Could shocking loss to Creighton be a wake-up call for No. 5 UConn?

The duo of senior guards Josh Dix (21 points) and Nik Graves (18 points) combined for 39 of Creighton's points. As a team, Creighton was 27-of-55 (49%) overall, 10-of-21 (48%) from deep and 27-of-32 (84%) from the free-throw line.

According to Stathead's Katie Sharp, UConn has had four of its five worst defensive efficiency games of the season in its last four games, leaving plenty of room for improvement for a team that appears to be searching for answers in conference play.

Although freshman guard Braylon Mullins was a bright spot for UConn with a career-high 25 points (9-of-22 FG, 6-of-11 3PT), two of the team's three-leading scorers this season, junior guard Solo Ball (eight points) and senior forward Alex Karaban (two points), were nonexistent.

Considering the struggles the Bluejays have had all season, this is a crushing loss for UConn, a team that is ranked 13th according to KenPom. The Huskies have five ranked wins to their credit this season, but the two losses to St. John's and Creighton in their last four games are concerning this late in the season.

With that said, it may not be the worst thing to get upset at this point. It was clear lately that the Huskies were not where they needed to be, either with injuries or close calls against teams like Providence and Georgetown, which are both in the bottom half of the conference standings.

After a second meeting with Villanova on Saturday, UConn will have a rematch with No. 17 St. John's on Feb. 25. Even with the stunning loss to Creighton, everything is still in front of the Huskies.

With the possibility that any team can step up and pull of an upset in the NCAA Tournament, perhaps a loss when UConn least expected it could be good for it in the long run.

However, for the Huskies to respond and reestablish control in the Big East, their defense must improve for them to truly have a shot.