The UConn Huskies (24-7, 13-7 Big East) take on the Providence Friars (21-10, 13-7 Big East) Thursday at Madison Square Garden in the Big East Conference Tourney quarterfinals.
Providence was outplayed by the Seton Hall Pirates 82-58 at Amica Mutual Pavilion on Saturday in their regular season finale. Devin Carter led the way in defeat with 14 points. UConn won their fifth in a row on Saturday at Wells Fargo Center, beating the Villanova Wildcats 71-59 to close out their regular season.
Jordan Hawkins had 24 points to top the scoresheet. With 16 points and three blocks, Alex Karaban also had a strong game. Providence and UConn split their two matchups this season. The Huskies got the win in the last meeting, beating the Friars 87-69 at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion on February 22.
Hawkins led the Huskies with 20 points, while Adama Sanogo added 16 points and three blocks. Bryce Hopkins had 16 points in the loss. The Friars have been led this season by Hopkins, who is averaging 16.1 points per game. Hopkins also has grabbed 8.5 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, Jared Bynum is dishing 3.8 assists. Sanogo (16.9 ppg) and Hawkins (15.4) have powered the Huskies’ offense. Sanogo also has averaged 7.2 rebounds per game. Tristen Newton has doled out 4.5 assists per game.
The Huskies rank as one of the most explosive offenses in the country, 29th-best with 79.0 points per game. In the last 10 games, Providence is 5-5 with an average margin of +0.4 (77.8-77.4).
For the season, the Friars are averaging 78.5 points per game, compared to 71.3 for opponents. UConn has an 8-2 record over the last 10, scoring 78.2 points per game on average while holding opponents to 67.6 (+10.6 margin).
FRIARS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Ed Croswell: 28.8 | 21.8 | +7.0
Jayden Pierre: 3.8 | 5.8 | -2.0
Points per game:
Jared Bynum: 13.4 | 8.8 | +4.6
Rebounds per game:
Ed Croswell: 10.0 | 7.7 | +2.3
Bryce Hopkins: 5.2 | 8.5 | -3.3
HUSKIES HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Andre Jackson Jr.: 23.0 | 15.7 | +7.3
Rebounds per game:
Andre Jackson Jr.: 7.2 | 5.7 | +1.5
Donovan Clingan: 4.2 | 5.8 | -1.6
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
UConn -7.5 (-105)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
