Who Can Challenge the Huskies?
The Story: The men’s basketball team enters Big East play Saturday against Butler and has easily been the most impressive team in the conference.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: The Huskies were picked to finish fourth in the Big East in a preseason poll of misinformed coaches, but after a perfect 11-0 nonconference record, they are ranked No. 3 in the country and are the overwhelming favorites in the conference.
• While some teams have fallen on hard times, we have a good sense of what to expect as the Huskies look to break through in their third year in the conference.
• Creighton: The Bluejays (6-5) are still a top threat to the Huskies in the Big East, even though they’ve lost five in a row and have tumbled out of the rankings, where they began the season as the No. 9 team in the country.
• Marquette: A relatively easy nonconference schedule, punctuated with a 96-70 home win over then-No. 7 Baylor, has the Golden Eagles (8-3) knocking on the door of the top 25.
• Butler: The Bulldogs (8-3) head into their home game with UConn on Saturday with a four-game winning streak, stout defense and a strong interior presence in coach Thad Matta‘s first year back.
• Villanova: Fresh off a Final Four appearance in Jay Wright‘s final season, the Wildcats (5-5) lost five of their first seven games under first-year head coach Kyle Neptune but have since reeled off three straight wins, with highly regarded freshman Cam Whitmore leading the way.
• Xavier: Watch out for the defending NIT champion Musketeers (8-3), who have Sean Miller back as head coach (and not facing sanctions for NCAA violations while at Arizona). Their only losses have come against three top-12 teams by a combined 13 points, and they are led by UTEP transfer Souley Boum‘s 17 point per game and riding a four-game win streak heading into conference play.
• Georgetown: The Hoyas (5-6) were picked 10th in the Big East preseason coaches’ poll, and Patrick Ewing‘s squad has done nothing to prove it wrong, although high-scoring sophomore guard Primo Spears, who is scoring 17.2 points per game, has been a bright spot.
• St. John’s: The Red Storm are off to a 10-1 start, with their only loss coming at No. 20 Iowa State, and are a rugged, fast-paced team led by forward David Jones at 15 points per game and center Joel Soriano with 14 points and 12.5 rebounds per game.
• Seton Hall: Shaheen Holloway has taken over at his alma mater with mixed results, but the Pirates (6-4) beat Rutgers in the Battle for New Jersey 45-43 on Sunday and are on a three-game winning streak.
• Providence: The Friars’ best win to date is against Rhode Island as head coach Ed Cooley has a lot of work to do if they are going to reach the NCAA Tournament once again.
• DePaul: The Blue Demons were picked to finish last in the Big East preseason poll. They and Georgetown are the only Big East teams outside of KenPom’s top 100 as they’re No. 106 after their loss to St. John’s on Sunday.
IS THE CONFERENCE GOOD ENOUGH? That’s a worry as the Huskies are the conference’s only team ranked in the top 25. The Big East, however, does have depth. It has eight teams in the top 100, while Xavier and Marquette are Nos. 30 and 31 in KenPom, respectively.
• The Big East is looking like a three- or four-bid conference when it comes to NCAA Tournament time. Preseason favorite Creighton is expected to take off now that its difficult nonconference schedule has concluded.
TICKETS GOING FAST: You didn’t think that tickets would last now that the Huskies are back in the top 10? The Dec. 28 game against Villanova at the XL Center is sold out, while the game against Creighton on Jan. 7 at Gampel Pavilion is also sold out.
Morning Reads
• The football team is in South Carolina to play Marshall in the Myrtle Beach Bowl, and we are going to finally see running back Brian Brewton and others on the field again. Also, Jackson Mitchell is coming back for another year, just in case you were wondering. (Hartford Courant)
• How did the Huskies get to Myrtle Beach and a bowl game? The old-fashioned way — by following their offensive line. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
• The Huskies received a commitment out of the transfer portal from Washington’s Zakhari Spears, a 6-foot-2 defensive back. (SI.com)
• How on earth did Ines Bettencourt go from being a juco-bound guard to starting for the women’s basketball team? (Hartford Courant)
• Bobby Hurley Sr. is enjoying retirement by watching his sons build national programs at UConn and Arizona State. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
Top photo: Donovan Clingan watches the action during the First Night event at Gampel Pavilion. (Ian Bethune for The UConn Daily)
