CONNECTICUT HUSKIES (19-2)
Tip-off: Wednesday, 7:00 p.m. EDT
Line: Georgetown -3, Total: 130
No. 14 Georgetown looks to add to Connecticut’s misery as it tries to hand the Huskies a fourth straight loss (SU and ATS) on Wednesday night.
Both schools have been terrible bets lately, as Connecticut is 2-7-1 ATS in its past 10 games while the Hoyas are 1-7 ATS in their past eight contests. But UConn has dominated this series, going 10-4 (SU and ATS) against Georgetown since 2000. Half of the Hoyas Big East wins have been by three points or less, and they don't score enough points (64.0 PPG in past eight games) to make this a blowout. They are also 8-20 ATS (29%) in Big East play over the past two seasons. The Huskies lost their past three games by a combined eight points and are now at full strength with talented guard Ryan Boatright back on the court after NCAA eligibility issues. The pick here is underdog CONNECTICUT to escape with the win.
Connecticut’s 2-5 SU mark in its past seven games has mostly to do with an inefficient offense that has failed to reach 70 points in any of these contests. In the past two games, UConn has scored a mere 52.5 PPG on 38% FG. The biggest cause for the offensive woes lies with starting point guard Shabazz Napier, who has shot a woeful 32% FG with 22 turnovers during these seven games. He was 0-for-7 against Notre Dame on Sunday, taking two ill-advised three-point attempts in the final minute of that 50-48 defeat. Jeremy Lamb leads the team with 17.9 PPG, but only took nine shots in the loss to the Irish. Some of that was due to Notre Dame milking the shot clock on offense, but Lamb did have a few good looks that he passed up. Freshman center Andre Drummond (10.0 PPG, 7.8 APG) is also key to this team, as he has scored 15.3 PPG with 11.7 RPG in his team’s past three victories, but only 7.8 PPG and 8.6 RPG in its past five defeats.
Like UConn, Georgetown has also been ice-cold in the past two games, shooting 36.7% from the floor. After tallying 31 points (11-of-14 FG) three games ago, leading scorer Jason Clark (15.6 PPG) has attempted just 13 shots in these past two games. This will need to change on Wednesday, especially considering Clark averaged 18.0 PPG on 59% FG against UConn last year. The team’s No. 2 scorer, Hollis Thompson, has not been aggressive enough in taking the ball to the basket. After attempting 10 free throws against West Virginia, Thompson has earned a total of eight free-throw attempts in his past five games combined. To combat Drummond in the paint, Georgetown will look to leading rebounder, freshman Otto Porter (6.9 RPG). Porter has 8.8 RPG in his past four games.
