San Diego sends UConn home unusually early

TAMPA, Fla. - Jim Calhoun never gave any consideration to the possibility that his team's season could end this way. For that matter, neither did Bill Grier.

Calhoun, UConn's Hall of Fame coach, hadn't gone the one-and-done route since his arrival in Storrs 22 years ago. All 14 consecutive times he'd advanced past the first round. In fact, the last time he bowed out in the initial round of the NCAA tournament was way back in 1985-86 — his final season at Northeastern.

When Grier left a posh assistant position at Gonzaga to run his own program at San Diego, he wasn't quite sure what he'd gotten himself into. He'd given up a coach-in-waiting gig with the 'Zags if and when Mark Few ever decided to leave Spokane.

Then the Toreros started the season 5-8 and he started to count down the days until his rookie coaching campaign was over.

"I quite honestly wasn't sure if we'd win 12-to-15 games," Grier admitted shortly after his team pulled an unlikely upset over Calhoun's Huskies.

Instead, Grier watched his squad run the table in the West Coast Conference tournament — including a victory against his former employer in the title game. Then he led the program to its first-ever NCAA tournament victory against a program that has a pair of national titles on its belt.

UConn was without its starting point guard, A.J. Price, for most of the game after he went down with a knee injury midway through the first half.

It was a huge blow, but even with Price, the Huskies were no shoo-in to advance to the second round.

"I don't know what it's like to be one and done in the NCAA tournament," Calhoun said. "I didn't expect for it to happen this year."

Without Price, it was basically the same inept team that missed the tournament a year ago. You know, the one that had no leadership and was a complete mess.

Price's re-emergence was the key to the Huskies' improvement this year. He allowed Jeff Adrien to be a role player instead of having to carry the load by himself. UConn's 7-foot-3 sophomore Hasheem Thabeet has also made a dramatic improvement, although his teammates continued to rely on him defensively to erase their mistakes and it was costly.

San Diego shot 48 percent for the game and even held its own on the glass against the bigger, stronger Huskies for the first 20 minutes.

Calhoun said his players appeared uninspired. That's pretty pathetic since they were watching the Big Dance on television last season.

"It would have been a great season if we'd have gotten to Phoenix," Calhoun said. "Then I'd say we're back on track."

"I'm shocked," Adrien said. "Very shocked. It's the second time I've lost to a team that you wouldn't consider high-major."

Adrien was a role guy on that ultra-talented club two years ago that lost in the Elite Eight to George Mason. Since that night, the Huskies haven't been the same high-powered program that fans in Storrs have grown used to during Calhoun's tenure.

Instead the Huskies remain in a state of flux and now their leader and point guard faces the possibility of another obstacle — this time a potential torn ACL.

While Calhoun & Co. pack their bags to return home, San Diego sticks around for a showdown with fellow Cinderella story Western Kentucky.

It's a battle of No. 12 vs. No. 13 seeds.

The Toreros managed to beat UConn in overtime despite having to play without their top two scorers on the bench. Big man Gyno Pomare, who torched the Huskies in the first half, and guard Brandon Johnson both fouled out and Grier was forced to play four freshman and De'Jon Jackson.

Jackson proceeded to knock down a 17-footer with 1.2 seconds left that provided the heroics.

"Just like we drew it up, I guess," Grier joked.

The blueprint has changed — all the way around.

Jeff Goodman is a senior college basketball writer for FOXSports.com. He can be reached at or check out his blog, Good 'N Plenty.