STORRS, Conn. — UConn, the defending national champion, is facing difficulties in making it to their second straight Final Four.
The Huskies were still in Connecticut on Wednesday night because the plane they were supposed to take to Arizona had a mechanical problem on its way to the East Coast.
The flight was supposed to leave Bradley International Airport near Hartford at around 6 p.m. Eastern time, but the plane they were supposed to use couldn't make it to Bradley due to mechanical issues, as per the school.
The NCAA, in a statement, mentioned that it worked with UConn and a charter company to come up with several alternatives, and the Huskies are expected to be in the air by about 11:30 p.m. and reach Phoenix around 1:30 a.m. local time.
The NCAA expressed disappointment over UConn's delayed arrival and stated it's unfortunate that the team's travel experience has been affected.
The team was back on campus, about 50 minutes from the airport, waiting for the issue to be resolved, according to a school spokesman.
CBS Sports was the first to report the travel problems, which coach Dan Hurley informed them about.
The Huskies haven't flown since their game with Marquette on March 6 when they had an extra day in Milwaukee due to a cancelled flight.
UConn used buses for the Big East Tournament in Manhattan, the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament in Brooklyn, and the East Regional in Boston.
No. 1 seed UConn (35-3) is set to face fourth-seeded Alabama (25-11) on Saturday night.
