UConn is holding a championship rally Tuesday night to celebrate the men’s basketball team and welcome the players, coaches and staff home after they won another national title on Monday night.
UConn defeated Purdue, 75-60, on Monday night in Arizona to become the 2024 national champions. This is the second year in a row that UConn has won a national title and the sixth national title overall.
The team's plane landed at Bradley Airport just after 7 p.m. They boarded buses and headed for Storrs around 7:45 p.m.
The rally will be at Gampel Pavilion and it is expected to start at 8:30 p.m.
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How to get a ticket
Fans and students who would like to attend "Welcome Home" will need to claim a free ticket to the event.
Doors to Gampel will open at 7:45 p.m. and the team is expected to arrive at approximately 8:30 p.m.
Students should visit UConnHuskies.com/Students to claim tickets. The student ticket claim opened on Tuesday, April 9 at 10 a.m.
Tickets became available for claim to the general public around 11 a.m. online at UConnTickets.com.
Instructions on how claim the general public tickets will be shared on UConn Huskies social media accounts, @UConnHuskies on Instagram, X, and Facebook.
The Huskies will land at Bradley International Airport with the team buses and an escort making their way to campus by heading from Bradley Airport to Interstate 91 South to Interstate 291 East to Interstate 84 East and Exit 68 and then Route 195 onto campus and Gampel Pavilion.
There will be no public or media access at the airport.
Fans are encouraged to check UConn's main social media accounts throughout the day on Tuesday for any updates.
Ahead of the Huskies returning to the state, signs on the highways were updated to say they have now won six national championships.
Parade and rally on Saturday
While fans will be able to celebrate the team on Tuesday night, the victory parade and rally for the 2024 national champion UConn men’s basketball team will be held on Saturday in downtown Hartford.
The parade will begin at 11 a.m. and will step off at the State Capitol building at the intersection of Trinity Street and Elm Street.
It will proceed north on Trinity Street, go through the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch, turn right (east) onto Jewell Street, turn left (north) onto Trumbull Street, and end at the intersection of Asylum Street and Trumbull Street.
The rally will begin at approximately 11:30 a.m. and will be held outside of the main entrance of the XL Center on Trumbull Street, where the players, coaches, and other guests will be invited to give speeches.
After the Huskies took the title, thousands of students on the Storrs campus celebrated the win and there was some damage.
A few light posts were torn own, some outdoor seating was destroyed and some people also tore street signs out of the ground and threw them through the air.
As of Tuesday morning, UConn Police made six arrests, according to university officials. in 2023, there were 30 arrests following the championship win.
“Thousands of UConn students and others on the Storrs campus celebrated an amazing Husky victory this evening and the vast majority did so respectfully, responsibly, and safely. There were some incidents of vandalism following the victory, but they were limited in number,” UConn said in a statement. “On the whole, it was a very good night on the Storrs campus and the university looks forward to continuing to celebrate our phenomenal student-athletes, their coaches, and this incredible win.”
