BOSTON — Music echoed through TD Garden late Saturday. It was, of course, ‘‘We Are the Champions’’ by Queen.
As the song celebrated UConn returning to the Final Four after decimating Illinois 77-52 in the East Region final, tears fell in the Illini’s locker room nearby.
‘‘Ooh, that sucks,’’ Illinois coach Brad Underwood said as he emerged from the emotional locker room.
There were no water guns or smiles that had accompanied the Illini all tournament long.
Instead, Illinois was left dejected after a game that was supposed to be a battle between the top two offenses in the country turned into another Huskies mauling.
‘‘With the slow start, bouncing back and tying it felt good,’’ Illini forward Marcus Domask said. ‘‘Then, obviously, it just slipped away from us.’’
Illinois never had a tight enough grasp on the game for anything to slip away. Instead, the little momentum the Illini seemed to be gaining — courtesy of a strong first-half effort from Domask — was stifled the moment both teams returned to the court after halftime.
Forward Coleman Hawkins was visibly frustrated. Guard Terrence Shannon Jr. couldn’t buy a shot. And Domask’s magic had faded.
All the while, UConn paraded up the court, through the lane and to the rim as though it was practice. Illinois trailed 28-23 at the half, but the Huskies again proved their opponents are never as close as they seem by scoring the first 25 points of the second half to complete a 30-0 burst.
‘‘They got out in transition and started running up the score,’’ Hawkins said. ‘‘We stayed at 23 the whole time.’’
UConn big man Donovan Clingan bullied the Illini all game long, finishing with 22 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.
‘‘I don’t think that matchup was very difficult,’’ Hawkins said. ‘‘A lot of my frustration was the [officiating].’’
Whatever Hawkins wants to call it, Illinois had no answer for Clingan. He thwarted every attempt they made at the rim.
At one point in the first half, Shannon drove to the basket, as he had countless times before. This time, however, Clingan was waiting. He sent Shannon bouncing off of him and onto the floor like a rubber ball.
Shannon was averaging 31.2 points through the Illini’s six postseason games — going back to the start of the Big Ten Tournament — but the Huskies held him to a season-low eight.
Domask was the only player for Illinois with more than 10 points. He finished with 17 points and three rebounds.
‘‘He didn’t have his best day,’’ Underwood said of Shannon. ‘‘But what a great season.’’
All season long, the Illini’s high-powered offense stunned opponents. The team hadn’t suffered a double-digit loss before Saturday, which was its lowest-scoring game of the season.
Still, Illinois took a step forward as a program this season. For the first time in nearly two decades, the Illini made it out of the first weekend of the tournament. They won 29 games and a Big Ten championship.
The disappointment was painted across every face that donned an orange jersey, and Underwood said he could handle that — provided it was reserved solely for this performance. Everything that came before needs to be celebrated, he said.
‘‘Nobody expected that today,’’ Underwood said. ‘‘But [UConn was] phenomenal.
‘‘When you care about people and it doesn’t end the way you want it to, it’s very emotional. I’m the worst. I love each and every one of them. They’re all going to be successful. We just weren’t today.’’
