The way UConn looks at it, its recent two-game slide served an important purpose.

“That two-game losing streak opened a lot of our eyes,” sophomore Jordan Hawkins said.

The Huskies learned some valuable lessons after suffering consecutive road losses at Xavier and Providence, two teams currently in the top two spots in the Big East standings. They regrouped, made the necessary adjustments, and beat Creighton for the first time on Saturday in Storrs.

No. 6 UConn returns to the road, visiting No. 25 Marquette on Wednesday in a Big East game (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network) at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.

“It definitely helped us reshape our perspective and not look at things like everything is good,” junior Andre Jackson said. “After wins, there’s some things that you might not notice watching the film and just brush over. After a loss, you lock in on all the things that you’re messing up on film and you try to correct those mistakes. I think we’ve got to do a better job of just doing that after wins as well.

“Whether you win the game or lose the game, it shouldn’t matter. We should be trying to grow, regardless, and learn from our mistakes.”

UConn (15-2, 4-2) responded against Creighton in a way that it didn’t with the game on the line late in the previous two games.

When the Huskies fell behind by one, they bolted on a 14-2 run. They responded again when their lead dipped to six and closed out the win with clutch play and pressure defense.

“Adversity is good,” coach Dan Hurley said. “Those losses at Providence and Xavier are going to make us better. We haven’t been in games like that. We’ve been blowing teams away. The first time that we got into those tight games down the stretch, we didn’t respond. … And we responded (against Creighton) in part because we played in two brutal environments against two really good teams.”

UConn will face a similar road situation on Wednesday against surprising Marquette (13-4, 5-1), which is contending for the Big East title and resides in third place after being picked ninth in the league coaches’ preseason poll. The Huskies are fourth.

Coach Shaka Smart was asked about playing UConn during his post-Georgetown game press conference on Saturday.

“If we don’t bring energy and passion, you’re not beating a team like that,” he said. “There’s a level of respect for what goes into winning, regardless of the opponent, that you have to bring in order to win a game like today (against Georgetown). Then, when you go into a game like Wednesday where you know a team is going to test you in a variety of different ways, that respect needs to be even more heightened.

“But, along with that, there needs to be a level of confidence that you can do it. … Certainly very, very excited to play a team of that caliber.”

The Golden Eagles are riding a four-game winning streak during which they’ve beaten Georgetown, St. John’s, Villanova and Seton Hall. Their only Big East loss came in double overtime at Providence on Dec. 20.

Slowing down Marquette, one of the league’s top offensive teams, will be a challenge for UConn. Point guard Tyler Kolek, who’s third in the nation in assists per game at 8.0, orchestrates the attack while guard Kam Jones (16.1 points) and forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (14.5 points) supply a potent punch. Jones made the All-Big East freshman team last season.

The Huskies regained their defensive edge against Creighton, but lost the battle of the boards in a second straight game. They’ve also tailed offensively in the last two games, averaging 65 points and shooting 36 percent from the field.

“We did a good job on the defensive end,” Jackson said. “We’ve still got problems with 50-50 balls and gathering defensive rebounds, and that’s something we’re going to try to continue to get better at and make adjustments with.”

The game will cap off UConn’s toughest five-game stretch of the season. All five opponents reside in the upper half of the league standings.

A win on Wednesday would provide momentum for the Huskies and keep them within striking distance of Big East leaders Xavier (5-0) and Providence (6-0).

g.keefe@theday.com

No. 6 UConn at No. 25 Marquette

Location: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee

Tip: 7 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)

Records: UConn 15-2, 4-2; Marquette 13-4, 5-1

Last game: UConn beat Creighton, 69-60, Saturday; Marquette defeated Georgetown, 95-73, Saturday

Probable starters; UConn, 6-5 sr. guard Tristen Newton (9.6 pts, 4.2 rebs, 4.4 assists), 6-6 jr. guard Andre Jackson (6.4 pts, 6.3 rebs, 4.8 assists), 6-5 so. guard Jordan Hawkins (14.8 pts, 3.4 rebs), 6-8 r-fr. forward Alex Karaban (9.2 pts, 4 rebs), 6-9 jr. forward Adama Sanogo (17.9 pts, 6.9 rebs)

Marquette, 6-3 jr. guard Tyler Kolek (9.2 pts, 8 assists), 6-4 so. guard Kam Jones (16.1 pts, 3.9 rebs), 6-2 so. guard Stevie Mitchell (7.5 pts), 6-9 jr. forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (14.5 pts, 4.9 rebs), 6-9 jr. forward Oso Ighodaro (11.5 pts, 6.5 rebs)

Noteworthy: Huskies 1-1 vs. ranked teams this season, beating No. 18 Alabama Nov. 25 in Portland, Ore., and losing at No. 22 Xavier on Dec. 31. … Series: UConn leads, 7-6, winning four straight including 80-72 at home and 78-70 on the road last season. … Huskies shot 47 and 50 percent from the field in the last two meetings. … Marquette off to its best start in Big East play since 2018-19. … Golden Eagles 9-1 at home, Huskies 2-2 on the road. … Top reserve: 6-7 so. forward David Joplin (10.2 pts, 3.5 rebs). … Golden Eagles 2nd in Big East in scoring offense at 82.4, Huskies 3rd at 82.3. … Kolek (Cumberland, R.I.) had 15 assists vs. Georgetown Saturday, the third highest total in program history. He has 39 assists and three turnovers in the last four games. …. Marquette rallied from halftime deficits to win in each of its last two games. Forces 16.1 turnovers per game and shoots 50 percent from the field. … Hot: Kam Jones scored in double figures in all but two games. Cold: Reserve Joey Calcaterra 1 for 12 from field in last four games. … Big East leaders: Sanogo, scoring; Hawkins, 3-pointers made per game at 2.9. … Huskies have been ranked in the top 10 for six straight weeks. … After Wednesday’s game, Huskies play five of their next six games vs. Big East teams below them in the standings. … Up next: UConn hosts St. John’s at noon Sunday in Hartford.

– Gavin Keefe