NCAA Basketball: Arizona, UConn, Marquette, Baylor all fall in latest top 25 power rankings

7. Connecticut (11-2)

Not only did Connecticut win last season’s national championship, but the Huskies opened this season on quite the hot streak. They’ve already won by double-digits over Indiana, Texas, and North Carolina and done what they can to assert themselves as one of the favorites to cut down the nets again. However, they’ve hit some misfortune just as conference play has begun in the Big East.

The conference opener was on Wednesday and saw Donovan Clingan leave with an injury and the Huskies leave Seton Hall with a 75-60 defeat. They turned in their worst performance of the season, with Tristen Newton’s 16 points leading the team. A few days later, the Huskies trailed St. John’s at home at the half before fighting back for a 69-65 win, their first in conference play. They were playing their first full game without Clingan, getting 16 points from Samson Johnson in the close call.

It was a pretty ugly week for the Huskies, but at least they salvaged Saturday night against St. John’s. Playing without Clingan in the coming weeks won’t be easy, but the Huskies should be able to stay afloat until his return, especially with the other talent in Dan Hurley’s program. They’ll have a full week off, which certainly helps, and have some winnable conference games in the coming weeks, though those significant challenges are coming later in January.