The St. John’s Red Storm are currently leading the Big East standings, setting the stage for an exciting top-15 clash against the Connecticut Huskies on Wednesday night in Hartford. UConn, with a record of 25-3 and a national ranking of sixth, will be motivated to avenge their earlier defeat to St. John’s (22-5, ranked 15th) in their previous encounter on February 6 at Madison Square Garden.
Despite holding home-court advantage at the PeoplesBank Arena, UConn has experienced some turbulence recently, losing two of their last five games, including a surprising home loss to Creighton. This came after an impressive 18-game winning streak. Meanwhile, the Red Storm have been formidable, boasting a 13-game winning streak, although they have only played one ranked opponent during this stretch.
The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. ET, with UConn favored to win by 5.5 points. The total points for the game is set at 145.5, with the Huskies as the -230 money-line favorites and St. John’s at +188.
According to the SportsLine Projection Model, which has had a solid performance with an 11-1 record on top-rated Over/Under college basketball picks this season, UConn is projected to cover the spread with a success rate of 66%. They have been outscoring their opponents by an average of 13.5 points per game. Although they have struggled against the spread this season, they show a better performance when the spread is within single digits.
The model also indicates UConn has an 80% chance of winning outright, with a projected victory margin of 11 points. Defensively, the Huskies are ranked second in the Big East, allowing 66 points per game. In contrast, the Red Storm lead the conference in scoring, averaging 83.9 points per game, while UConn ranks fourth with 79.2.
A notable trend is that the total points have gone over in eight of UConn’s last nine games, as well as in 10 of the past 14 matchups between these teams. The SportsLine model anticipates that the score will be just shy of 150, suggesting that the over on the consensus line of 145.5 is a wise bet, hitting at a rate of 58.7%. The last meeting ended in an 81-72 victory for St. John’s, totaling 153 points.
As both teams gear up for this anticipated showdown, fans can expect an intense battle that could have significant implications for the conference standings as well as the NCAA tournament picture.