NCAA Betting Picks and Tips: Connecticut Huskies vs Tennessee Volunteers
Saturday, January 21, 2012
by Joe Rodriguez
Connecticut Huskies desperately needs freshman point guard Ryan Boatright back in uniform. However, his status is unknown heading into the 11th-ranked Huskies non-conference road test against Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday.
The Huskies' thin backcourt is getting worn down without Boatright, who has missed the last two games while his eligibility is reviewed by the NCAA for a second time.
The Volunteers, meanwhile, are looking to end a three-game skid while integrating their own freshman–highly-coveted power forward Jarnell Stokes– into the mix. Connecticut struggled to defend the 3-pointer in Wednesday's loss to Cincinnati and will be challenged by Tennessee.
The Volunteers are the third-best 3-point shooting team in the SEC (36.9 percent), though they made just two of 15 attempts in an overtime loss to Georgia Wednesday.
- Connecticut Huskies @ Tennessee Volunteers
When: 4:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 21, 2012
Where: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
TV: 4:00 p.m. ET, CBS
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Justbet Sportsbook currently have the Huskies listed as 2½-point favorites versus the Volunteers.
Connecticut Huskies (14-4): UConn's lack of backcourt depth was painfully obvious in its last-second 70-67 loss to Cincinnati. Sophomores Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb have been forced to play nearly every minute of the last two games with Boatright (10.2 points, 3.5 assists) out. Napier (27 points, seven assists, five rebounds) did his best to keep the Huskies in the game, but Lamb was largely invisible and finished with 14 points. Lamb has just 20 points over the last two games and is three for 19 from beyond the arc over the last four games. Freshman center Andre Drummond had three straight double doubles before Wednesday's dud (four points, six rebounds). The Huskies are third in the nation in field goal defense (36.7), but their perimeter defense was burned for 11 3-pointers last time out.
Tennessee Volunteers (8-10): The Volunteers are trying to avoid a fourth straight loss but has played well in recent weeks at home. The Volunteers upset then-No. 13 Florida in Knoxville on Jan. 7 then lost back-to-back games to then-No. 20 Mississippi State and second-ranked Kentucky by a combined seven points. Trae Golden (14.1 points, 5.1 assists), the team's leading scorer, has reached double figures in seven of the last eight games. The Volunteers are in the middle of the pack in the SEC in field goal percentage (45.6), but that number should rise with the continued emergence of Stokes. The 6-foot-8 Memphis native has recorded 20 points and 12 rebounds in two games since becoming eligible.
1. “I just had a little talk with Kemba (Walker) about a couple of players that he played with and he said ‘It doesn’t look like them.’ And that’s exactly how I feel, too.” – Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun after the loss to the Bearcats.
2. Tennessee has won its last three games against defending national champions – the most recent being an 89-86 win over Florida in 2007-08.
3. The series is tied at 1-1. Connecticut won 72-61 last season in Hartford. Lamb scored 16 points and Alex Oriakhi added 12 points and 10 rebounds.
BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Huskies 68, Volunteers 60.
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alex oriakhi - andre drummond - connecticut huskies - jarnell stokes - jeremy lamb - jim calhoun - ryan boatright - shabazz napier - tennessee volunteers - thompson-boling arena
