The UConn men’s basketball team came in at No. 3 in the first AP Top 25 poll of the regular season after handling business in its first two games.
Ranked No. 4 in the preseason, the Huskies received three first place votes after starting their season with a 79-55 win over New Haven and following that up with a historic, 110-47, blowout of UMass Lowell. Still without freshmen Braylon Mullins and Jacob Furphy (ankles), UConn showed its potential in Game Two on Friday as senior center Tarris Reed Jr. returned from a hamstring injury. Reed’s performance, in only 17 minutes, was good enough to earn a spot on the first Big East Honor Roll list of the season as he recorded his 11th-career double-double with 20 points (9-for-12), 12 rebounds and four blocked shots.
Houston, with 18 first place votes, leap-frogged Purdue, 36 first place votes, for the No. 1 spot after the Boilermakers struggled in a 10-point win over Oakland on Friday. Duke and Arizona, who the Huskies will host at Gampel Pavilion on Nov. 19, rounded out the top five.
UConn will meet No. 7 BYU in Boston on Saturday for its first of five ranked matchups in nonconference play, hosting No. 5 Arizona four days later. The nonconference schedule also includes games against No. 10 Florida, No. 14 Illinois and No. 25 Kansas.
After falling to new-No. 8 Alabama at Madison Square Garden, St. John’s dropped eight spots to No. 13, remaining the second-highest ranked team in the Big East. Creighton opened its season with a 92-76 win over South Dakota and held its spot at No. 23.
AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll: Week 1
Houston (18 first place votes)
Purdue (36)
UConn (3)
Duke (2)
Arizona
Michigan (1)
BYU
Alabama (1)
Kentucky
Florida
Texas Tech
Louisville
St. John’s
Illinois
UCLA
Iowa State
Michigan State
North Carolina
Gonzaga
Tennessee
Arkansas
Auburn
Creighton
Wisconsin
Kansas
