UConn center Donovan Clingan (32) and the Huskies are one win shy of their second Final Four appearance. (Photo courtesy UConn Athletics)
It’s an exciting time of year for the UConn men’s basketball team and their fans as the Huskies advanced in the 2024 NCAA tournament, winning their ninth consecutive NCAA contest on Thursday night with a 82-52 win over San Diego State in Boston’s TD Gardens.
The Huskies, the top seed in the East Region, are trying to become the first team to repeat as NCAA champions since Florida in 2007.
But it’s also a time of reflection for starting center Donovan Clingan and his family. On Wednesday, less than 24 hours before taking the floor against San Diego State, Clingan was asked about the significance of the date – March 27.
“I mean, it means a lot. Six years ago today, I lost my mom. That changed my life forever,” Clingan said.
“I really wasn’t the biggest fan of basketball,” he said. “I loved it and enjoyed playing it, but really when she passed, it made me realize how much I loved basketball and gave me a reason why to be great and how to just give me a reason to go.”
Stacey (Porrini) Clingan was an outstanding basketball player at Bristol Central where she also swam and ran track and field. She held the city record for rebounds (1,032) when she graduated in 1993, according to the Bristol Sports Hall of Fame. She averaged 17 points and 21 rebounds and six blocks per game in her senior year according to the Bristol Sports Hall of Fame.
She played basketball at the University of Maine, scored 1,128 points, pulled down 929 rebounds and had 220 blocks in career, leading the Black Bears to three NCAA berths.
“She was a big basketball player at Maine and had a great career,” said Donovan, who wears the No. 32 in her honor. “Instead of going WNBA, she wanted to have kids and be a mom. She had me and my sister, and I just try to live her name through the game.”
Excelling in basketball has helped Donovan with the loss of his mother. She passed away in March 2018 due to breast cancer.
“It just gave me a reason to make her proud and gave me a way to represent her and feel like I still had an attachment to her. She was the best mom anyone could ask for, and she influenced me in so many ways. I’m just hoping to make her proud,” he said.
Donovan is averaging 12.6 points and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds a game for the Huskies (34-3). He was 9-of-11 from the floor with 19 points and eight rebounds in the NCAA tournament win over Stetson and had 14 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocked shots in the tournament win over Northwestern.
He eight points and eight rebounds in Thursday night’s win over San Diego State, a rematch of last year’s NCAA championship game.
UConn head coach Dan Hurley spoke about the loss of Donovan’s mother and how it has helped shape his life.
“Donovan is just a unique personality,” Hurley said. “It’s just rare to see somebody that has dealt with what he has dealt with, the heart-breaking tragedy, and then has the personality that he has.
“He’s so alive, and he’s so vibrant, and he brings so much personality. He’s a total giver. He’s just a special, unique human being.” Hurley said.
Hurley praised Clingan’s parents – Bill and Stacey – and the community of Bristol. Donovan resisted the temptation of going to a prep school program to face tougher competition and graduated from Bristol Central just as his mother did.
“They didn’t let him get too big for his britches,” Hurley said.
Donovan has a perspective that some players don’t have yet at this point of their career.
“Even the way he handled last year at the end of the season,” Hurley said after the Huskies won the national championship. “He would have been a top-20 pick (in the NBA draft). Knew he wasn’t ready. Literally the next day, (he) just came in and said, hey, Coach, I’m not ready. Let’s run it back. There wasn’t a meeting with the agent and a series of drama, you know. He is a special kid.”
The Huskies face Illinois on Saturday at 6 p.m. with the winner advancing to the Final Four in Phoenix on April 6 and 8.
