Sacred Heart vs Connecticut 11/6/24 Game Information

Sacred Heart vs Connecticut Preview

No. 3 ranked and defending national champions Connecticut open up their season on Wednesday facing Northeast Conference member Sacred Heart at Home in another likely blowout between small schools and big schools. With the point spread here at 34.5, the big question is how hard will the Huskies play and do they really care about winning by 40? These two teams have only played three times with UConn winning by 22, 33, and 43 with the Huskies winning and covering the 16.5-point spread in the last meeting on November 18, 2019. But that was five years ago and the Huskies have improved a lot and were straight gold in the sportsbooks to end last NCAAB season. Let’s take a look at all the key returning players, recent trends and offer up a free NCAA Basketball pick and Sacred Heart vs Connecticut prediction.

Sacred Heart Up Against it At Storrs on Wednesday Night

The Pioneers (16-17, 10-6 conference) saw Nico Gallette (13.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg) transfer to Youngstown State so Tanner Thomas (10.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg in 2023) will take over as Sacred Heart’s key cog this campaign along with Bryce Johnson (10.1 ppg, 8.3 rpg), Aidan Carpenter (9.7 ppg), and Fairleigh Dickinson transfer Anquan Hill. In their opener on Monday, Sacred Heart fell at Temple, 81-70 as Thomas had 22 points and Johnson finished with 11 boards in the loss. Although the Pioneers went just 4-11 on the Road, they were No. 19 in TOs forced per possession last season. Still, Sacred Heart has had a record of .500 of worse 14 times in the last 15 seasons and aren’t a great rebounding team (#312 in the nation in 2013). Here they will have to avoid being behind by 20 points at halftime and be fairly decent from behind the 3-point line (only 23.8% vs Temple). The Pioneers biggest loss last year was at Temple in the second game of the season, 88-50.

Sacred Heart Betting Trends

• Sacred Heart was 16-14 ATS in 2023-24, 14-18 ATS in 2022-23
• The Pioneers were 16-14 (Over-Under) in the Totals market last season
• Sacred Heart is 5-1 ATS in the First Half in its last 6 games
• The Pioneers are 5-8 ATS in their last 13 games
• The Under is 3-0 in Sacred Heart’s last 3 games on the Road

Connecticut Looking For its 8th Straight ATS Cover

UConn (37-3 SU in 2023-24) was a machine last year, rolling through the NCAA Tournament just like they did a season before, and doing nothing but winning for its betting backers. Over the past two seasons, no team has been better to bet on than the Huskies, with the two-time defending champions going 55-23-1 ATS (70.5%) under Head Coach Danny Hurley. UConn did lose its best player Stephon Castle to the NBA Draft (San Antonio Spurs) as well as Tristen Newton (Indiana Pacers) and Cam Spencer (Memphis Grizzlies), so like they always do, the Huskies will have to reload. Returning are Alex Karaban (13.3 rpg, 5.1 rpg), Hasaan Diarra, Samson Johnson, Liam McNeeley, and St. Mary’s transfer Aidan Mahaney (13.9 ppg), but with four of the team’s top five scorers gone, odds are that this team won’t be expected to dominate come March Madness or possibly be quite as good against the betting number.

Connecticut Betting Trends

• Connecticut was 28-12 ATS last season, 27-11-1 ATS in 2022-23
• The Huskies finished last season winning 7 straight games ATS
• The Under has won 6 straight and 9 of the last 10 in UConn games
• UConn has won 13 SU in a row; its last loss was at Kansas (#1 in 2024)
• The Huskies have won 27 of its last 29 games SU

Sacred Heart vs UConn Prediction and Pick

The Huskies are ranked No. 3 in the polls—Kansas is No. 1, Alabama No. 2, Houston No. 4, and Iowa State No. 5—but we all know this will change and keep your eye on teams like Gonzaga (#6), Duke (#7), and Tennessee (#12). Here Connecticut will be trying to get a new nucleus to jell quickly, and although the hosts will have a big edge in rebounding and likely never be in peril of being behind, losing so much scoring and experience is a real concern, especially being asked to lay so much lumber. It should help Sacred Heart that it has a game under its belt and if the Pioneers can pound the boards like they did vs Temple (40), and stay in the game (TEMP 37 SHU 36 Half), then getting so many points will mean it will be hard for the Huskies to cover an eighth straight time. This seems like a 90-60 type game and taking the big underdog seems logical here with so many of Connecticut’s key contributors from last season now gone.

Kevin’s Pick: Sacred Heart +34.5