They say all bets are off in the championship game, but whoever said that apparently didn't take Kemba Walker into consideration.
Walker scored 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead No. 3 seed Connecticut past No. 8 seed Butler, 53-41, in the 2011 NCAA National Championship Game at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas on Monday night.
Connecticut, which played in a modern-day record 41 games this season, capped off its magical run in a fitting manner. After winning five games in five days to claim the 2011 Big East Tournament title, the Huskies proceeded to win its next six games to claim its third national title in school history and first since 2004.
Jeremy Lamb scored 12 points and Alex Oriakhi added 11 points and 11 rebounds for UConn, which was held to 34.5 percent shooting from the field. Shabizz Napier and Charles Okwandu each scored four off the bench for the Huskies.
Shelvin Mack scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Butler, which was ice-cold from the field, shooting an abysmal 18.8 percent (12-for-64). Chase Stigall added nine points and Matt Howard added seven points and six boards for the Bulldogs.
Butler has advanced to the national championship game in two straight seasons, but has now lost both time. The Bulldogs fell to top-seed Duke, 61-59, in the title game last season.