UConn’s trip to Chicago to face Illinois now has the missing pieces filled in: the Huskies will play the Illini on Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. ET on FOX.
The matchup was one of the few lingering holes in UConn’s 2026-27 schedule after the program revealed most of it on Monday. The game will be a rematch of last season’s Final Four meeting, one UConn controlled on the way to the national title game.
That Final Four win came by a 71-62 margin and sent the Huskies to their third national championship game in four years. Tarris Reed Jr. set the pace with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, while freshman Braylon Mullins added 15 and Solo Ball finished with 13. Alex Karaban had a rough night, going 1-for-8 from the field and just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc.
The rematch will look very different this time around. Reed and Karaban are both in the NBA now, and Ball is expected to miss the entire season because of injury. That leaves Dan Hurley with the task of replacing 39 points from that group.
Illinois is dealing with turnover too. Keaton Wagler, who put up 20 points in that game, is also now in the NBA.
Even with the changes, the Illinois game stands out as one of UConn’s biggest non-conference tests on a schedule that also includes Ohio State, Virginia, Kansas, Arizona and Duke.
The roster questions for the Huskies are obvious: how do they fill the scoring and physical presence left behind by Reed, Karaban and Ball? Mullins and Silas Demary Jr. could give UConn a dangerous backcourt, but the frontcourt is where the real answer has to emerge. The hope is that Na’jai Hines, a transfer from Seton Hall, can help solve that problem.
Before any of that, though, UConn has an exhibition to handle. The Huskies will face Syracuse on Tuesday night, Oct. 13, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
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For UConn, it is another reminder of how hard it can be for young players to carve out a role on a deep, demanding roster. Furphys departure opens the door for a fresh start in a different setting, and early indications are that he should have a far more prominent place in Boston Colleges rotation. The Huskies will keep moving forward, but this is the kind of exit that leaves behind a familiar question about who is next in line for minutes. [Read more 🡒]
UConn's Syracuse Exhibition Just Became A Much Tougher Early Test
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UConn Showed Real Fight But One Costly Problem Struck Again
UConns rally against Syracuse had all the makings of a stirring road comeback, with the Huskies erasing a deficit and turning a lopsided afternoon into a tense overtime game. The offense found another gear when it mattered most, and the performance on the ground gave the team a real chance to steal one after looking out of it earlier.
Cyncir Bowers was at the center of it, powering the comeback with a breakout day that kept UConn within striking distance and helped flip the momentum late. Even so, the Huskies could not escape the self-inflicted damage that has haunted them at times this fall, as flags repeatedly stalled possessions and handed Syracuse extra life in a game that ultimately turned on those costly mistakes. [Read more 🡒]