The University of Connecticut men's basketball team has battled more than its opponents en route to reaching the Final Four of the men's NCAA basketball tournament.

Before the tournament even began, the Huskies had to cope with a draining, six-overtime loss to Syracuse in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament.

Then, before the No. 1 seed opened tournament play in the first round, their head coach, Jim Calhoun, was hospitalized and missed the team's opening game against No. 16 Chattanooga. Calhoun, who was taken to the hospital to undergo tests for an undisclosed illness, was released the next day and was able to rejoin his team in time for their second-round game against Texas A&M.

The Huskies were easing through the tournament, defeating their first two opponents by 56 and 26 points, when the team was dealt another distraction. This time it was in the form of an accusation, as Yahoo Sports reported that UConn committed a violation while it was recruiting Nate Miles, who no longer plays for the Huskies.

According to the sports Web site, a UConn assistant coach was aware that Miles was being given transportation and meals by a sports agent. Calhoun acknowledged his staff might have made a mistake, but didn't want to make "judgment one way or the other."

Despite the rumors and accusations, the Huskies stayed focused on the court. The top seed in the West region topped Purdue 72-60 in the Sweet 16 before downing No. 3 Missouri 82-75 in the Elite Eight.

"We’re not worrying about any distractions. We can take care of basketball but the other stuff we don’t have the power to take care of. All we have to do is come out and play ball,” junior Hasheem Thabeet said.

With the victory over the Tigers, Connecticut advanced to its third Final Four in school history. They'll take on Michigan State on Saturday night, which could be a tough test, considering the Spartans -- who are playing in nearby Detroit -- should have a home-court advantage.

But the Huskies, who will treat the game against MSU as a road game, aren't worried.

"Coach said after practice today, he told us that we’re a good road team. We have one loss on the road, so it’s not really that big of a deal," UConn freshman Kemba Walker said.

The Huskies, whose lone road loss came against Pittsburgh -- the tournament's No. 1 seed in the East region -- during the regular season, have posted a 31-4 record this year. The team has been led by A.J. Price (14.7 points per game), Jeff Adrien (13.7 points, 10 rebounds) and Hasheem Thabeet (13.5 points, 10.9 rebounds).

Like their team, these players have also struggled through adversity.

Price, a senior, missed the 2004-05 season while battling a life-threatening condition called arteriovenous malformation (AVM), which caused bleeding in his brain. After getting medical clearance to return to action in 2006, Price was then suspended for a year for violating the school's code of conduct. He returned to action in the 2006-07 season.

Junior Thabeet has also had a difficult road to the Final Four. Born in Tanzania, Thabeet's full name was Hashim Thabit Manka. He took an altered version of his middle name as his last name after his father died. According to CBS, Thabeet said he needed to become his own man after his father's death. Thabeet's mother, Rukia Manka, still lives in Tanzania.

But now, Thabeet, Price and their teammates have only one challenge in their near future -- to defeat Michigan State in Saturday's Final Four showdown.

"(Playing in the Final Four is) everybody’s dream -- all the American kids dream. I never had a dream that one day I’d being playing in it and I got a chance," Thabeet said. "Now, I’ll go out there and play and show how we got here. We’re a good team and we’re looking forward to a good matchup against them and hopefully we’ll get the win.”