Only a trio of games on the main board Monday night, but Vegas and online sportsbooks will be busy taking bets on a big one as #4 Pitt visits top-ranked UConn. Let’s take a look.

1. UConn opens -3 with a total of 136.  The Huskies won the only matchup between these two teams last season. Homestanding UConn broke open a 51-51 deadlock with 2:32 left to run to a 60-53 win as 4-point favorites in that one. Key stats in last year’s game were Pitt’s 2-16 from 3-point land and UConn’s 18-21 from the foul line.

2. This is UConn’s first real challenge without Jerome Dyson.  Dyson is a veteran and Connecticut’s #2 scorer.  Importantly, he was also their #1 perimeter defender.  But the Huskies are deep and experienced at guard, and are confident that Dyson’s injury will not derail their goals.

3. According to his coach Jamie Dixon, Levance Fields of Pitt is playing as well as any point guard in the country right now.  And who can argue with 56 assists and only 6 turnovers in Pitt’s last 5 games?  The Panthers dismantled a Cincinnati team that was playing some decent basketball on Saturday night, 85-69. Pitt shot 31-46 (67.4%) in their win over the Bearcats.

4. Hasheem Thabeet has been immense.  The towering UConn center has blocked over 7 shots per game in his last 5 contests.  Thabeet’s shot blocks don’t tell the whole story, as many shots are altered or not taken due to his presence.  UConn has held their last 7 opponents to 38.6% shooting or less, and with their best performances saved for offensively proficient oppponents Syracuse (31.7%), Providence (33.3%), and Notre Dame (32.9%) .   Pitt is not nearly as effective defensively, as their last 11 opponents have all shot 39.3% or better.

5. With their powerhouse defense, no surprise that 12 of the last 15 UConn games have gone under the total.  Pitt is known for their strong home court edge, but away from the Petersen Events Center they’re 6-3 against the pointspread this season, and 13-6 to the number overall.

Good luck with this game, and all of Monday night’s mini-card.