Tuesday’s college basketball slate features a top 20 matchup between the No. 5 UConn Huskies and the No. 18 Florida Gators. UConn has won four consecutive games since suffering its first loss of the season to Arizona on November 19. UConn is coming off a one-point loss to Duke and is 1-2 in their previous three contests. The Huskies are 5-2 against the Gators, but Florida won the last meeting between the two teams last season.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, UConn is a -4.5-point favorite with Florida being a +180 underdog to win the game. Here is my best bet for tonight’s Florida vs. UConn matchup.
Florida vs. UConn (9:00 p.m. ET)
On KenPom, UConn is ranked No. 7, with Florida at No. 14. UConn has the seventh-highest offensive rating and the No. 16 defensive rating. Florida averages three more points per contest than UConn does, as they have five players with double-digit points per game. Thomas Haugh averages 18.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per contest to lead the Gators.
UConn has four players averaging at least 10 points, with Tarris Reed Jr. and Solo Ball being their best two players. The Huskies have a deep roster with 10 players playing 10+ minutes per game. UConn has won four consecutive games by at least five points. Tarris Reed recently returned and totaled only two points and five rebounds against Illinois. When he is at 100 percent, he increases UConn’s upside.
Florida has lost its last two games by four points and one point. Even though they have suffered two losses in the past few weeks, they are still talented and have a ton of upside. UConn has beaten two ranked teams in its past three contests and has extensive experience against elite teams. The Huskies have only allowed 62 or fewer points in seven of their nine contests this season. UConn excels when it slows the pace of the game down and makes it a low-scoring contest. With Reed’s return and Braylon Mullins’ collegiate debut, UConn becomes a much tougher team to beat. Considering UConn has won seven of its eight games by five points, getting them to cover the spread of -4.5 is a good play.
