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The No. 10 Marquette Golden Eagles (25-8) and No. 2 UConn Huskies (30-3) meet in the final of the Big East Tournament Saturday. Tip-off from Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET (FOX). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Marquette vs. UConn odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and best bets.
The Golden Eagles are back in the conference title game, as last year Shaka Smart’s group defeated Xavier 65-51 in Marquette’s 1st ever Big East Tournament championship game.
G Tyler Kolek, the 2023 tournament MVP, has been out since Feb. 28 with an oblique injury. G Kam Jones has stepped up in his place, leading Marquette in scoring with 18 points in its 71-65 OT win over Villanova in the quarterfinals, as well as dropping a team-high 23 points in Friday night’s 79-68 semifinals victory over Providence.
UConn is in search of its 1st tournament crown since 2016 when it was part of the AAC. The Huskies last won the Big East Tournament back in 2011, and former UConn star Kemba Walker, who had the most points in program history in a single season (965), was named tournament MVP.
The Huskies have taken down the Golden Eagles twice this season. In a Feb. 17 meeting, UConn C Donovan Clingan recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 boards, pacing his team in an 81-53 rout in Hartford. In a Mar. 6 meeting in Milwaukee, it was a much more competitive game, although the Huskies still ended up covering as 5-point favorites in a 74-67 victory.
– Rankings courtesy of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
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Marquette vs. UConn odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 1 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Marquette +340 (bet $100 to win $340) | UConn -450 (bet $450 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Marquette +9.5 (-114) | UConn -9.5 (-106)
- Over/Under (O/U): 142.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
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Marquette vs. UConn picks and predictions
Prediction
UConn 77, Marquette 71
Moneyline
INCLUDE UCONN (-450) IN A ML PARLAY.
I certainly understand including the HUSKIES (-450) in a moneyline parlay, as I do expect Danny Hurley’s team to be the winner after 40 minutes — or more, if we’re lucky — at MSG. Pairing UConn with No. 1 HOUSTON (-235) vs. No. 8 Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship is -135.
Against the spread
BET MARQUETTE +9.5 (-114).
Jones, who shrugged off being left off the All-Big East team by the coaches, showed maturity at the end of the 1st half against Providence when he told Kristina Pink of Fox Sports that he needed to apologize to his teammates for being caught up with the refs. With or without Kolek, expect Jones and senior F Oso Ighodaro to have great games once again and keep their team in it.
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Over/Under
BET OVER 142.5 (-115).
Huskies F Alex Karaban drained five 3-pointers the last time these schools met, leading UConn with 23 points. Including that March 6 win for the Huskies, the sophomore is shooting over 50% from beyond the arc (13 of 25) in his last 4 games. Expect UConn, which leads the Big East in points per game (81.7), to stay hot offensively following its 95-point performance over St. John’s in the semifinals.
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