The UConn men’s basketball program is finalizing a home-and-home series with Texas that will begin next season, college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported Tuesday morning.
According to Rothstein, the series would begin in Austin with a return game in Connecticut during the 2025-26 season, though no specific dates or game times have been revealed and there is no timetable on the official announcement.
UConn is 7-3 all-time against the Longhorns including an Empire Classic matchup at Madison Square Garden in November, which the Huskies won 81-71 on their way to back-to-back national titles. The first matchup between the programs came in 1991, a 94-77 UConn win, but they hadn’t met since 2015 in Austin (71-66 UConn win).
Both teams are expected to look very different when they meet next season.
Texas stars Dillon Mitchell and Tyrese Hunter, who combined for 34 points against UConn, both entered the transfer portal following the season. Mitchell will test pro waters and Hunter announced Monday his move to Memphis. The Longhorns will also lose Max Abmas, Dylan Disu and Brock Cunningham as their eligibility expires. Coach Rodney Terry has added three players from the transfer portal in guard Julian Larry and forward Jayson Kent, both from Indiana State, as well as guard Tramon Mark, the former leading scorer at Arkansas. Tre Johnson, ESPN’s No. 5 recruit in the 2024 class, and Nic Codie, No. 78, are also set to join the program.
UConn could lose all five of its starters to the NBA Draft with Donovan Clingan and Stephon Castle each declaring as projected lottery picks and Alex Karaban testing the waters. Tristen Newton and Cam Spencer will also pursue professional opportunities as their eligibility expires. Hassan Diarra, the Big East Sixth Man of the Year, has yet to decide whether he’ll use his fifth year, though, to this point, little-used Apostolos Roumoglou is the only Husky to have entered the portal.
Dan Hurley and staff landed former Michigan big Tarris Reed Jr. out of the portal and are looking for more additions as they host five-star 2024 recruit Liam McNeeley on campus this week. McNeeley, the No. 9 player in the class, per ESPN, could join incoming freshmen Ahmad Nowell (No. 34) and Isaiah Abraham (No. 58).
The Texas matchup helps form another challenging nonconference schedule for the Huskies, who’ve won 33 of their 34 games against opponents outside the Big East over the last two seasons. They are set to play Gonzaga at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 14, and a Big 12 team yet to be announced in what is reported to be the last year of the Big East-Big 12 Battle. UConn is also set to headline the November Maui Invitational as part of a field that includes Auburn, Colorado, Dayton, Iowa State, Memphis, Michigan State and North Carolina.
OFFICIAL ✍️
Welcome to Storrs, Tarris Reed Jr. ‼️ pic.twitter.com/b6TX0wJqvA
— UConn Men's Basketball (@UConnMBB) April 23, 2024
Huskies officially sign Tarris Reed Jr.
Reed, a rising junior with two years of eligibility remaining, officially signed with the Huskies on Tuesday. A 6-10 center from St. Louis, Missouri, Reed averaged 6.1 points and 5.5 rebounds through 66 games over two seasons at Michigan. He started in 31 games during the 2023-24 season, averaging 9.0 points with 7.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocked shots per game.
“We are very excited to have a big man with Tarris’ high major experience join our program,” Hurley said in a team release. “His size, talent and athleticism at the center position gives us the potential to continue receiving tremendous production from that spot – which has contributed so much to our success the last two years. His work ethic fits perfectly into the culture we’ve established and we are really looking forward to Tarris’ career as a Husky.”
