UConn men's basketball reveals Solo Ball will miss 2026-27 season

Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant on Apr 20, 2026

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HARTFORD, Conn. — The UConn men’s basketball program announced Monday that rising senior guard Solo Ball will undergo wrist surgery and miss the entire 2026-27 season.

Ball will take a medical redshirt year and return to the Huskies in 2027-28, according to the release.

“Solo is a true Husky and a champion who would do anything to be out on the court,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “This guy has shown throughout his career what a warrior he is. Solo is going to use the season to get his wrist fully healthy and then come back next year as one of the best guards in America while cementing his legacy as an all-time great at UConn.”

Ball was a Second Team All-Big East selection after averaging 12.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 28.4 minutes per game this past season despite dealing with the wrist injury, which occurred as he scored a career-high 26 points in a December meeting with Butler. He was never able to fully recover and saw his shooting numbers dip to 30% from beyond the arc after coming onto the scene as one of the nation’s best shooters with a 41.4% clip in his sophomore season.

The Leesburg, Va., native has scored 1,153 points in three seasons as a Husky and started in all but one game over the last two seasons, averaging 13.6 points per game in that span. He was a top-five finalist for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award this year despite the injury. Ball currently ranks 10th in program history with 199 career 3-pointers and is 44th on UConn’s all-time scoring list.

“A true UConn warrior!” Hurley posted to social media in response to the news, “His return will be epic!”

The announcement came just two days after Braylon Mullins announced he would return for his sophomore season and the Huskies added 6-foot-8 Duke forward Nik Khamenia out of the transfer portal.

UConn, also retaining point guard Silas Demary Jr. and wing Jayden Ross, added former Seton Hall center Najai Hines last week. The Huskies have a pair of top-50 freshmen coming in, too, in wing Colben Landrew and guard Junior County.

Ball was considered the final piece to a starting lineup that could contend for another national championship.