AAC play about to ramp up
Death. Taxes. The UConn women crushing the competition in the American Athletic Conference.
The Huskies have been unbeatable — literally — in conference play since the start of the 201314 season. The numbers are staggering. They’ve reeled off 121 consecutive wins (120 by double digits) and claimed six straight titles within the league.
Will their reign end? Yes — we’ll get to that in a second — but not this season.
The Huskies were tabbed the unanimous favorite to win the AAC and have done nothing to change that notion. They’ve raced to a 100 start and the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press Top25 poll. No one else from the AAC is even ranked at the moment, though South Florida did crack the poll at one point. Three schools — UConn, UCF and Temple — are among the top 75 in the RPI.
AAC play will ramp up Thursday when Wichita State pays UConn a visit in Hartford. The Huskies notched their first conference victory this season when they throttled Temple 8354 on Nov. 17.
This, of course, is UConn’s last run through the AAC. Next season, the school will be back in its old stomping grounds of the Big East.
Here’s a recap of how the AAC has fared so far in 201920. (Rankings are based on the preseason coaches’ poll).
2. South Florida (86): The Bulls spent three weeks ranked in the AP poll, climbing as high as No. 21, before falling out. Once again, the injury bug has slowed them down a bit.
T3. UCF (84): The Knights notched a programrecord 26 wins and were one of just two AAC teams to make the NCAA tournament last year (No. 12 seed, lost in first round to Arizona State). Kay Kay Wright, the conference preseason coplayer of the year, needs to be at her best for them to get back.
T3. Cincinnati (94): The Bearcats were the only school besides UConn to place multiple players — Ilmar’l Thomas and Antoinette Miller — on the preseason allconference team. The duo has accounted for nearly half (32.4) of the team’s scoring so far.
5. Houston (77): Top scorer Jasmyne Harris is no longer with the team after playing in just five games. Three others are averaging double figures in points, including Dorian Branch, an allconference second team guard.
6. Temple (76): The
Owls got their loss to UConn out of the way early. Lucky them.
7. Tulane (58): Seven years in, the Green Wave is still the only AAC team to play within single digits of the Huskies.
8. Memphis (94): The Tigers are off to their best start since 2012, when they opened 103. Will it last?
They don’t have any real wins of substance (sorry, Southern Illinois).
9. Wichita State (85): Guard Mariah McCully is the Shockers’ top scorer (12.6) despite starting only three games. Five others are averaging between 7.9 and 9.6 points.
10. Tulsa (58): The Golden Hurricane is on pace for its fifth straight losing season and owns the thirdworst RPI (205) in the conference. It’s looking like a long year.
11. East Carolina (310): It’s been tough sledding for former Hartford coach Kim McNeill.
12. Southern Methodist (65): The Mustangs rank top10 nationally in rebounding. Johnasia Cash is a big reason why. The cousin of former UConn star Swin Cash is averaging 10.1 boards per game.