Posts Tagged ‘Connecticut’
NCAA Final Four Preview Betus.com betting line – Connecticut -4, 133.5 O/U The first game of the Final Four will host two familiar faces in the Michigan State Spartans and the Connecticut Huskies. The Spartans are making their 5th Final Four visit in the last 11 years which is simply remarkable. Connecticut was a big favorite out of the West bracket and they backed up the hype well playing solid basketball throughout the tournament. Michigan State appears to be playing their best basketball of the season and that should make for a great game. The grudge match will be a classic battle especially on the inside in the paint. The Huskies and the Spartans both are tremendous teams in terms of rebounding and scoring down low. Centers Goran Suton of Michigan State and Hasheem Thabeet for Connecticut should be in for an intense match-up. The team that can really execute drives to the basket and establish presence on the boards will hold a huge advantage considering the most of these two teams production this season has come from the paint. The Connecticut Huskies defeated a surging Missouri team in the Elite Eight 82-75. Freshmen guard Kemba Walker had his biggest night of the year in that game stepping up for the Huskies and knocking down 23 points. Walker along with senior guard A.J Price could make a huge impact if they could manage to knock down shots from the perimeter. That scenario would open the play up on the inside with the double threat considering Connecticut is a team that attempts a low amount of 3 point shots. However, the inside will be the game to watch. Hasheem Thabeet and Jeff Adrien are both averaging double-double averages that nearly mirror each other. The two standouts are posting a little over 13 points per game while pulling down over 10 rebounds per game as well. These two players will be the biggest difference in the game for Connecticut and their chances for a National Championship will likely lie in their hands. The Huskies should match-up well as long as they do not get dominated on the boards and will be the small favorites heading into the big showdown. Michigan State may be a bit of a surprise to some people around the nation. The Spartans seemed a bit inconsistent over some average teams this season. However, Michigan State has sort of made a reputation for making Final Four appearances. Sophomore guard Kalin Lucas has been the biggest threat on the offensive side of the court this season for the Spartans averaging right at 15 points per game. However, over the last two big games against defending National Champions Kansas and overall number one seed Louisville center Goran Suton has been the big asset on the Spartans roster. Outside of the USC game, Suton has posted double-double numbers in all 3 other games. The ability for the big center to be affective on the inside against the talented inside group from Connecticut will an uphill battle, but could be the big payoff as well. The Spartans own the nation’s best average at holding opponents to only 27 boards per game and those numbers will need to continue to be able to control the game like they have all throughout their previous match-ups in the tournament. The battle should be intense as the Spartans look to return to the National Championship game as they did in 2000. Pick – Huskies in a close one
Michigan State Spartans (30-6) vs. Connecticut Huskies (31-4)
Saturday, 6:07PM Eastern
Tags: Connecticut, Michigan State, ncaa basketball, NCAA Final Four
NCAA Betting Preview Bookmaker.com betting line – Even, Marquette (pick) or Connecticut (pick) The No. 10 Marquette Golden Eagles will host the no. 2 ranked Connecticut Huskies inside the Bradley Center from Milwaukee this Wednesday night in an epic showdown of Big East front runners. Connecticut lost the nations top ranking from conference rival Pittsburgh last week, but they still have aspirations of winning the Big East regular season title. However, the Golden Eagles of Marquette will be attempting the same task as these two teams are apart of a four way tie atop the Big East standings that feature in four nationally ranked Top 10 teams. Marquette schedules is brutal with no. 1 Pittsburgh and no. 6 Louisville to immediately follow Wednesday’s showdown, but they still have hopes of a regular season title as well. No. 10 Marquette has had one of the best performing offenses on a consistent basis all year in the conference. The Golden Eagles lead the Big East in scoring offense averaging 80 points per game. Interestingly enough, Marquette has actually faired well against teams with the style of play similar to Connecticut. The Huskies like to slow the game down a bit compared to Marquette and use strong inside game to establish their winning formula. Marquette on the other hand is led by one of the best backcourts in America in their two senior guards Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews. The Golden Eagles can move the ball up and down the court in a hurry and will attempt to score a lot of points in transition. However, they will have to overcome one of the best defensive teams in America if they plan on scoring the victory on Wednesday night. Jerel McNeal leads the team averaging 20 points per game and has scored 20 or more points in 9 of his last 10 games. Wesley Matthews is posting 18 points per game along with two straight 20 plus performances and he too could be a big factor on Wednesday. The No. 2 Connecticut Huskies still have a great shot of winning the conference out right for the regular season title. The Huskies really control their own destiny as long as they can win due to their season finale re-match with Pittsburgh that will take place on March 7th. Connecticut sports the Big East best scoring defense holding teams to only 61 points per game. Also to go along with the strong defense, they also have one of the best all around rebounding teams in America. Junior center Hasheem Thabeet is becoming a lethal force inside the paint averaging big numbers with 13 points and 10.5 rebounds every outing. However, Connecticut supports a strong starting lineup that features a number of star players that could have a breakout performance on any given night. Jeff Adrien, Jerome Dyson, and A.J Price will all attempt to support Thabeet as the Huskies take part of one of their highest stakes games of the season. What to watch for… Marquette has not grabbed a lot of offensive boards this season, but they only allow competitors 31 rebounds per game on average. If they can keep Connecticut from gaining the edge on the glass, I think their dangerous offense could be a real problem for the Huskies. Considering none of the Connecticut big men have any huge breakout nights, the Golden Eagles led by the two stellar senior guards could be in for surprising the nation like they have all season. Pick – Marquette
No. 2 Connecticut Huskies (25-2) at No. 10 Marquette Golden Eagles (23-4)
Bradley Center, 7:00PM Eastern, Wednesday
Tags: Big East, Connecticut, Marquette, ncaa basketball
NCAA Betting Preview Bookmaker.com betting line – Connecticut -3 The biggest game of the Big East Conference basketball season will likely take place on Monday night live from the Gampel Pavilion when the No. 1 Connecticut Huskies host the No. 4 Pittsburgh Panthers. Connecticut not only holds the nations number 1 ranking, but also hold the top spot in the conference. However, the Panthers have won 5 straight games and they were the nation’s former number 1 earlier this season and they will make an attempt to take down the Huskies to get back on top of the Big East standings. The game will be the first of two meetings between these two regular season conference title hopefuls in the last month of the season. Connecticut has been stellar in all aspects of the game this season. The offense is sound and the defense has been stellar. Not to mention the Huskies are one of the best teams in the land at grabbing rebounds. The Huskies are averaging 77 points per game this season and rank 3rd in the country averaging 42 rebounds per contest as well. However, possibly the most impressive statistic that Connecticut possesses is that they are the top ranked scoring defense in the conference and also a top 25 national scoring defense holding opponents to only 60 points per game. Amazingly, the Huskies have two outstanding players averaging double-doubles. Jeff Adrien leads the team in scoring average with 14 points per contest while averaging 10 rebounds as well. The 7’3” monster on the inside Hasheem Thabeet is a big threat in the paint averaging 13.5 points and 11 rebounds per game. Thabeet is also coming off a 25 points 20 rebound performance and could be a big impact on Monday night. Pittsburgh has won 5 straight games since their last loss to Villanova back in late January. The Panthers are one of the better scoring teams in the conference and one of the better scoring teams in America nearly averaging 80 points per game. Pittsburgh has a strong inside team, but can be equally dangerous from the perimeter. The inside game will likely be the most watched battle as Pittsburgh’s DeJuan Blair goes against Hasheem Thabeet. Blair is averaging the nations 5th best individual total in rebounds with 12.3 boards per game and also contributes with 15 point per game as well. The leader of the team is senior forward Sam Young who is posting 18 points per game while adding 6 boards and the Panthers would love for the senior to come up with another big night. Pittsburgh definitely needs all their players to come up big in the rebounding category considering Connecticut has not been out rebounded in a single game this season. What to watch for… Pick – Pittsburgh +3
No. 4 Pittsburgh Panthers (23-2) at Connecticut Huskies (24-1)
Monday, 7:00PM Eastern
The inside battle will be the most interesting to watch with Thabeet and Blair with others colliding in the paint. However, while whoever wins that battle will make a big impact I believe the guard play will be equally important. Huskies’ A.J Price and Jerome Dyson will match-up against Levance Fields and Jermaine Dixon. The guards that can make some fast breaks and successful drives to the hole will likely establish the pace of the game for their team.
Tags: Big East, Connecticut, ncaa basketball, Pittsburgh
Connecticut at Louisville SBG Global Opening Line: Louisville - 1.5 , Total 51.5 Friday night’s Big East contest on ESPN 2 between Connecticut and Louisville should be entertaining. The Cardinals are led by senior quarterback Hunter Cantwell and senior defensive tackle Earl Heyman. The Huskies are unbeaten on the season while the Cardinals are 2-1 after last week’s 38-29 win over Kansas State. Redshirt freshman Victor Anderson had 176 yards and three touchdowns for the Cardinals in the win. Anderson now has four touchdowns on the season. Cantwell went 22-for-33 for 274 yards and two touchdowns against Kansas State. He now has thrown for four touchdowns this year. Head coach Steve Kragthorpe is now 37-29 in his coaching career. Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall will be trying to even his all-time mark as he heads into Friday’s game with a career head coaching mark of 54-55. SBG Global reports that early College Football betting has the public taking Louisville at Home. Connecticut is coming off a 31-28 win over Baylor last Friday night. The Huskies are led by Donald Brown, the nation’s leading rusher. He has rushed for over 700 yards this season. Louisville has won three of the four meetings all-time but Connecticut won last year 21-17. Louisville is 14-7 all-time in Big East play. Louisville was 5-2 in the Big East in 2005, 6-1 in 2006 and 3-4 last season. Here is a look at the College Football betting stats for Friday’s game. The Huskies are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games on grass. The Huskies are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 conference games. The Huskies are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Huskies are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 road games. SBG Global Current Line: Louisville - 3.5 , Total 51.5 The Cardinals are 7-3 ATS vs. a team with a winning record. The Cardinals are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 home games. The Cardinals are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games on grass. The Cardinals are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 Friday games. The under is 4-1 in the Huskies last 5 Friday games. The Over is 4-1 ATS in the Huskies last 5 games in September. The Under is 4-1 ATS in the Huskies last 5 road games. The Over is 4-1 in the Cardinals last 5 games overall. The Over is 5-2 in the Cardinals last 7 home games. The Under is 18-8 in the Cardinals last 26 games in September. Pick: UConn 1 unit out of 5
Friday, 8:00 pm Eastern – ESPN 2
Tags: college, Connecticut, football, Louisville, ncaa, sports
Baylor at Connecticut SBG Global Opening Line: Connecticut - 14 , Total 50 The Connecticut Huskies look to go 4-0 to start the season as they host the Baylor Bears on Friday night. This nationally televised game on ESPN 2 should have some offense in it as Baylor is coming off a game in which they scored 45 points in a win against Washington State while Connecticut scored 45 points in their rout of Virginia last week. SBG Global reports that early College Football betting has the public taking Connecticut at Home. Connecticut has won its last five night games at Rentschler Field and boasts an all-time mark of 9-3 “under the lights” at Rentschler. UConn has won seven of its last eight non-conference games overall and will be a tough matchup for Baylor. “They are a good football team. They went 9-4 last year, won the Big East and went to a bowl game.” Baylor head coach Art Briles said, “They have 19 of 22 starters back. They are 26-8 at home over the last four years and they have won the last 8 or 9 in a row. They are a tough team.” Baylor has turned things around somewhat this season under Briles. They routed Washington State last week as freshman Robert Griffin set a school record with 217 yards rushing. He also passed for 129 yards in the win. Here is a look at the College Football betting stats for Friday’s game. The Bears are 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games following a win. The Bears are 5-14 ATS in their last 19 games overall. The Bears are 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games on grass. The Bears are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 road games. The Bears are 3-14 ATS vs. a team with a winning record. SBG Global Current Line: Connecticut - 12 , Total 51 The Huskies are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 home games. The Huskies are 18-6 ATS in their last 24 games on grass. The Huskies are 28-12-1 ATS in their last 41 non-conference games. The Over is 4-0 in the Bears last 4 non-conference games. The Over is 8-2 in the Bears last 10 road games. The Under is 4-0 in the Huskies last 4 Friday games. The Under is 13-5 in the Huskies last 18 non-conference games. The Under is 5-2 in the Huskies last 7 games on grass. The Over is 5-2 in the Huskies last 7 games in September. The Under is 7-3 in the Huskies last 10 games overall. Pick Over 2units
Friday, 8:00 pm Eastern – ESPN 2
Tags: Baylor, college, Connecticut, football, ncaa, sports
