Duke at Pittsburgh: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
Duke Blue Devils at Pittsburgh Panthers (OFF)
One of the newcomers to the ACC challenges one of its cornerstone programs when No. 19 Pittsburgh hosts No. 18 Duke on Monday. The Panthers are off to a strong start in their first season in the conference and are tied for second place with Virginia, while Duke is right behind in fourth place in the now 15-team league. Pittsburgh is 12-0 at home and Duke is just 1-2 on the road.
The Blue Devils have won four consecutive games – allowing just 56.8 points during the stretch – and expect a fierce battle with the Panthers. “We’ve got to play a tough Pitt team at their place, which is going to be tough,” forward Rodney Hood said after Saturday’s trouncing of Florida State. “But if we keep playing like we’re playing, we’re going to be in a good position.” The Panthers have won eight of their last nine after defeating Maryland on Saturday.
ABOUT DUKE (16-4, 12-8 ATS): There are rumblings that forward Jabari Parker may not leave for the NBA after a season that is beginning to shape up as the best by a freshman in school history. Parker, who averages 18.7 points and eight rebounds, has six double-doubles to tie for the third-most by a Duke freshman, and he has scored in double digits in 19 of 20 games. He also is on pace to break Johnny Dawkins’ school freshman scoring mark of 18.1 per game and his rebounding average trails only Mike Gminski (10.7) and Gene Banks (8.6) and ranks ahead of players like Elton Brand (7.3) and Luol Deng (6.9).
ABOUT PITTSBURGH (18-2, 7-9-1 ATS): Senior guard Lamar Patterson has been sensational and leads the team in scoring (17.9), assists (4.7) and 3-point baskets (39) while shooting 51.3 percent from the field. Patterson scored 28 points against Maryland, falling two shy of his career high, and also had seven rebounds and seven assists. “It’s not like he was trying to do too much,” said guard Cameron Wright, the team’s third-leading scorer at 10.9. “He’s playing out of his mind right now. He was able to hold us together.”
TRENDS:
* Duke is 6-2 ATS in its last eight games following a SU win.
* Pittsburgh is 8-2-1 ATS its last 11 games versus the ACC.
* Under is 7-3 in Duke's last 10 games following an ATS win.
* Over is 5-1 in Pittsburgh's last six overall.
TIP-INS:
1. The teams have split 12 meetings, but Pitt’s victory in the 2007-08 matchup marked the first time the teams had played one another since the 1979-80 campaign.
2. Panthers C Talib Zanna (13.6 points, team-best 7.8 rebounds) is shooting 61.9 percent from the field.
3. Hood (17.7) has eight 20-point outings and leads the ACC in 3-point shooting percentage (44.9).
Oklahoma State at Oklahoma: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
Oklahoma State Cowboys at Oklahoma Sooners (OFF)
Oklahoma State looks for its first win in Norman since 2004 on Monday when the 12th-ranked Cowboys face No. 25 Oklahoma, which has won four of its last five. The Cowboys bounced back from a two-point loss at Kansas with an 81-75 win over West Virginia on Saturday, despite leading scorer Marcus Smart fouling out after being held to a season-low four points. Smart, averaging 17.1 points and 5.7 rebounds, later apologized to his teammates via Twitter for his frustrating performance.
Five players are averaging double figures in points for Oklahoma, which shot 50 percent from the field for the first time in 13 games and defeated Texas Tech 74-65 on Saturday. Freshman point guard Jordan Woodard, who shot 22.2 percent from the field in his first six conference games, turned in a strong outing with 15 points and eight assists against the Red Raiders. Oklahoma has won 11 of the last 18 meetings with the Cowboys, including nine straight at home.
ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (16-3, 8-7 ATS): With Smart a non-factor against West Virginia, 6-7 wing Le'Bryan Nash drew high praise after scoring a career-high 29 points and collecting nine rebounds. “He's a power forward in size, he can shoot the midrange, he can do a lot of things,” Mountaineers guard Juwan Staten told reporters. “When he gets it going and starts making shots, it's hard to stop.” Guard Markel Brown averages 16.5 points and 5.4 rebounds and became the ninth player in school history with 100 career blocks on Saturday.
ABOUT OKLAHOMA (16-4, 9-8-1 ATS): Guard Buddy Hield has led the Sooners in scoring in five of their seven Big 12 games, including a team-high 18 points against Texas Tech. Forward Ryan Spangler has 64 rebounds over his last five games, and he’ll need another strong performance against the formidable Oklahoma State frontcourt. Forward Cameron Clark averages a team-high 17 points and 5.8 rebounds for the Sooners, who rank third in the Big 12 in scoring at 83.8 points per game, just behind Oklahoma State (84.3).
TRENDS:
* Over is 4-0 in the last four meetings.
* Home team is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings.
* Oklahoma State is 1-5 ATS in the last six meetings.
* Oklahoma State is 0-4 ATS in the last four meetings in Oklahoma.
TIP-INS:
1. Smart was held to 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting in the Cowboys’ 77-68 loss to the Sooners in Norman last season.
2. Oklahoma’s last eight games have been decided by single digits.
3. Oklahoma State’s losses have come by a combined 10 points to Kansas, Kansas State and Memphis.
Big Monday Tip Sheet
By Brian Edwards
VegasInsider.com
Duke at Pittsburgh
Most books opened Pittsburgh (18-2 straight up, 7-9-1 against the spread) as a 3.5-point favorite.
Pitt went on the road Saturday and knocked off Maryland 83-79 as a 3.5-point road favorite. However, the early number was four so some gamblers on the Panthers suffered a horrible push. That's because Pitt missed EIGHT free throws in the last 1:11, including a pair with two ticks remaining. Cameron Wright was the main goat, missing four of six attempts at the charity stripe in the last 47 seconds. Wright also committed a senseless foul to put Maryland on the free-throw line and had a horrible turnover that led to a layup with 1:26 left.
Pittsburgh senior forward Lamar Patterson is playing like an absolute beast and he was the catalyst against the Terrapins. Patterson produced 28 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Talib Zanna added 16 points and seven boards.
Patterson is averaging 17.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. He has terrific range on his jumper and is making 51.3 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep.
Jamie Dixon's team is unbeaten in 12 home games, but it has limped to a 3-6 spread record. With that said, we should note that eight of those nine lined home games had the Panthers as double-digit favorites. They took the cash in their only situation as single-digit home favorites. Also, Pitt is 4-2 ATS in six single-digit 'chalk' spots.
Duke (16-4 SU, 12-8 ATS) has won four consecutive games since losing at Clemson on Jan. 11. The Blue Devils destroyed FSU by an 78-56 count on Saturday. They covered the spread for the third straight game as nine-point home favorites. Rodney Hood paced the winners with 18 points and nine rebounds. Jabari Parker made just 3-of-14 shots from the field, but he still had a double-double with 14 points and 14 boards.
Parker's numbers have dipped in ACC play, but he's still enjoyed an outstanding freshman campaign. The Chicago product is averaging 18.7 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Hood, a transfer from Mississippi St., is scoring at a 17.6 PPG clip and hitting 51.1 percent of his shots from the field.
Duke has only been an underdog once this year, losing 72-66 against top-ranked Arizona as a three-point 'dog at Madison Square Garden in NYC.
The 'under' is 11-8 overall for Duke after connecting in back-to-back games.
The 'over' is 11-5 overall for Pitt, 7-1 in its home games.
The 'over' is on a 19-7 run in Pitt's last 26 home games.
These new ACC adversaries haven't squared off since Dec. 20 of 2007 at Madison Square Garden, where Pitt captured a 65-64 overtime win as a six-point underdog. Levance Fields, a member of my All-Dunkin-Donuts Hall of Fame, paced the Panthers with 21 points.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
Oklahoma St. at Oklahoma
As of Sunday night, most spots were listing Oklahoma St. (16-3 SU, 8-7 ATS) as a four-point 'chalk.'
Travis Ford's team struggled to sneak past West Va. at home on Saturday. OSU won an 81-75 decision but never threatened to cover the number as a 13.5-point home favorite. Marcus Smart had the worst performance of his collegiate career, fouling out after scoring just four points and making only 1-of-7 shots from the field. After fouling out, Smart kicked a chair on the bench and temporarily walked off the court. He issued an apology via twitter on Sunday.
Le'Bryan Nash led OSU to victory against the Mountaineers. He scored 29 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field and also secured nine rebounds. Markel Brown added 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Smart has slumped recently but he's still one of the nation's premier players. He's averaging 17.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.5 steals per game. The only blemish on Smart's stat resume is a mediocre 43.8 shooting percentage from the field.
Oklahoma (16-4 SU, 9-8-1 ATS) hooked me up with a winner Saturday in its 74-65 win at Texas Tech as a one-point underdog. (I know Tubby Smith has the Red Raiders improved, but I have no clue how they were favored against OU.) Buddy Heild scored a team-high 18 points for the Sooners.
Lon Kruger's squad has won nine of its 11 home games, but it has an abysmal 3-6 ATS mark in Norman. This is OU's third game as a home 'dog. The Sooners, who are 5-2-1 ATS in eight 'dog situations (home/away or neutral), beat Iowa St. outright at home but lost by seven to Kansas as six-point home puppies.
The 'over' is 10-7 overall for the Sooners, 6-2 in their home games. However, they have seen the 'under' cash in five consecutive games.
The 'over' is 9-6 overall for OSU, going 6-2 in its last eight games.
The 'over' is 7-1 in the last eight head-to-head meetings between these bitter in-state rivals.
The 'over' is on a 20-7 run in Oklahoma's last 27 home games.
These schools split a pair of regular-season encounters last season, but OU took the cash in both meetings and has covered at a 5-1 clip in the last six Bedlam showdowns.
ESPN will have the telecast at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
College Basketball Information
Pitt was held to 43-54 points in its two losses this year; Panthers won first three ACC home games by 20-15-33 points (2-1 as HF), with only non-cover by half-point. Duke covered once in its last four games as an underdog; they won last four games, allowing 56.8 ppg since 72-59 loss at Clemson- they're 1-2 in true road games, with win at Miami. ACC home favorites of 6 or less points are 4-9 vs spread.
Charleston is 2-3 in its last five games, with underdogs covering all five games; they're 1-2 as CAA home favorites, with wins by 14-5 and loss to Towson. William & Mary is 4-1 vs spread in league, 2-0 as road dogs, losing on road by 5-17 with win at Drexel. CAA home favorites of 6 or less points are 2-11 vs spread. These are top two 3-point shooting clubs in CAA, with both teams making more than 42% in CAA games.
Underdogs covered Hofstra's first five (3-2) CAA games; Pride is 2-0 as road underdog, losing by 8 at Delaware, winning at UNCW. Towson lost its last two games after a 3-0 star tin CAA; dogs covered four of their five league games- they're 0-2 as home favorites. Towson swept Hofstra LY by 7-3 points, after losing previous seven series games. CAA home favorites are 5-16 vs spread, 3-5 if laying 7+ points.
Georgetown won eight of last ten games with Villanova, winning three in row played here by 2-13-21 points. Villanova's last win here was 2007, but Wildcats are 3-1 as Big East road favorites, winning by 3-16-7-9 on foreign soil. Hoyas are 1-5 without Josh Smith; they've lost last four in a row, all by 8+ points. Big East home underdogs are 4-8 vs spread, 4-3 if htey get 4 or less points.
Home side won last nine regular season Oklahoma-OSU games; State is 0-9 in last nine visits to Norman, losing by 13-9 points last two years. Cowboys are 1-2 on Big X road, with three games decided by total of six points- dogs covered all three. Oklahoma won last three games, is 4-2 as a Big X underdog, 1-1 at home- their league losses are by 7-6 points, to Kansas, at K-State. Big X home underdogs are 5-6-1 vs spread.
Eastern Washington is 0-4 on Big Sky road, 1-1 as road dog, losing road games by 7-11-19-11 points. Portland State won three of last four games vs EWU, with Eagles losing last six visits here, with four of last five by 9+ points. Vikings won three of last four games after 0-3 start in league play- all three of their Big Sky wins are by 4 or less points. Home teams are 8-3 vs spread in Big Sky games where spread was 4 or less points.
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