College Basketball Information
Wichita State is 7-0, but #46 BYU is only team they've beaten that is in top 130; Shockers won by 23 at Tulsa in only true road game- they beat LaSalle of A-13 in NCAAs last spring. Saint Louis is 6-1, losing by 6 to Wisconsin in their only game vs team ranked above #130. MVC road underdogs are 9-8 against spread; Atlantic 13 home favorites are 8-10.
UAB is 5-2 but 1-2 vs top 100 teams, losing to New Mexico in double OT, by 21 to Temple, both on neutral floor. Blazers are 2nd-worst team in country at forcing turnovers; three of their four wins are vs teams not in top 200. North Carolina lost to Belmont but beat Louisville, so they have talent, but not much experience. ACC road/neutral faves are 14-4.
Oregon State coach Robinson is from Chicago; his Beavers are 3-1 with a win at Maryland but a home loss to Coppin State. OSU is making 61% of shots inside arc (#2 in US). DePaul is 3-3, losing its last two games, both by 18 points; Blue Demons are turning ball over 20.3% of time. Pac-12 underdogs are 4-10 vs spread, Big East home favorites are 11-10.
Kentucky is least experienced team in country; they lost to Michigan St. by 4 in its only game away from Rupp Arena; 6-1 Wildcats are making just 28.9% of 3's, but rebound 48.8% of their missed shots (#1 in US). Providence beat BC/Vandy in top 100 but lost to Maryland by 4; they force turnovers 20.1% of time. Big East neutral court dogs are 6-3.
St Joe's is 3-2, losing to two top 50 teams by 4-17 points;; all three of their wins are by 10+ points. Hawks are making just 63.7% from foul line, despite being #53 in US in experience. Washington State lost three of last four games, losing to Gonzaga by 16, Butler by 7 in its only two top 100 games. Pac-12 neutral court favorites are 4-6 against the spread.
LSU is 4-2 despite turning ball over 22.7% of time, making 30.8% from arc; Tigers grab 43% of own misses (#6 in US); they're 1-2 vs teams in top 100, losing to UMass by 2, Memby 7 but beating St Joe's by 17. Butler was down 14 at half to Oklahoma State in sems, rallied but lost by hoop; Bulldogs' last four games were all decided by 8 or less points.
Purdue lost its first two games in Orlando by 10-15 points; they beat Siena 81-73 at home last Sunday, game where Siena's two highest scorers came off bench. Saints are 2-6, beating St Bonaventure/Cornell by total of three points; they turn ball over 20.8% of time, make 29.5% on arc, 43.1% inside it. MAAC dogs are 13-15. Big Dozen road favorites: 10-9
Oklahoma State made 10-22 from arc, was up 50-32 at half in its 101-80 win over Memphis 12 days ago in Stillwater; Smart had 39 points; State led by 34 with 6:50 left. State was up 14 at half Friday, held on to beat Butler by hoop; Cowboys were just 7-12 from line. Memphis is forcing turnovers 25.6% of time (#7 in US); they beat #41 LSU 76-69 Friday.
Cal-Fullerton lost its last four games, losing by 20-2 in first two games in this tourney; they were down 17 with 8:34 left Friday, rallied to get within hoop, but now they're 2-5 with no top 200 wins. Charleston is #245 after losing first two games here by 20-22; they're 2-5 and trailed by 16 at half in one of wins- they're turning ball over 20% of the time.
Arizona State is trying to play faster but since they're #331 in country in forcing turnovers, opponents' 0:19/possession is in bottom 30 in US and its hard to play fast that way. ASU is making 39% from arc, they're 7-1 and scored 80+ points in five of seven wins. Miami doesn't get to line much, doesn't sub much; they've already played three OT games.
Creighton was up 24-5 in first game of tourney, 19-7 in second, but San Diego State had 26-7 edge on foul line in 86-80 win Friday, even though Bluejays made 13-27 from arc. George Washington was lucky to win in OT Thursday; they were down 21 at half to Marquette Friday, making 4-19 from arc. Creighton is still making 46.7% of its 3's (#3 in US).
San Diego State got to hoop at will vs Creighton Friday, outscoring the Bluejays 26-7 on stripe, mkaing 8-16 from arc; Aztecs force turnovers 20.9% of time, are making 43.6% from arc, but only 45.8% inside arc. Marquette lost by hoop at Arizona State Monday but came to Orange County, won first two games by 20-16, allowing 60-66 points.
VCU led 39-21 at half, forced 24 turnovers (+9) in 75-65 win LY over Belmont; Rams outscored them 15-4 on foul line. VCU forces miscues 27.5% of time (#2 in US) this year but they're 1-2 vs top 100 teams, with only win by 3 at Virginia- they seemed flat since. Belmont won at North Carolina two weeks ago; their only loss is by 8 at Richmond.
Armadillosports.com
Oklahoma St. vs Memphis: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
Oklahoma State Cowboys vs Memphis Tigers (+5.5, OFF)
Game will be played at a neutral site at the HP Field House, in Kissimmee, Florida.
Memphis is hoping for a different result when the No. 19 Tigers take on No. 8 Oklahoma State for the second time in 12 days, this time in the championship game of the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Fla. The Cowboys steamrolled visiting Memphis on Nov. 19, hitting the 50-point mark in both halves en route to the 101-80 victory. The Tigers had no answer for Marcus Smart in that game as the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year scored a career-high 39 points.
Smart has shown some blemishes in this tournament, most notably missing three straight free throws in the final minute of Friday’s semifinal victory against Butler, keeping the Bulldogs in the hunt before Oklahoma State escaped with a two-point victory. He’s shooting 65.6 percent from the line this season after converting 77.7 percent of his attempts last season, making it easier for opposing teams to send him to the line late in close games. Memphis leading scorer Joe Jackson has brought his A-game to the tournament, combining for 34 points in the two victories while shooting 12-for-20 from the floor.
LINE: The line opened with the Cowboys as 5-point faves and has moved slightly to -5.5. The total for the game is currently off the board.
ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (7-0, 2-2 ATS): There’s some pretty good 1-2 combinations at this tournament but none better than Smart and Markel Brown, who’s off to a better start in several areas. Brown had not finished better than 43.6 percent from the floor in his first three seasons with the Cowboys, but is hitting 55.1 percent of his shots this fall. Brown, who is 16-for-32 from 3-point range, has only attempted three from beyond the arc in the last two games after trying 29 in the first five.
ABOUT MEMPHIS (4-1, 3-1 ATS): Memphis might not be in the position it’s in if not for the play of freshman forward Austin Nichols, who scored 19 points in 38 minutes against LSU. He’s averaging 17 points and 7.3 rebounds over the last three games after combining for 13 points and eight rebounds in the first two. He held his own against the Cowboys the first time around, making all three of his field-goal attempts and scoring seven points in 19 minutes, and don’t be surprised if he doubles that playing time in the rematch.
TRENDS:
* Oklahoma State is 0-5 ATS in its last five neutral site games.
* Memphis is 1-4 ATS in its last five games versus the Big 12.
* Under is 10-3-1 in Oklahoma State's last 14 non-conference games.
* Under is 4-0 in Memphis' last four neutral site games.
TIP-INS:
1. Smart and LSU sophomore F Shaq Goodwin were teammates on the U.S. team that won gold at the 2012 FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Brazil.
2. Memphis F David Pellom, a senior transfer who averaged 10.4 points and 6.1 rebounds for George Washington last season, had four points and five rebounds against LSU in his second game back since undergoing knee surgery Nov. 7.
3. The average margin of victory in the last five games between Memphis and Oklahoma State is 23.8 points.