On Tuesday’s episode of the Eye On College Basketball Podcast that we did on CBS Sports Network, Matt Norlander and I settled into a conversation about UConn and its body of work to date.
Simply put, I’m higher on it than he is.
To be clear, we both think the Huskies would be a No. 1 seed if the NCAA Tournament started today. But whereas I would have them as the second-highest No. 1 seed, Norlander said he’d have them lower, in part because UConn’s 22-1 record only features five Quadrant 1 victories.
Arizona and Duke have nine.
Michigan has eight.
Bracketology: Iowa State jumps UConn for fourth No. 1 seed in NCAA Tournament bracket projection
Kyle Boone
And if somebody wants to use those facts to argue against the Huskies, fine. The CBS Sports Bracketology model has UConn as a No. 2 seed, but needless to say, this is all subjective.) But it should also be pointed out that none of this is UConn’s fault as much as it’s a commentary on the Big East.
The Huskies are 5-1 in Q1 games.
But did you realize they had four way back on Dec. 9 thanks to a non-league strength of schedule that rated top 25 nationally? And did you realize they haven’t played a single game against a currently ranked team since then?
That’s UConn’s problem — the underwhelming BIg East.
St. John’s is the only Big East team besides UConn currently ranked, there are no other Big East teams in the top 30 of the NET, and more than half of the conference is ranked outside of the top 75. Consequently, UConn has had just one Q1 opportunity so far in league play — last month’s game at Seton Hall.
The Huskies defeated the Pirates 69-64.
UConn is projected to have just four more games vs. Q1 opponents before next month’s Big East Tournament
Bottom line, UConn is 22-1, undefeated when not missing two starters, and a clear contender to win a national championship for what would be the third time in a four-year span. So I’ve decided to respect those things rather than get caught up on how the Big East barely provides Q1 chances for the Huskies, and that’s why UConn remains No. 2 in Wednesday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings following Tuesday night’s 92-60 victory over Xavier that extended their winning streak to 18 games.
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