The spring semester has tipped off in Storrs. Classrooms are full of students again, and on Saturday, so will PeoplesBank Arena.
Basketball will be back in the heart of student life on Saturday, Jan. 24, when UConn returns home to face Villanova.
The Huskies have won six of its last seven meetings with the Wildcats. The two split the regular season series last year, but UConn came out on top in the rubber-match during the Big East Tournament.
The Huskies enter the game at their highest ranking in the AP Poll in over a year. UConn has not been ranked in the top two since November 2024. The team is riding a 14-game win streak which includes an 8-0 start to conference play.
Saturday is considered a Quad 2 game for the Huskies, who have not lost in a Quad 2 or lower contest this season. Saturday will be the Wildcat’s third game against a top 10 ranked opponent. They are currently 0-2 with losses to then-No. 8 BYU and then-No. 2 Michigan. Villanova is 2-3 against foes ranked inside the top 50 of KenPom Net Rating.
UConn traded in a week on the road for a week off. The team’s bye week came after two disastrous near losses against Seton Hall and Georgetown. The Huskies almost blew an 18-point lead over the Pirates on Jan. 13, before missing two of their eight free throws down the stretch in a two-point over the Hoyas, who are 1-6 in conference play.
“At the end of the day we walked away with the win and that’s the blessing of it, definitely gonna learn from this,” Tarris Reed Jr. said.
Villanova’s most recent contest also came against Georgetown. The Wildcats earned a far more decisive victory, going on a 10-0 run out of halftime. The kill shot secured a 15-point home win, improving to 6-2 in conference play.
The Wildcat’s Head Coach Kevin Willard has flipped the program around in his first season with the team. Villanova hasn’t made it to March since 2022. Willard now has his unit poised at 15-4 and No. 24 in KenPom Net Rating.
Acaden Lewis has emerged as the straw that stirs the drink for Villanova. The freshman was the No. 35 recruit in the country, according to On3 Sports. He is averaging 12.3 points per game with the fourth highest assist rate in the Big East. Lewis is a ball hawk on the defensive end; his 1.9 steals per game also ranks No. 4 in the conference, one place ahead of UConn’s Silas Demary Jr.
The game will feature two of the nation’s top big men. Manning the middle for Villanova is Duke Brennan. The 6-foot-10 senior is one of two double digit rebounders in the Big East and is top ten in the country, averaging just over 10 per game. He posted a 10-point double-double in the win over the Hoyas.
Reed was named to the Preseason All-Big East First Team in the fall. He is scoring a team-leading 14.5 points per game while pulling down nearly eight boards. Reed has only scored less than 10 points once through eight conference games. He was dominant during the Huskies’ road trip, averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks over the two-game span.
With students back on campus, and the spotlight back over Hartford, the UConn will look to continue its dominance over the Big East. Villanova has a chance to catapult itself into the national conversation by knocking off the Huskies.
Fans might have a chance to beat the storm on the way home as the game tips off at 12:30 p.m., streaming on Fox.