College basketball is back in action tonight, and we’ve got quite a few games on the schedule. Most teams have already played one game, and many are already on their second or third. We’ve already seen some upsets, some blowouts, and some tight battles. College basketball is one of my favorites, especially in the early season because the lines are usually a bit softer. There are just too many sports and games for the books to have an edge everywhere. One game I think we have an edge in is between UConn and Michigan.
UConn comes into the game having beaten Gardner-Webb in their season opener. That was a bit of a joke because they won that game by 40 points. As expected, Braylon Mullins led the way with 20 points, and he was efficient from deep, hitting four of nine threes. It is hard to judge just how this team will use their minutes because that game saw virtually everyone get into the action. Their starters played roughly half the game, but Colben Landrew, Oskar Giltay, and Junior County all played about half the game as well from off the bench.
As is normally the case for a Dan Hurley team, the Huskies are going to be a high-tempo offense looking for easy buckets or open threes. They will have solid rim protection, and they will be a good rebounding team. However, there are some warranted questions about just how good this team will be. I’m not sure that they have a true go-to scorer. Perhaps that’s better at this level, because they can have more diversity from their scorers instead of relying on just one guy. Solo Ball is out for the season, so they will need to figure out how to replace his production.
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Michigan has undergone quite a bit of transformation after last season. They hoisted the national championship trophy, lost multiple players to the NBA, and then lost their head coach, also to the NBA. Roddy Gayle Jr. will be a solid scoring guard for them and should provide some strong veteran leadership. Gayle scored 17 points in just 25 minutes of basketball in Michigan’s first game, hitting a solid 64% of his shots. Trey McKenney is another returning guard for the club. He had 17 points in the opener as well.
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That wasn’t a very comfortable win for the Wolverines. The team played Oakland, and they won by 16 points, but it felt like the Wolverines had to work harder than usual to keep Oakland from coming back in the game. They ended the game with four guys in double figures. It should be interesting to see how good the team can actually be. Last year, they blew everyone out, and they seemingly scored 100 points every game. It wasn’t that easy, but under Mike Boynton, I do have questions about this offense. He is a defensive guy who worked under May.
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This is an early-season test for both of these teams. UConn is ranked 4th in the country, and Michigan is ranked 16th. The last time these two teams played was in the national championship last season. Michigan won that game and took away a chance at a third championship in four years for UConn. I think the Huskies have a couple of edges here. The Huskies are -7.5 tonight, and I think they will cover. They are playing this game in Boston, which is much closer for UConn fans. It should feel like more of a home game. The other thing is that I think the Huskies want a bit of revenge after losing in the national championship last season. Also, the women’s UConn team lost last night to Michigan, so the men’s team may try to avenge that one as well.
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