We’re only five games in, and depending on when you’re reading this, Thanksgiving turkeys haven’t even been carved yet.
But given the way UConn men’s basketball sliced and diced its way through the Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden earlier in the week, it’s not too soon to ask the question: Are the Huskies the best team in the nation, again?
ESPN college basketball reporter Myron Medcalf believes they are, posting on X that he’s seen a whole bunch of Top 25 teams in person– and UConn is the best he’s laid eyes on so far.
“Teams I’ve seen live this season: Creighton (practice), Kansas, Kentucky, Purdue, Nebraska, FAMU, Michigan State, Duke, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Louisville and UConn. Tennessee/UNC next week. The best team I’ve seen so far is UConn and I have not even seen them at 100 percent.”
Teams I’ve seen live this season: Creighton (practice), Kansas, Kentucky, Purdue, Nebraska, FAMU, Michigan State, Duke, Xavier, Texas, Indiana, Louisville and UConn. Tennessee/UNC next week. The best team I’ve seen so far is UConn and I have not even seen them at 100 percent.
— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) November 21, 2023
UConn won’t be at 100 percent until it gets five-star recruit and freshman point guard Stephon Castle back. Castle slipped on the XL Center floor during UConn’s game against Stonehill Nov. 11 and hopes to return for the Dec. 1 game at Kansas.
Even without Castle, the Huskies looked like the deep, talented, multifaceted team that rampaged its way through March Madness last season in making light work of Indiana and Texas at the Garden.
Tristen Newton reintroduced himself as one of the best point guards in the country in a 23-point, 11-rebound, six-assist performance against the Hoosiers, which vaulted him into the top 10 in KenPom.com’s Player of the Year standings. Cam Spencer showed why Dan Hurley went out and got him in the transfer portal, following up a 25-point performance against Mississippi Valley State with 18 and 16 in the two games at MSG. Alex Karaban, who Jim Calhoun called the best player on the team, scored 20 on 8-of-14 shooting in the win over the Longhorns.
Five Huskies, including Castle, are averaging at least 11.8 points per game, led by Karaban at 16.8, and Samson Johnson, who broke out with 15 points and 8 boards against Texas, isn’t even one of them (8.2 ppg).
UConn ranks second in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings, behind only Alabama. In its defensive rating, the Huskies are 10th.
In KenPom’s overall rankings, UConn checks in at No. 3, behind No. 1 Purdue and No. 2 Houston. The Boilermakers might have the most impressive resume in college basketball so far, with wins over Xavier, Gonzaga and Tennessee. Houston hasn’t yet faced a top 25 team. Skeptics will point out that Purdue went 29-5 last season and won the Big Ten’s regular-season and tournament titles, yet lost to 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round. The Boilermakers don’t exactly have a sterling reputation when it comes to performance in March.
There are of course other teams that have impressed mightily so far– Marquette was set to play Purdue in the Maui Invitational championship game on Wednesday night, having already taken out No. 1 Kansas, 73-59 on Tuesday. The winner of that game could very likely end up as the new No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 next week. Arizona, third in the current AP poll, went on the road and knocked off Duke, 78-73.
But despite the losses of Andre Jackson, Jordan Hawkins and Adama Sanogo, you could argue the defending champs deserve the benefit of the doubt.
After its two wins at the Empire Classic, UConn extended its steak of double-digit non-conference wins to 22, one shy of the all-time record, set by North Carolina in 2008-09. “That’s unheard of,” senior guard Hassan Diarra said after the Texas game. “I’m gonna be locked in on that.”
There’s also this stat UConn fans will be excited about: In each of their last three national championship seasons, the Huskies have started the year by winning a nonconference tournament. UConn took home the 2010 Maui Invitational title, then went on to win it all. The Huskies won the 2013 2K Sports Classic, then lifted the national title trophy the next spring. Last year, they rolled through the Phil Knight Invitational and… you get the rest.
Holiday decorations aren’t even up yet (unless you’re one of those people who just can’t wait), pumpkin pies are still in the oven and grandma is still stressing about her famous stuffing (no matter what she tells you).
It’s early. But if you’re asking who the best team in college basketball is, the answer just might be UConn. Again.
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