UConn Sports Weekly: The St. John's Rematch

Men's hoops has its most important Big East battle tonight as the regular season nears its end.

Author

Aman Kidwai
February 25, 2026

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Photo: Ian Bethune

Headlines

Big East Matchup of the Year

As the UConn men’s basketball team entered playoff mode last weekend in a return-to-form win over Villanova, their biggest test of the league slate looms tonight in Hartford.

The former mall will host No. 6 vs. No. 15 and likely decide the winner of the Big East regular season crown, the top seed in the Big East Tournament, and the best possible seeding for the NCAA Tournament.

St. John’s has won 13 in a row and sits first in the league, while UConn sits second and got right in many ways at Villanova after some recent struggles. The Huskies battled through a tight first half before pulling away big in the second, more commentary in our takeaways here.  Silas Demary Jr. had nine turnovers in the last meeting with the Johnnies and had seven against the Wildcats on Saturday, so that remains a concern.

With Jaylin Stewart ruled out for today, UConn will be looking for a strong effort from its available reserves, namely Jayden Ross, Malachi Smith, and Eric Reibe.

Tonight will be Alex Karaban’s last game at PeoplesBank Arena as a Husky, and another senior will have a spotlight on him tonight. 

Tarris Reed Jr. has been streaky in big games. While he was battling injury in November, he poured in 21 points vs. BYU, but then sat again with another ailment. Against Florida, he had 12 points in 24 minutes. But he's dealt with foul trouble and turnovers in a lot of games. How he both attacks and defends Zuby Ejiofor, who held Reed to 12 points in 34 minutes last time out, could be the difference-maker.

Ejiofor dominated the Huskies earlier this month. He posted a near-triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, adding three blocks and two steals on defense. In 35 minutes on the floor, he collected just three personal fouls. UConn would be remiss not to be more physical with Ejiofor and try to drive down his on-court time with some early foul trouble. 

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Hockey Playoffs and an Olympic Gold

Maybe it was an off weekend. Maybe it was a sign that this UConn men’s hockey team does not have what it takes to compete with the elite.

The Huskies took two tough losses this weekend against Boston College, snapping their five-game winning streak and falling into third in the conference standings with two weekends to play. It was UConn’s first time getting swept this season, and the timing could not be worse.

The Huskies have been off too many times this year, defined more by their inconsistencies than their wins. This was apparent in Friday’s 5-2 loss and Saturday’s overtime heartbreaker. The two teams traded places in NPI, with BC rising to No. 12 and UConn falling to No. 14, as the Huskies quickly find themselves on the wrong side of the bubble.

It was not all bad in Ice Bus land this week, however. Former Husky Tage Thompson became UConn men’s hockey’s first-ever gold-medal winner in Team USA’s dramatic win over Canada Sunday morning.  

Meanwhile, the women’s squad begins its trek through the Hockey East Tournament this weekend. Coming off a weekend split with Northeastern and Merrimack, the Huskies are No. 7 in NPI and firmly in the running to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, if needed. 

Claire Murdoch has been on a heater recently. The sophomore forward netted her first career hat trick in the win over Merrimack and was named Hockey East Player of the Week. 

The men will play two with UMass, a big seeding matchup as the Minutemen are just five points behind in the conference standings. A sweep would catapult UMass over UConn. The women will play Saturday at 3 p.m., though their opponent is not yet known. Of the four teams playing today, UConn will face the highest remaining seed, while the lowest will go on to play regular-season champion Northeastern. 

Perseverance Out West

A 0-4 start to the season for the UConn baseball team was less than ideal, but after the Huskies were decimated by Arizona State on Tuesday, Jim Penders’ squad won three out of four over Arizona.

We have the full breakdown from the weekend over on our Hook C newsletter, as well as a series recap on The UConn Blog. Thad Sawyer details the games, weekend winners, and some takeaways, while Zach Carter checks in with the Big East as each team puts a second weekend under its belt. 

The Huskies have the midweek to reset before they travel again for the weekend. Going south rather than west, Jim Penders’ team will play three with UNC Wilmington. First pitch Friday and Saturday is 4 p.m., followed by a 1 p.m. start for Sunday’s getaway game. On Tuesday, UConn will play its first home game, hosting New Haven at Elliot Park starting at 3:05 p.m.

Weekly Rewind

Men’s Basketball

UConn men’s hoops falls one spot to No. 6 in AP Poll – Iowa State returned to the top five as the Huskies fell out. 

Notes & Quotes: UConn Enters Playoff Mode at Villanova ($) – “This was a playoff game for us today, like a must-win game,” Dan Hurley said. 

Husky ReView: Villanova (2/21/26) ($) – Was the win at Villanova as good as it seemed? 

UConn men’s basketball conquers Villanova in Philly, 73-63 – The Huskies respond to a tough Creighton loss with a big-time win. 

Emeka Okafor Jersey Retirement Ceremony – Relive the UConn legend’s speech on his big night. 

Women’s Basketball

Caroline Ducharme has no regrets about returning to UConn for final season – A storybook ending punctuates a collegiate career that hardly went to plan.

UConn’s homegrown seniors defined by adversity and perseverance – “I don't know that any group of players can look back and say anybody's had it harder,” Geno Auriemma said.

UConn women’s basketball annihilates Providence, 81-38 – UConn tied a single-game program record with 39 forced turnovers in the win.

Photo gallery: Providence Friars @ UConn women’s basketball - 2/22/26 – Ian Bethune’s best shots from Senior Day.

Hockey

UConn lands ‘06 goaltender Veeti Louhivaara – A potential Tyler Muszelik replacement has arrived. 

UConn falls to Boston College in overtime, 2-1 – BC’s Lukas Gustafsson buried the winner just 27 seconds into the extra frame.

Postgame: BC 5, UConn 2 ($) – The Huskies were thoroughly outplayed Friday night. 

UConn downed by Boston College, 5-2 – The Huskies tied it at 2-2 but surrendered three unanswered in the loss. 

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