It's time for the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament and we will see the Connecticut Huskies and the Florida Gators battle it out for the right to go to the NCAA Tournament Title Game. The game has a start time of 6.09 pm (Eastern) and will be televised on TBS. Vegas odds have the Gators listed as 6.5 point favorites, while the total sits at 126.5.
Stat Pack: The Connecticut Huskies took out St Joes, Villanova, Iowa State and Michigan state to reach the Final 4. The wins now have the Huskies at 30-8 on the year and that includes a 10-1 mark on neutral courts for the year. The Huskies average a decent 72.4 ppg (127th) on 44.8% shooting (140th). They rank 28th in 3 pt shooting (38.9%) and 5th in free throw shooting (77.4%). Shabazz Napier is the leader of this team as he averages 18.1 ppg, while also leading the team in assists (4.9) and rebounding (5.9). Just 5 players on the team average 6.3 ppg or more, so this is not a very deep team. DeAndre Daniels (13.0 ppg) and Ryan Boatright (12.0 ppg) are the only other DD scorers on the team. Defensively this is a very solid team that ranks 38th in points allowed (63.7 ppg) and 13th in defensive FG% (39.2%).
For the Florida Gators they come in having beaten Albany, Pittsburgh, UCLA and Dayton. They are now and impressive 36-2 on the year, including 9-0 on neutral courts. The Gators are led by a stifling defense that has allowed just 57.6 ppg, which is 3rd in the Nation. They also allow just 39.9% shooting overall (24th) and 32.8% from long range (96th). On offense they average a modest 70.4 ppg, which is 199th in the nation. They do shoot the ball well, hitting 46.1% of their shots overall (77th) and 36.2% from long range (93rd), but they only hit 66.67% from the FT line, which is 276th in the nation. Casey Prather leads the team in scoring at 13.8 ppg, while Scottie Wilbekin is close behind at 13.4 ppg. Michael Frazier (12.6 ppg) and Patric Young (10.8 ppg) also score in double figures, while Dorian Finney-Smith leads the team in rebounding at 6.9 rpg.
Pick: C'Mon now, this is a classic Jeff Scott under looking play. We have two teams that play solid defense and slow the pace on offense. Both teams do shoot the 3-ball well but both also defense the Arc very well and only one team can hit FT's. The Gators have allowed just 56.6 ppg on neutral courts this year, including just 56 ppg in their last. The Huskies have played a few run and gun teams in the tourney, so their games have been a bit higher scoring, but still they held a strong Michigan State offense to just 54 points in their last game and have allowed just 66.1 ppg on neutral courts this year. Neutral courts usually mean tournament ball and that mean slower more deliberate paces and with two teams that play defense like these two can, its hard to see the offenses getting much going, especially in a cavernous place like Texas Stadium. I don't see this one hitting 120 points.
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College Basketball Free Picks: Connecticut vs Florida Betting
What college Basketball bettors need to know about Connecticut Huskies vs Florida Gators in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday (4/05/14) - a free pick from Pregame.com's Marco D'Angelo, with Ken Thomson.