University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Xavier
No. 1 Huskies Welcome Xavier To Hartford, Sunday
1/27/2024 11:09:00 AM | Men's Basketball
HARTFORD – Fresh off a week-long layoff for its bye week, the No. 1 UConn men's basketball team (17-2, 7-1 BIG EAST) is back in action on Sunday to take on Xavier (10-9, 4-4 BIG EAST) for a noon tip at the XL Center. The contest will air on FS1 with Alex Faust and Tarik Turner on the call.
Sunday is UConn's Coaches vs. Cancer game and the 2003-04 National Championship team reunion. The Coaches vs. Cancer honoring will include a pregame ceremony and several in-game recognitions. The official ceremony for the '03-04 Huskies will take place at halftime.
Connecticut is riding a seven-game win streak into Sunday's contest and will be looking for a season sweep of the Musketeers. The Huskies took down Xavier in Cincinnati back on Jan. 10, dishing out a season-high 27 assists as Cam Spencer (Davidsonville, Md.) led four Huskies in double-figures with 19 points in an 80-75 victory. The all-time series between UConn and Xavier is tied at 4-4, including a 1-1 record for UConn on its home floor. Sunday will be Xavier's first visit to the XL Center, with the prior two home contests occurring in Storrs.
The Huskies have been led this year by one of the most balanced and potent scoring attacks in the country, boasting three players averaging at least 15.0 points per game. Spencer and Tristen Newton (El Paso, Texas) are tied for the team-high with 15.4 per game, followed closely by Alex Karaban (Southborough, Mass.) at 15.0 per contest. Newton leads UConn and ranks among the BIG EAST leaders with 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game, while Spencer is the top 3-point shooter in the league at 45.3 percent. As a team the Huskies lead the conference in scoring offense, scoring defense, rebounding margin and assists per game.
The Musketeers visit the Nutmeg State with a 10-9 record on the year and a 4-4 record in BIG EAST play. Xavier most recently was in action on Tuesday at Creighton, dropping a high-scoring affair to the Bluejays. Quincy Olivari leads the Musketeers and is among the BIG EAST leaders with 17.9 points per game, while Desmond Claude adds 16.2 per contest.
Following Sunday's contest the Huskies are back at home to host Providence at Gampel Pavilion on Wednesday night.
