Jordan Hawkins scored 20 points and UConn overwhelmed its fourth straight NCAA Tournament opponent, earning its first trip to the Final Four in nine years with an 82-54 win over Gonzaga on Saturday night.

The Huskies (29-8) have felt right at home in their first extended March Madness run since winning the 2014 national championship, playing their best basketball of what had been an up-and-down season.
 
Once Gonzaga shook out the cobwebs, the Bulldogs kept the Huskies bridled with defense, with hard hedges on screens and Drew Timme sagging off Andre Jackson Jr. to protect the lane.
 
UConn countered by getting the ball into the strong hands of Adama Sanogo, the facilitator. The UConn big man picked apart Gonzaga's double-teams for five first-half assists, including two for layups. Alex Karaban hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to put the Huskies up 39-32 at halftime.
 
The Bulldogs (31-6) didn't have the same second-half magic they had in a last-second win over UCLA in the Elite Eight.
 
Gonzaga allowed UConn to go on a late run to lead by seven at halftime and fell further behind after All-American Drew Timme went to the bench with his fourth foul early in the second half.
 
The Zags shot 33% from the field — 7 of 29 in the second half — and went 2 for 20 from 3 to miss their bid for a third Final Four since 2017.
 
Timme had 12 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, receiving a warm ovation after being taken out of his final collegiate game with 1:50 left. Julian Strawther added 11 points.
 
Karaban scored 12 points and Sanogo had 10 points and 10 rebounds for UConn.