDF). UConn Huskies. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2016.

[4] "Connecticut Men's Basketball Archive Schedule". UConn Huskies. Archived from the original on March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.

[Tourney_History-5] "Final Four Most Outstanding Players". cbs.sportsline.com. Archived from the original on September 7, 2008. Retrieved March 31, 2008.

[6] "1999 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on May 22, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2013.

[7] "2000 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on June 13, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2013.

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[7]

v t e UConn Huskies men's basketball
Venues	Willis Nichols Hawley Armory (1914–1954) Hugh S. Greer Field House (1954–1989) XL Center (1975–present) New Haven Coliseum (1978–1987) Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (1990–present) Webster Bank Arena (2013–2014)
Rivalries	Georgetown Syracuse UMass
Culture & lore	Blue blood status Gambling scandal Jonathan the Husky "UConn Husky" 6-overtime game 2011 Miracle Run
People	Head coaches NBA players Huskies of Honor Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

1998–99 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball

NCAA tournament National Champions Big East tournament champions Big East regular season champions
National Championship Game, W 77-74 vs. Duke
Conference	Big East Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 1
AP	No. 3
Record	34–2 (16–2 Big East)
Head coach	Jim Calhoun (13th season)
Assistant coaches	Karl Hobbs Tom Moore Dave Leitao
Home arena	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Hartford Civic Center
Seasons ← 1997–98 1999–2000 →