The UConn men's basketball team has put together such a tough non-conference schedule, to go with 20 games in what should be an improved Big East, that it's hard to pick just five games to highlight for this season.
Here's our best shot:
Duke, Wednesday Nov. 25, 7 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas (Prime)
Get your Braylon Mullins shot-inspired material ready, UConn fans. Eight months after Mullins' incredible 35-footer capped the Huskies' wild comeback win over Duke in the Elite Eight, the old rivals meet again on Thanksgiving Eve in Sin City. This might be the marquee matchup of the entire college basketball season.
You know the history: Christian Laettner's buzzer-beater in 1990, UConn's national title win in 1999 and Final Four triumph in 2004, the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes and, of course, Mullins' Boozer-beater last March. Many of the main players from last season (Alex Karaban, Tarris Reed Jr., Cameron Boozer, Isaiah Evans) are now in the NBA. But Mullins is back, along with Silas Demary Jr., whose deflection of a Cayden Boozer pass kicked off the remarkable sequence that ended with Mullins' shot. Oh, and Cayden Boozer is back, too.
And in an added twist, Nik Khamenia, who was on the bench for Duke when Mullins' shot swished through the net, is now UConn's starting power forward. Should've put this game in The Sphere.
Michigan, Friday, Nov. 6, 8 p.m. at TD Garden, Boston (TNT, truTV)
An immediate rematch of April's national championship game, only with a lot of new faces. Karaban and Reed are gone from UConn's roster; NBA lottery picks Aday Mara, Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson are among the Wolverines' major departures. And so is head coach Dusty May, who surprisingly bolted the program a few months after winning the natty to take over the Dallas Mavericks.
Former Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton Jr. now coaches the Wolverines. But Elliot Cadeau, who torched the Huskies for 19 points in the national title game, is back. So are Demary, who was hobbled by an ankle injury in the title-game loss, Mullins and Jayden Ross, who said he's particularly looking forward to this one.
Kansas, Saturday, Dec. 12, 8 p.m. at Gampel Pavilion (FOX)
Probably the marquee home game of the Huskies' season, even if this may not be one of Bill Self's vintage Jayhawk teams. Then again, maybe it will be, with the nation's No. 1 overall recruit, Tyran Stokes, leading the way.
The Jayhawks handed UConn their only non-conference loss of the season back on Dec. 1, 2023 at Phog Allen Fieldhouse. The Huskies avenged that this past season with a 61-56 triumph again at The Phog, their first win over Kansas in program history. Not a single Jayhawk starter returns from last year's team. In fact, this will be the first time the Jayhawks, and Self, have ever visited Gampel. They should get a "warm" welcome.
Illinois, Friday, Dec. 4, 7 p.m. at United Center, Chicago (FOX)
Nothing could fully avenge last season's loss to UConn in the Final Four. Or the 30-0 run and Elite Eight loss in 2024. Or even the Black Friday loss last season at Madison Square Garden.
But the Illini have to be tired of getting bullied by the Huskies, and they've got the team to do it this season, led by Balkan brothers Andrej Stojakovic, David Mirkovic and Tomislav Ivisic, along with ex-Providence scorer Stefan Vaaks.
St. John's, Tuesday, March 2, 7:30 p.m. at PeoplesBank Arena (TNT)
Duke and Syracuse may still stir up the nostalgia, but UConn's biggest rival right now is easily Rick Pitino and the Red Storm. Pitino and Hurley routinely trade barbs between Queens and Storrs through the media. There's respect, but general dislike between the two.
Hurley's latest beef is with St. John's (and other programs) adding 23-year-old Euros (like Quinn Ellis) or fifth-year players previously ruled ineligible (like Keyshawn Hall) to their roster. Pitino was the only coach to vote for Marquette to win the Big East. And while Hurley owns the recent national championship hardware, Pitino has won what Hurley covets almost as much the past two seasons: Big East regular-season and tournament titles.
The Red Storm routed the Huskies by 20 in last year's Big East Tournament championship tilt, avenging a humiliating loss to the Huskies a few weeks earlier in Hartford. And if you're wondering why this season's game is in Hartford and not Storrs, look no further than that 72-40 UConn romp back on Feb. 25.
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This article originally published at UConn men's basketball 2026-27 schedule: Five games you can't miss.