UConn men fall in AP Top 25 despite 17-game win streak

The UConn men’s basketball team has won 17 in a row, is out to a perfect 11-0 start in Big East play and sits at 21-1, with its only loss to the nation’s No. 1 overall team in Arizona.

Yet that wasn’t enough to keep its No. 2 ranking in the country on Monday.

Michigan, which had previously been ranked No. 3, leapfrogged the Huskies to take over the No. 2 spot in the weekly poll. The Wolverines (20-1, 10-1/Big Ten) had a pretty impressive week, handing then-No. 5 Nebraska its first loss of the season, 75-72, last Tuesday before taking out rival and No. 7 Michigan State, 83-71 on Friday. The Huskers, who have lost two straight after starting 20-0, are down to No. 9 while the Spartans checked in at No. 10 in the latest poll.

UConn has been winning games, but not by the margins some might expect given their national ranking. The Huskies have been faced with dogfights in Big East play, from an overtime win at Providence to wins by 5, 2, 8 and 7 in four straight games against Seton Hall, Georgetown, Villanova and a rematch with the Friars before a decisive 85-58 victory at Creighton on Saturday.

It’s led head coach Dan Hurley to downplay the 17-game winning streak.

“I just think that we’ve been playing so uneven, so spurty, kind of sluggish, disappointing, that I haven’t even talked about the streak because it’s been, I just don’t think we’ve played well enough for me to warrant talking about it,” Hurley told The Courant after the win at Creighton. “And the team, I think one of the biggest mistakes I’ve made publicly is comparing this team to national championship teams. That was a mistake, so you won’t hear that from me until we get much later in the season and we are actually playing at that level consistently.”

UConn Notes: Why the Huskies aren’t motivated by 17-game winning streak, unbeaten start in Big East

UConn will host Xavier on Tuesday before heading to Madison Square Garden on Friday for a showdown with St. John’s, which is up to No. 22 in the latest AP poll after reeling off seven straight wins in the Big East.

Demary earns Honor Roll spot

UConn point guard Silas Demary Jr. earned his second weekly Big East honor roll nod of the season, and his third overall conference honor since being named Big East Player of the Week on Jan. 12. Demary shined in the Huskies’ two wins last week, averaging 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists, while shooting nearly 53% from the floor.

AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll: Week 13

1. Arizona (59 first-place votes)2. Michigan3. UConn4. Duke5. Illinois6. Gonzaga7. Iowa State8. Houston9. Nebraska10. Michigan State11. Kansas12. Purdue13. Texas Tech14. North Carolina15. Vanderbilt16. BYU17. Florida18. Virginia19. Saint Louis20. Clemson21. Arkansas22. St. John’s23. Miami (OH)24. Louisville25. Tennessee