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Alabama vs. UCONN NCAA Tournament Final Four: How to watch, odds, and predictions for March Madness

Get all the info you need for Alabama's Final Four matchup with UCONN in Phoenix.

By Matthew Conner

Mar 30, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; The Alabama Crimson Tide mascot Big Al performs with
Mar 30, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; The Alabama Crimson Tide mascot Big Al performs with / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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Alabama is set to make its Final Four debut on Saturday. However, the history of teams making their first appearance in college basketball's biggest event is not promising for the Crimson Tide.

In fact, teams rarely make noise when reaching the Final Four for the first time in program history. The last team to win it all in the season of its program's first Final Four was UCONN in 1999.

Speaking of UCONN, the Huskies have quite a history of success when reaching the Final Four. The Huskies have been to seven Final Fours and have cut down the nets five times. That's not great news for the Tide's chances on Saturday.

However, Nate Oats' team has defied expectations throughout the NCAA Tournament and the Final Four is just the next opportunity to surprise the college basketball world. So as we get ready for the most anticipated basketball game in Alabama history, let's take a look at the broadcast info, odds, and a prediction as to what we will see on Saturday night.

How to watch Alabama vs. UCONN in the NCAA Tournament Final Four

Date: April 6, 2024
Time: 7:49 CT
Channel: TBS/TNT/truTV
Streaming: NCAA March Madness Live, fuboTV
Announcers: Ian Eagle, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson

Alabama vs. UCONN NCAA Tournament Final Four odds

Spread

Moneyline

Over/Under

UCONN -11.5

Bama +550, UCONN -820

161.5

Alabama vs. UCONN NCAA Tournament Final Four prediction

Alabama and UCONN have played only twice all-time. One was in the 2004 Elite 8 and the other was in 2022 at the Phil Knight Invitational. The Huskies won both of those meetings and in each of those seasons, the Huskies went on to win the National Championship.

On the surface, it appears that the Tide has quite the task ahead in trying to take down a team that has won each of its tournament games by at least 17 points with three of those wins coming by 25 points or more.

What's more, the Huskies are 10-0 against the spread in NCAA Tournament games over the past two years. In other words, UCONN is the prohibitive favorite here.

On the other hand, Bama has already beaten on No. 1 seed in this year's tournament, North Carolina. Now, the question that must be answered is whether Alabama's high-powered offense can score on UCONN's elite defense.

Over the past four games, UCONN is giving up only 53.5 points per game while Bama is scoring 89.7 per game. So what gives in this matchup?

In the end, the defense usually carries the day in the Final Four. Remember, this game will be played in an NFL Stadium so the depth perception for shooters will be much different than it is in a normal arena. That often comes into play in Final Four games.

Bama will give UCONN its best test of the tournament but in the end, the Huskies are just too complete of a team. The Tide won't have an answer for 7-foot-2 UCONN center Donovan Clingan who will control the action near the rim and make it harder for the Tide to score in the paint.

Final Score: UCONN: 85 - Bama: 77

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