This hasn’t been a banner season for the Big East like we’ve seen in years past, when the team sent 11 teams to the NCAA Tournament or fielded multiple teams in the Final Four.
But this conference still has a stable of high-upside teams looking to get hot at the right time.
One of those teams is Connecticut, which enters this week’s Big East Tournament as the betting favorite at FanDuel (+210) after winning eight of its final nine games to close the regular season.
The lone loss came against Creighton (+290), which sits just ahead of Marquette (+340) in a crowded field atop the oddsboard.
Here are the odds to win the 2023 Big East Tournament, courtesy of FanDuel, and our best bet to win it:
2023 Big East Tournament betting odds
(via FanDuel)
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Connecticut | +210 |
| Creighton | +290 |
| Marquette | +340 |
| Xavier | +500 |
| Villanova | +850 |
| Providence | +1900 |
| Seton Hall | +3000 |
| St. John’s | +7500 |
| Georgetown | +25000 |
| DePaul | +25000 |
| Butler | +25000 |
Advanced metrics have loved Connecticut all year long, and we’re finally seeing the on-court results to back that up for Dan Hurley’s group.
The Huskies are one of just two teams in the country (Houston) with top-12 efficiency on both ends of the court.
They also rank in the top 10 in assist rate on offense (62.5%) and defense (40.3%) while boasting the nation’s best offensive rebound rate (39%) – a clear recipe for success against any opponent.
In early February, though, none of that mattered when Creighton beat UConn to extend its eight-game win streak.
The Bluejays then lost three of six games down the stretch, but Greg McDermott’s squad has a battle-tested starting five that limits easy shots and can absolutely light it up from deep.
Don’t forget about top-seeded Marquette, which struggled to find its footing in Shaka Smart’s first season but has clearly found its identity this year.
The Golden Eagles own the nation’s fourth-most efficient offense thanks to their relentlessly aggressive defense – a vicious combo that’s fueled this team to a 16-2 record since late December.
Big East Tournament prediction
As these odds suggest, the Big East has been defined by four or five legitimate contenders – all of whom earned a first-round bye in this tournament – and a whole lot of garbage below them.
Somehow, Providence has managed to float between those two groups and is priced accordingly ahead of its Thursday opener.
At their best, the Friars can hang with anyone in this conference: they blew out Connecticut in early January, earned wins over Marquette and Creighton in double-overtime, and swept Villanova, which reached the Final Four a year ago.
They also finished .500 over their last 14 games, capped off by a stunning 24-point loss to lowly Seton Hall in their home finale.
Betting on College Basketball?
If you aren’t betting one of the top five teams in this field, Providence is realistically the only other team worth betting.
And you’re doing so at your own peril.
The Friars’ aggressiveness in the paint can carry them a long way, but they’re far more likely to lose to UConn in their opener than win the tourney outright.
Big East Tournament pick
I really love what Smart is building at Marquette, and I’m a bit surprised to see the regular-season champs dealing as the third option in this market.
The Golden Eagles get a tune-up on Thursday against St. John’s or Butler before a likely showdown with favored UConn, which handed Marquette its only loss in its last 12 games.
Smart’s group actually executed its usual game plan pretty well in that game, but it was dominated on the boards in a contest that got lopsided early on.
That hasn’t been nearly as much of an issue over the last month as it was early on for this team, and I’d expect Smart to have his side ready to shore that up in the rematch.
If Marquette can exploit Connecticut’s propensity for turnovers once again, that’ll go a long way toward its quest for the school’s first-ever Big East Tournament title.