2018-19 American Athletic Conference preview: UConn is still on top, but the middle of the pack is strengthening
Look beyond the Huskies and you’ll see plenty of teams that matter, too.
It’s easy to dismiss the American Athletic Conference. UConn always has been and (seemingly) always will be the class of the league. In five seasons, the Huskies have yet to lose a conference game and have only been seriously threatened a couple times. It speaks both to the past ineptitude of the conference and the remarkable consistency that Geno Auriemma demands.
So, it’s no surprise that the Huskies are again picked to win the AAC. It won’t be particularly close either, as UConn is one of a handful of teams who can win the national championship in April, while the best any other AAC school can hope for is maybe an NCAA Tournament bid.
More from AAC
- Your Day in Women’s Basketball, July 2: Maya Moore helps overturn wrongful conviction
- Jasmine Lister resigns as UConn assistant coach
- UConn’s Megan Walker declares for 2020 WNBA Draft
- UConn women’s basketball assistant coach takes leave of absence
- Takeaways from Baylor’s big win over Connecticut
You could leave this preview right now and be done with it, knowing UConn will not be threatened by a conference foe this year. But if you do that, you’ll miss out on three or four teams who could, feasibly, make a run and steal a bid. They could knock off your favorite team too, if they’re not careful. USF is there again, but the Bulls are no guarantee to finish in second. And that’s no disrespect to them, either. UCF and Houston will both be really good, while Temple and Cincinnati are on their way up as well.
Here are our predictions for how the season will shake out: