HARTFORD – The UConn men's basketball team (17-8, 9-5 BIG EAST) returns to Hartford for its penultimate game at the XL Center this season when it plays host to Villanova (15-11, 8-7) on Tuesday night. Tip-off is set for 6:30 on FS1 with Jason Benetti and Bill Raftery on the call.

Fans attending in Hartford on Tuesday night are encouraged to participate in the XL Center Stripe Out.

UConn is coming off an overtime setback on Saturday at Seton Hall, while Villanova fell at Providence over the weekend.  Connecticut and Villanova have squared off 76 times in a series that dates back to 1941 and picked up in earnest when VU joined the BIG EAST in its second year. The Wildcats hold a 40-36 all-time lead in the series after a 68-66 win on Jan. 8 at Finneran Pavilion. The Huskies have played the Wildcats well in recent seasons, with the loss earlier this year snapping a four-game UConn winning streak in the series. The Huskies are 5-2 in the last seven against VU.

Liam McNeeley is the reigning BIG EAST freshman of the week and leads the Huskies with 15.1 points per game, ranking second on the squad with 6.5 rebounds per game. In three games since returning from an eight-game injury absence McNeeley is posting 22.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per contest. Solo Ball is second on the squad with 14.8 points per game and ranks top-15 nationally with a 44.3 percent 3-point percentage. Ball has also pumped his rebounding output of late, averaging 6.7 caroms per game over UConn's last seven.

Husky captain Alex Karaban has stuffed the stat sheet this season with 14.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. He was recently named to the mid/late midseason watch lists for both the Naismith and Wooden Awards. Tarris Reed Jr. leads the Huskies with 6.8 rebounds per game and has posted six double-doubles off the bench this season, while Hassan Diarra leads the Huskies and is top-25 nationally with 6.0 assists per game.  

Villanova holds a 15-11 record on the year and is 8-7 in the BIG EAST, two back of Connecticut and tied with Xavier for fifth in the league standings. Eric Dixon is the top Wildcat scorer and leads the nation with 23.2 points per game, while Wooga Poplar adds 14.8 and a team-high 6.5 rebounds a night.

After Tuesday night in Hartford the Huskies head to 'Storrs South' to take on No. 10 St. John's at Madison Square Garden.