UConn vs Tennessee Women’s Basketball Prediction & Picks: Legendary rivalry renewed in Knoxville

One of the most notable rivalries in college sports will be renewed tonight at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee as #5 UConn visits unranked Tennessee in women’s college basketball action.

Tonight’s matchup between the Huskies (18-2, 11-0 Big East) and Vols (16-6, 8-0 SEC) is set for 8:00 pm ET (7:00 pm local time), and it will be televised on ESPN.

After meeting every year between 1995 and 2007 in either the regular season, NCAA Tournament, or both, the UConn-Tennessee rivalry would be dormant until yearly matchups resumed in 2020.

The Huskies have won each of the three meetings since things resumed, including a 75-56 win for the #10 Huskies over the #7 Vols in Hartford last February.

Who will take the win in tonight’s showdown? Read on for our UConn vs Tennessee women’s basketball prediction and picks.

UConn vs Tennessee Odds

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Shorthanded Huskies Still a Formidable Foe

Despite the gaudy conference records, this season has not been smooth sailing for either of these teams, but especially so for UConn.

Paige Bueckers suffered a torn ACL last August, ruling her out for this season, and while that was the biggest hit for the Huskies, it was just the first of many.

Of the ten players that have taken the court for UConn this season, only two have played in all 20 games, Aaliyah Edwards (17.2 PPG, 9.4 RPG) and Fairfield transfer Lou Lopez-Senechal (16.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG).

Currently, the Huskies are without leading scorer Azzi Fudd, who has been limited to just nine games and is out indefinitely after reinjuring her knee, and Caroline Ducharme (concussion protocol).

But even with their depleted depth, UConn has won 11 straight since an 85-78 loss at Maryland on December 11 and has won every conference game by at least 15 points.

Leading Players for UConn

• Aaliyah Edwards: 17.2 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 2.9 APG, 1.2 BPG, 62.9% FG%
• Lou Lopez-Senechal: 16.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 49.0% 3PT%
• Dorka Juhasz: 14.8 RPG, 10.5 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.5 BPG
• Aubrey Griffin: 13.6 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.7 SPG, 58.4% FG%
• Nika Muhl: 6.4 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 8.8 APG, 1.4 SPG

As for the Vols, things looked shaky early on, as they dropped four or their first six games and sat at 4-5 following a home loss to Virginia Tech on December 4.

But since a 77-70 loss at Stanford on December 18, the Vols have won nine straight games. And before a close call at Missouri on Sunday, they had won every SEC game by double digits.

Against the upset-minded Tigers, Tennessee trailed 65-60 with less than a minute and a half left but scored the final eight points, with Rickea Jackson coming up with the winning points on a three-point play with 1.1 seconds left.

Tennessee was without Jordan Horston, who leads the team in rebounding and is second in scoring behind Jackson, for the trip to Mizzou due to illness. Her status for tonight is uncertain, but it’s hard to see the Vols being able to win without her.

Leading Players for Tennessee

• Rickea Jackson: 18.0 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 56.0% FG%
• Jordan Horston: 15.2 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.6 APG
• Tess Darby: 7.3 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 40.6% 3PT%

Even if Horston plays, the Vols will need a big game from Jackson. The Mississippi State transfer weathered some early ups and downs and has hit the 20-point mark five times in SEC play and eight times total this season, but she may well need to best her season high of 28 tonight, especially if Horston is out or limited.

UConn vs Tennessee Prediction and Picks

UConn vs Tennessee Prediction: UConn to win

UConn vs Tennessee Picks: n/a

As limited as the Huskies are depth-wise at the moment, what they put on the floor is tough to beat.

But while the Vols can’t match up in terms of quality when you compare each team’s starting five, they have depth that could prove to be a major issue for UConn.

Even with Horston unavailable, Tennessee played ten players against Missouri, with eight of them playing at least a dozen minutes.

Can the Vols use that depth to frustrate the Huskies? Forcing a little foul trouble can go a long way.

However, I think UConn will prove to be just a little too much for Tennessee in the end, and they will pick up their fourth straight win over the Vols and improve to 17-9 all time in this rivalry.