NCAA Betting Odds: Connecticut Huskies and Syracuse Orange

Saturday, February 11, 2012

by Mike Stewart

Jim Boeheim - NCAA Betting Odds: Connecticut Huskies and Syracuse Orange

Syracuse Orange hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim had to sweat out his 880th career win earlier this week. Saturday's game might be less stressful given the struggles of Connecticut – the Orange's Big East rival for the time being. The defending national champions were in a state of disarray before Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun was forced to take an indefinite medical leave of absence two games ago. Now, the Connecticut Huskies are faced with the unenviable task of ending the second-ranked Orange’s 19-game home win streak. Connecticut’s troubles against zone defense are well-documented, and there’s none better than Syracuse’s 2-3 variation, which has been bolstered by the return of Fab Melo. The Orange is third in the nation in blocks (7.4) and 10th in steals (10.0). If that wasn't enough, the Huskies must deal with a raucous crowd. More than 31,000 are expected to be on hand for could be the last conference clash between the teams in upstate New York, considering Syracuse's impending move to the ACC. The Orange has won three of the last four meetings and leads the series 51-36. This will be the first meeting since UConn, behind 33 points from Kemba Walker, knocked off Syracuse 76-71 in overtime of the Big East Tournament semifinals last March.

- Connecticut Huskies @ Syracuse Orange
When: 1:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 11, 2012
Where: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, New York
TV: ET, CBS

The Orange have opened as 11-point favorites on SBG Global Sportsbook’s Live NCAA Basketball Odds.

Connecticut Huskies (15-8): The Huskies have lost five of six and, more importantly, show no signs of breaking out of their rut. They were embarrassed by No. 23 Louisville on Wednesday, 80-59. Connecticut is averaging a miserable 57.3 points over the last six games, and the lack of continuity is apparent. Despite the switch to a three-guard lineup, the Huskies have assisted on just 33 percent of their field goals (14 of 43) the last two games. Sophomore Jeremy Lamb continues to be an enigma. Lamb, the most talented player on the team, is often too passive and hasn’t connected lately (10 for 37 over the last three games) when he has pulled the trigger.

Syracuse Orange (24-1): Syracuse, which leads the Big East in scoring (77.6), is arguably the deepest team in the nation. Its lone loss came without the 7-foot Melo, who missed three games due to academic issues. The sophomore had 11 points, six blocks and seven rebounds against Georgetown, but the Orange needed a career-high 29 points from Kris Joseph to get past the Hoyas on Wednesday. Joseph had been 0 for 8 from beyond the arc before hitting 6 of 11 against Georgetown, including the go-ahead 3-pointer in the final 30 seconds of overtime. The seventh-most efficient offense in the country, according to Ken Pomeroy’s ratings (1.17 points per possession), will get a stern test from UConn’s third-ranked field goal percentage defense (37.1).

NCAA Basketball Betting

1. UConn center Andre Drummond will try to rebound from the worst game of his young career. The highly-regarded 6-foot-10 freshman went 0 for 6 from the field and had just four rebounds against the Cardinals.

2. Calhoun, who turns 70 in May, plans to meet with specialists in the coming days to discuss treatment for his spinal stenosis. UConn is 3-2 under interim coach George Blaney this season.

3. Syracuse was outrebounded 52-35 by Georgetown and could struggle against Connecticut, which is the third-best rebounding team in the conference (38.3).

NCAA BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Orange 72, Huskies 59

Bet on NCAA College Basketball games with SBG Global Sportsbook

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andre drummond - carrier dome - connecticut huskies - fab melo - george blaney - jeremy lamb - jim boeheim - jim calhoun - kemba walker - ken pomeroy