The last time any of us watched UConn play a game that counted, it was nearly seven months ago, and the Huskies were running away from Purdue en route to winning a second straight national championship. On Wednesday night, the quest for a three-peat begins, as UConn opens its season with a nonconference game against Sacred Heart inside Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.
The opponent is Sacred Heart, which is ranked 316th at EvanMiya.com, 336th at KenPom.com and 336th at BartTorvik.com. In other words, barring a surprise, this won't be close. In other words, barring a surprise, we likely won't learn much about the team Dan Hurley has built.
But it'll still be fun to see the champs!
And have you noticed the way Hurley is approaching this season's unusual opportunity to become the first coach to guide a team to three straight national championships since John Wooden accomplished the feat at UCLA in the early 1970s? He hasn't ignored it or even down-played it a little, as others might do. He's instead consistently tackled it head-on and acknowledged the chance to make history is motivating.
"Our mindset going in is we want to go five for five with the championships," Hurley said on ESPN earlier this week. "That's what you come to UConn … to do, if you coach here, or you play here, and for me … and everyone associated with the program, any season that doesn't end with us achieving championship goals for us, in our minds, is a failure here at UConn."
I love every bit of that.
Coaches often talk about taking it "one game at a time" and never looking "too far ahead" while refusing to make any grand statements about anything. Just this week, Memphis football coach Ryan Silverfield said he couldn't yet call his season a "failure" even though his team is 7-2 against a nothing-schedule and unlikely to make the AAC title game despite being picked to win the conference in the preseason -- but that's crazy to me. If you don't meet expectations in something, and there's no obvious explanation for why you didn't, you've failed. That's the simplest way to put it. So I absolutely love that Hurley, before he's even coached his first game of the season, is already crystal-clear on where the pass-fail bar should be for his team that remains fifth in Wednesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings.
It's three-peat or bust for the Huskies.
Their season tips at 7 pm ET.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
| Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | -- | 5-0 | |
Hunter Dickinson finished with 16 points and six rebounds in Monday's 87-57 win over Howard. The Jayhawks' next game is Friday against North Carolina.
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| 2 | -- | 3-1 | |
Mark Sears finished with 20 points and three rebounds in Monday's 110-54 win over UNC Asheville. The Crimson Tide's next game is Friday against Arkansas State.
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| 3 | -- | 2-1 | |
L.J. Cryer finished with 16 points and three assists in Monday's 97-40 win over Jackson State. The Cougars' next game is Saturday against Auburn.
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| 4 | -- | 2-1 | |
RJ Davis finished with 24 points and seven assists in Monday's 90-76 win over Elon. The Tar Heels' next game is Friday at Kansas.
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| 5 | -- | 4-0 | |
Alex Karaban is UConn's leading returning scorer. The Huskies open the season Wednesday against Sacred Heart.
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| 6 | -- | 3-0 | |
Tamin Lipsey finished with 16 points and four assists in Monday's 83-44 win over Mississippi Valley State. The Cyclones' next game is Monday against Kansas City.
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| 7 | -- | 4-0 | |
Nolan Hickman finished with 17 points and six rebounds in Monday's 101-63 win over Baylor. The Zags' next game is Sunday against Arizona State.
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| 8 | -- | 3-1 | |
Kon Knueppel finished with 22 points and four rebounds in Monday's 96-62 win over Maine. The Blue Devils' next game is Friday against Army.
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| 9 | -- | 4-0 | |
Johni Broome is Auburn's leading returning scorer. The Tigers open the season Wednesday against Vermont.
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| 10 | -- | 4-1 | |
Trey Kaufman-Renn finished with 13 points and seven rebounds in Monday's 90-73 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Boilermakers' next game is Friday against Northern Kentucky.
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| 11 | -- | 3-1 | |
Trevon Brazile is Arkansas' leading returning scorer. The Razorbacks open the season Wednesday against Lipscomb.
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| 12 | -- | 4-0 | |
Jordan Gainey finished with 16 points and three steals in Monday's 80-64 win over Gardner Webb. The Vols' next game is Saturday against Louisville.
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| 13 | -- | 3-1 | |
Bruce Thornton finished with 20 points and five assists in Monday's 80-72 win over Texas. The Buckeyes' next game is Monday against Youngstown State.
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| 14 | -- | 2-1 | |
Caleb Love finished with 17 points and six assists in Monday's 93-64 win over Canisius. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Old Dominion.
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| 15 | -- | 5-0 | |
Kam Jones finished with 32 points and three assists in Monday's 102-62 win over Stony Brook. The Golden Eagles' next game is Friday against George Mason.
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| 16 | -- | 3-0 | |
Malik Reneau is Indiana's leading returning scorer. The Hoosiers open the season Wednesday against SIU Edwardsville.
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| 17 | -- | 3-1 | |
VJ Edgecombe finished 2 of 11 from the field in Monday's 101-63 loss to Gonzaga. The Bears' next game is Saturday against Arkansas.
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| 18 | -- | 3-1 | |
Tyler Bilodeau finished with 18 points and six rebounds in Monday's 85-50 win over Rider. The Bruins' next game is Friday against New Mexico.
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| 19 | -- | 4-0 | |
Ryan Kalkbrenner is Creighton's leading returning scorer. The Bluejays open the season Wednesday against UT Rio Grande Valley.
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| 20 | -- | 3-1 | |
Chendall Weaver finished 3 of 10 from the field in Monday's 80-72 loss to Texas. The Longhorns' next game is Friday against Houston Christian.
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| 21 | -- | 3-1 | |
Wade Taylor IV finished 4 of 15 from the field in Monday's 64-61 loss at UCF. The Aggies' next game is Friday against Texas A&M Commerce.
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| 22 | -- | 5-0 | |
Walter Clayton Jr. finished with 29 points and two assists in Monday's 98-83 win over USF. The Gators' next game is Thursday against Jacksonville.
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| 23 | -- | 3-0 | |
Jeremiah Williams is Rutgers' leading returning scorer. The Scarlet Knights open the season Wednesday against Wagner.
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| 24 | -- | 4-0 | |
Simas Lukosius finished with 20 points and two rebounds in Monday's 109-54 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The Bearcats' next game is Friday against Morehead State.
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| 25 | -- | 4-0 | |
Jaylen Murray finished with 24 points and three rebounds in Monday's 90-60 win over Long Island. The Rebels' next game is Friday against Grambling State.
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| 26 | -- | 4-0 | |
Kadary Richmond finished with 16 points and nine rebounds in Monday's 92-60 win over Fordham. The Red Storm's next game is Saturday vs. Quinnipiac.
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