With that, let’s break down what MI will be faced with for the first few rounds of the tournament.
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But the Huskies kept picking away at the lead and closed to 73-71 on a 3-pointer by Purvis.
Gibbs may be their leading scorer so far but UConn has a bunch of talented guys that they can throw at you including last years AAC Rookie of the Year Daniel Hamilton, who has struggled so far this year, and Rodney Purvis who has gotten off to a hot start to this season. He plays alongside Gibbs, a Seton Hall transfer who was eligible immediately after graduating, who has been equally as impressive.
Texas A&M is 6-1 against the spread following a win, 8-3 against the spread in their last 11 games, and 7-16 against the spread in their last 23 neutral site games. Cooney ended up with 17 points as well. When LeVert was on the floor, MI outscored UConn by three points. Miller and Hamilton should be a headache for Zak Irvin and Aubrey Dawkins, but is an area where MI could take advantage of the Huskies.
UConn should at least be expecting a stiffer test after outscoring its first four opponents by an average of 25.5 points. MI was right with CT for the opening segment of the game and was actually able to cut the lead late before the Huskies hit a few pivotal buckets to close out the game. Lydon had 16 points. Below is the UConn vs. MI prediction and game preview. They are just 1-3 with losses to Elon, ECU and Syracuse, but MI won’t soon forget the loss against Charlotte in Puerto Rico two years ago.
The Huskies began hitting the three-pointers they were missing throughout the game, and pulled within two down the stretch.
Gbinije scored 10 first half points to lead the charge for Syracuse. And Ollie said the ability to run out to the 3-point line against Syracuse (4-0) is just one key to beating the former Big East rival. He runs alongside Trevor Cooney, a 3-point specialist for the Cuse who has been at Syracuse since roughly 2008. Gbinije was the force behind both baskets, first jumping into the passing lane for a steal and going coast-to-coast for a lay-up, then pushing the ball again on the next possession to set up an alley-oop connection with Roberson for a ten-point bulge.
The Cuse also play some freshman, including Malachi Richardson, a 6’6 guard averaging 14 points and 4 rebounds.
UNLV 72, No. 13 INDIANA 69 (at Lahaina, Hawaii) – Patrick McCaw scored 20 points and UNLV hung on through the frantic final seconds in the fifth-place game of the Maui Invitational. The starting duo of seniors Kyle Wiltjer (19.7 ppg) and Przemek Karnowski (9.7 ppg) provide a potent inside-out attack. Off the bench, Lyndon helps, but the rest of the bench has been pretty lackluster.
Syracuse plays No. 25 Texas A&M in the championship game.
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While Beilein has said he plans to whittle down the rotation, he may need all he can get from Mark Donnal – whose starting spot may be in doubt after his six-minute scoreless game against Xavier – along with Ricky Doyle, D.J. Wilson and Moritz Wagner.
