UConn players had personal items stolen from bus during recent practice
On the court, the UConn men's basketball team has had an incredible run to the Elite Eight over the last week. Off the court, things have been a disaster for the Huskies.
According to Anthony's report, the items were stolen following Tuesday's lodging adventures in Las Vegas, where the team had to change hotels after the rooms at their originally reserved location were "deplorable." The rooms at the first hotel reportedly were trashed with dirt and vomit.
As the four-time national champions searched for new sleeping arrangements on Tuesday afternoon, members of the team practiced at the Thomas & Mack Center on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) campus. That was when the items were stolen, according to head coach Dan Hurley, athletic director David Benedict and numerous players.
"Disaster," Hurley said following No. 4 UConn's Sweet 16 win over No. 8 Arkansas on Thursday night, per Anthony. "Then stuff gets stolen. It was a debacle. Obviously, when you play at UConn, you have tremendous resources. The way we travel gives us a chance to pursue championships. It wasn’t what you expected when you got to Las Vegas for the Sweet 16. We didn’t know there would be police reports from day one. We didn’t know we’d be moving with our tails between our legs back into the hotel just to get our bags and leave. It was an awkward situation. But now we’re in a much better place."
Freshman Donovan Clingan reportedly had his iPad taken, so he bought a new one, and he said that a manager had his laptop stolen. Clingan added that he used an app on his cell phone to track his iPad's location, which ended up only being three miles away.
"We were practicing at UNLV and my backpack was on the bus. I remember leaving my backpack on the bus, on the seat. I came back, it’s opened up. They didn’t take my Beats [headphones]. They didn’t take my laptop. But my iPad was gone," he said. "The only way to turn this week around is to win two games."
The Huskies' chance to win that second game and advance to their first Final Four since 2014 will come Saturday night when they face No. 3 Gonzaga. UConn's last NCAA title came nine years ago as a No. 7 seed.
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