Even before both UConn basketball teams made successful marches to their respective Final Fours, university officials had been discussing campus safety preparations for potential celebrations, according to a UConn spokesperson.
The planning comes in the wake of rioting that followed last year's NCAA men's national championship, won by UConn on April 3.
As an excited crowd of thousands left an official watch party at Gampel Pavilion and other gatherings, some proceeded to vandalize the Storrs campus. Small fires were set, a van was overturned and metal light poles were taken down-- some used as battering rams to shatter windows.
"It’s important to emphasize that the vast majority of our students celebrated last year’s championship in a responsible, appropriate manner," says UConn spokesperson Stephanie Reitz. "It’s unfortunate that a small fraction of people in the crowds chose to be disruptive, but their behavior should reflect only on them, not on our full student body or other Husky fans."
The university says sixteen people suffered minor injuries and thirty-nine were arrested. Six, some who were in their final semester, were expelled from UConn for their actions that night.
UConn is now releasing details about a few of the measures which will be employed to prevent a potential repeat:
--While official campus watch parties will be held, no alcohol will be served at Gampel Pavilion, as it was last year.
--Official events will be limited to UConn students.
--Metal light poles outside Gampel are being temporarily removed and replaced by alternative lighting.
--The university is sharing messages with student groups, "with the focus on highlighting the best when cheering on our Huskies and representing our University with pride."
The top-seeded UConn men play Alabama in the National Semifinal on Saturday night in Phoenix. A win would put them in the National Championship on Monday. The UConn women play Iowa in the semifinals on Friday in Cleveland to earn a spot in the National Championship on Sunday.