INDIANAPOLIS, IN — A former University of Dayton starting point guard has helped the University of Connecticut reach the 2026 Final Four.
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Malachi Smith started 77 of 86 games for Dayton from 2022 until 2025 before entering the transfer portal.
He is playing his redshirt senior year at UConn.
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Smith has only started 2 of 38 games for the Huskies. But he started on March 20 against Furman and finished with four points and seven assists.
UConn played Duke on Sunday in the East Regional Finals in Washington, D.C.
The Blue Devils led by as many as 19 points, 44-25, late in the first half, but the Huskies kept chipping away.
Smith made a floater and had an assist on an Eric Reibe basket to cut the halftime deficit to 44-29.
UConn cut it to 70-66 with 1:31 left. Alex Karaban’s three-pointer trimmed the deficit to one, 70-69, with 50 seconds left.
Cameron Boozer scored to increase Duke’s lead to 72-69. Slia Demary, Jr., made one of two three throws with 10 seconds left to cut it to 72-70.
Demary stole Cayden Boozer’s pass to give the Huskies one more chance. Karaban got it to Braylon Mullins, who buried a 35-footer, with less than a second left to put the Huskies ahead, 73-72.
This is UConn’s third Final Four appearance in the last four years.
They will play Illinois at 6:09 p.m. The second game will be Michigan versus Arizona at 8:49 p.m.
The 2026 Men’s Basketball Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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