Dan Hurley, UConn Creating Unprecedented Non-Conference Schedule

The Huskies are loading up in its early season schedule in hopes of another championship run

Apr 5, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; UConn's head coach Dan Hurley during a press conference ahead of the Final Four of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

The UConn basketball team isn’t running from anybody – as you would expect from a Dan Hurley coached team.

Hurley put together a very difficult non-conference schedule for his team a year ago and somehow is topping that entering the 2026-27 season.

Not only will the Huskies finish its home-and-home series with Kansas and Arizona, with its meeting against the Jayhawks coming at home and a trip to Tucson coming, it will play in an exclusive event in Las Vegas against Duke which will be broadcasted on Amazon Prime.

Yet more details about UConn’s non-conference schedule are emerging and it will also feature a trip to Chicago to play Illinois in the United Center, the return game from the meeting at Madison Square Garden this past season.

According to reports, UConn will also host Ohio State next year while playing Michigan – a rematch from the National Championship Game – at the start of the season in Boston. A poorly kept secret was also unveiled as the Huskies are hoping to play Virginia inside Madison Square Garden in December.

Michigan, Arizona, Duke, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio State, and Virginia. Murders row.

Seven NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago – three of which joined the Huskies in the Final Four. Rematches from its final three March Madness games against Duke in the Elite 8, Illinois in the Final Four, and Michigan in the title game.

UConn has played in three of the last four Final Fours, advancing to the National Championship in all three trips while winning two titles in the process.

It’ll have to replace the contributions of Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed this season as well as Solo Ball’s production. Karaban and Reed have exhausted all of its eligibility while Ball is redshirting this upcoming year due to wrist surgery. The Huskies retained starting point guard Silas Demary Jr. and March Madness hero Braylon Mullins while adding Duke forward Nik Khamenia and Seton Hall center Najai Hines in the transfer portal.