UConn Overshadowed in First NET Rankings of 2025-26
In this story:
The UConn Huskies are currently sitting on a 6-1 record with a marquee win over Illinois at Madison Square Garden. Their only loss was a tight 71–67 battle with Arizona in Storrs. Yet when the first NCAA NET rankings dropped, the Huskies found themselves staring up at a surprisingly long list of teams.
The NCAA released its first NET rankings for the 2025-26 season, and the Huskies are ranked No. 8. The NET rankings serve as a sorting tool for the NCAA Tournament committee to gauge strength.
It is built around factors like win quality, efficiency, game location, and strength of schedule. The NET is designed to reward teams that defeat strong opponents and perform consistently across various environments. It was introduced as the successor to the RPI back in 2018-19.
The NET has evolved into a results-driven metric that often shapes the narrative long before March arrives. And with the Huskies’ schedule featuring only one true high-end win so far, the formula kept them behind several undefeated giants.
Before UConn at No. 8 comes a loaded pack of early-season heavyweights:
- Michigan
- Duke
- Purdue
- Vanderbilt
- Gonzaga
- Arizona
- Iowa State
Even with the slight slide in the national conversation, UConn and Dan Hurley aren't exactly limping. Their offense has been efficient, their defense has been good, and their biggest challenges are still ahead. That means this NET ranking isn’t a verdict. If anything, it’s a starting line.
What Lies Ahead for UConn and Where Are Its Opponents Rated?
If UConn wanted a chance to climb fast, the schedule makers delivered. The Huskies head next into a three-game gauntlet that will either validate their top-10 standing or turn the rankings on their head altogether. And it all begins at one of the sport’s most iconic venues, Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas is ranked No. 17 in the NET and awaits its first opponent. The Jayhawks are a long-standing puzzle that UConn has yet to solve. The Huskies are 0–4 all-time against Kansas, including their narrow 69–65 loss in Lawrence in 2023, a game that snapped a two-year nonconference win streak.
The programs share 10 national titles and a history of high-stakes battles, making this matchup feel like more than a December test. And playing at Phog, where even great teams struggle to breathe, only intensifies the moment.
After Kansas comes a reset opportunity at home against Texas A&M, ranked No. 79. On paper, it should be a momentum-builder, but the Aggies’ 6–2 start, and quietly strong NET profile, suggest they’re capable of complicating things if UConn slips into cruise control.
Then comes the bright lights of Madison Square Garden and a showdown with Florida, currently No. 33 in the NET. Neutral-court matchups carry heavy NET weight, and this one could swing the Huskies’ trajectory more than any other game in December.
-fd44250df32912986cc6690f0b8bfa32.png "Shivani Menon")
Shivani Menon is a sports journalist with a background in Mass Communication and a passion for storytelling. She has written for EssentiallySports, College Sports Network, and PFSN, covering Olympic sports like track and field, gymnastics, and alpine skiing, as well as college football, basketball, March Madness, and the NBL Draft. When she's not reporting, she's either on the road chasing sunsets or getting lost in the rhythms of electronic soundscapes.