The American Athletic Conference regular season title was right there for the Cincinnati Bearcats to scoop up. But a pair of losses threw the league standings in a mess and had Cincy plummeting in the national rankings. The Bearcats were cruising along with just two losses all season until hiccups against the teams chasing them. Saturday’s loss at home to Wichita State also ended a lengthy home-court winning streak. Cincinnati will look to start a new one when it hosts the Connecticut Huskies on Thursday.
At 7 p.m. ET, tune into ESPN for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Thursday, February 21, 2018, at BBT Arena. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Thursday schedule.
Opening College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
The Huskies went 29 years without a losing record until a 16-17 finish two seasons ago. They followed that up last season with their fewest wins since 1986-87. Now, they are on the verge of another losing campaign and the heat has intensified on Kevin Ollie. At least UConn is going down fighting. The Huskies played their best offensive game of the season on Sunday, snapping a two-game losing streak with an 84-80 win over East Carolina. Unfortunately they’ve been a money pit losing four straight ATS and going just 2-8 ATS in their last 10.
Cincy hit a bump in the road causing the top of the AAC standings to tighten up down the home stretch. Heading into their last two games with just a pair of losses and a No. 5 ranking, the Bearcats lost them both, falling to Houston on the road and to Wichita State at home, ending their 39-game home winning streak. The Bearcats will look to start another streak when they host a team they beat 65-57 earlier this season.
Key Stat
Even the best teams have a little slump over the course of a long season and Mick Cronin let his team have it after losing to Wichita State for Cincy’s second straight defeat. If there was any opponent the Bearcats should have been geeked up to play it was the Shockers.
Wichita State entered as a top-20 team and is nipping at the heels of the Bearcats in the AAC standings, and the Shockers shredded Cincy’s usually reliable defense. The Bearcats gave up their most points in a conference game, allowing the Shockers to hit 53 percent of their shots. Cronin was clearly flustered by his team’s defensive breakdowns.
Still, Cincy allows the second-fewest points in the country and holds opponents to 37.1 percent shooting. Cincy has struggled against better teams, but UConn isn’t one of them. Look for the defensive swagger to return in this one.
Last Meeting
Cincinnati didn’t play its best game, but it was good enough to win 65-57 at UConn earlier this month. The Bearcats have the second-best scoring defense in the country and that helped in pulling out the victory. They shot just 38 percent, well below their season average, and were outscored by 12 points in the paint.
Yet Cincy was able to clamp down when the offense struggled, making life miserable for the Huskies. UConn went the first eight minutes without scoring and missed its first 10 shots. The Bearcats held UConn to 36.4 percent shooting from the floor and 29.4 percent from behind the arc.
UConn’s leading scorers did most of the damage. Jalen Adams scored 20 points and Christian Vital added 18 and the Huskies covered the 12.5-point spread. But they got little else and were lucky to lose by that margin.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
It’s time for the Bearcats to put an end to their mini slide and they have the perfect opponent. Cronin was all over his club after their effort, or lack thereof, against Wichita State and the team will get back to doing what it’s done all season.
Cincy plays a mean brand of defense and expect those “mind-boggling defensive breakdowns” to be rectified. The Huskies have struggled offensively all season and the Bearcats did a number on them in the earlier meeting. Adams scored 20 points, but it took him 20 shots to get there. Cincy will take those numbers every day. The total will come in low, but this game has under written all over it.
College Basketball Odds: Cincinnati 64, Connecticut 56
BookMaker.eu offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu!
