It's been a wacky American Athletic Conference men's basketball season.

Few could have predicted that UConn would reside in last place and Central Florida in first place this early in January.

Yet that's where the two teams stood prior to Sunday.

The Huskies (5-9, 0-3) and Knights (12-3, 3-0) meet at 5 p.m. Sunday at the XL Center in Hartford.

One of the preseason favorites to win the AAC, injury-plagued UConn is having an uncharacteristically dreadful season, standing four games under .500 for the first time since the 1986-87 season, as well as losing its first three conference games since 1984-85. The Huskies are mired in a four-game losing streak, the longest under coach Kevin Ollie.

UCF, picked to place eighth, has already equaled last season's overall win total. The Knights are riding a five-game winning streak. First-year coach Johnny Dawkins, an All-American during his playing days at Duke and former Stanford coach, has injected new life into a program.

The Knights look nothing like the team that lost last year's season series to UConn by average of 23.5 points.

"They have gotten off to a good start and it looks like they are playing with great confidence," Ollie said. "Coach Dawkins implemented a different style. They are playing very solid basketball."

The defensive numbers are staggering.

UCF has smothered opponents, leading the nation in field goal percentage defense (32.2) and ranking second in points allowed per game (57.1). The Knights limited Temple to an AAC record-setting low 11 points in the first half of a 77-53 win on Dec. 31, taking the Huskies — the previous record holder with 12 against Houston on Dec. 28 — off the hook.

"What really impresses me about Central Florida first, is their defense," Ollie said. "We have to be efficient and effective on the offensive end. ... Tacko (Fall) is pretty much like a one-man zone. He stays in the lane, so our five man is going to have to be really active. We have to get to the offensive rebounds. We're going to have to get some points in transition.

"They also play a very effective zone, so we have to be able to move the ball, keep the ball in front of the defense and, of course, make some shots."

At 7-foot-6, Fall is the tallest player in college basketball and also a vastly improved player, nearly doubling his scoring and rebounding average from last season to 14.3 and 11.2, respectively, per game. He converts a ridiculous 80 percent of his shots. His wing span is an impressive eight feet, four inches.

It will be tall order for UConn's 7-foot center Amida Brimah to contain Fall and avoid foul trouble.

"He's a load in there," Ollie said. "He uses his body very well. He's gotten a lot stronger and his balance is better. And they are feeding him."

Other Knights are making important contributions. Four players of the seven scholarship players average in double figures, led by point guard B.J. Taylor (16.4) who returned last game after sitting out seven contests with a thumb injury. Senior guard Matt Williams, the AAC leader in three-pointers made per game at 3.6, is a perimeter scoring threat.

Oh, and UCF leads the nation in rebounding at 45.7 per game.

"They have a really great team," Ollie said. "We have to really come out and play if we're going to get a conference win."

The Huskies are long overdue to put together a strong all-around game.

Their frontcourt excelled in Thursday's 70-61 loss at Memphis as Brimah (nine points, a career-best 15 rebounds) and Kentan Facey (eight points, nine rebounds) had productive performances. But the backcourt trio of Jalen Adams, Rodney Purvis and Christian Vital combined to shoot just 8-for-38 from the field and score 22 points.

You'd think playing at home would benefit the Huskies, but they're just 2-4 this season.

UCF, which has never won at UConn, isn't about to come into the game overconfident.

"They've had a great program in the past," B.J. Taylor said on the school's website. "We prepare for them just like we prepare for everybody else. You don't want to change what you do, things that made us successful this season we're going to stick to that. I don't even like to look at the records of the team we're playing.

"... Whether we're playing the top team in the conference or bottom team, we're going to do the same routine."

• In other news, UConn lost the Hamidou Diallo sweepstakes, as the now former Putnam Science Academy star and top 10 ranked recruit announced Saturday that he will attend Kentucky during a press conference at Our Lady of Angelus Academy in Rego Park, N.Y. He's eligible to join the Wildcat program right away but reportedly will only practice with the team this season.

g.keefe@theday.com

UCONN vs. CENTRAL FLORIDA

Location: XL Center, Hartford

Tip: 5 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)

Records: UConn 5-9, 0-3; Central Florida 12-3, 3-0

Last game: UConn lost at Memphis, 70-61, Thursday; Central Florida beat East Carolina, 48-45, Tuesday

Probable starters: UConn, 6-3 so. guard Jalen Adams (15.9 pts, 5.7 assists), 6-4 r-sr. guard Rodney Purvis (12.8 pts, 4.9 rebs), 6-2 fr. guard Christian Vital (7.5 pts), 6-10 sr. forward Kentan Facey (6.4 pts, 6.8 rebs), 7-0 sr. center Amida Brimah (6.9 pts, 6.1 rebs, 2.9 blks)

UCF, 6-2 r-so. guard B.J. Taylor (16.4 pts, 4.5 assists), 6-5 r-sr. guard Matt Williams (15.6 pts, 5.2 rebs), 6-6 sr. forward Tank Efianayi (11.3 pts, 5.5 rebs), 6-9 r-jr. forward A.J. Davis (7.2 pts, 8 rebs), 7-6 so. center Tacko Fall (14.3 pts, 11.2 rebs, 2.3 blks)

Noteworthy: Lost four straight, longest losing streak under Kevin Ollie. ... Series: UConn leads 8-1, winning five straight. Swept last year's meetings  -- 67-41 in Orlando, 67-46 in Storrs. Knights never won at UConn, posting only win in 2011 Battle 4 Atlantis in Bahamas. ... UCF, picked 8th in preseason poll, won five in a row. ... Knights first in nation FG percentage defense at 32.2, rebounding at 45.7 per game. ... Fall second in nation in field goal percentage at 80.0, first in AAC in rebounding. One of world's 40 tallest human beings. ... Knights with only seven scholarship players, one less than UConn.  ... Top reserve: 6-8 r-sr. forward Nick Banyard (5.8 pts, 6.8 rebs). ... Hot: UConn out-rebounding foes by a 5.5 margin in last 4 games. Cold: Purvis 19 percent (7-for-37) from three in last 4 games. ... Huskies average league-best 9,330 fans at home. ... Purvis (37.5) and Adams (36.6) lead AAC in minutes played per game. ... Up next: UConn hosts Temple Wednesday in Storrs.

— Gavin Keefe