No. 5 UConn begins its quest to reclaim the Big East crown on Tuesday night when it tips off conference play by hosting Butler in Hartford, Conn.
After a year when the Huskies finished 24-11 overall and 14-6 in the Big East — four games behind league champ St. John’s — they are right back to being a team capable of winning a national championship after doing so in 2023 and 2024.
This nonconference season saw UConn (10-1, 0-0 Big East) earn signature victories over ranked opponents BYU, Illinois, Kansas and Florida. The Huskies’ lone loss came on Nov. 19 against then-No. 4 Arizona at home.
They wrapped up nonconference play on Friday by taking down Texas, 71-63. Alex Karaban led the Huskies with 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting to make up for a tough game by talented junior guard Solo Ball, who scored just nine on 3-of-10 shooting.
“So proud of the team for what we’ve been able to do in the nonconference with the quality of the opposition and the adversity with having such key players out,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “Where we are going into conference play … I’ll take it.”
Hurley was asked about the importance of his team’s nonconference success given the lack of Quad 1 opportunities this season in the Big East.
“We knew we had to come through,” Hurley said. “We had to come in with the best NET that we could come in with. It was a lot of pressure on us and we were able to do it.”
Through Sunday’s games, UConn sat No. 8 nationally in the NET rankings. St. John’s (No. 24), Villanova (34), Seton Hall (38) and Butler (43) were the league’s only other schools in the top 90.
Ball (14.5 ppg), Tarris Reed Jr. (14.3 ppg) and Karaban (13.8 ppg) lead the Huskies’ balanced attack.
On the other side, Butler (8-2, 1-0) comes in off one of the most exciting games of the season. The Bulldogs started Big East play with a 113-110, double-overtime win over Providence on Saturday.
Gonzaga transfer Michael Ajayi led the way with 28 points and 15 rebounds. Finley Bizjack added 26 and hit a huge 3-pointer to tie the game in the final minute of the second overtime.
“The physicality out there, some of the plays that were made, that was a very high-level college basketball game,” Butler coach Thad Matta said. “We beat a really good, talented team. It was a heck of a win for us.”
Bizjack averages a team-high 18.8 points per game while Ajayi adds 17.4 points. His 11.9 rebounds per game ranks second nationally, and he contributes 3.2 assists per game as well.
This series has been dominated by UConn, with the Huskies winning all 11 matchups they’ve played since 2011. However, the last four matchups have been decided by single digits. That includes an 80-78 overtime thriller on Jan. 21 at the XL Center.
Ball shined in that game for UConn, leading the way with 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting. Bizjack scored 17 points for Butler to supplement Jahmyl Telfort’s 25.
–Field Level Media
