UConn vs Creighton Odds, Spread and Picks (Feb. 11)

• Top 25 Big East contenders UConn and Creighton meet on Saturday, February 11
• No. 23 Creighton is a 3.5-point home favorite over No. 21 UConn in Omaha
• Read below for UConn vs Creighton odds, analysis and prediction

No. 23 Creighton (16-8, 10-3 Big East) is a 3.5-point home favorite over UConn in a Big East game at 2 pm ET Saturday on FOX. The Bluejays have won seven straight games, tied for the longest active streak among Power Six programs.

No. 21 UConn (19-6, 8-6 Big East) has won three in a row and four of five after slumping at the start of the new year. Starting with a loss to Xavier on Dec. 31, the Huskies lost five of six, beating only Creighton in that stretch.

UConn vs Creighton Odds

Odds from FanDuel on Feb. 10. Get this week’s FanDuel Sportsbook bonus code. 

Creighton is a 3.5-point home favorite over UConn in a rematch of the game the Huskies won 69-60 in Storrs on Jan. 7. Before that, the Bluejays were 5-0 SU and 3-2 ATS in the abbreviated series that began when the teams became Big East partners in 2019-20. Creighton swept the series as an underdog last season and beat UConn in the Big East tournament semifinals in 2021.

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The Huskies are 15-9-1 ATS this season, 3-5 on the road. This is their first game as a road underdog. Creighton is 12-12 ATS, 6-6 as a home favorite. UConn has gone over the total in 16 of 25 games. The Bluejays are 10-13-1 against the over. The last four games in the series have gone under the total.

Creighton Rolling Right Along

Creighton has used only two starting lineups this season, one with 7′ junior center Ryan Kalkbrenner and one without him. The difference has been obvious. The Bluejays are 16-5 with Kalkbrenner (15.2 points, 6.9 rebounds) on the floor, including their current 10-2 run. They lost all three mid-December games that Kalkbrenner missed because of a non-COVID illness, causing a team that spent the first weeks of the season in the top 10 to fall out of the rankings.

Since December 22 (Ryan Kalkbrenner’s return from a 3-game absence), this is the list of teams that rank in the Top 15 in both offensive and defensive efficiency, according to @totally_t_bomb:

1. Alabama
2. Creighton pic.twitter.com/zZq19nzZjZ

— 𝓜𝓪𝓽𝓽 𝓓𝓮𝓜𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓲𝓼 (@mjdemarinis) February 9, 2023

Kalkbrenner, who is 12th in Division I with 2.4 blocked shots per game, is the paint piece on a loaded unit that includes 6’6″ guard/forward Baylor Scheierman (13.0 points, 8.3 rebounds), power forward Arthur Kaluma (12.5, 6.4), point guard Ryan Nembhard (11.5 points, 5. 3 assists) and off guard Trey Alexander (13.5 points). Scheierman, a physical player in the Sarunas Marciulionis mold, has a team-high 62 three-pointers and was announced Wednesday as one of 10 finalists for the Julius Erving Award, which recognizes the top small forward in Division I. He has 10 double-doubles.

Creighton does not hurt itself. The Bluejays average 11.1 turnovers per game and rank 18th in Division I in assist-turnover ratio (1.43:1).

UConn Back on Track

The Huskies appear to have rediscovered their true selves after stumbling at the start of the calendar year, when they lost six of seven to drop out of the rankings after reaching No. 2 in AP Top 25 following a 14-0 start. UConn has won four of its last five, punctuated by an 87-72 home victory over No. 10 Marquette the last time out Tuesday. East Carolina 6’5″ transfer guard Tristen Newton had 12 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds against the Warriors, his second triple-double of the season.

UConn’s Tristen Newton (@D1Tristen) with his SECOND triple-double of the season.

The Senior guard finished with 12pts, 10reb, and 12ast.

The Huskies blowout Marquette with a 87-72 win at the XL Center.#CollegeHoops pic.twitter.com/DvMufHJkTH

— The College Basketball Guy (@NCAABBallGuy) February 8, 2023

Newton has emerged as a reliable third option for double-digit scorers power forward Adama Sanogo (17.2 points, 7.2 rebounds) and off guard Jordan Hawkins (16.4 4.0), a piece the Huskies seemed to lack during their struggles. Newton (10.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists) has 103 points and 31 assists in the last six games while averaging 32 minutes per.

UConn dominated the boards against Marquette with a 48-24 rebound edge and had 27 second-chance points on 21 offensive rebounds. The Huskies have a plus-8.7 rebound margin, fourth in Division I, and have been outrebounded only four times this season, once by Creighton.

UConn vs Creighton Prediction

The preseason pollsters were correct — Creighton with Kalkbrenner is a top 10 team. The Bluejays are 10-2 since his return, with victories over Providence and Xavier. UConn has found another very useful piece in Newton. The game likely will turn on the Kalkbrenner/Sanogo match on the low block. Sanogo bulled his way to 26 points and nine rebounds on 20 field goal attempts in UConn’s 69-60 victory Jan. 7, when Kalkbrenner had nine points and four blocked shots in 32 minutes. The Bluejays play well in this spot and are poised for a revenge-win here.

• Pick: Creighton -3.5 (-110)
• Season CBK: 33-20plus ATS