Things just got a lot more interesting in the race for the American Athletic Conference title.

Entering Sunday’s game against Connecticut, the Mustangs were tied with Tulsa atop the American standings at 14-2.

But a sudden 81-73 loss to the Huskies put SMU a half-game behind Tulsa, a week ahead of the Golden Hurricane’s trip to Moody on March 8.

SMU hit the East Coast as winners of five straight matches, and the Mustangs were popular picks to run the table all the way to the conference tournament title.

But the defending Huskie champions had something to say about it. Fifteen days after an 18-point loss in Dallas, UConn carved up SMU’s defense to the tune of 53 percent shooting and 45 from beyond the arc.

Huskies guard Rodney Purvis scored a career-high 28 points on 9-of-16 shooting and added three assists and three steals. Ryan Boatright added 18 with five assists and freshman Daniel Hamilton had 16 points.

But the story of the game was defense for both sides. UConn crowded the paint at the start and prevented SMU from getting any kind of momentum.

Meanwhile, the Mustangs’ usually sturdy defense surrendered 80 points for the first time all season. Yanick Moreira and Markus Kennedy combined for 32 points, but it wasn’t enough as Nic Moore endured an off day with 3-of-13 shooting.

SMU sits at 23-6 and 14-3 in the AAC with only the Tulsa game remaining.

Tulsa can clinch a share of the regular season league title with a win Wednesday against Cincinnati.

A loss would make next Sunday’s SMU-Tulsa game a winner-take-all game.