Creighton vs UConn Odds, Lines, and Spread
- Creighton is a 1.5-point favorite against UConn in a Big East game Sunday at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs
- This will UConn’s first Big East game since leaving for the American Athletic Conference following the 2012-13 season
- Read below for the odds and a preview of the game
It will be a homecoming of sorts for UConn.
The Huskies host ninth-ranked Creighton at 12 p.m. ET Sunday at the Gampel Pavilion in Storrs in their first Big East game since 2013. After spending the past seven seasons in the America Athletic Conference, UConn is the underdog in its Big East return.
#9 Creighton vs UConn Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creighton | -134 | -1.5 (-120) | Over 148.5 (-110) |
| UConn | +114 | +1.5 (-102) | Under 148.6 (-110) |
Odds taken Dec. 19 from FanDuel
UConn is 3-0 overall and 2-1 against the spread but last played Dec. 3 because of COVID-19 concerns. Creighton is 5-2 overall, 1-1 in the Big East and 4-3 ATS.
Back Home Again
UConn had to postpone its first three scheduled Big East games and four games overall while all activities in the program were paused. The Huskies were also shut down from Nov. 5-19, leaving them with just 11 practices in a 39-day span.
Under the advisement of the CT DPH, we are postponing our game at Providence on Thursday, December 17th.https://t.co/KrDSNTGmSC
— UConn Men's Basketball (@UConnMBB) December 11, 2020
UConn was off to a good start, but it will be interesting to see how it is affected by the long layoff.
In their last game, UConn notched a quality win by beating USC 61-58 as a 1.5-point favorite at the Mohegan Sun Arena’s “Bubbleville” in Uncasville, Conn. The Huskies had to hang on as the Trojans missed seven of their last eight shots, including three in the final 12 seconds.
UConn held a 42-31 rebounding edge with senior forward Josh Carlton grabbing a game-high 11.
Playing in a bubble ostensibly was supposed to limit exposure to the coronavirus yet UConn was not so fortunate.
Sophomore guard James Bouknight led UConn with 18 points, including three 3-pointers, though he shot just five of 15 from the field overall. He tops the Huskies in scoring at 18.7 points a game.
JAMES BOUKNIGHT, MY GOODNESS 😲💥#SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/O2kJO89evg
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 29, 2020
Junior guard R.J. Cole is scoring 11.0 points a game and senior forward Isaiah Whaley is averaging 10.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and a whopping 3.7 blocked shots a game. Whaley has had five blocks in each of the last two games.
Creighton Bounces Back
Creighton rebounded nicely from a home loss to Marquette three nights earlier by downing St. John’s 94-76 on Thursday on the road, easily covering the seven-point spread.
Junior guard Marcus Zegarowski led the way with 20 points, atoning for a subpar performance against Marquette in which he scored eight points and missed all seven 3-point field goal attempts. Zegarowski was a sizzling six of seven from beyond the arc against St. John’s.
Senior wing Denzel Mahoney added 16 points and freshman center Ryan Kalkbrenner had a season-high 15 points after failing to score in five minutes against Marquette.
Senior forward Damien Jefferson nearly had the program’s first double-double since Benoit Benjamin in 1985 as he finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Junior forward Christian Bishop had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Jefferson and Bishop were the first pair of Bluejays teammates to have double-doubles in the same game since Martin Krampelj and Ronnie Harrell Jr. during the 2017-18 season against Nebraska.
👀 ᴛʀɪᴘʟᴇ-ᴅᴏᴜʙʟᴇ ᴡᴀᴛᴄʜ
8⃣points, 8⃣ boards and 8⃣ dimes!
Have. A. Day. @DJTrey23. pic.twitter.com/aXVHYZ1Tzq
— Creighton Men’s Basketball (@BluejayMBB) December 18, 2020
Creighton shot 57% both from the field and on 3s.
With a 16.2 average, Mahoney leads five Creighton players scoring in double figures. The list includes Zegarowski (14.7), Bishop (12.3), Jefferson (11.6) and senior guard Mitch Ballock (10.4).
The First Time
This is the first-ever meeting between the schools as Creighton joined the reconfigured Big East the same year that UConn left.
It would be a good story if UConn won in its first game back in the Big East. However, the reality of the situation is the Huskies will have gone more than two weeks between games and Creighton is averaging 86 points over its last three games.
The Pick: Creighton -1.5 (-120)
John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
