College Knowledge
-- Clemson lost last two years to in-state rival South Carolina by total of seven (4-3) points; young Tigers (11 frosh/sophs) got pounded at home by Purdue last game- they won only road game by 17 at Furman. South Carolina got whacked at St John's last game, but they got PG Ellington back from football team. Gamecocks haven't beaten anyone ranked higher than #171-- Clemson is #55.
-- Saint Louis team will be mourning following passing of its coach last night; Billikens are disappointing 3-3- foes have made 51% of their 3's so far- they've played #54 schedule. Valparaiso is 5-1, winning at Kent St. in OT, losing by hoop at Nebraska. Atlantic 16 home faves are 10-17 vs spread. Horizon League road underdogs are 12-6.
-- Cal Bears are 6-0, winning Anaheim tourney and also winning by 11 at Denver, but best team they've beaten is #83 Ga Tech. Bears have NBA guard in Crabbe. Wisconsin is struggling without PG Gasser- they're 4-3, losing last game at home to Virginia after losing to Creighton in Vegas, on neutral floor. Pac-12 single digit road underdogs are 8-6 vs spread.
-- Big week for Middle Tennessee, winning Sun Belt opener, after school announced they were moving "up" to C-USA. Blue Raiders are 5-1, with road wins at UCF/ULL- only loss was to Florida. Akron lost opener in OT to Oklahoma State; they're 2-2 vs D-I teams- both losses were OT games. MAC single digit home favorites are 4-8 vs spread.
-- Maryland won last five games since 72-69 loss to Kentucky in its first game; Terps won by 20 at Northwetern last game, for best win this year. Not often George Mason gets a shot at one of local bigboys; they're 5-2 vs #40 schedule, beating Virginia by, losing to New Mexico by point on neutral floor. ACC single digit favorites are 14-8 against the spread.
-- Wichita State is 7-0, with six wins by 12+ points; only loss by less was by hoop at VCU, its best win/only true road game so far. Shockers use subs for 40% of minutes, so altitude shouldn't hurt. Air Force lost by 15 at Colorado, only team they played ranked higher than #277. MVC non-conference road favorites are 6-1 against the spread.
-- Denver is playing 4th straight top 100 team, losing last three by 11-7-11 points; Pioneers are 0-2 on road, losing by 7-11 points- they scored 15-17 points in first half of those games. Stanford lost three of last five games, but losses were all to top 50 teams. Cardinal are shooting 27% from arc so far. Pac-12 home faves of less than 15 points are 15-3.
-- Cal-Fullerton is 0-3 on the road, losing by 13 at Stanford, 3 at Nevada, 4 at Eastern Washington, game they were favored to win. Washington is 3-3 and still hasn't played road game, though last four opponents are all in top 70. Huskies are making 42% from arc but aren't forcing many turnovers. Big West road underdogs are 20-11 vs spread this season.
-- Manhattan is turning ball over on 35% of possessions, worst rate in country; they're 2-3, beating teams ranked #306/250- their losses are all vs top 100 teams, so #170 George Washington falls in between. Jaspers scored 65-67 points in wins, less than 60 in losses. GW is 3-3, winning last game by point over JMU. MAAC favorites are 8-2-1 vs spread.
-- Niagara is 2-3, 0-2 on road, losing at Oregon State by 19, Iona by 11; Purple Eagles play high-scoring games-- average total in their six games is 161.2. Central Michigan is 2-3 vs D-I teams, losing by 17 to Bradley in only home game; Chippewas are 0-3 when allowing more than 55 points. MAC non-conference home underdogs are 2-6 vs spread.
-- Boise State is 5-1 after 83-70 win at #11 Creighton last game; Broncs' only loss was by 4 at Michigan State, so they're pretty good, ranking #30 in country in FG%. Seattle is turning ball over 27% of time; they're 1-2 vs D-I teams, beating Montana State by 15 in its only home game. WAC underdogs are 16-14 vs spread, 3-4 at home.
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