No. 4 UConn men’s basketball hosts DePaul with chance to improve on historic start: How to watch

The Big East didn’t have a great showing as a whole in nonconference play and it only boasts one clear national championship contender, and only one ranked team, halfway through the regular season in college basketball.

But there is no question that the league still produces some of the most competitive and enthralling games in the sport on a nightly basis.

UConn came back from down 11 in the final three minutes of regulation to win in overtime on the road, 108-93, after the beer already started flying in a potential game of the year at Providence on Wednesday. The Huskies made a program-record 18 3-pointers on 32 attempts (56.3%) and shot 49.3% from the field, while the Friars, minus a handful of costly turnovers, were as efficient at 50% from the field and 58.3% from deep.

Now UConn returns home for a second matchup with a DePaul team that narrowly edged Georgetown, 56-50, on Tuesday despite holding the Hoyas to a shocking 1-for-23 from the field (4.3%) in the second half.

No. 4 UConn men’s basketball mounts thrilling comeback, escapes Providence with 103-98 road win in OT

There were almost as many combined turnovers (28) as made shots (30).

The Huskies are riding high at 15-1 for the first time since the 2008-09 Final Four season under Jim Calhoun. Ranked No. 4 in the country with the top resume in college basketball, according to EvanMiya.com analytics, it is the best start to a season Dan Hurley has ever had in his 16 years as a head coach in college – including his historically dominant 2023-24 national championship team, which suffered its second of three losses in the Big East opener at Seton Hall.

UConn won its first matchup with DePaul this year, 72-54, before the holiday break. Without Solo Ball because of a wrist injury, the Huskies started slow and struggled from beyond the arc until Braylon Mullins hit a pair of 3-pointers to pull away late. Alex Karaban had 21 points in that game and Tarris Reed Jr. posted a double-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks. Silas Demary Jr., while he had his pickle juice moment and wasn’t very efficient from the field, came close to threatening a triple-double with 13 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.

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That quartet combined for 90 points in Providence on Wednesday night.

“I just think winning close games helps,” Hurley said in his old home state. “Obviously the group’s got a lot of confidence. We’ve got a quick turnaround, again we play another team that played the day before we played, so I think this is like the sixth time now that we’re playing a team that’s had an extra day of rest before we play. We’ve got to just get ready for a DePaul team that’s brutal to play against.”

The Huskies will look to win their 22nd-consecutive game against the Blue Demons when they return to Hartford on Saturday.