# 1998–99 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team

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.
| 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:

## 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

## Team players drafted into the NBA

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