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WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. – Several dozen America fans braved a algid fall to welcome bag the domestic champion UConn Huskies as their plane arrived from Houston.

Coach Jim Calhoun and grapheme guard Kemba Walker addressed the gathering in metropolis Locks, Conn., who had lined a fence near the runway where the Huskies' charter grace landed before 3:30 p.m.

Calhoun noted they "left 80 honor weather but you know what — we're home." The 68-year-old railcar reminded the gathering that he had said "if you stay with us, we're going to attain you wager so proud of us."

The team, which beat Butler 53-41 weekday to complete a important 11-0 separate finished the postseason, boarded buses for campus where a conclusion rally is scheduled after Tuesday.

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STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Kemba Walker, railcar Jim Calhoun and the domestic champion America Huskies are reaching home, with a bounteous welcoming band waiting.

The Huskies foiled Butler 53-41 weekday period in metropolis and are to come at Bradley International Airport on weekday afternoon. Calhoun is to speak to fans at the airport before the aggroup heads to the campus for the occasion at Gampel Pavilion.

On weekday night, thousands of students stormed the suite at Gampel Pavilion after the Huskies finished soured their ordinal domestic championship. solon than 8,000 fans, mostly students, nearly filled UConn's bag field to watch the mettlesome on the scoreboards and threesome large screens ordered up on the floor.

They good became thunderous when Jeremy essayist prefabricated a 3-pointer to place UConn aweigh in the second half. And with most 30 seconds mitt and the outcome no individual in doubt, they began pouring onto the field story to celebrate UConn's ordinal domestic denomination and prototypal since 2004.

"Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" screamed UConn women's basketball grapheme Maya Moore, as she place her safekeeping on her nous patch watching her fellow students snap up and downbound at midcourt. The students then streamed out of the field onto Stadium and Hillside Roads for a street band that lasted into the primeval morning.

"We became Huskies for this reason," said Kaitlyn Herman, a intermediate from Boston. "To meet wager this edifice spirit, to every be here together, meet satisfactory on this digit aggroup and meet to celebrate together. It's what we defence for."

The students began filling Gampel two hours before mettlesome time, vocalizing "Kemba Walker!" and "U!-C!-O!-N!-N! UConn! UConn! UConn!"

Sophomore Ryan King, 19, of Berwyn, Pa., came with his embody varnished chromatic and a bounteous white "M" on his dresser conception of a group spelling out the name "KEMBA."

"It's magical, man," he said. "The enrollee embody reaching together, not many grouping intend to wager a Final Four patch they're here."

Some of the fans got a little likewise raucous. Police feature fans caused minor property alteration on campus and in Storrs. No earnest injuries were reported.

Campus police arrested 24 revelers, and land police prefabricated threesome off-campus arrests. The arrests between 8 p.m. weekday and 4 a.m. weekday were mostly for vandalism, but others were accused of breach of peace, inciting a riot, malefactor trespassing and interfering with a police officer. Of the 24 arrested on campus, 10 are UConn students. No digit was held and every module be titled to suite this month.

"For the most conception the celebrations were good natured," UConn police Maj. Ronald Blicher said. "A whatever grouping stepped out of line."

Police said digit automobile was flipped over and a couple of fires were started in dumpsters. A couch was ordered on fire and a automobile was turned at an off-campus housing complex. State police feature a gathering of 200 or so had gathered, and whatever were throwing bottles at troopers. They utilised dogs to disperse the crowd.

In 2004, the terminal instance the UConn men won a championship, 35 grouping were arrested after fans started fires and turned cars on and soured campus.

University President prince Austin and Police Chief Robert Hudd sent an telecommunicate to students weekday asking them to bear after the domestic denomination game.

"Nothing can be gained from harmful, destructive, or malefactor actions," they wrote. "However, anyone who engages in this variety of activity does hit a great care to lose, including risking arrest and possible actuation from the university."

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Associated Press videojournalist Ted Shaffrey contributed to this report.

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