Jayson Tatum reacts to Duke’s buzzer-beater loss to UConn: ‘I was sick’

“Hate to see us go out like that, but it was still an unbelievable year.”

Jayson Tatum AP Photo/Charles Krupa

Jayson Tatum only spent a year at Duke, but he remains connected to the program in various ways.

In October, he was named chief basketball officer of the Blue Devils’ men’s basketball program. In some ways, the role brought things full circle. Tatum is now in an advisory role lending his voice to coach Jon Scheyer, who helped recruit Tatum to the school 11 years ago.

“Just tried to be a voice and resource,” Tatum said. “Talking to the staff, I talked to Jon every other day. Players on the team would reach out. Just being an extended resource to the team and the guys that had any questions. I watched as many games as I could.”

Tatum spent some time on campus during the summer, and he kept tabs on the team’s NCAA Tournament run.

So, it’s no surprise that he was disappointed to see UConn end Duke’s season with a buzzer-beater in the Elite Eight.

“I was sick,” Tatum said. “But I couldn’t be more proud of those guys. It was an unbelievable season. Scheyer and his staff, obviously I have a great relationship with them.”

“Hate to see us go out like that, but it was still an unbelievable year. We had the toughest schedule, No. 1 overall seed. … So I just kind of felt for all those guys in the locker room. That is an incredible way to lose, so I felt for all those guys.”

Duke was up by 2 with 10 seconds to go in the game and they had the ball. UConn’s frantic ball pressure resulted in a trap near the half-court March Madness logo where a pass was deflected.

Freshman guard Braylon Mullins tracked it down, tossed it to Massachusetts native Alex Karaban, who ultimately gave it back to Mullins for a game-winning heave from the logo.

The win put the Huskies back in the Final Four. UConn won the national title in 2023 and 2024. They lost in the second round to eventual national champion Florida last year. Now, the Huskies are two wins away from making it three national titles in four years.

UConn is set for a rematch with Illinois. The Huskies beat the Fighting Illini by 25 points at TD Garden in the 2024 Elite Eight on their way to claiming the second championship of the Dan Hurley era.

Tip-off for UConn-Illinois is set for Saturday at 6:09 p.m. With Duke out, the remaining two No. 1 seeds will face each other. Arizona and Michigan will follow at 8:49 p.m. on Saturday.

Khari A. Thompson

Sports Reporter

Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

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