The No. 5 UConn men’s basketball team (7-1) showed resilience in its 61-56 win at No. 21 Kansas, but now the Huskies have a quick turnaround back in Storrs, taking on East Texas A&M (4-3) on Friday night.
The Huskies’ win over Kansas may be the team’s signature win of the season. Not only was the game Connecticut’s first road test, but it could not come at a more intimidating place.
Now UConn is back in its own raucous home of Harry A. Gampel Pavilion with the final buy game before taking on Florida and Texas to wrap up the non-conference portion of the 2025-26 regular season.
Connecticut’s two star freshmen, Braylon Mullins and Eric Reibe, have developed into two reliable contributors, and that has shown throughout the team’s first eight games. While Mullins has only played in the past two games, he is coming off a performance that turned the heads of NBA scouts. Mullins put up 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting while icing the game for the Huskies with two made free throws.
It will be the first time Mullins steps onto the floor of Gampel Pavilion, likely off the bench as he continues to get healthier.
Reibe’s development ramped up with the absence of Tarris Reed Jr., who remains game-to-game with an ankle injury. He is averaging 19.1 points and 9.8 rebounds per 40 minutes with an effective field goal percentage of 68%.
The improvement of UConn’s defense was present on Tuesday. Coming into the game, Kansas averaged 76.3 points per contest, including two losses to North Carolina and Duke. When UConn came into Allen Fieldhouse, the Jayhawks scored just 56 points.
This is not supposed to be a “get right” type of game, especially coming off a historic win, but UConn’s offense does need a tune-up game before playing two SEC teams before Big East play. On Tuesday, the Huskies’ offensive rating ranked in the 29th percentile at 99.7. They only dished out 12 assists to 13 turnovers.
The defense came in clutch, but it was clear that UConn’s offense needs to take advantage of the tune-up game on the last day of classes.
It is a rematch of last season’s 81-46 win at Gampel Pavilion, where Alex Karaban led the way with 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting. The point distribution was more spread out in that contest, with Liam McNeeley, Solo Ball and Aidan Mahaney also getting into double figures.
Expect a flamethrowing offense on Friday night, especially from 3-point range. Connecticut averages 8.1 made 3-pointers per game, while East Texas A&M gives up seven per game. That is, if UConn can hold onto the ball. East Texas A&M is the 16th-best team in the country at forcing turnovers, with a percentage of 22.4%.
Ronnie Harrison Jr. leads the Lions with 14 points per game on 55.1% shooting. Damian Garcia is coming off a powerful performance in East Texas A&M’s 84-67 win over Army, scoring 20 points.
UConn’s 3-point defense was poor last season, 35% (247th nationally). It was the highest opposing 3-point percentage in a season since the 2021-22 season (35.3%, 273rd nationally).
This time around, Connecticut’s 3-point defense is one of the best in the country, with opponents shooting just 25.8% from downtown (12th-best nationally). However, the Huskies must be aware of Vinny Sigona, who averages 10.3 points per game while shooting 45.2% from deep and making 2.7 3-pointers per contest.
However, nothing will be as interesting to watch as the foul differential from last season to this season. UConn committed 19 fouls last season, which served as the final game before the forgetful Maui Invitational. The Huskies look to stay as disciplined as the game in Lawrence, Kan., but cut down on the fouls, especially compared to last season.
Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. from Gampel Pavilion and is available to stream on Peacock and watch on NBC Sports Network.
Why do we have to subscribe to peacock to watch it. ????