What was touted as an unlikely yet highly anticipated clash between two of college basketball’s premier men’s programs over the last two decades ended up being more of a snoozefest when it was all said and done.  

On Monday night, the University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies and San Diego State (SDSU) Aztecs squared off for a place in history at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. Fighting for a chance to win college basketball’s ultimate prize — a national championship — in the sport’s annual March Madness tournament, the contest was never really in doubt from the opening tip-off.  

Both teams entered the game seeking an elusive sixth and final tournament victory, having won their previous five affairs in a dramatically different fashion. 

UConn’s path to the final game was more straightforward and dominant. With top seeds Kansas and UCLA, both knocked out of the West Region early on, UConn breezed to double-digit victories in each of its first five games, its most recent victory a lopsided 72-59 win against Miami on Saturday night. 

In contrast, San Diego State had to travel down a much more arduous road to make it to the final, knocking off perennial favorite Alabama in the Sweet Sixteen and playing a series of nail-biters against the Creighton Bluejays in the Elite Eight and the Florida Atlantic Owls in Saturday’s semifinal. In fact, it took a last-second 17-foot buzzer beater by SDSU junior guard Lamont Butler to propel the Aztecs to a 72-71 comeback victory against the ninth-seeded Owls, the upset-minded darlings of the entire tournament. 

While San Diego State built a lead during the game’s opening minutes, the disparities between the teams were apparent from the jump, and it always seemed like it was only a matter of time before the Huskies would figure things out and pull away. Aided by a combination of tenacious defense, athleticism, size and depth, UConn did just that, going on an extended run for the remainder of the first half, entering the break up 36-24, and never really looking back. 

Throughout the second half, the Huskies continued to pour it on with the help of two of their stars who finished the game with double-doubles — center Adama Sanogo who scored 17 points, had ten rebounds and earned the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player Award, and guard Tristen Newton who tallied 19 points and also collected ten boards.

Despite a late 9-0 run by the Aztecs that brought the game as close to single digits in the latter part of the second half, the Huskies always had an answer, ending the final four minutes of the game on a 16-4 run that resulted in a 76-59 victory and the Huskies’ fifth men’s basketball national championship in school history.

For hoops fans from the Bay Area, one important footnote: the game showcased two homegrown products, Darrion Trammell of the Aztecs and Joey Calcaterra of the Huskies.

Born and raised in Marin, the duo’s appearance in the championship game was historical, marking the first time any single player — let alone two players — from Marin made it to the NCAA men’s basketball final. A 5’ 10’’ guard, Trammell was born in Marin City and played high school basketball at Saint Ignatius College Preparatory in San Francisco while Calcaterra, a senior guard born in Kentfield, played for Marin Catholic. 

Given the game’s outcome was never really in question, the noteworthy appearance of Trammell and Calcaterra in such a high-stakes game might be what most locals end up remembering about it in the years to come.