Miami vs. Connecticut Bracket Prediction: March Madness Final Four Odds
No. 5 seed Miami of the ACC faces No. 4 seed UConn of the Big East in the second NCAA Tournament Final Four game from Houston on Saturday night.
The Huskies are 5.5-point favourites on the college basketball odds.
Miami vs. Connecticut Final Four Point Spread and Betting
The winner of this game will face either No. 9 Florida Atlantic or No. 5 San Diego State on Monday night also from Houston for the national title. UConn would be favoured over both those teams and is the only team in the Final Four to have won a title previously.
Miami was the ACC regular-season champion and is the only power five conference school – ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC — still standing, although UConn’s Big East is generally considered a power conference in basketball. It’s the first-ever trip to the Final four for the Hurricanes and the sixth for UConn. The Huskies last made the national semifinals in 2014 and won their fourth and last title under former coach Kevin Ollie.
These schools used to be Big East rivals and last played in November 2019 in a Thanksgiving neutral-site tournament with UConn trashing Miami 80-55.
Miami Hurricanes (5)
While it’s the first Final Four appearance for Miami, it’s the second for Coach Jim Larranaga as he led George Mason to the 2006 Final Four. It upset No. 1 seed UConn in the Elite Eight to get there. George Mason then lost in the semifinals to Florida. In part through the transfer market – billionaire and LifeWallet owner John Ruiz essentially bankrolls UM’s NIL department – the Hurricanes have one of the nation’s top backcourts led by ACC Player of the Year Isaiah Wong. They have been favoured just once this tournament, coming in Round 1 vs. Drake. Both Houston and Texas were hoping to play a Final Four in the Lone Star State, but the Canes upset the No. 1 Cougars 89-75 in the Sweet 16 and then rallied past No. 2 Texas 88-81 this past Sunday. The Horns led by as many as 13 in the second half. Guard Jordan Miller had the game of his life in shooting 7-for-7 from the field and 13-for-13 from the free-throw line for 27 points for Miami. The Hurricanes are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games overall.
Connecticut Huskies (4)
UConn has just one loss in its past 11 games, by two points to eventual Big East champion Marquette in the Big East Tournament. The Huskies have won each game of this tournament by at least 15 points, although the first two games were close at the half. No. 3 Gonzaga was just no match on Saturday in an 82-54 loss. The Zags shot 33 per cent from the field and went 2-for-20 from deep. The 28-point loss was the biggest margin of defeat in an Elite Eight game since 1992. UConn is 10th NCAA Tournament team to win their first four tournament games by 15 points or more, and the Huskies are 8-1 all-time in Final Four games. Led by 6-foot-9 star Adama Sanogo and 7-foot-2 shot-blocker Donovan Clingan, UConn will have a major size advantage against Miami. The Huskies are 4-0 ATS in their past four.
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