Hidalgo Will Outshine Bueckers In UConn Vs Notre Dame

UConn vs. Notre Dame, 7:00 ET

College Basketball gets a lot of attention for the men's game, but the women's game deserves a little love even without Caitlin Clark donning an Iowa jersey. Look, Clark brought a lot of attention to Women's College Basketball, but there are some very talented and popular players in the ranks now. As far as betting on the sport, we can bet on virtually anything and the tickets cash the same no matter what. With all that being said, I'm going to bet on UConn taking on Notre Dame tonight.

UConn has one of the most popular players in the country, and likely #1 overall pick in next season's WNBA Draft, Paige Bueckers. UConn is made up of some of the most talented players in the nation, so more than just Bueckers is doing their part of this 8-0 start. Bueckers is leading the team at the moment with almost 19 points per game, shooting well from all three levels, including 42% from three. As a secondary option, Sarah Strong has poured in 16 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with over 7.5 per game. Outside of those two, who play the majority of the game, the remaining players contribute, but aren't racking up any specific stat. UConn has already played three ranked teams this season, and they've won each game by at least 11 points. They beat North Carolina by 11 in their first game, then beat Ole Miss by 13, and on Saturday dropped Louisville by 33 points. This game will be a challenge and the first full road game that UConn has played in this season.

Notre Dame is pretty good itself, coming into the game ranked as the eighth-best team in the nation. They have also faced three ranked teams, beating two of them and losing to what should've been the easiest of the three. They took down #3 at the time USC on the road, winning by 13. They then lost by eight to TCU in their first game during the Thanksgiving tournament. They dropped the next game as well as they lost to Utah. Neither one of the games was all that close. They did beat #4 Texas in overtime two games ago and took down Syracuse with ease in their most recent game. Hannah Hidalgo, the guard from Notre Dame has scored 24.6 points per game, but isn't quite as efficient of a shooter as Bueckers. She should be able to cancel out the production of her counterpart though. Notre Dame has four strong scorers and really only plays a seven-woman rotation. This can be great because you rely on just top-level talent, but it also could cause them to get tired if UConn gets out into transition.

UConn is bolstered by the one of the best coaches of all time and has one of the best players in college. Hidalgo will likely make a name for herself tonight. Bueckers is good, but she isn't a great defender and Hidalgo will certainly find her spots. I think this is one of the games that the home-court advantage will help quite a bit. I've said this a few times but this feels like a game that UConn wins by 10+ or Notre Dame wins outright. I'm going to bet on the latter. Back Notre Dame to win this one at home with the better seven. If you want to have a bit of protection, take the +2.5 points. 

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