2 best bets and player props for USC vs. UConn Women’s Basketball

On December 22, 2024By Littum

Hartford, Connecticut is the place to be on Saturday night when the No. 7 USC takes on no. 4 UConn.

Heading into tonight’s 8:00 PM ET tip, USC (+600) and UConn (+380) are among the four teams with the shortest odds to win the national championship. There is plenty of star power on both sides of this matchup, and it could very well be a Final Four preview when March rolls around.

Heading into the weekend, the home Huskies are favored by 7.5 and the over/under is set at 140.5 total points.

Let’s check out USC-UConn odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook’s college basketball odds to review the best USC-UConn bets and player props.

Please note that lines may change during the day after this article is published.

USC vs. UConn Betting Picks

UConn -7.5 (-105)

Although this game features two of the top teams in college basketball, it is not expected to be a particularly close contest. The home Huskies are favored by 7.5 points against a Trojan team that has lost just one game all season.

But that one loss told us a lot about where this USC team stands, so I see value backing UConn -7.5.

USC’s lone loss came by 13 against Notre Dame — the same team that beat UConn by 11 last week. While the final results there don’t look much different, UConn gave Notre Dame a real fight, trailing by just four entering the fourth quarter and by six with three minutes left.

The Trojans, meanwhile, never led against the Irish after trailing 20-10 in the first quarter. They got it within three in the third, but later trailed by as many as 21 points in the final period.

UConn also faced Notre Dame without third-leading scorer Azzi Fudd, but she has a chance to return for tonight’s game.

Even beyond their record against a similar opponent, UConn is on a different level at this point in the season.

Despite USC’s star power and stellar record, they haven’t shown the same level of dominance against top teams that UConn has. The Trojans (7th on Bart Torvik) have only met three teams in the top 50 of Bart Torvik’s NCAAW Power Ratings. They lost to Notre Dame (5th) while picking up a 2-point win over Ole Miss (25th) and a 13-point win over Oregon (23rd).

On the other hand, UConn has faced five teams inside Torvik’s top 50 teams. Although they lost to ND, the Huskies beat North Carolina (14th), Ole Miss (25th), Louisville (45th) and Iowa State (39th) by double digits. Their wins over Louisville and Iowa State came by a combined 66 points.

That kind of consistency against top competition bodes well for their chances of handling USC tonight. Torvik has UConn projected to win by 9.2 points, and I’m inclined to back the numbers here. At home — and possibly with Azzi Fudd back — UConn is a good spot to cover as 7.5-point favorites.

Paige Buecker over 3.5 assists (-113)

With two of the three best Wooden Award odds managers faced in this game, there is no shortage of interesting player props to consider. But while USC’s Juju Watkins is having an incredible season, UConn’s Paige Buecker is the one I’m looking for back in the prop market.

UConn forward Sarah Strong has come on strong over the past few games, but that hasn’t stopped the Bueckers from cracking 24 points in three straight games. Still, I’m more interested in over on her assists stopper with Strong rolling and Fudd potentially back.

Bueckers averages 4.0 assists per game. game this season — down from the 4.4 she averaged during her four-year stay at UConn. But she has provided at least four assists in 7 of 11 games overall, including all 5 with Fudd active.

She has been forced into a heavier scoring role the past few games, but notably has finished with at least 4 assists in four of five straight home games.

USC is also a solid matchup for dimes. The Trojans are just 292nd nationally in assists allowed, and we saw both Notre Dame guards finish with at least 7 assists when they faced each other. It doesn’t hurt that USC is 32nd in Torvik’s adjusted pace, making this a pace-up spot for the Bueckers and UConn (252nd in adjusted pace).

More possessions for UConn means more time with the ball for Bueckers and her team-leading 26.5% completion rate. As such, she’s in a good spot to dish out at least four assists in one of UConn’s biggest games of the year.

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What bets stand out to you across the nation tonight? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook’s latest college basketball odds to see the full menu of options.

The above writer is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports bets on FanDuel. The advice given by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports bets.