Tournament Picks: UConn vs Maryland 3/20/21 College Basketball Picks, Odds, Predictions

The UConn Huskies battle the Maryland Terrapins Saturday in the college basketball March Madness NCAA Tournament First Round at the Mackey Arena.

The Maryland Terrapins enter this tournament losing three of their last four games. The Maryland Terrapins are averaging 68.9 points on 45.8 percent shooting and allowing 64.7 points on 40.4 percent shooting. Eric Ayala is averaging 14.9 points and 4.2 rebounds while Aaron Wiggins is averaging 14 points and 5.9 rebounds. Donta Scott is the third double-digit scorer and Hakim Hart is grabbing 3.6 rebounds. The Maryland Terrapins are shooting 35.7 percent from beyond the arc and 70.1 percent from the free throw line. The Maryland Terrapins are allowing 33.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 30.9 rebounds per game.

The UConn Huskies enter this tournament winning five of their last six games. The UConn Huskies are averaging 72.3 points on 44.4 percent shooting and allowing 65.2 points on 41.4 percent shooting. James Bouknight is averaging 19 points and 5.7 rebounds while RJ Cole is averaging 12.3 points and 4.4 assists. Tyrese Martin is the third double-digit scorer and Isaiah Whaley is dishing 1.4 assists. The UConn Huskies are shooting 34.4 percent from beyond the arc and 72.5 percent from the free throw line. The UConn Huskies are allowing 31.6 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 34.8 rebounds per game.

The Terrapins are 40-18-4 ATS in their last 62 Saturday games and 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog. The Huskies are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 games as a favorite and 19-6-1 ATS in their last 26 games overall. The under is 5-1 in Terrapins last 6 overall. The under is 4-1 in Huskies last 5 neutral site games.

The UConn Huskies enter the tournament as one of the hotter teams in the league, and they’re winning their last five games by an average of 15.2 points while allowing 39.9 percent shooting from the field. UCONN is also 16-5-1 against the spread on the season. The Maryland Terrapins were a hit or miss team all season long and they experience offensive droughts here and there. We also know what UCONN is capable of come tournament time, as this program usually flips a switch come March. I’ll gladly lay the bucket with UConn.