It figures to be a shootout when the No. 2 UConn Huskies (14-0, 3-0 Big East) head to face the No. 22 Xavier Musketeers (11-3, 3-0 Big East) on Saturday. UConn topped the Villanova Wildcats 74-66 at XL Center on Wednesday, their 14th straight win. With 22 points and seven rebounds, Jordan Hawkins led the way.
The Huskies dropped to second in the Big East Conference. Xavier won their seventh in a row on Wednesday at Carnesecca Arena, beating the St. John’s Red Storm 84-79. Jack Nunge had 23 points and 12 rebounds to lead the team.
The Musketeers remain first in the Big East Conference. It’s the only meeting of the season between the teams. UConn and Xavier split their matchups last season, each team taking one. The Huskies triumphed in the last meeting 72-61 at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion on February 19.
Tyler Polley led the Huskies with 16 points. Adam Kunkel had 15 points in the loss. The Huskies have been led this season by Adama Sanogo, who is averaging 17.8 points per game. Sanogo also has grabbed 6.8 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, Tristen Newton is dishing 4.4 assists.Souley Boum and Nunge have supplied much of the Musketeers’ offense, averaging 17.3 and 15.2 points per game, respectively. Nunge also has posted 7.9 rebounds per game.
Colby Jones has recorded 5.3 assists per game. The Musketeers and the Huskies are two of the top scoring teams in the NCAA, ranking 15th and 23rd in points per game, respectively. Xavier is scoring 83.9 per game, while UConn is averaging 82.9.
In the last 10 games, UConn is 10-0 with an average margin of +21.7 (82.0-60.3). Xavier has gone 8-2 over the last 10, scoring 83.5 points per game on average while holding opponents to 75.3 (+8.2 margin).
HUSKIES HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Jordan Hawkins: 22.8 | 16.9 | +5.9
Points per game:
Jordan Hawkins: 17.2 | 12.8 | +4.4
Tristen Newton: 7.0 | 9.9 | -2.9
Rebounds per game:
Andre Jackson Jr.: 6.2 | 4.7 | +1.5
Assists per game:
Andre Jackson Jr.: 5.4 | 3.8 | +1.6
MUSKETEERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Jerome Hunter: 11.0 | 8.4 | +2.6
KyKy Tandy: 1.2 | 4.7 | -3.5
Assists per game:
Souley Boum: 6.0 | 4.7 | +1.3
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
Xavier (+130)
Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with 
today!
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our college basketball hub page for all your college basketball needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
