College Knowledge
-- Old Dominion lost last six games, is unusually poor 1-7, losing by 27-7 points in its two top 100 games. VCU/ODU played in three of last four CAA tourneys, but now Rams are in A-16, so this is a non-league game; VCU is 8-6 in last 14 games vs ODU, winning last two visits here, 59-50/68-64. Monarchs played Tuesday; VCU last played Saturday.
-- Harvard is 3-3 vs D-I teams, losing by 3-19 in its two top 100 games (UMass/St Joe's). Crimson lost to UConn last three years, by 14-29-6 points. Huskies are 1-2 vs top 100 teams, with all three games decided by 6 or less points- they lost to NC State in NYC Tuesday. Big East single digit home favorites are 10-4 against the spread. -- Milwaukee lost its last five games, getting beat by 20 at home by 3-7 Buffalo last game. Northern Illinois is 1-5 vs D-I teams, getting first win vs team ranked #300 last game; Huskies lost 59-57 at home to Panthers LY- this year, they're turning ball over 26% of time, making just 27% behind arc. Horizon League home favorites are 10-8 against spread.
-- Home side won eight of last nine Iowa State-Iowa games; State won last three by 10-3-10 points, winning 75-72 in last visit here, ending 3-game skid in this arena. Iowa is 7-2, losing by 12-16 in its two games vs top 100 teams; best team they beat is #140 WKU. #34 Cyclones lost by 12 at UNLV in only road game; they lost to Cincinnati on neutral floor.
-- Manhattan won eight of last 10 games with Marist, winning three of last four played here (wins by 19-1-17 points); Jaspers are 3-4; three of four losses are vs top 90 teams-- they're turning ball over 32.9% of time, worst in country. 2-5 Marist just lost by 34 at #233 Army; they lost by 3 to Stony Brook in only home game so far this season.
-- Siena won eight of last 11 games with Rider, winning three of last four regular season games here (wins by 10-22-4 points), but struggling Saints are 2-7, with only wins vs teams ranked #269-258-- they're 0-3 at home, scoring 57.7 ppg in losses by 1-1-13 points. 5-4 Rider is 0-3 on foreign soil, losing by 12-13-11 points, but they're 3-0 vs teams not in top 200.
-- Fairfield won its last nine games with Canisius, winning last six here, winning by 11-19-3-2-15-18 points. First home game for 4-4 Stags, who are 1-4 vs teams in top 200. Canisius upgraded at coach by signing Jim Baron, old URI coach; 4-1 Griffins are #12 in country in experience, 1-1 on road, losing by 7 at Stony Brook, winning by 18 at UMBC.
Armadillosports.com
Games to Watch
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
VCU vs. Old Dominion
VCU made the switch to the Atlantic 10 this season but face an old familiar Colonial Athletic Association foe in this matchup. The Rams come in at 5-3 SU and 2-3 ATS after beating Belmont 75-65 this past Saturday as 7½-point home favorites. They are 1-2 SU against ranked opponents this season with a win over then-No. 19 Memphis followed by losses to No. 2 Duke and No. 16 Missouri.
It has been a rough start for the Monarchs with just one SU win in their first seven games. This past Saturday, they lost to William & Mary 71-62 as three-point road underdogs in their CAA season opener. Old Dominion is ranked in the bottom third of the nation in shooting percentage (40.6) and points per game (63.9)
Iowa State vs. Iowa Point Spread, Las Vegas Betting Line and Trends
By: The Linemakers
Sportingnews.com
The Iowa State Cyclones (6-2 SU, 1-2 ATS) and Iowa Hawkeyes (7-2 SU, 2-3 ATS) play Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena (8:00 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network). Here is point spread and trends information, as well as a lean on the game from The Linemakers.
Line: Iowa -3
Total: 149.5
Trends:
* Cyclones are 4-1 ATS in their last five Friday games.
* Cyclones are 13-5-1 ATS in their last 19 games overall.
* Over is 7-0 in Cyclones last seven vs. Big Ten.
* Hawkeyes are 4-1 ATS in their last five home games vs. a team with a losing road record.
* Hawkeyes are 12-5 ATS in their last 17 home games.
* Over is 4-0 in the last four meetings.
* Home team is 5-2 ATS in the last seven meetings.
The Linemakers' take: Both teams come into this rivalry game with two losses. Iowa State was beaten by Cincinnati and UNLV, while Iowa lost to Wichita State and at Virginia Tech. Transfers Korie Lucious (Michigan State) and Will Clyburn (Utah) lead the Cyclones. Iowa goes ten deep led by Devyn Marble and Aaron White. Iowa State has won the last three meetings with Iowa, but this has been a home team series in recent years. The home team has won seven of the last eight. We have a slight lean to Iowa on their home floor.