UConn vs Marquette Picks and Odds (Dec. 21)

• UConn is a 3.5-point favorite against Marquette on Tuesday
• Marquette is 3-4 in its last seven straight up and ATS
• Read below for analysis and a betting prediction

UConn (9-3, 0-1) is a 3.5-point road favorite in a Big East game at Marquette at 9 pm ET Tuesday on FS1. The Huskies reached No. 15 in the AP Top 25 after an 8-1 start but fell out of the poll this week.

Marquette (8-4, 0-1)  has lost to four opponents who were in the AP Top 25 at the time of the game — St. Bonaventure, Wisconsin, UCLA and Xavier. The Bonnies, who also lost to UConn, have since dropped out.

UConn vs Marquette Odds

Odds from BetMGM on Dec. 20

Both teams lost their Big East openers last Saturday. UConn fell to Providence at home 67-63 while Marquette lost at Xavier 80-71. The Huskies trimmed a 10-point lead to with 1:48 remaining but did not score again. Marquette closed to within one point with three minutes remaining before Xavier pulled away.

UConn Mix and Match

The Huskies got a little closer to whole when senior guard 6-6 Tyrese Martin returned to the lineup against Providence after missing the previous four games because of a wrist injury, but they are not yet at full strength after playing the last four games without sophomore 6’9 forward Adama Sanogo.

Martin had 15 points and five rebounds against Providence while approximating his season averages — 15.6 points and 6.3 rebounds. Sanogo (15.6 points, 6.3 rebounds) has missed the last four games because of an abdominal strain. He was a game-time decision against the Friars and likely will be a game-time decision Tuesday.

While playing short-handed, the Huskies also have been hurt by a lack of production from leading scorer senior guard 6’1 R.J. Cole, who is the midst of a shooting slump. Cole had 16 points against the Friars, but it took him 19 field goal attempts to get there. He was 5 of 19 then and is 20 of 65 (30.7 percent) in his last four games.

The Huskies run their half-court offense through Sanogo, and they have struggled to find a rhythm in his absence, beating St. Bonaventure and Grambling State and losing to West Virginia and the Friars in the last four. They shot  31.1 percent from the field against Providence and have seen efficiency in reserve guard Tyler Polley (9.2 points), shooting 34 percent in 22.3 minutes per game.

Sanogo had a career-high 30 points in a 115-109 overtime victory over Auburn in a first-round game in Battle 4 Atlanis on Nov. 24 and had an 18-point 12-rebound double-double in a 64-60 loss to Michigan State the following day.

UConn’s three losses have been by a total of 11 points, and with Samogo they are one of the best rebounding teams in Division I with a plus-8.1 margin. Andre Jackson (6.9 points, 8.1 rebounds) had 14 rebounds and Providence coach Ed Cooley compared him to Scottie Pippen.

hey guys no hard feelings after the battle but we should be third on the list at 67.0 thanks https://t.co/si1h9ygxUo

— BIG EAST MBB (@BIGEASTMBB) December 21, 2021

Marquette’s Remake

First-year coach Shaka Smart’s collection of transfers, holdovers and freshmen have embraced the full-court, open-court style that defined Smart’s time at Virginia Commonwealth.

The stat sheet says Marquette starts three freshmen, but that is misleading. Two are second-year freshmen — forward 6’7 Justin Lewis, who leads the team in scoring (15.3) and rebounding (7.8) and offers above-average an athleticism, and George Mason transfer guard 6’1 Tyler Kolek (6.4 points, 5.8 assists). Kolek’s late steal and layup beat Illinois in the third game of the season.

Senior Maryland transfer guard 6’5 Darryl Morsell is averaging 13.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists. He fits well here after being named the 2020-21 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year at Maryland

The Eagles have received a recent boost from fifth-year guard 6’3 Greg Elliott, who was suspended for the first four games for a disciplinary matter but has had an increasing reserve role since. Elliott had a career-high 22 points in a 67-56 loss to UCLA on Dec. 11 and had 18 against Xavier.

Greg Elliott. Energy giver. Marquette shooting 57% from 3.

Four different players for #mubb with a triple. pic.twitter.com/BzrjS4Uh88

— Brutus (@brutus_87to98) December 18, 2021

Elliott was 7 of 12 from the floor and made six of nine threes in 25 minutes against UCLA, and he was 6 of 10 from the field in a season-high 29 minutes against Xavier. Elliott had four double-figure games in his last six games a year ago.

By the Numbers

UConn is 27th in KenPom adjusted efficiency margin and ranks 23rd in defensive efficiency. Marquette is 76th in overall efficiency while playing at the seventh-fasted pace in Division I, the Shaka Smart way. The Warriors average 74 possessions per game, about six more than UConn has.

Marquette lead the series 6-5. The Huskies won the last game 80-62 at home on Feb. 27, 2021. UConn has won and covered three of the last four in Milwaukee. UConn is 1-3 ATS against Power 6 opponents, and Marquette is 5-1 straight up at home, 1-1 ATS as a home underdog.

The pick: UConn -3.5 (-110)

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Source: https://www.sportsbettingdime.com/news/ncaab/uconn-marquette-picks-odds-dec-21-2021/