UConn responds to Big East rumors

The University of Connecticut says it has no intention of rejoining the Big East Conference.

On Wednesday, a report from FanRag Sports claimed UConn has been having active discussions with the Big East about joining the conference. The Big East is supposedly willing to take UConn in all sports, though something would need to be done about the Huskies’ football team because the Big East no longer has football.

UConn athletic director David Benedict said in a statement Wednesday evening that all of that is a moot point, because he claims the Huskies have no interest in leaving the American Athletic conference.

Statement from @UConnHuskyAD on Big East chatter pic.twitter.com/kb3G7KMlaf

— Paul Doyle (@PaulDoyle1) February 15, 2017

The report from FanRag says the Big East wants UConn to join so the conference can move to 20 league games in basketball, which would help improve the resumes of its teams and give them a better shot at earning NCAA Tournament bids over other power-five teams.

It’s hard to tell whether Benedict’s statement is rooted in truth, as UConn probably would not want the AAC to know it was considering leaving in case any potential deal with the Big East fell through. UConn won a national title in men’s basketball in 2014, but they have since struggled and are an incredibly disappointing 12-12 this season after being ranked in the top 25 heading into the year.

We all know one team from UConn every conference would love to have, but that goes without saying. If the Huskies join the Big East and can play against tougher competition, men’s basketball coach Kevin Ollie could see a boost in recruiting this summer.