Free March Madness Picks 2012: Connecticut Huskies and Villanova Wildcats

It seems that the Connecticut Huskies is in a turmoil and their starting point guard is publicly questioning the heart of his teammates. And if in the case that they can't defeat a shorthanded Villanova Wildcats team that's reeling after blowing a 20-point lead to Notre Dame, we can safely assume that its NCAA Tournament "bubble" may burst.

Despite all its talent, Uconn's lack of leadership may be its Achilles' heel and it is in danger of becoming just the20th defending champion to miss the NCAA Tournament the following year. On the other hand, the Wildcats will likely miss the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight years.

Villanova is known as the worst shooting team in the Big East 941.4), will once again be without the service of Maalik Wayns – the conference's third-leading scorer – and key reserve guard James Bell. This is the first meeting since Kemba Walker hit a floater with 2.5 seconds left to give UConn a 61-59 in Storrs last season. The victory marked the Huskies 17th win in 25 meetings with Villanova, since 1996.

Connecticut Huskies at Villanova Wildcats

When: 7:00 PM ET, Monday, February 20, 2012

Where: The Pavilion, Villanova, Pennsylvania

The Huskies have opened as 3.5 – point favorites on several sportsbooks online, try to visit Sportsbook.com and other sites if you are line shopping to get the best deals. Also read on free march madness picks whenever you can since it can help you solidify your opinion on a game.

Connecticut Huskies (16-10)

Coming off a blowout of DePaul, Connecticut had a good chance to boost its NCAA Tournament resume at home against No. 13 Marquette Saturday, but fell flat in a 79-64 defeat. It was the Huskies' seventh loss in nine games. Connecticut entered as the third-best rebounding team in the conference, but was outrebounded 30-27 by the much-smaller Golden Eagles. Connecticut came undone after a senseless technical foul called on freshman guard Ryan Boatright for trash-talking. The sole good news is that sophomore guard Jeremy Lamb has emerged from a funk and is averaging 18.3 points on 53.0 percent shooting over the last three games.

Villanova Wildcats (11-15)

The Wildcats lost five of six after Saturday's meltdown. Villanova was on the verge of stunning the 25th-ranked Fighting Irish without Wayns due to sprained MCL and Bell due to an ankle injury when the Big East's second half of a 74-70 overtime win. Redshirt freshman forward JayVaughn Pinkston bounced back from a one-for-13 performance by scoring 24 points. Wayns, the team's unquestioned leader, who is averaging 17.8 points and 4.5 assists, has missed the last two games and is listed as doubtful for this contest. Meanwhile, Bell will sit out a second straight game. The team's best three-point shooter (35.8), Bell was averaging 13.0 points over five games before leaving the win over Providence with a sprained left ankle.

Free March Madness Picks: Huskies 73, Wildcats 65