Xavier vs Connecticut Prediction, Odds and Best Bets

Xavier is on the road playing Connecticut at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion stadium on Wednesday, 1/25/2023 @ 6:30pm EST. Connecticut -7.5 was the opening favorite and current line is Connecticut -7.

In a Big East matchup on Thursday night, the Xavier Musketeers (16-4, 11-8-1 ATS, 14-5 O/U) face the Connecticut Huskies (16-5, 13-7-1 ATS, 13-8 O/U). Against Georgetown on Saturday, the Musketeers won by a landslide. In their previous game, the Huskies thumped Butler. It was a home win for the Xavier University basketball team against UConn last month, 83-73. 

Xavier wins its eighth conference championship

The Musketeers are seeking their ninth win in the Big East. A dominant offense helped them finish 8-1 in conference play. After losing 73-72 to DePaul last week, they moved on to beat Georgetown 95-82 on Saturday, but failed to cover the huge 17-point spread. The other two defeats Xavier suffered were against Indiana and Duke. Three of the last four road games have been covered by the Musketeers. Souley Boum has cooled down a bit lately, scoring only four and ten points respectively. In addition to averaging 16.6 PPG and 5.1 APG, the senior guard continues to collect several assists. Three double-doubles in four games have been recorded by Jack Nunge. A season average of 14.5 points and 8.1 rebounds has been achieved by the veteran forward. Three consecutive bouts have seen Kunkel score in double digits. With a shooting percentage of 47%, the senior guard has averaged 10.6 points per game. 

In the win over Butler, UConn rebounded

It is a pleasure for the Connecticut Huskies to have a win on their record. Their three-game losing streak was a surprise considering how successful they were in non-conference play. Despite a large 15-point spread, UCONN beat Butler 86-56 on Sunday to end a three-game losing streak. Five of the Huskies' last seven games have ended in losses, dropping them to 5-5 in conference play. Only three times have they covered the spread in Big East action. Adama Sanogo is one of the top players in the conference. Two of his last four games have seen him connect on more than 60% of his field goals and he is averaging 17.2 PPG and 7.1 RPG. The St. John's game last week ended in a 31-31 tie, while Sunday's game ended in a 20-20 tie. In addition to scoring 15.5 points per game, the sophomore guard is shooting 39% from three-point range. Karaban scored a total of 15 points on Sunday. In terms of scoring, the freshman forward has averaged 10.1 points per game on 46% shooting. 

While the Xavier Musketeers have been disappointing in conference play, the Huskies are looking like national contenders. The Huskies have dropped five of their last seven games and have won all but one Big East game this season. Furthermore, Xavier continues to shine offensively. The team has scored at least 80 points in six of its last seven games and is averaging 117.7 points per 100 possessions compared to UConn's 116.7. In conference play, the Huskies' defense has struggled. As a result of recent losses to Marquette and St. John's, the team surrendered 80 points against Xavier in the first meeting. 

Xavier Highlights

With a power ranking of 92, Xavier is ranked #8 in offense (scoring an average of 84.10 per game), #326 in defense (allowing an average of 75.35 points to be scored against them per game) and are 16-4 (11-8-1 ATS) this season.

Connecticut Highlights

Connecticut Huskies has a power ranking of 34 and are #37 for offense (scoring an average of 79.00 per game), #45 for defense (giving up an average of 75.35 points per game) and 16-5 (13-8 ATS) overall. Xavier went 1-2 (1-2 ATS) in their last 3 matchups against Connecticut.

Curated Picks & Predictions

• Based on the current lines, Oddsmakers predict the score to be XAVIR 82.5, UCONN 68.5.
• 53% of SportsJaw players predict Connecticut Huskies to cover.
• OddsShark has not made their prediction yet.
• 67% picked Xavier Musketeers on Covers.com
• SportsJaw's ScoreCaster prediction: Musketeers 75 to Huskies 92.

Staff Prediction

Our prediction: Musketeers 75 to Huskies 92.

Written by SportsJaw Staff
Categorized as NCAAB Predictions