The Huskies now sit on the verge of being unranked
The UConn men’s basketball team dropped once again in the latest AP Top 25 Poll, falling six spots Monday to No. 25.
The Huskies descended five spots last week from No. 14 to No. 19 following a loss to Creighton, and now slip all the way to the edge of being unranked after their loss to Xavier Saturday night. UConn narrowly won its other game last week, an 80-78 win over Butler in overtime.
UConn has now lost three times through nine games of Big East play, having already surpassed its loss total from last season when the team went 18-2 through the 20-game conference slate. Its ranking in the conference continues to drop as UConn is now tied for fourth with Creighton in the standings. Marquette (17-3, 8-1 Big East) and St. John’s (17-3, 8-1 Big East) sit atop the standings.
It was another steadfast week for Marquette, who jump just one spot to No. 9 this week, while St. John’s took a big leap, moving up five spots to No. 15. KenPom and the NCAA’s NET ratings slots Marquette in at No. 13, while St. John’s sits at KenPomo No. 19 and NET No. 26. Both metric systems continue to disfavor the Huskies, with them both ranking UConn at No. 36.
It was another good week for sophomore guard Solo Ball, who was named to the Big East Weekly Honor Roll. In the loss to Xavier, he recorded his first career double-double, scoring 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. In the win against Butler, he led the team with 23 points. He averaged 21.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the week’s two games to earn his spot atop the conference’s best players of the week.
The Huskies are now tied for their worst ranking of the season, returning to the No. 25 spot which they held in week seven after their 0-3 skid at the Maui Invitational. They play next Jan. 29 against DePaul at home. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET at the XL Center.