The No. 2 UConn men's basketball team picked up a 74-67 win on the road over No. 8 Marquette on Wednesday, giving the Huskies their first road win against a ranked opponent in a decade, according to Steve Megargee of The Associated Press.
Coming into the game against Marquette, UConn basketball's last road win against a ranked opponent came on Jan. 16, 2014 when the Huskies beat Memphis. UConn was 0-21 in road games against ranked teams since then.
What makes it even more wild is that UConn has won two national championships in between the road wins against Memphis and Marquette.
UConn moved to 27-3 overall after the win and 17-2 in Big East play, having already clinched the conference regular season title. They will finish out the Big East regular season on the road on Saturday against Providence before heading to New York to play in the Big East Tournament next week.
UConn hoping to finish the way the 2014 team did
The Huskies are hoping to do what they did the last time they beat a ranked opponent on the road in a season, and that is win the national championship. The 2014 team was led by Shabazz Napier, and it was shocking run to the title as UConn entered the tournament as a seven seed.
This year's UConn team is far better than the 2014 squad, and arguably better than last year's team that won it all as well. It is undoubtedly more consistent, as the 2022-2023 team entered a slump in January, before regaining their form that they displayed in non-conference play.
This year's Huskies have been a machine since the start, only losing road games to Kansas, Seton Hall and Creighton. In the Kansas and Seton Hall games, UConn had key players either not play at or leave the game due to injury. Stephon Castle did not play against the Jayhawks, a game the Huskies nearly stole in Allen Fieldhouse, and Donovan Clingan left early in the second half of the Seton Hall game with the injury that kept him out for multiple weeks.
Anything can happen in March Madness, but the Huskies have as good of a shot as anyone, and the crowd should be on their side on the road to the Final Four. UConn will likely be the East region's No. 1 seed, meaning the Huskies would play the first two rounds in Brooklyn and the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 in Boston.
Only time will tell if Dan Hurley's squad can add a sixth banner for the UConn men's basketball program.
Follow Us
Subscribe