UConn's final men's basketball season in the American Athletic Conference features a challenging start.

The Huskies open the league schedule with two straight road games against quality AAC teams, visiting Cincinnati on Jan. 1 and traveling to South Florida on Jan. 4.

The complete schedule was released on Friday. Opponents were previously announced but not times and dates for AAC games.

UConn will be tested early and often in January, as four of its first six games that month are on the road and includes a trip to defending AAC champion Houston on Jan. 23. The Huskies also visit Villanova, a projected top 10 team, for a non-conference showdown on Jan. 18 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

Another highlight will be when the Huskies play at Memphis, a preseason favorite to win the AAC, on Feb. 1 in a nationally-televised game on CBS. Memphis visits UConn on Feb. 16 in Hartford.

Other marquee non-conference games are against Florida on Nov. 17 in Storrs and versus Indiana in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 10 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The Huskies open the regular season on Friday, Nov. 8, against Sacred Heart in Storrs. Their lone exhibition game is against Division II St. Michael's College on Wednesday, Oct. 30 at the XL Center in Hartford.

Their regular-season home finale is March 5 against Houston in Storrs and their regular season finale is at Tulane on March 8.

The 31-game schedule includes 18 home games, including one exhibition — nine at Gampel Pavilion, nine at the XL Center.

The AAC tournament runs March 12-15 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Huskies are expected to take another step forward this season in coach Dan Hurley's second year in charge. They went 16-17 overall, 6-12 in the AAC last season.