The Butler Bulldogs and the UConn Huskies meet Sunday in college basketball action from XL Center. Butler is 11-9 so far this year. The Bulldogs lost to Creighton in their last game. As for UConn, they’re 15-5 on the season after a Wednesday loss to Seton Hall. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Butler Bulldogs
Butler started the year on an 8-6 run with losses to Penn State, Tennessee, NC State, UConn, Creighton and Providence. The Bulldogs are 3-3 since then with losses to Seton Hall, St. John’s and Creighton.
In the Creighton game on Tuesday, Butler went into the break down 36-28. The Bulldogs posted a 37-24 deficit in the second half during a blowout loss 73-52. Simas Lukosius put up 18 points with three assists to lead the team.
UConn Huskies
Over on the UConn side, they went 14-0 to start out the year but they’ve been struggling mightily lately. The Huskies are just 1-5 over their last half-dozen games, losing to Xavier, Providence, Marquette, St. John’s and Seton Hall.
On Wednesday in the Seton Hall matchup, the Huskies took a 40-26 lead into the second half. UConn was outscored 41-26 from there and lost 67-66. Adama Sanogo led the team with 16 points and five rebounds in the defeat.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’m going to stick with UConn. The line’s probably a little too thick to mess with, though. This is a very winnable game for the Huskies, something the team desperately needs to get back on track. UConn didn’t have a ton of trouble the last time these teams met up back on December 17. The Huskies won that game 68-46, shooting 39.4 percent from the field with a 54-30 rebounding advantage. Butler has scored 61 or fewer points in three of their last four games and I don’t think they’ll keep pace here.