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The Stetson Hatters (22-12) and UConn Huskies (31-3) meet Friday for an NCAA Tournament 1st-round game. Tip-off from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn is scheduled for approximately 2:45 p.m. ET (CBS). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Stetson vs. UConn odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
Stetson will be playing its 1st NCAA Tournament game in program history, and it gets the defending national champion, and favorite to win it all again. Ouch.
The Hatters, from DeLand, Fla., won all 3 games of the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament, although Stetson was just 1-2 against the spread (ATS) in those outings. Stetson pumped in 83 or more points in each of the games, and it hit 3-pointers at a 36.3% clip during the season.
Stetson once had John B. Stetson, the famous hat maker, on its Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and the name of the university was changed in his honor in 1901. With an enrollment of around 2,300 undergraduate students, Stetson is one of the smallest school at the Division I level.
Stetson faced another No. 1 seed, Houston, back on Nov. 13 in Texas. The Cougars pounded the Hatters 79-48, although Stetson covered as a 32.5-point underdog as the Under (136.5) cashed. Stetson also beat UCF, another Big 12 school, 85-82 in Orlando on Nov. 26 as a 12.5-point underdog.
The defending champ Huskies — who are No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll — topped Xavier, St. John’s and Marquette en route to the Big East Tournament championship, covering 2 of those games. The most impressive win was in the final, dumping Marquette by 16 points. UConn has won 7 in a row, while covering 6 of those outings. The Under is 5-2 in the previous 7 contests.
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Stetson vs. UConn odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook’s; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 7:10 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Stetson +2000 (bet $100 to win $2,000) | UConn -10000 (bet $10,000 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Stetson +26.5 (-110) | UConn -26.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 146.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
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Stetson vs. UConn picks and predictions
Prediction
UConn 85, Stetson 54
Moneyline
It shouldn’t need to be said, but UConn (-10000) is not worth pursuing in any way, shape or form, either straight or in a multi-team parlay. You would need to risk $100 to win just 10 cents on a moneyline play.
PASS.
Against the spread
UCONN -26.5 (-110) is the best team in the nation, and the No. 1 overall seed. It will get the job done against the undersized Hatters, and it should get off to a quick start in Brooklyn.
Again, we saw Stetson +26.5 (-110) take on a top seed in Houston earlier this season, and the Hatters were overwhelmed. It is happy to be there, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see this game decided by 30 or more when the dust clears.
Look for the Hatters to get crowned by the defending champs.
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Over/Under
UNDER 146.5 (-115) is the play in this 1st-round mismatch.
It’s hard to imagine Stetson is going to be able to score much in the 1st half, and most of its points are likely going to come once the game has all but been decided.
Going back to that Houston game, Stetson managed just 48 points against the much bigger Cougars team. Expect more of the same here.
UConn split the Over-Under 3-3-1 in 7 games against non-Power 6 conference teams this season. But it allowed just 64.0 PPG overall, while limiting teams to only 39.8% from the field. It’s hard to imagine Stetson coming close to those totals.
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