What did Jordan Hawkins blame his Final Four illness on?

UConn star Jordan Hawkins battled illness in his team's 72-59 Final Four win over Miami on Saturday. Hawkins was questionable to play leading up to the contest. He didn't participate in Friday's practice and wasn't fully available for Saturday's shootaround. However, he ended up playing for UConn and scored 13 points.

Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley revealed midgame that Hawkins wasn't fully healthy. He thought it was because he ate Calimari a few days ago.

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After the game, Hawkins told reporters the reason behind his illness was food poisoning. However, he stated that he planned on playing a high-stakes game and helping his team, saying:

“I absolutely knew I was going to play,” Hawkins said (via The Hour). “I didn’t care how I was feeling. Put me on a stretcher, it didn’t matter.”

“Final Four game day, I wasn’t feeling the best,” he said in the locker room. “But you just have that mentality that you’ve got to go out and win a game for a national championship.”

Jordan Hawkins started the game, scoring 13 points and shooting three triples. Two of those came at the start of the game, giving UConn a 9-0 lead, from which Miami never recovered.

Hawkins entered the final four as one of the must-watch players. He has been integral to UConn's offense all year, averaging 16.2 points per game, the second-highest on the team, and shooting 38.6% from deep on 7.7 attempts.

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Jordan Hawkins hints he will be good to go for National Championship game against San Diego

Jordan Hawkins' battling an illness ahead of one of their biggest matchups of the season in the final four gave the team the ultimate boost to prevail with another dominant performance. His coach teammates heaped praise on him for showing and up and also producing respectable numbers.

Here's what freshman Alex Karaban said (via CT Insider):

“He’s one tough player. This just shows he wants to be out there fighting with us, even though he feels … I don’t even know what percentage he feels. To still do what he did out there at such an elite level, is special. I mean, his poise out there, his confidence out there, he’s the main reason why we’re here. Just him being a leader is special.”

Another one of his freshman teammates, Donovan Clingan, reflected on Hawkins suiting up for the final four game, crediting him for his leadership, saying:

“He’s an absolute dog. When I heard he wasn’t coming to practice (Friday), I was a little worried at first. But I realized that he would never sit out a Final Four game. I knew he’d come here and dog it out. Credit it to him …it’s impressive.”

Jordan Hawkins said he would be available for Monday's national championship game against San Diego.