INDIANAPOLIS – The No. 11 UConn men’s basketball team (9-3, 1-0 BIG EAST) enters its final contest of 2024 on a five-game winning streak, hosting Butler (7-5, 0-1) in the league BIG EAST). -Saturday afternoon appointment at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse. Kickoff is set for noon and will air exclusively on Peacock with Noah Reed and Tim Welsh.

The Huskies have been on the rise since returning to the mainland in late November, in the midst of a December that has already produced two Top 15 wins, an SEC road win and, most recently, a win in a conference opener on home soil for the first time in 21 years. Butler is mired in a four-game losing streak, including an 80-70 setback at Marquette in Wednesday’s league opener. Connecticut is 9-0 against Butler in a streak that began in the 2011 National Championship and has continued as conference mates since 2021.

UConn was last in action on Wednesday, winning its conference opener against Xavier in an overtime thriller 94-89 at the XL Center. All five Huskies starters scored in double figures, combining for 88 of their 94 points. Solo ball He led the way with a career-high 22 points and scored eight straight goals in the decisive second half that turned the contest and ultimately led to overtime. Alex Karaban scored seven of his 20 points in the extra frame, while Liam McNeeley scored all 14 goals after halftime. He makes his first appearance this season as a replacement for the injured player Samson Johnson, Tarris Reed Jr. was huge with a double-double of 20 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks Hassan Diarra posted his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 assists.

Karaban leads the Huskies with 16.0 points per game, adds 5.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists and is among the nation’s leaders in blocks per game with 2.0. McNeeley And ball add 13.7 and 13.3 per game respectively, while Reed Jr. is the fourth Husky to average double figures and a team-leading 8.4 rebounds per contest. Diarra has emerged as one of the best playmakers in the BIG EAST since starting seven games ago, ranking third in the conference with 6.2 assists per game.

The Huskies currently rank first in the nation with 7.1 blocked shots per game and are top five in the country with 19.9 assists per game and a 2.03 assist/turnover ratio. UConn ranks first in the conference in offensive rating (84.4 points per game), points margin (+15.7) and field goal percentage (49.8).

Butler is off to a 7-5 start this season, with quality wins in nonleague against SMU, Northwestern and Mississippi State. Jahmyl Telfort (16.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg) and Pierre Brooks (15.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg) lead the Butler attack as two of the league’s best returners, while Patrick McCaffery adds 12.9 per game and shooting 47.1 percent from 3-point range.

After competing at Butler, UConn doesn’t return to the field until Jan. 1 for a matinee at DePaul.