Connecticut Huskies vs Villanova Wildcats Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 02/21/26

The UConn Huskies will travel to Philadelphia on Saturday to play a Big East Conference game against the Villanova Wildcats. UConn is coming off their worst loss of the season in their last game when they fell to Creighton on their home floor. Creighton is not a projected tournament team but both UConn and Villanova are expected to make the Big Dance. Villanova is riding a five-game winning streak and are looking to avenge their overtime loss t0 UConn in the first matchup between these two programs. The Huskies are the slight favorite in round two of the season series and I am backing them to cover here.

I like UConn to cover the 1.5-point spread in this one and bounce back from their shocking loss on Wednesday night. Most people have moved them off the #1 seed line following their loss and I expect them to be playing with a chip on their shoulder. Their aggressive and motivated play should lead to the Huskies dominating the glass against a Villanova team that is not a good defensive rebounding team. According to KenPom, UConn’s offense is ranked #66 nationally in offensive rebounding percentage while Villanova’s defense is ranked #252. The glass and the overall presence inside should be the difference, and I am raking UConn -1.5.

*UConn -1.5 available at time of publishing. Playable at -3*