Former conference rivals play for the biggest stakes ever when Connecticut and Miami meet in the second NCAA tournament national semifinal Saturday night in Houston.
The Hurricanes won the ACC’s regular-season title this year, then won the Midwest region as the No. 5 seed. The Huskies finished fourth in a tough Big East Conference this season, then won the West region as the No. 4 seed.
Now, either UConn will make its fifth national championship game with a win here, or the ‘Canes will make their first.
Which way are we going here for our free Final Four betting pick?
Final Four Betting Odds
The Final Four betting market opened UConn at -5.5 for Saturday’s game, with an over/under of right around 149. Both figures were holding steady in the early betting action.
According to Sagarin’s NCAAB ratings at USAToday.com, the Huskies should be favored by 5.5 points for this match-up. How ’bout that.
Miami-UConn Final Four Betting Preview
The Hurricanes played 15-5 in conference play this season to finish in a tie with Virginia atop the ACC’s regular-season standings. But Miami won the only meeting with the Cavaliers this season, so give them the crown. The ‘Canes then lost in the semifinals of the ACC tournament to Duke, although, as it turned out, that may have been a good thing.
Miami opened this NCAA tournament with a tough 63-56 win over Drake, a game the ‘Canes trailed throughout until late. Since then, they’ve been great. Miami beat Indiana 85-69 to reach the Sweet 16, then knocked off top-seeded Houston 89-75, then beat a hot Texas team 88-81 to reach the Final Four for the first time ever.
So the Hurricanes are now 9-5 SU, 10-4 ATS this season against teams that made this Big Dance.
Meanwhile, the Huskies played 13-7 in-conference this season to finish fourth in the Big East, then lost to Marquette in the semis of the conference tournament. But again, that may have worked to UConn’s advantage, considering the run it’s made through this NCAA tournament.
The Huskies opened with an 87-63 romp over Iona, easily covering at -9, then beat St. Mary’s 70-55 to make the Sweet 16, covering at -4. Connecticut then pounded Arkansas 88-65, covering at -4, then gouged Gonzaga 82-54 to reach the Final Four for the sixth time over the last 24 seasons.
So UConn is now 10-6 SU, 11-5 ATS against teams that made this Big Dance this season.
NCAA Tournament Betting Trends
Higher seeds are 41-19 SU but only 29-31 ATS in this NCAA tournament.
Totals Report
The Unders are 18-17 in Hurricanes games this season which are averaging 151 total points.
The Overs are 20-17 in Huskies games this season, which are averaging 144 points.
