Tumult has surrounded the Southern Methodist Mustangs program all year. They suffered heartbreak last year after barely missing out on an NCAA tournament bid, but were looking to silence the doubters this year. Before the season started, the Southern Methodist Mustangs were thought of as the favorites in the AAC, as legendary head coach Larry Brown has built this squad that he took over in 2012 to a powerhouse. However, darkness has built in Dallas over the course of the season. Emmanuel Mudiay, a massive recruit that would have made a huge difference this year, decided to go to China and play instead of play college ball. Markus Kennedy, arguably the most talented player on the SMU roster, was academically ineligible for the first half of the season. Finally, a scandal has rocked the Mustangs foundation, as the school received a Notice of Allegations from the NCAA that includes accusations of academic improprieties within the program.

However, a romping 12-2 run in AAC play so far, the wheels are now turning at a massive pace, and it came to a climax tonight against the reigning national champions, UConn Huskies. With ESPN's College GameDay in town, there was much hype surrounding the game, and it brought a great crowd of 7,395 to Moody Coliseum tonight in Dallas. The fans were able to witness a rout, as their Pony Express won in dominating fashion, 73-55.

The Huskies started out well, getting a few 3-pointers from team leader Ryan Boatright. They led 10-3 after the first 4 minutes. However, the SMU light was turned on by big center Cannen Cunningham and sophemore sharpshooter Sterling Brown, as they used their talents to push the pace in the Mustangs' favor. The three-headed heart of the SMU team, consisting of Yanick Moreira, Markus Kennedy, and Nic Moore used their talents to get to the charity stripe often and convert down low some easy layups, and a few highlight dunks. At the break, SMU led the lazy Huskies 41-26.

Ryan Boatright did what he could to keep UConn within striking distance. The energetic and sharpshooting senior was their catalyst, but this beacon of hope was dimmed drastically by the grotesque play by the rest of Connecticut's roster. 1-9 shooting from NC State transfer Rodney Purvis greatly hurt the Huskies cause. After a 9-0 run climaxing with a bring-the-house-down Ryan Manuel dunk, SMU led the Storrs natives 54-35 with about 11 minutes to go.

The game completely got out of UConn's hands. They had no life whatsoever to defend the powerful and big lineup Southern Methodist brought tonight. Other than Ryan Boatright, they looked lackadaisical, much to the chagrin of Kevin Ollie, knowing they are on the outside looking in for the NCAA Tournament. Through the offensive progression of Cannen Cunningham in the paint, the efforts on both ends of the court by SMU's other bigs (Kennedy and Moreira), and timely shots made from beyond the arc by floor general Nic Moore and born shooter Sterling Brown, the Mustangs look unstoppable. Tonight's 73-55 win was well deserved.

As for UConn, they blew a massive opportunity tonight. They will now play Memphis this coming Thursday as a part of a 3 game stretch against middling AAC opponents, before inviting these SMU Mustangs to Storrs on March 1st. The Ponies want to ride this conference lead to the promised land, but will have to contend with a talented Temple squad next Thursday in Dallas.