When UConn makes it past the opening weekend of the NCAA men's basketball tournament, the Huskies are almost impossible to stop.
UConn won its 18th straight game played in the Sweet 16 or later when it mounted a most improbable comeback to rally from 19 points down to beat Duke 73-72 Sunday on Braylon Mullins' last-second 3-pointer.
The Huskies haven't lost a tournament game played past the opening weekend since 2009, when they fell in the national semifinals to Michigan State in the Final Four played in Detroit.
Since then, it's been feast or famine for UConn.
The Huskies have gone to the tournament 10 times since then, failing to get a bid in six other seasons. There was no tournament in 2020 because of the pandemic but UConn wasn't projected to make it that season.
Of those nine previous tournament trips in this span, the Huskies won it all four times, winning it under coach Jim Calhoun in 2011, Kevin Ollie in 2014 and back-to-back titles under Dan Hurley in 2023-24. In the other five seasons, they didn't make it to the Sweet 16, losing three times in the round of 64 and twice in the round of 32.
The 18 straight wins in the Sweet 16 or later are the longest streak since the Sweet 16 started in 1975 when the tournament expanded to 32 teams. Before that expansion, several teams started the tournament in the regional semifinal.
UCLA won a record 38 straight games in the regional semifinals or later during the dynasty under John Wooden — a mark UConn can get halfway to reaching with a win on Saturday against Illinois. The Bruins won it all in 1964 and '65, missed the tournament the next year, then won seven straight titles before the streak ended with a loss in the national semifinals to David Thompson and N.C. State in 1974.
Only one player remains on the Huskies from those back-to-back title teams, with Alex Karaban trying to become the 10th player ever to appear in three NCAA championship game wins. The other nine were all part of the UCLA dynasty, including Lew Alcindor, who later became known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Karaban has started in 17 tournament wins, third most ever, trailing only Duke's Bobby Hurley with 18 and Christian Laettner with 21.
In a tournament lacking a Cinderella, the Final Four is packed with powerhouses.
The four teams remaining entered the tournament all ranked in the top 13 in the country, with all four spending time ranked in the top five. The teams combined for 132 wins headed into the Final Four, with Arizona leading the way with 36, followed by Michigan's 35, UConn's 33 and Illinois' 28.
The 132 combined wins for the four teams are the fourth most ever headed into a Final Four, trailing only the two seasons when all four No. 1 seeds reached this level — 143 wins in 2008 and 135 wins last season — and the 133 from the 2015 season.
While UConn got to this stage with a nail-biter, the other three teams haven't really been tested yet in the tournament.
Arizona, Michigan and Illinois have won all four games by double digits, marking the first time since 1988 that at least two teams reached the Final Four after winning the first four games by at least 10 points. Oklahoma and Arizona did it that season before the Sooners beat the Wildcats in the semifinals.
The Arizona-Michigan game will be just the second time since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985 that teams met in the Final Four having won all their previous games by double digits.
The Wolverines became the first team ever to win four games in a single tournament by at least 10 points, while scoring at least 90 points in every game. The 381 points scored so far by the Wolverines are the third-most ever for a team that made the Final Four, trailing only the 1988 Sooners with 387 and Kentucky with 388 in 1993.
Michigan's 33-point win over Tennessee was the largest in the Elite Eight since the Wolverines beat Virginia 102-65 on the way to their first title in 1989.
The tournament hasn't been kind to Duke coach Jon Scheyer when it comes to protecting leads.
A year after blowing a 14-point lead in the second half to Houston in the national semifinals, the Blue Devils lost to UConn after leading by 15 points at halftime and as many as 17 points in the second half.
That was the largest halftime lead ever blown by a No. 1 seed in the tournament, topping the 14 points for Virginia in a loss to Syracuse in the 2016 regional final. Before Sunday, No. 1 seeds had been 134-0 when leading by at least 15 points at halftime since seeding began in 1979.
Scheyer's Duke team also lost the regional final in 2024 to 11th-seeded N.C. State after leading by six points at halftime, becoming the second team ever to get eliminated from three straight tournaments after leading by at least six points at the half in each game. Auburn did it from 2023-25 under coach Bruce Pearl.
The Blue Devils have some company when it comes to blue bloods blowing big leads in this year's tournament.
Duke rival North Carolina squandered a 19-point lead in the second half to lose a first-round game against Virginia Commonwealth. The Blue Devils and Tar Heels have some shared history when it comes to big blown leads, with UNC also doing it in the 2022 title game against Kansas.
Duke and North Carolina are the only teams to lose twice in the tournament since 2015 after leading by at least 14 points in the second half, according to Sportradar.
UConn center Tarris Reed opened March Madness by becoming the first player since Elvin Hayes in 1968 to have at least 30 points and 25 rebounds in the tournament.
After a lackluster game in the second round against UCLA, Reed stepped up again this past weekend with 46 points in wins over Michigan State and Duke.
That gives Reed 87 points and 54 rebounds in the first four games, making him the fourth player ever to enter the Final Four with at least 80 points and 50 rebounds. Zach Edey did it for Purdue in 2024, Hayes in 1968 and Elgin Baylor in 1958.
Reed isn't the only player remaining who has joined impressive company.
Arizona's Koa Peat had 21 points in the Sweet 16 and 20 more in the regional final against Purdue, becoming the sixth freshman since the start of the Sweet 16 in 1975 with 20-point games in wins in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight.
Kon Knueppel did it for Duke last year, along with Derrick Rose (Memphis, 2008), Joseph Forte (North Carolina, 2000), Jalen Rose (Michigan, 1992) and Kenny Anderson (Georgia Tech, 1990).
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
Illinois coach Brad Underwood celebrates after Illinois beat Iowa in an Elite Eight game in the NCAA college basketball tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Arizona forward Koa Peat (10) dunks during the second half in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Purdue, Saturday, March 28, 2026, in San Jose, Calif. (AP Photo/Kelley L Cox)
UConn guard Braylon Mullins (24) scores the winning basket during the second half against Duke in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran kept up its attacks on Persian Gulf neighbors on Wednesday as airstrikes pounded Tehran, while U.S. President Donald Trump again made contradictory statements about whether he was ready to wind down the war or escalate it.
Trump struck a hard line Wednesday in a Truth Social post, demanding that Iran stop blocking the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway vital to global oil supplies — or the U.S. would bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Ages.” A day earlier, Trump said the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” ensuring the security of ships passing through Hormuz; that was an apparent backtrack from an earlier threat to attack Iran's power grid and other infrastructure if it didn't open the strait by April 6.
Trump, who is scheduled to give a televised address Wednesday evening, said Tuesday he could walk away from the war in two to three weeks once he felt confident Iran would not be able to build a nuclear weapon — even if Tehran does not agree to a ceasefire.
But his latest Truth Social post struck a more belligerent tone as more American troops move into the region for a possible ground offensive after weeks of airstrikes targeting Iran.
Trump also claimed Wednesday that “Iran's New Regime President” wanted a ceasefire. It wasn't clear to whom the U.S. president was referring since Iran still has the same president. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, called Trump's claim “false and baseless,” according to a report on Iranian state television.
Speaking earlier to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled Tehran’s willingness to keep fighting. “You cannot speak to the people of Iran in the language of threats and deadlines,” he said. “We do not set any deadline for defending ourselves.”
Since the war began on Feb. 28, Trump has offered shifting objectives and repeatedly has said it could be over soon while also threatening to widen the conflict. Thousands of additional U.S. troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about the purpose of their deployment.
Just days ago, Trump threatened to attack Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub. And there has also been speculation about whether the U.S. could decide to send in military forces to secure Iran’s uranium stockpile — a complex and risky operation, fraught with radiation and chemical dangers, according to experts and former government officials.
Adding to the confusion is what role Israel - which has been bombing Iran alongside the U.S. — might play in any of these scenarios.
Trump has been under growing pressure to end the war as oil prices have skyrocketed, pushing up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The spot price of Brent crude, the international standard, was up more than 40% since the start of the war, trading at more than $103 a barrel on Wednesday.
A fifth of the world’s traded oil passes through the strait in peacetime, and even if it were to reopen quickly, some effects like higher food prices could persist for months or longer.
The U.S. has presented Iran with a 15-point plan aimed at bringing about a ceasefire, including a demand for the strait to be reopened and for its nuclear program to be rolled back.
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful. Its own five-point response includes retaining sovereignty over the strait.
In the interview with Al Jazeera, Araghchi acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. He insisted, however, that there were no direct negotiations and said Iran has no faith that talks with the U.S. could yield any results, saying “the trust level is at zero.”
He warned against any U.S. attempt to launch a ground offensive, saying “we are waiting for them.”
A cruise missile slammed into an oil tanker off Qatar’s coast Wednesday, the Defense Ministry said. The 21-member crew of the tanker, contracted by state-owned QatarEnergy, was evacuated and no casualties were reported.
A fully-loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker came under attack off Dubai the day before, one of more than 20 ships attacked by Iran during the war.
In the United Arab Emirates, a person was killed when he was hit by debris from an intercepted drone in Fujairah, one of the country’s seven emirates.
Bahrain sounded two alerts for incoming missiles, while Kuwait’s state-run KUNA news agency said a drone hit a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, sparking a large fire.
Jordan’s military said it intercepted a ballistic missile and two drones fired from Iran in the last 24 hours. No casualties were reported. Two drones were also intercepted in Saudi Arabia, and air raid sirens sounded in Israel though there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.
An airstrike on Tehran, meanwhile, appeared to have hit the former U.S. Embassy compound, which has been controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard since American diplomats were held hostage there in 1979.
Witnesses said buildings outside the massive compound had their windows blown out and that it appears the strike happened inside the walled facility.
Israel also said it hit a plant in Iran producing fentanyl, a synthetic opioid. Israel and the United States have alleged in recent years that Iran was experimenting with using fentanyl in chemical weapons.
Iran acknowledged a strike Tuesday on Tofigh Daru factory, but insisted it only supplied “hospital drugs.” Hospitals use fentanyl to treat severe pain but it can also be fatal.
In Lebanon, at least five people were killed in an Israeli strike on a Beirut neighborhood.
Israel invaded southern Lebanon after the Iran-linked Hezbollah militant group began launching missiles into northern Israel days after the outbreak of the war. Many Lebanese fear another prolonged military occupation.
More than 1,200 people have been killed in Lebanon and more than 1 million displaced, according to authorities. Ten Israeli soldiers have also died there.
In Iran, authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel. More than two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West Bank, while 13 U.S. service members have been killed.
Rising reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
A young girl is comforted by her father and Israeli soldiers as they take cover in a bomb shelter during air raid sirens warning of incoming Iranian missile strikes in Bnei Brak, Israel, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
People inspect the site of an Israeli strike amid debris and damaged vehicles in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A man feeds stray cats in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
The Indian flagged LPG carrier Jag Vasant transporting liquefied petroleum gas, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, after it arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Firefighters and rescue workers work at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A firefighter extinguishes a car at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Israel's rescue teams and residents take shelter as sirens sounds next to a site struck by an Iranian missile in Bnei Brak, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
A police vehicle is seen through a shattered windshield at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Two men ride scooters past charred debris at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
