Charles Barkley reveals the key to Alabama upsetting UConn in Final Four

Charles Barkley may be an Auburn diehard, but he still sees a way for Alabama to pull off the Final Four upset over UConn, even if the Tide are massive underdogs.

Since March of 2023, UConn has ruthlessly ripped through college hoops, earning the No. 1 overall seed this season after winning the title in 2023. Now, they’ve yet to sniff a close game after pounding four straight teams to arrive in the Final Four. Before explaining the case for Alabama, Barkley had to tip his cap to this great UConn team.

“Well, obviously, you got to understand something: UConn is great. You know, when I was on television the other day, they showed a stat that said UConn had been up by 30 points in every game. I said hey, I think you need to check this typo. I said UConn could not have been up by 30 points in every game, and they had been. So it wasn’t a typo.”

Not an error, but just a display of how dominant the Huskies have been this month. So, for the Tide to knock them off, Barkley says it better start raining 3s in Phoenix.

“Alabama’s got one chance. They’re going to have to make between 15 and 20 3s. That’s the way they play anyway,” he commented, noting that the deep shot is a sort of equalizer for the underdogs in this tournament.

“The 3-point shot has really made a lot of upsets for smaller schools against bigger schools. I’m not saying Alabama is a small school, I’m talking like Oakland, Saint Peter’s the last couple years. They have a chance because of that 3-point shot. Alabama lives and dies with the 3-point shot. The only way they can beat UConn — in my opinion, if they make 15-20 3s, they have a shot.”

Per Charles Barkley, stellar shooting and winning the possession battle — not turning the ball over and taking control on the glass — are how Alabama gets across the finish line in this one.

They can’t turn the ball over and rebounding has got to be the key. If they can rebound the ball well, keep UConn off the boards, and don’t turn over and make a lot of 3s, they got a chance.

The Tide and Huskies get going in the late game tonight with tip-off scheduled for roughly 8:49 p.m. ET and 5:49 p.m. local PT in Arizona.