UConn opens the 2026-27 men’s basketball season Monday night in Hartford, and the Huskies are stepping into it with the kind of buzz that usually comes with a team carrying a No. 4 ranking and a pile of preseason hardware.
The Huskies will host Gardner-Webb at PeoplesBank Arena, with tip-off set for 9 p.m. The game will air on Peacock and NBC Sports Network, with John Fanta, Donny Marshall and Caroline Pineda on the call.
This is the start of UConn’s 124th year of men’s basketball, a run that began in 1900 and has included all but three seasons since. The program’s resume speaks for itself: six national championships, with titles in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2023 and 2024. Over the last three decades, no one has been more successful in college basketball.
Monday also begins the ninth season of the Dan Hurley era. Hurley recently agreed to a two-year extension that runs through 2032, and he enters the year at 199-75 at UConn and 350-180 overall in 17 seasons as a college head coach. He is the youngest active coach to reach three Final Fours and one of three active coaches with multiple national titles.
The opener has been a strong spot for Hurley’s teams. UConn is 93-30 all-time in season openers and has gone 8-0 under him.
Gardner-Webb is a familiar nonconference name for the Huskies, though not a frequent one. Monday will be the third all-time meeting between the schools, and the first since a quick two-game burst in the 2007-08 season.
UConn won both of those games, taking a 78-66 decision in the 2K College Hoops Classic semifinals at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 15 and then beating the Runnin’ Bulldogs 89-72 in Hartford on Nov. 20.
The Huskies arrive at the regular season after a spotless 3-0 preseason stretch in October. They beat Syracuse 73-53, won at Michigan State 78-70 and handled Purdue 76-53 at home.
Across those three games, UConn made its biggest statement on defense, holding the three high-major opponents to 34.4 percent shooting from the field and 14.1 percent from 3-point range. The Huskies also posted a +3.0 turnover margin, a +3.7 rebounding edge and a +17.0 scoring margin.
Silas Demary Jr. and Nik Khamenia each averaged 13.0 points during the exhibition slate, giving UConn a balanced scoring base. Khamenia led the team with 8.3 rebounds per game, while Demary Jr. paced the Huskies with 3.7 assists per contest. Colben Landrew added 12.0 points per game and Na'jai Hines contributed 11.3, giving UConn four players in double figures across the three games.
The preseason recognition has matched the results. UConn entered the year No. 4 in the AP poll and was picked as the BIG EAST favorite for the second straight season. Demary Jr. was named BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year, Landrew earned Preseason Freshman of the Year honors, Braylon Mullins was selected to the Preseason First Team All-BIG EAST, and Hines landed on the Preseason Second Team.
Demary Jr. has also drawn national attention, earning preseason All-America recognition from CBS Sports and Sports Illustrated while receiving votes in the Associated Press honors. Mullins also received AP All-America votes and was named a First Team All-American by Blue Ribbon Report. Both Demary Jr. and Mullins were included on the NABC Preseason Player of the Year Watch List, making UConn one of three programs nationally with multiple players on the 20-man list.
In Other News...
UConn Just Got Exposed In One Area Before A Huge Home Test
UConns trip to Colorado Springs offered a clear reminder of how quickly a game can get away from a team when the opponent controls the ground game and the clock. The Huskies fell 35-26 to Air Force, with the Falcons leaning on a relentless rushing attack and keeping possession for more than 41 minutes, a formula that left UConn chasing the game for much of the afternoon.
Kalieb Osborne did his part through the air, throwing for 263 yards and two touchdowns, and UConn avoided turnovers, but that was not enough to offset the long stretches Air Force spent dictating the pace. With a huge home test coming next, the loss leaves the Huskies with a familiar issue to sort through: how to handle an opponent that can shorten the game and keep their offense on the sideline. [Read more 🡒]
UConns Biggest Problem In This Road Loss Was Hard To Ignore
UConns trip to Falcon Stadium turned into a familiar kind of frustration in a 35-26 loss to Air Force, with the Huskies unable to slow down the Falcons long enough to make their own offense matter. Kalieb Osborne did his part through the air, throwing for 263 yards and two touchdowns, but the game kept tilting toward Air Force as UConn spent too much of the afternoon chasing the pace and the scoreboard.
The bigger issue was impossible to miss: Air Force kept finding room on the ground and controlling the terms of the game. UConn had chances to hang around into the closing stretch, but the finish came down to one last two-point try after Osborne was sacked, leaving the Huskies with another road loss and a reminder of how quickly a game can slip away when the defense cannot get the stops it needs. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Hurley Just Reinforced What UConn Fans Love About This Program
Dan Hurleys latest deal with UConn says plenty about where this program stands right now. The mens basketball coach has spent eight seasons turning the Huskies into a national power, piling up a 199-75 record and delivering two national championships along the way, and the school responded by keeping him in place for the long haul. For a fan base that has watched UConn rise back to the top, the extension is another sign that the foundation is not going anywhere.
Hurleys commitment has become part of the story as much as the wins. He has already shown a willingness to stay rooted in Storrs when bigger opportunities came calling, and this latest agreement only reinforces the sense that he is invested in what he has built there. For UConn, that matters just as much as the trophies, because stability at the top is what keeps the whole operation moving in the same direction. [Read more 🡒]