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College Basketball

Wednesday’s NCAA Basketball Best Bet for Feb. 26 – AAC

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
3 minute read
It was another strong Saturday on the college hardwood for these selections a few days ago, as Kentucky didn't get the route as expected, but did enough to win SU and ATS. But the bigger outcome was UNLV actually winning their game outright with San Diego State, being the first team to knock off the Aztecs in what proved to be a large flat spot for San Diego State.

But as good as it feels to be right about a game like that in going against a previously undefeated team, it's still just a single game and over the course of the entire season, the unit gained means just as much as all the other units gained. Can't dwell on wins or the losses, just have to keep on pushing forward. So hopefully the wins keep on coming, as it's just one game on tonight's card that sticks out.

Central Florida at Connecticut (ESPNU, 7:00 p.m. ET)

Best Bet: Connecticut -8

The Huskies have been bit by a lot of hard luck this year, and for as excitable as head coach Dan Hurley is on the sidelines, you've got to hope for his sake that his blood pressure this season has been thoroughly monitored. Five of their eight losses in conference play have come by four points or less, and the Huskies own a 1-4 SU record in overtime games. That's a lot of bounces going against one particular team, and while the saying goes that things like that tend to even out eventually, Connecticut can't be staunch believers in that saying right now.

Yet, while all those bad bounces might not even out for the Huskies the rest of this year, they've still got plenty of opportunity ahead of them. Right now it's all about staying in the Top 8 in the American Conference for when that tournament arrives in a few weeks, because who knows, maybe a hot run of play combined with a few Huskies bounces and maybe Connecticut cashes in all their 'owed' luck to win the thing and make the NCAA Tournament for sure. Either way, the likelihood of that type of fairy tale ending to the season happening only increases with the highest possible seed they can get in the AAC tournament.

A loss to UCF tonight would have the Knights take over that spot from Connecticut and push the Huskies back down to a 9th place position. That just simply can't happen if you are the Huskies tonight and Connecticut should come out and play like it from the get-go.

UCF is coming off a couple of close games themselves with an OT win over the Bearcats followed by a one-point defeat to Tulane over the weekend. For as good as the victory in Cincinnati was as 12-point dogs, the loss at home as -7 chalk to Tulane really undid all of that good work for the Knights and they know it. Obviously they would love to jump as high in the conference standings as possible as well, but after two highly intense games like they had, it's tough to imagine they've not got a bit of a 'dud' in them soon where they can just all out recharge the batteries. On the road and against a highly motivated Huskies team fits the situation in terms of that potentially happening, as Connecticut wouldn't mind a laugher of a victory as it is.

So while much of the bad in-game luck Connecticut has dealt with this year has forced the market to believe every Huskies game will be tight and every underdog is worth a look, this is a situation where I've got no problems laying the chalk at home with Connecticut. The Huskies are the more talented bunch overall, are at home where they have a 12-3 SU record, and asking UCF to put together two straight strong efforts together on the road feels like a bit much.

Connecticut wins this game by double digits.

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