NEW YORK - The No. 5 UConn men's basketball team (3-0) ramps up its non-conference schedule in a big way this weekend, heading to the Big Apple to participate in the Saatva Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden. The loaded field includes the Huskies, Indiana, Texas and Louisville with action getting underway on Sunday afternoon. First up for Connecticut is a showdown with Indianam (3-0) on Sunday at 1 p.m. The match-up will air on ESPN with Karl Ravech, Jay Williams and Myron Medcalf on the call. 

The Huskies and Hoosiers will meet for the 11th time in their respective storied histories, last connecting in the Jimmy V Classic in 2019. UConn and IU have actually met in the Empire Classic before, with UConn taking down Indiana in the 2013 title game of the-then 2K Classic. Overall in the series UConn leads 6-4 with the first meeting dating back to 1938.

UConn has burst out of the gates to a 3-0 record this season, winning all three home games by an average of 39.0 points per game. Alex Karaban (Southborough, Mass.) leads the Huskies with 17.0 points per game, while Tristen Newton (El Paso, Texas) has added 15.3 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds a night. Both Donovan Clingan (Bristol, Conn.) and Cam Spencer (Davidsonville, Md.) are scoring 15.0 per game, with Clingan adding 6.7 rebounds per game and Spencer dishing out a team-best 5.0 assists per contest. As a team the Huskies are among the national leaders with a 54.7 percent field goal percentage and 19.7 assists per game. 

Indiana is also 3-0 this season, taking its first three home games by an average of 7.7 points per game. Kel'el Ware leads the Hoosiers with 18.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, while Malik Reneau adds 15.0 points per game. 

The Empire Classic will continues long-standing tradition of playing in-season MTEs, as it will mark the 19th-straight season it will do so. Last year UConn won the Phil Knight Invitational in November and head coach Dan Hurley is 11-3 at UConn in MTE play. The trip to Madison Square Garden is also familiar terrain for UConn. The Huskies have played more games at MSG than any other venue aside from their home courts in Storrs and Hartford, compiling a 68-60 record all-time at the World's Most Famous Arena. Hurley is 6-6 in the building as UConn's head coach. UConn will play at least five games this season at Madison Square Garden. 

Following Sunday's contest, UConn will face either Louisville or Texas on Monday at The Garden.