By MONTE DUTTON

The controversial quotation, from Vince Lombardi, was:

“Winning isn’t everything. It is the only thing.”

The Green Bay Packers head coach, who lost one postseason game in his career, meant his remark to be aspirational. Winning is the only goal worth seeking.

Connecticut (30-5), a No. 2 seed, defeated Furman, a No. 15, by a score of 82-71 in the opening round of NCAA men’s basketball tournament late Friday night and Saturday morning in front of 19,636 at Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Furman (22-13) could not withstand a performance for the ages by the Huskies’ Tarris Reed Jr., who was unstoppable. Reed scored 31 points and grabbed 27 rebounds. A senior transfer from Michigan, by way of Saint Louis, Mo., he became the first player in 58 years to post a 30/25 double in the tournament, joining Ohio State’s Jerry Lucas (1962) and Houston’s Elvin Hayes (1968). He had more rebounds than the entire Furman team (23).

Yet the Paladins stayed close until the final minutes. Their aim was high.

It’s because Furman started the season slowly, endured an astonishing rash of injuries, and put everything together at season’s end. They were beaten but not intimidated when fate matched them against a program that had won two of the previous three national titles.

Wilkins and Tom House led Furman with 21 points apiece and Charles Johnston reached double figures with 10 points. House drained four triples and converted on 7/9 trips to the foul line in his final collegiate game while Wilkins, 8/15 on the night, also connected on four three-pointers.

As soon as the game finally ended, Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley said on national TV, “That wasn’t a 15 seed. I don’t know how we ended up with those guys.”

All week long, I waited for someone else, some studio analyst, former player, ex-coach, to say that. I didn’t expect the Paladins to win, but I knew they’d play like hell. Inside, Cooper Bowser and Johnston mixed it up as best they could. They had the height but not the width to stick with Reed and his bulkier mates.

The Huskies (30-5), ranked seventh in the final Associated Press Poll, advance to face No. 7 seed UCLA in second-round action on Sunday.

With its lead trimmed to 69-64 after Furman’s Alex Wilkins buried a three with 6:41 to go, UConn held the Paladins without a basket until the final 10 seconds. The teams traded free throws to give UConn a 70-65 lead and Furman pulled down a defensive rebound to regain possession with a chance to cut the margin to 2-3 points with just over five minutes to play, but a steal by Braylon Mullins led to a dunk on the fast break by Reed to push the lead back to seven points.

After turnovers by the Paladins on their next two possessions, Malachi Smith connected on his first free-throw attempt. Reed rebounded a miss on the second shot and followed back-to-back missed jumpers with offensive rebounds before senior Alex Karaban canned a triple with 2:06 remaining to put UConn in control, 76-65.

Reed finished the game 12/15 from the floor and 7/9 at the foul line. Karaban went 9/16 from the floor, including 4/9 behind the arc, to add 22 points, and Mullins finished with 12 points and six assists.

UConn jumped out to an early 12-4 lead, but Furman to hit 6/12 three-point attempts in the opening half, including Johnston’s triple from the wing at the buzzer, to pull the Paladins within four points at 40-36 heading into the locker room. The Huskies extended their advantage to 11 points in the first five minutes of the second half. Furman answered with baskets from Cole Bowser and Johnston, and the Paladins did not trail by more than 10 points again until the final 2:06.

Despite a 5/25 effort from three-point range, the Huskies shot .492 from the field and converted 13/18 opportunities at the foul line. They outscored Furman 46-24 in the paint and 16-6 on second-chance opportunities on the strength of a 44-23 rebounding edge that included 18 offensive boards.

Furman connected on .447 of its shots, 9/24 three-point attempts and hit 20/26 at the foul line.

UConn played without two injured starters, Silas Demary Jr. and Jaylin Stewart. The effect was to clear space for an extraordinary showing by Reed.

“We had an unbelievable year,” said Richey. “We put our best together when our best was required.”

Take a look at the stats here.

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