UConn notes: Ahead of Sweet 16, Donovan Clingan reflects on his late mother's impact

BOSTON — Donovan Clingan sat at the dais in Boston’s TD Garden on Wednesday, his sole focus on the next day’s Sweet 16 matchup with San Diego State.

He was peppered with questions about NIL and betting and all of the things that have marred the current college sports landscape and answered “no comment” to most of them, reiterating his focus.

But one question about the significance of the day, March 27, caused the UConn star to reflect on his love for basketball.

“It means a lot. Six years ago today I lost my mom. That changed my life forever,” Clingan said.

His mother, Stacey Porrini Clingan, was a star basketball player at Bristol Central and then at the University of Maine — a Hall of Famer in both places she played. She died of breast cancer on March 27, 2018 at age 42, when Donovan was in eighth grade.

“I really wasn’t the biggest fan of basketball. I loved it and enjoyed playing it, but really when she passed it made me realize how much I loved basketball and gave me a reason why to be great, just gave me a reason to go,” he said. “She was a big basketball player at Maine and had a great career. Instead of going to the WNBA, she wanted to have kids and be a mom. She had me and my sister, and I just try to live her name through the game.”

Clingan wears the No. 32 — which was recently retired at UConn for Richard “Rip” Hamilton — in her honor.

“It just gave me a reason to make her proud and gave me a way to represent her and feel like I still had an attachment to her,” he said. “She was the best mom anyone could ask for and she influenced me in so many ways. I’m just hoping to make her proud.”

Clingan went on to have his own legendary career at Bristol Central, opting to stay home rather than answer several calls to prep schools. He chose to stay home again when it came time for a college decision and chose UConn, where he is hoping to win a second national title before his seemingly inevitable call to the NBA.

Clingan’s postseason performance is certainly something to be proud of.

...continued

swipe to next page