UConn pursues back-to-back national championships as Purdue hopes to claim 1st title

Fox News Flash top sports headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

At the end of Monday night, either the UConn Huskies or the Purdue Boilermakers will have had their one shining moment and will have left Phoenix as men’s basketball national champions.

The madness is nearly over, and UConn is in as good of a position as ever to win back-to-back national championships and become the first team to do so since the Florida Gators accomplished the feat back in 2006 and 2007 behind Joakim Noah and Al Horford.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

UConn head coach Dan Hurley celebrates with center Donovan Clingan, left, after defeating Illinois following an Elite 8 college basketball game in the men's NCAA Tournament on Saturday, March 30, 2024 in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

UConn will send out a lineup that has done this before. Tristen Newton, Donovan Clingan and Alex Karaban were on last year’s national championship team. They helped blow the doors off of San Diego State in the national final and win the program’s first title since 2014.

The Huskies beat Alabama 86-72 in the Final Four to get back to the championship game.

"Once you get to this time of year, everything is just you are who your identity is," UConn coach Dan Hurley said. "The way you play, it’s very automatic. It just comes down to hoping that it’s your night."

UConn center Donovan Clingan, #32, celebrates after hitting a 3-pointer against Illinois during the second half of the Elite 8 college basketball game in the men's NCAA Tournament on Saturday, March 30, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

UConn will meet a team on a mission to fully reverse the embarrassment of the last two years. Purdue was eliminated by