Central Connecticut Blue Devils vs Syracuse Orange Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Week 1

Syracuse won its opener by sixteen at home and now lays a much bigger number against an eighteen win team from last season. Central Connecticut has a scorer who already showed he can get his own shot on the road.

The Matchup

Central Connecticut visits Syracuse on Thursday night at the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, with Syracuse a 22.5-point favorite, a total of 137.5, on ACCNX. Syracuse is 1-0. Central Connecticut is 0-1 after playing Temple close for long stretches on the road.

Last season Central Connecticut finished 18-12, scoring 73.8 points a game and allowing 70.9. Syracuse finished 15-17, scoring 75.0 and allowing 74.3. Read that again before laying the big number: the road underdog won more games last season than the home favorite did, and Syracuse allowed almost as many points as it scored.

Syracuse beat New Haven 74-58 in its opener, a solid home win and nothing more. Central Connecticut lost 68-56 at Temple, a twelve point loss on the road against a decent team. Neither opener suggests a twenty three point gap, and the burden of proof sits with the favorite.

Key Factors

Central Connecticut has a scorer who travels. Ashton Reynolds scored 18 points at Temple on 6-of-11 shooting, hitting 4-of-8 from three, with 2 steals and 2 blocks. Raphel Laurent added 13 points and 7 rebounds. Reynolds is the kind of player who keeps a big underdog alive, because he can create a good shot late in the clock when the offense breaks down, instead of settling for a turnover or a forced attempt that turns into a runout.

Syracuse's opener was balanced rather than explosive. Kiyan Anthony scored 17 points, Sadiq White Jr. had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Gavin Doty had 14 points and 13 rebounds. That frontcourt rebounding is real, and it will trouble Central Connecticut. But Syracuse scored 74 points against New Haven, not 90, and a favorite that scores in the seventies has very little room for a cold stretch when it needs to win by twenty three.

The counterpoint is that frontcourt. White and Doty combined for 28 points and 23 rebounds in the opener, and Central Connecticut got just 1 point on 0-of-6 shooting from James Jones at Temple.

If Syracuse owns the glass the way it did against New Haven, second chance points pile up and the margin grows in a hurry. The bet is that Reynolds and Laurent give Central Connecticut enough offense to answer some of those runs, and that a Syracuse team with a losing record last season does not suddenly become a rout machine.

Every pick is published with its line before the game. Odds via consensus sportsbooks at time of writing and move constantly. Must be 21+. If gambling is a problem, call or text 1-800-GAMBLER.