Connecticut vs Creighton 2/1/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Creighton Bluejays will travel to the XL Center to take on the 17^th ranked UConn Huskies this Tuesday night in College Basketball action.

The Creighton Bluejays lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 12-7 on the season after being defeated by the 21^st ranked Xavier Musketeers, 74-64, this past Saturday. Creighton led by a 36-19 margin at halftime, however, the Bluejays were dominated by the Musketeers on both ends of the court in the 2^nd half and could not fight back after Xavier took a 53-43 lead with 8:11 left in regulation. Creighton shot 41.1% from the field & 28.6% from beyond the arc while allowing Xavier to shoot 42.2% from the field & 52.6% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Bluejays was Ryan Nembhard who had 23 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, & 1 steal.

On the season, Creighton is averaging 69.7 ppg on 45.9% shooting from the field. The Bluejays are averaging 6.5 three-pointers per game on 30.5% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Creighton has been led by Alex O’Connell (12.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.7 apg), Ryan Hawkins (12.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.4 apg), Ryan Kalkbrenner (12.1 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 3.1 bpg), & Ryan Nembhard (11.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 4.2 apg, 1.3 spg).

Defensviely, Creighton is allowing their opponents to average 66.3 ppg on 39.6% shooting from the field. The Bluejays have a rebound margin of 3.9 and a turnover margin of -3.7.

The 17^th ranked UConn Huskies won their 5^th straight game and improved to 15-4 on the season after defeating the DePaul Blue Demons, 57-50, this past Saturday. UConn was outstanding defensively against DePaul and was able to pull away for the victory in the 2^nd half after taking a 44-34 lead with 11:42 left in regulation. UConn shot 37.3% from the field & 13.3% from beyond the arc while holding DePaul to shoot 28.8% from the field & 26.7% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Huskies was R.J. Cole who had 25 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, & 1 steal.

On the season, UConn is averaging 79.4 ppg on 44.2% shooting from the field. The Huskies are averaging 7.8 three-pointers per game on 35.4% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, UConn has been led by R.J. Cole (16.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.4 spg), Adama Sanogo (15.5 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 2.3 bpg), Tyrese Martin (13.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.9 apg), & Andre Jackson (7.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.2 spg).

Defensviely, UConn is holding their opponents to an average of 64.0 ppg on 38.5% shooting from the field. The Huskies have a rebound margin of 8.3 and a turnover margin of 1.7.

The Bluejays are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight up loss, however, are just 9-10 ATS overall on the season. The Huskies are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a ATS loss & 8-1 ATS in their last 9 Tuesday games.

Creighton has been led by their defense which ranks 102^nd in scoring defense, 30^th in defensive FG%, & 21^st in blocks per game, however, the offensive hasn’t put up as many points as we’re used in seeing from Creighton as they currently rank just 212^th in scoring offense & 305^th in 3P-FG%. UConn has been strong on both sides of the ball as the Huskies come into this game ranked 23^rd in scoring offense, 51^st in scoring defense, & 15^th in defensive FG%.

Creighton has been inconsistent this season and that showed last Saturday after Creighton fell apart in the 2^nd half against Xavier.  Creighton does have a nice road win at Marquette, however, the Bluejays have struggled overall on the road this season, posting a 2-3 record, which include double-digits losses to Villanova & Butler. UConn hasn’t played the toughest competition as of late, however, they have been dominant during their 5-game winning streak, winning those games by an average of 14.8 ppg, and as I think the Huskies defense has no trouble limiting the Creighton offense to about 50-55 poitns, I think that UConn does enough offensively to get us a cover. Good Luck!