4 eye-popping stats from UConn's throttling of Illinois

Top-seeded UConn's 77-52 drubbing over No. 3 Illinois in the Elite Eight on Saturday was utter domination, with the defending champions reminding the competition they're a cut above.

While the eye test isn't kind to the Fighting Illini, the stats are somehow an even worse indictment of the disparity between the two programs.

Here are the craziest numbers from UConn's big win.

0-for-19 with Clingan at rim

Any Illinois shot in the vicinity of Donovan Clingan simply wasn't going in. The 7-foot-2 center was a menace around the rim, blocking five shots and holding the Fighting Illini scoreless on 19 shot contests. When asked about his team's offensive strategy during a stoppage in play, Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood vowed to "keep going at" Clingan. It's safe to say that didn't pay off. Most of Illinois' 20 points in the paint came with Clingan on the bench. The Fighting Illini missed 22 layups and had just one dunk in the entire contest.

Illinois' 14 total points with Clingan on floor

Illinois had nothing going offensively with Clingan patrolling the paint, managing just 14 points when the future first-round pick was on the floor. Coleman Hawkins tried backing down the second-year big man only to be stopped dead in his tracks. Hawkins then tried to drag Clingan outside of the key by shooting threes, but the UConn star didn't bite on any pump fakes and used his length to limit him to a 1-of-7 clip from deep. Terrence Shannon Jr., who entered the contest as the nation's third-leading scorer, didn't fare any better. Clingan showed tremendous patience whenever Shannon drove downhill, staying vertical and rejecting the All-American guard multiple times. With two of their top three scorers neutralized, the Fighting Illini simply lacked the firepower to compete with the defending national champions.

UConn's insane 30-0 run

Huskies fans were likely at least a little nervous when Illinois tied the game up at 23 with under two minutes to play in the first half. UConn gained a little breathing room by scoring the next five points into the break, but not even the greatest UConn optimist could've predicted the unreal 25 unanswered points the Huskies put up to begin the second.

UConn scored on 12 of its first 14 possessions of the second half while forcing Illinois to miss all 14 of its shots with three turnovers over that span. In total, the Fighting Illini fell short on all 17 attempts during their extended 9-minute scoring drought.

The 30-0 spurt was the largest the Huskies have accumulated since 1992, former UConn writer Phil Chardis told CBS Sports' Matt Norlander. It was also the longest scoring streak by any Division-I team in at least three years, according to EvanMiya.

Illinois' 29.9% shooting efficiency

The endless stats about UConn's outstanding defense is a clear description of its dominance on that end. But it may not fully explain just how poorly Illinois played on offense. The Fighting Illini's 29.9% effective field-goal percentage was by far their lowest mark all season. They ranked No. 34 nationally in that stat coming into the game. It was also the lowest clip UConn allowed this season despite having already played the country's worst effective field-goal offense earlier in the year.

Somehow, Illinois' 6-of-23 mark from 3-point range was better than its 11-of-44 clip from inside the arc. The 25% field-goal percentage from two was the second-lowest mark of any Division I team with at least 40 attempts this season, according to statistician Jared Berson. Illinois' 0.75 points per possession was also the lowest number of any game in Underwood's seven seasons in Champaign.