The UConn Huskies are heading into Big East play with momentum, confidence-and a bit of urgency. Sitting at 10-1, the defending national champs have already done some heavy lifting in the non-conference portion of their schedule, stacking up quality wins that will matter come Selection Sunday. But as they prepare to open conference play Tuesday night against Butler at PeoplesBank Arena, the path ahead gets trickier-not necessarily because of the opponents, but because of how the NCAA Tournament selection metrics work.
Let’s start with the numbers. UConn is 5-1 in games against Quadrant 1 and 2 opponents, including an impressive 4-1 mark in Quad 1 matchups.
That puts them in elite company-only Duke and Arizona (both 4-0), and Gonzaga and Michigan State (4-1) can match that level of early-season résumé building. But here’s the catch: unlike those programs, UConn won’t have many more chances to pad that résumé.
As it stands, the Huskies won’t face another Quad 1 opponent until Jan. 13, when they travel to Seton Hall. After that?
Not again until Feb. 6, when they take on St. John’s at Madison Square Garden.
In total, UConn has just five more Quad 1 opportunities left in the regular season. Compare that to Duke and Arizona, who each have 12 such games remaining, and Michigan State with nine.
Only Gonzaga, playing in the mid-major West Coast Conference, has fewer with three.
That’s where the scheduling strategy comes into play. UConn has followed a blueprint similar to Gonzaga’s in recent years-loading up on high-level non-conference games to make up for the relative weakness of their conference schedule.
And it’s working. Friday’s 71-63 win over Texas was another Quad 2 victory, and head coach Dan Hurley made it clear that the team approached the early season with a sense of purpose.
“We knew that we had to come through,” Hurley said after the win. “We talked about it as a team.
We had to come in (to league play) with the best NET that we could come in with. We had a chance to get five Quad 1 games and one Quad 2 game, and we went 4-1 and 1-0.
There was a lot of pressure on us in the non-conference to come through. And we were able to do it.”
Senior forward Alex Karaban echoed that sentiment: “We know how important building a résumé is. It starts with the non-conference. We had many opportunities to do that and we capitalized, for the most part.”
Still, the nature of the NET rankings means things can shift. Some of UConn’s current Quad 2 or even Quad 3 games could bump up a quadrant if their opponents get hot.
On the flip side, some of those valuable Quad 1 or 2 matchups could slide down if teams falter. Case in point: UConn’s Jan. 4 showdown with Marquette-a team typically considered a Big East heavyweight-is currently listed as a Quad 4 game.
That’s not a typo. That’s where the Big East is right now.
The conference as a whole is having a down year. The Big East ranks fifth among the so-called “Power 5” leagues in overall NET.
UConn’s four Quad 1 wins are as many as the rest of the conference combined. Seton Hall has two, while Butler and Georgetown have one apiece.
The league’s overall record in Quad 1 games? Just 8-23.
That puts UConn in a tough spot. Despite being ranked No. 8 in the NET and widely projected as a No. 2 seed, the Huskies might not have a clear path to the top seed line without more high-quality wins. And with limited opportunities left, they’ll need to dominate the games they do have-and hope some of their opponents improve their own résumés along the way.
So, does that mean UConn should cruise through Big East play? Not so fast.
Yes, the Huskies set a program record with 18 Big East wins in 2024, and yes, that mark is within reach again. But the road won’t be smooth.
St. John’s, currently ranked No. 22 in the NET, looms large with two meetings on the schedule.
Rick Pitino’s squad has had some early-season hiccups and lacks a true point guard, but nobody expects them to stay down for long. That first matchup at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6 is already circled on the calendar.
Then there’s the usual minefield of conference road trips. Villanova (NET 37) and Butler (46) are both capable of making NCAA Tournament noise.
Providence always plays UConn tough at The AMP. Even Creighton, despite its struggles, is never an easy out in Omaha.
And let’s not forget Seton Hall. The Pirates, picked to finish last in the preseason Big East poll, are 10-1 and sitting at No. 39 in the NET.
Head coach Shaheen Holloway has them playing with confidence and grit. More importantly, UConn hasn’t won at the Prudential Center in four straight tries-including last season, when Seton Hall only managed two Big East wins, one of which came against the Huskies.
Karaban knows what’s coming.
“We know it’s going to be a grind, regardless,” he said. “You play each team twice, round-robin.
It’s going to be super-tough. At the end of the day, we’re trying to win as many games as possible.
That was the mindset going into Florida and Texas (last) week.”
So while UConn may not have the same volume of high-profile games ahead as some of their peers, don’t mistake that for an easy ride. The Huskies have built a strong foundation-but the rest of the season will be about consistency, avoiding traps, and staying sharp in a league that, while down on paper, still has plenty of bite.