NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 13: Head coach Rick Pitino of the St. John's Red Storm reacts to call on a play during a college basketball game against the Marquette Golden Eagles at Madison Square Garden on January 13, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) | Getty ImagesConnor WilsonFri, February 6, 2026 at 1:40 AM UTC·9 min readUConn men’s basketball (22-1, 12-0) has perhaps its most anticipated matchup of the regular season on Friday night, as the Huskies travel down to Madison Square Garden to take on St. John’s (17-5, 10-1) in a clash between the top two teams in the Big East standings and two of the hottest squads in the nation.
The Red Storm rank No. 20 in KenPom, with the No. 26 offense in the country, No. 18 defense and rank 24th in the NET. They check in at No. 22 in the AP Poll, marking this the second “ranked vs. ranked” matchup of the Big East regular season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSt. John’s has been playing phenomenal basketball after a lackluster non-conference slate, and Rick Pitino has his team in position to make back-to-back NCAA Tournaments for the first time since the program made three straight from 1998-2000. In their last game, the Red Storm knocked off DePaul in Chicago behind a second-half surge for their eighth straight win.
UConn sits at No. 3 in the AP Poll, No. 8 in KenPom, and No. 6 in the NET. They have the fifth-most efficient defense in the country and are back up into the Top 25 in offensive efficiency as well. The Huskies kept things rolling on Tuesday, starting their game against Xavier on a 10-0 run and not looking back in a blowout victory to win their 18th straight game. Five Huskies finished in double figures in their last game, led by 17 points and eight assists from Silas Demary Jr.
The Huskies are looking to start 13-0 in league play for the first time since they started 14-0 in Big East play during the 1995-96 season with Ray Allen and Doron Sheffer leading the way.
Last time UConn played St. John’s, the Red Storm swept the season series on the way to their best year in nearly 40 years. Can the Huskies regain traction in this budding rivalry?
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDate/Time: Friday, February 6, 8:00 p.m.
TV/Stream: FOX, FoxSports.com
Radio: UConn Sports Network, Sirius XM 84, Sirius/XM online streaming
Odds: UConn -1.5, O/U 145.5
Location: Madison Square Garden – New York, New York
KenPom Predicted Score: UConn
Series History
The Huskies and Red Storm have played 73 times in their program’s history, with St. John’s holding a narrow 39-34 advantage. In the Dan Hurley era, UConn has won six of 10 matchups. They last faced off on Feb. 23, 2025, when St. John’s beat UConn 89-75 at Madison Square Garden. Alex Karaban led four Huskies in double figures with 17 points.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAvailability report
As of now, everyone should be available for the Huskies in the Garden, according to Dan Hurley. The Big East availability report comes out three hours before tip-off.
What to Watch ForSetting the stage
Friday night’s battle in Storrs South is the type of regular-season game you don’t see often. This is the first time both UConn and St. John’s will be ranked in a game against each other at Madison Square Garden since the 2000 Big East Championship. There hasn’t been a Big East game between two one-loss or fewer teams in February since UConn played Louisville in 2009.
The Red Storm are one of the few programs that have given the Huskies some surprising trouble over the past few years. Outside of the season sweep last year, St. John’s picked off UConn both in Storrs and Hartford in the first three years of the Huskies’ return to the Big East. That loss at the then-XL Center in 2023 was the last game UConn has lost in that building, winning 26 straight since.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWith how, for lack of a better term, mediocre the Big East has been this year, there aren’t many opportunities for UConn to secure significant wins towards its resume left on the schedule. The opportunity in front of them on Friday is one that can’t be overlooked, as it could be the difference between what seed they are come Selection Sunday and where they’re playing on a potential road to Indianapolis.
Rick Pitino and Dan Hurley on the sidelines. Zuby Ejiofor battling Tarris Reed Jr. down low. A winning streak of eight going against a streak of 18. Two fanbases who claim the World’s Most Famous Arena as their own. The storylines are endless!
Guardians of the Garden
Speaking of Storrs South, UConn has been living up to its claim over the past few years. So far this season, the Huskies are 2-0 at MSG with signature wins over Illinois and Florida, two squads that are without a doubt Top 10 caliber teams in the sport this year. Last season, they picked up a Top 10 win over Gonzaga in December and beat Villanova there in the Big East Tournament. The year before with guys like Stephon Castle and Cam Spencer? 7-0 at the Garden with a Big East Tourney championship and three major non-con wins over Indiana, Texas and North Carolina.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOverall, UConn is 16-5 at Madison Square Garden since rejoining the Big East, good for a 76.1 win percentage. St. John’s in that same time frame? 25-15, or 62.5%.
Advantage Huskies.
Portal Perfection?
Both of these teams are likely to look back at their portal additions as a key to their success. There can be an argument that they both land in the Top 5 in the nation depending on how the next two months shape up for each side.
We all know what the story is with the Huskies, bringing in two ball handlers in Silas Demary Jr. and Malachi Smith. Demary has emerged into a Big East Player of the Year candidate with how he’s performed the past month or so, while Smith is one of the top reserve guards in the country with his ability to distribute and play disruptive defense.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWhat you may not be as knowledgeable in is how great the Red Storm’s transfers have been. Outside of Zuby Ejiofor, six of the team’s top seven scorers transferred in to Queens this season. Bryce Hopkins, Oziyah Sellers & Ian Jackson all average double figures as key components to a rejuvenated offense that Pitino has this year. Dillon Mitchell is one of the more versatile players in the conference at his third power conference school, while Joson Sanon and Dylan Darling provide scoring punches off the bench.
The best ability is availability
In such a crucial game, staying out of foul trouble is perhaps the biggest key for UConn. Both Tarris Reed Jr. and Silas Demary Jr. are the two I’m looking at. With how dominant Zuby Ejiofor is and the way the St. John’s offense runs through him, you need Reed on the floor to counter that and give the Huskies a force in the paint to try and force the Red Storm away from it. As for Demary, with all of length that St. John’s has across the board, having a 6’5” guard that can go toe-to-toe with any two or three players on the floor at any time is critical, especially on the road.
This isn’t a knock on Malachi Smith or Eric Reibe either, as if one of these two entered some foul trouble they’d receive an extended run. The matchup on paper feels like it would favor St. John’s whenever they’re on the court, even with how well the reserves have played the past three weeks. As I mentioned with the Red Storm’s size, Smith will be at a bit of a disadvantage in that regard. With Reibe, he hasn’t faced a big man as strong and versatile as Ejiofor in all of conference play, so “throwing him into the fire” if you will for an extended stretch may not be ideal.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementConcerns would definitely be higher if the second unit hadn’t turned a gear as of late, but the best version of UConn on Friday will be when Demary and Reed are on the floor and not sitting down with a few fouls.
Bringer of Rain breakout?
In UConn’s two wins at Madison Square Garden this season, a notable non-factor in both of them was Braylon Mullins. He gets a pass for the first one, playing under a minute restriction in his college debut against Illinois on Black Friday, but what came as more surprising was his foul-out in just 11 minutes against Florida a couple of weeks later. He did hit some clutch jumpers while he was in there against the Gators, but was still only able to muster six points.
Those two games have been the two worst scoring wise in Mullins’ short career as a Husky. With how prolific a shot maker he’s proven he can be and how poorly his first two outings in the Big Apple went compared to his standards, just imagining the freshman lighting up MSG on a Friday night should already be firing UConn fans up.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSomething’s got to give.
There are just 12 teams across the country, according to KenPom, who boast a Top 30 offense and Top 20 defense. Two of them are St. John’s and UConn. Most of UConn’s matchups so far in league play have been against teams who dominate one category, but struggle in the other, such as Providence’s great offense and awful defense, or Seton Hall and DePaul’s lackluster offense but strong defense.
The Huskies are 4-1 this year when playing against Top 20 defenses, while 5-1 versus Top 30 offenses with Arizona being the one loss in both categories, of course. On the flip side, St. John’s is just 1-1 against Top 20 defenses and a surprising 0-4 against Top 30 offenses with their losses to Auburn, Alabama, Iowa State, and Providence accounting for the four.
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