There was Kemba Walker, with a nasty crossover step-back jumper that caused Pittsburgh big man Gary McGhee to fall to the ground in a vain attempt to defend it.
The ball dropped perfectly through the net, the buzzer sounded — and Walker had done it again, his latest game-winner sending top-seeded Pittsburgh home with a 76-74 loss, after just one day in the Big East quarterfinals.
But this isn’t the same team in which Walker’s heroics allowed the Huskies to pull off the upset over Texas in early January down in Austin, and it doesn’t look like the same one that knocked off Villanova on Walker’s heroics with 2.5 seconds left, either.
"They’re a team now," Pittsburgh senior Gilbert Brown said after losing to UConn. "That’s why they’re much better."
No player or team came out of the gates hotter than Kemba and his Huskies. They weren’t expected to do much this season, but Walker — with the help of sophomore big man Alex Oriakhi — led UConn to an unlikely Maui Invitational title.
There were 10 consecutive wins to start the year, but everyone knew Walker and his young group of teammates would ultimately come down to earth.
And they did.
It started Dec. 27 in the first Big East matchup of the year at Pittsburgh. That’s when the Huskies suffered their first loss — and it wasn’t even close.
"We were nervous," UConn freshman Jeremy Lamb admitted. "I wasn’t aggressive, and Kemba had to do it all."
But the Huskies were written off in late February, during a stretch in which they lost four of five — including a pair at home. Walker had cooled off and was shooting an Allen Iverson-esque percentage.
Walker struggled for much of the game Thursday afternoon. He was 8-of-22 from the field and had missed his previous three shots before making McGhee look foolish in the final seconds.
The baby-faced Lamb, who still looks like he should be at Norcross High in Georgia, finished with 17 points, and Oriaki was the most dominant big man on the floor after the break.
Freshman guard Shabazz Napier was fearless, scoring 10 points, and even Jamal Coombs-McDaniel, who had spent most of the first two seasons in Coach Jim Calhoun’s doghouse, was contributing on both ends of the court. The Huskies didn’t even have freshman Roscoe Smith, who had to get eight stitches in his head, for the entire second half.
Once again, we witnessed that this is Kemba Walker’s team. But it’s no longer just about Walker.
The Huskies went 9-9 in Big East play and gradually dropped down the rankings. They ended up having to play on the first day of the league tournament, which means it will take five wins in five days to win the title, but it was exactly what this team needed.
They beat Big East cellar-dweller DePaul to open it up, then dominated a Georgetown team without their most valuable indispensible, Chris Wright, on Wednesday.
"We needed that," Calhoun said. "Our guys needed to feel good about themselves again."
They needed their swagger back — and they have it.
"Our confidence was low," Lamb recalled. "I don’t remember exactly when it was at its lowest, but it was low."
Calhoun credits Walker — and Walker deflects the credit to Calhoun. Together they kept this young, somewhat fragile group together, and pulled off its ultimate resume win of the season.
Forget about the win in Maui back in November against Kentucky, or the nonconference victory over Texas.
This one made a legitimate statement, knocking off a potential No. 1 overall seed in next week’s NCAA tournament in a neutral venue.
"We’re back," Oriakhi said.
UConn advances to the Big East tournament semifinals, an accomplishment few could have imagined prior to the start of the season — or even a month ago.
Walker will still have the ball in his hands with the game on the line.
"Everyone in the world knew it was coming to me," he said of his latest game-winner.
However, opponents also have to at least respect his teammates.
"They’re more balanced," McGhee said. "You have to worry about more than just Kemba now."
