UConn men arrive for Final Four after long delays

The UConn men's basketball team arrived in Arizona for the Final Four at 3:14 a.m. PT today following a long flight delay (X, 3/4). The team was originally "scheduled to take off out of Bradley International Airport around 6 p.m. EST on a chartered plane," but a "series of issues" delayed the team's departure for the Final Four in Phoenix. The NCAA is "responsible for all travel accommodations during the tournament." The flight "finally took off at about 1:30 a.m. ET Thursday," two hours after the team began boarding the plane. The chartered plane originally scheduled to come in from K.C. was delayed because its crew "would be over its mandatory hour allotment set forth by the Federal Aviation Administration." A smaller plane was then sent from Cincinnati, but "it would need a fuel fill-up before arriving in its final destination, further slowing the process" (NEW HAVEN REGISTER, 4/4). Other semifinalists Alabama, NC State and Purdue "were all on the ground in Phoenix earlier on Wednesday" (HARTFORD COURANT, 4/4).