Dutcher is one of six coaches set for an Elite Eight debut this year, the most in a single season since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
None of the other five reached this stage in as spectacular fashion as Dutcher, however, as SDSU upset the number one overall seed 71-64 on Friday.
And Dutcher had a sporting great on his mind as he inspired his players in their unlikely win.
"I just tell the guys: nothing is going to be easy, so just keep playing our brand of basketball, keep doing your best, stay competitive," the coach said.
"And I'm using Muhammad Ali quotes because we're Louisville.
"We talked about confidence, and the key to confidence is being fearless, and I thought we were fearless tonight."
Dutcher does not want this to be the end of SDSU's run, though, adding: "When we recruit, we say our goal is to win a national championship, so we can't act surprised when we have an opportunity to advance to the Final Four.
"It's not just words we use to get them to come here. It's words we believe in."
Despite the disappointment of defeat, Alabama coach Nate Oats attempted to focus on the positives of the past year.
"I'll say it's one of the most memorable seasons ever," he said. "It's not easy to win the regular season, the SEC tournament in the same year and make a Sweet 16 run.
"It's a great group that really loves each other.They're going to be close for life, most of them.
"I love the group, they love each other, and it's just really disappointing that it's ending early.
"But I think it's one of the most memorable seasons in Alabama history, and they can walk out of here with their heads up."
The Huskies beat San Diego State 76-59 in Houston on Monday, capping their brilliant tournament with a sixth straight double-digit win, maintaining their perfect 5-0 record in National Championship games.
Of UConn's five titles, four have been won in Texas, while the last one came in 2014.
Hurley took over UConn in 2018, and said this was the vision he had sold to the university and its players.
"Obviously a dream come true for all of us," he told reporters.
"It's part of the programme, we sold the vision – I sold the vision to the university that I could put together a special group of people, a coaching staff, and unbelievable players like this, so it feels great to come through.
"This was our vision, this was our dream, this is what we said when we recruited these guys – to get together and do something big. It's just great to come through on promises made to these players and the university. It was an honour to play against San Diego State, too.
"It was probably the most physical, toughest team we’ve played this year – certainly one of the best. I've just got so much admiration for how they play and their coach, he's one of the best coaches in the country."
Aztecs coach Brian Dutcher was gracious in defeat.
He said: "First of all I congratulate coach Danny Hurley and UConn Huskies. Very deserving. They've played at an elite level the entire tournament.
"We battled, we battled back to five in the second half but gave them too much separation. We weren't at our best. We had to be at our best to win the game. A lot of that has to do with UConn."
Dutcher, though, had few complaints with how his team performed through the championship.
"I'm proud of our guys. These guys have given me everything they've had," he added.
"These guys are what it’s all about – college athletics. Good people, good students and they're really good players.
"We can feel good about the things we did. We're disappointed in the loss, but there's a brotherhood in the locker room that will never be divided by a margin of victory or not winning at all. That brotherhood is going to last a lifetime, I told them that."
Butler got downhill and hit a 17-foot two-point shot as time expired completing a remarkable 14-point second-half comeback for the Aztecs.
It was the first buzzer-beater during this NCAA tournament and only the fifth in the Final Four history.
Aztecs coach Brian Dutcher opted against calling a timeout when Nathan Mensah rebounded Johnell Davis' missed jumper with the Owls leading 71-70 with 10 seconds left, before Butler drove on and took responsibility with his buzzer-beater for the ages.
"I didn't really know how big it was," Butler said who was mobbed by teammates and coaches. "We're going to the national championship. That's not things many people do."
After trailing 40-33 at half-time, SDSU found its defensive grip to work its way back into the contest, with Matt Bradley scoring 21 points with six rebounds.
Alijah Martin top scored for FAU with 26 points including three triples along with seven rebounds.
The Aztecs will face UConn who accounted for the Miami Hurricanes 72-59 with forward Adama Sanogo outstanding with 21 points including two three-pointers and 10 rebounds.
UConn advanced to their fifth National Championship game, with the Huskies having not lost to a non-conference opponent this year and winning all five NCAA games by double digits.
Huskies guard Jordan Hawkins overcame illness to contribute 13 points, while Miami's Isaiah Wong scored a team-high 15 points on four-of-10 shooting with their offense blunted, going at 32.3 per cent from the field as a team.
With their seasons on the line, the two sides combined to shoot a dismal five-of-30 (16.6 per cent) from three-point range, but there were no such struggles for Aztecs junior guard Lamont Butler.
Butler posted a game-high 18 points on eight-of-11 shooting, nailing both of his three-point attempts, while only committing one turnover in his 30 minutes.
Seven-foot-one Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner continued his strong NCAA Tournament with a team-high 17 points (eight-of-17 shooting), six rebounds and two blocks.
It was not without controversy though, as after Bluejays senior transfer Baylor Scheierman tied the game with 32 seconds remaining, San Diego State's Darrion Trammell was fouled on the potential game-winning floater with 1.2 seconds on the clock.
Creighton's players and coaches were apoplectic at the call, which was borderline, and after Trammell missed the first free throw, he drained the second to secure the one-point victory.
They will face this year's most unlikely Final Four participants next, with Florida Atlantic waiting in the wings after having never won a single game in the NCAA Tournament prior to this season.
Meanwhile, the five-seed Miami Hurricanes also booked their ticket to the first Final Four in school history after an 88-81 triumph over two-seed Texas.
The Hurricanes were coming off their first ever Elite 8 appearance in 2022, and they have gone even further this time around thanks in large part to the spectacular showing from senior wing Jordan Miller.
Miller scored a game-high 27 points – his highest total since November 2020 – while shooting a perfect seven-of-seven from the field and 13-of-13 from the free throw line.
All five of Miami's starters scored at least 11 points each, and they did it in old-school fashion, shooting 59 per cent from the field while only attempting eight three-pointers as a team.
The Hurricanes will meet the Connecticut Huskies in the Final Four, who are the only team seeded fourth or lower in NCAA Tournament history to win four games in a row by double-digits.
The Crimson Tide were well below their best in a sloppy performance with 14 turnovers, shooting three-of-27 from beyond the arc.
SDSU's Darrion Trammell scored 21 points as San Diego progressed to the Elite Eight for the first time.
Trammell led the way offensively for the Aztecs, while Nathan Mensah had eight rebounds and five blocks, while Lamont Butler had three steals, four rebounds and four assists.
For Alabama, top-five NBA Draft prospect Brandon Miller scored nine points with 11 rebounds but committed six turnovers and shot three-of-19 from the field, including one-of-10 from three-point range.
Crimson Tide guard Mark Sears scored 16 points with 10 rebounds but shot none-of-five from beyond the arc.
"Everybody is really disappointed in the loss," Alabama coach Nate Oats said. "It ended too soon."
Midwest regional top seed Houston were also eliminated in the Sweet 16 on Friday after losing 89-75 to Miami.
Hurricanes guard Nijel Pack led the way with 26 points including seven-of-10 three-pointers as Miami made 11 of their first 22 attempts from beyond the arc.
Miami will take on Midwest second seed Texas in the Elite Eight after the Longhorns won ___ over the Xavier Musketeers, with Tyrese Hunter scoring a team-high __ points with __-of-__ three-pointers.
South regional six seed Creighton defeated Princeton 86-75 to set up a Elite Eight meeting with SDSU, after Ryan Kalkbrenner and Baylor Scheierman scored 22 and 21 points respectively.
The Huskies capped their brilliant NCAA tournament with a sixth straight double-digit win, maintaining their perfect 5-0 record in National Championship games. It was also the fourth time UConn has claimed the national crown in Texas.
It ends San Diego State's wonderful campaign having made the National Championship game for the first time in their history.
Newton top scored with 19 points along with 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Sanogo added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jordan Hawkins contributed 16 points. Malian big man Sanogo won the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.
The Huskies shot 23-of-53 from the field, along with 24-of-27 from the free-throw line, opening up a 36-24 half-time lead and never looking back.
The Aztecs got within five points at 60-55 with 5:19 left in the second half, but UConn immediately responded with a Hawkins three-pointer.
Keshad Johnson top scored for the Aztecs with 14 points, while Darrion Trammell and Final Four hero Lamont Butler both added 13 points. SDSU shot six-of-23 from three-point range.
Huskies head coach Dan Hurley said: "We knew we were best team in the tournament going in and we just needed to play to our level."
UConn's triumph means they draw level with Duke and Indiana for fourth-most all-time in NCAA history, having lifted the title in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014 and now 2023.
The Huskies capped their brilliant NCAA tournament with a sixth straight double-digit win, maintaining their perfect 5-0 record in National Championship games. It was also the fourth time UConn has claimed the national crown in Texas.
It ends San Diego State's wonderful campaign having made the National Championship game for the first time in their history.
Newton top scored with 19 points along with 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Sanogo added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jordan Hawkins contributed 16 points. Malian big man Sanogo won the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.
The Huskies shot 23-of-53 from the field, along with 24-of-27 from the free-throw line, opening up a 36-24 half-time lead and never looking back.
The Aztecs got within five points at 60-55 with 5:19 left in the second half, but UConn immediately responded with a Hawkins three-pointer.
Keshad Johnson top scored for the Aztecs with 14 points, while Darrion Trammell and Final Four hero Lamont Butler both added 13 points. SDSU shot six-of-23 from three-point range.
Huskies head coach Dan Hurley said: "We knew we were best team in the tournament going in and we just needed to play to our level."
UConn's triumph means they draw level with Duke and Indiana for fourth-most all-time in NCAA history, having lifted the title in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014 and now 2023.
The Huskies capped their brilliant NCAA tournament with a sixth straight double-digit win, maintaining their perfect 5-0 record in National Championship games. It was also the fourth time UConn has claimed the national crown in Texas.
It ends San Diego State's wonderful campaign having made the National Championship game for the first time in their history.
Newton top scored with 19 points along with 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Sanogo added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jordan Hawkins contributed 16 points. Malian big man Sanogo won the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.
The Huskies shot 23-of-53 from the field, along with 24-of-27 from the free-throw line, opening up a 36-24 half-time lead and never looking back.
The Aztecs got within six points with 5:19 left in the second half, but UConn immediately responded with a Hawkins three-pointer.
Keshad Johnson top scored for the Aztecs with 14 points, while Darrion Trammell and Final Four hero Lamont Butler both added 13 points. SDSU shot six-of-23 from three-point range.
Huskies head coach Dan Hurley said: "We knew we were best team in the tournament going in and we just needed to play to our level."
UConn's triumph means they draw level with Duke and Indiana for fourth-most all-time in NCAA history, having lifted the title in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014 and now 2023.
