NCAA Basketball – #20 Pittsburgh Panthers vs. #15 UConn Huskies

No. 20 Pittsburgh Panthers (13-2 SU, 7-5-1 ATS) at No. 15 Connecticut Huskies (11-4 SU, 5-7-1 ATS)

Wednesday, January 13: 7:00 p.m.

Here are some NCAA Basketball Betting Trends which may impact this game:

Pittsburgh: The total has gone OVER in 5 of their last 6 road games
Pittsburgh: 4-2 ATS in their last 6 road games

Connecticut: 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games
Connecticut: Total has gone OVER in 4 of their last 5 games

Coming off a devastating loss Saturday, the Connecticut Huskies will look to rebound, when they host the surging Pitt Panthers at the XL Center Wednesday.

The Huskies will return to the court for the first time since a stunning loss to Georgetown on Saturday. In the game, the Huskies led by as many as 19 points in the first half, before falling apart, and losing by three to the Hoyas. They’ll need a better defensive effort Wednesday.

Leading the way for UConn is one of the most underappreciated stars in the sport, senior Jerome Dyson. Watching Dyson, he might not jump out at you, but few fill the box score better. As a matter of fact, on the season, Dyson is the only player in college basketball averaging 19 points, five rebounds and five assists per game.

However, the problem for UConn is that when Dyson doesn’t get going, the Huskies often times struggle in their half court offense. In the midst of Saturday’s debacle, Dyson had one of his worst games of the 2010 season, scoring only four points. Dyson will need help Wednesday from lightning quick guard Kemba Walker, who shot just 2-7 from the field against Georgetown. Stanley Robinson adds 17 points per game from the wing spot as well.

As for Pittsburgh Panthers, after losing several stars from last year’s Elite Eight team, many expected them to fall off. Coach Jamie Dixon has had other plans however, as he’s got his team off to a surprising start.

The biggest surprise for the Panthers has been the play of junior guard Ashton Gibbs. To say that Gibbs was a role player last year would be an understatement, the guy barely played 10 minutes a game. Well, this year he’s playing 35 minutes a contest, and averaging a team leading 17 points. Brad Wanamaker and Gilbert Brown have stepped up their games as well.

While Pittsburgh doesn’t have a lot of “big name,” players that we’re familiar with, they just keep rolling out victories, and currently stand as one of only two undefeated teams in the Big East. They are also the only team to beat Syracuse, who is 15-1 on the season.

Even still, I like the Huskies at home. Of their four losses, two have been on neutral courts (Kentucky and Duke), and two others have been on the road (at Cincinnati and at Georgetown), but they’ve already beaten some good teams on their homecourt.

Also, this Huskies team is truly a scary bunch when playing well. They can score in spurts, but struggle in the half court. Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun will make sure that is all figured out before Pitt gets to town Wednesday.

Pitt may be undefeated in conference play, but won’t remain that way after Saturday. Take UConn for a slight upset in the college basketball betting odds.

Aaron’s Pick: UConn by 4