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Villanova comes in looking to rebound from their recent loss as they face UConn. It is time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a UConn-Villanova prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
UConn enters the game ranked number one in the nation, and winners of six straight games. They are 16-2 this year, and 6-1 in conference play. They lost their opening game in Big East play, falling to Seton Hall 75-60. Then, they struggled the next time out, with just a four-point win over St. John's. Since then, they have been solid. They beat DePaul by 29, and last time out took out a top-25 ranked Creighton team. It was a 62-48 victory for the number-one team in the nation at that once.
Meanwhile, Villanova is 11-6 on the year, and 4-2 in conference play. Last time out, they fell to Marquette. The game was tied with ten minutes left in the game, but Villanova did not score for nearly five minutes, resulting in them falling behind. They made a small comeback, but another scoreless drought left them falling 87-74 to Marquette.
Here are the college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Basketball Odds: UConn-Villanova Odds
UConn: -1.5 (-118)
Moneyline: -130
Villanova: +1.5 (-104)
Moneyline: +108
Over: 137.5 (-110)
Under: 137.5 (-110)
How to Watch UConn vs. Villanova
Time: 8:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM PT
TV: FS1
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why UConn Will Cover The Spread/Win
UConn comes in ranked fifth in KenPom's adjusted ratings this year. They are third in adjusted offensive efficiency this year while sitting 33rd in adjusted defensive efficiency. They are 29th in the nation in points per game this year, while sitting eighth in the nation in effective field goal percentage. UConn has been a great shooting team inside the arc, sitting fourth in the nation in two-point field goal percentage this year.
UConn has been led by the combination of Cam Spencer, Alex Karaban, and Tristen Newton this year. Spencer comes in with 15.5 points per game on the season, while also having 3.2 assists per game this year. He is shooting over 50 percent on the year while being amazing at the free-throw line. He is shooting 86.0 percent from the free throw stripe this year. Karaban comes in with 15.3 points per game this year, while also shooting 53.9 percent from the field this year. Newton comes in with 14.9 points per game this year while leading the team in assists this year. He has 6.1 assists this year but is shooting just 39.9 percent this year.
UConn sits 50th in the nation in rebounds per game, but they are ninth in the nation in offensive rebound percentage this year. This is led by Newton, who came in with 6.6 rebounds per game this year, still, most of his are on the defensive end. The major offensive rebounding threat is Donovan Clingan. He comes in with 6.2 rebounds per game, with nearly three rebounders per game being on the offensive side. Further, he scores 13.3 points per game, while shooting 61.4 percent.
On defense, UConn is 12th in the nation in points against per game this year. They sit 12th in effective field goal percentage this year as well. UConn forces people into the middle, where one of their big men often causes difficult shots this year.
Why Villanova Will Cover The Spread/Win
Villanova sits 27th in the nation's KenPom's adjusted efficiency rankings. They are sitting 37th in adjusted offensive efficiency while sitting 29th in adjusted defensive efficiency. They are 143rd in the nation in scoring this year, while sitting in the top 25 in three-point attempts per game, and 21st in three-pointers made per game this year. Eric Dixon leads the offense this year. He comes in with 15.3 points per game on the year while shooting 46.8 percent from the floor. He also has hit 24 of 67 threes this year.
Meanwhile, both Justin Moore and TJ Bamba have both shot over 60 three-pointers this year. Moore comes in with 11.9 points per game this year while shooting 29 percent from three. Bamba comes in with 9.3 points per game this year while hitting 33.3 percent of his threes.
Villanova sits 96th in the nation in rebounding this year. The combination of Eric Dixon and Tyler Burton leads the way here. Burton leads the team with 7.8 rebounds per game this year, while Dixon comes in with 6.4 rebounds per game on the season.
On defense, Villanova is 45th in the nation in opponent points per game, while sitting 21st in the nation in second-half points allowed this year. Villanova does not cause a lot of turnovers though. They have just 5.6 steals per game this year, but with just 10.1 turnovers per game, and a solid rebounding game, they have been solid. Further, they are great at forcing bad shots and helping the rebounding game out.
Final UConn-Villanova Prediction & Pick
This is going to be a close game. While Villanova is coming off a loss, they are still a top-level team. UConn is ranked first in the country, but thye can go cold shooting which can cause some issues. Villanova has some solid rebounding nights, and they have the players to do just that against UConn. With them being at home, it will make it even tighter. Still, UConn is the better team and will come out with the win.
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Final UConn-Villanova Prediction & Pick: UConn ML (-130)
