College Basketball Knowledge
UConn swept East Carolina 65-52/60-49 LY, in first year as conference rivals; Huskies won five of last six games; they're 4-1 on the AAC road, with wins by 8-12-26-20 points- their only road loss was at Tulsa by 9. ECU won two of last three games, losing last game iat home in two OTs to Houston. Pirates are 1-4 at home in AAC, losing by 3-24-15-4, with win vs Temple. AAC double digit home favorites are 5-10 vs spread.
Iowa won 11 of its last 12 games but lost last road game, at Maryland; Hawkeyes won four of last five games with Illinois; their 81-74 win here in '14 was first in last ten visits here. Iowa has road wins by 7-17-14 points. Illinois is 3-7 in league; three of its last four games went to OT, including triple OT at Rutgers in last game Wednesday. Big 14 double digit home underdogs are 7-1 against the spread.
Miami won four of last five games but is 1-3 on ACC road with win by 14 at BC- Hurricanes are 4-2 in last six games with Georgia Tech; road team won last five regular season meetings. Tech lost seven of its last nine games, losing last three at home, by 1-4-9 points; their one win at home was an upset of Virginia. ACC home underdogs of less than five points are 5-6 against the spread.
St Bonaventure won last two games with Saint Louis by 3-16 points in series where Billikens lost three of last four visits here, with losses by 15-17-10 points. Bonnies won last two games by 16-10 points, scoring 83.5 ppg; they're 3-1 at home in A-14, winning by 12-5-16 points, with loss to Dayton. Billikens lost 13 of last 17 gamesA-14 double digit home favorites are 12-8 against the spread.
SMU beat South Florida 72-58 at home Jan 2, outscoring Bulls 20-8 on foul line; Mustangs are 4-1 in series, winning by 11 here LY, after losing at USF in '14. SMU lost two of last three games aftr an 18-0 start; they have half-game lead for AAC regular season title, only thing they've got left to play for. AAC double digit underdogs are 12-7 vs spread, 2-2 at home. USF is 0-5 in AAC, with three losses by 7 or less points.
James Madison won 86-82 in OT at Hofstra Jan 16, its third win in last four games with Pride, who were 8-35 on arc in that game last month on Long Island. Hofstra lost last three visits here, by 21-6-9 points. CAA home favorites of 5 or less points are 5-9 vs spread. Dukes are 7-4 in CAA, but only 2-3 at home. Hofstra won four of last five games, but lost at home to UNCW last game, blowing 20-point lead.
Tulsa lost 81-66 in Houston 11 days ago; Hurricane was 3-26 on arc as they lost for first time in four AAC meetings with Cougars. AAC home favorites of 8 or less points are 4-9 vs spread. Tulsa won its last four at home by 9+ points after losing home opener to SMU; they lost in OT at Temple in last game. Houston upset SMU last game, despite Gray not playing with injured ankle. Cougars won last three games overall.
Oregon hammered Utah 77-59 in Salt Lake City Jan 14, holding Utes to 34% from floor; Ducks won last five games with Utah, winning by 46-9-11 in last three series games here. Oregon won its last five games; they're 5-0 at home in Pac-12, with four wins by 8+ points. Utah won five of last six games but lost at Oregon State last game after fouling shooter at midcourt at buzzer. Pac-12 home favorites of 7 or less points are 14-9.
Marist (+14) lost 77-66 at Siena eight days ago, covering thru back door after being down 22 with 6:58 left; Siena won five of last six series tilts, with last three visits here (2-1S) decided by total of 7 points. Red Foxes lost last 11 games, last four by 11+ points; they're 0-5 vs spread in its home games, 0-3 as a dog. MAAC home underdogs of 5+ points are 1-5 vs spread. Siena won five of its last six games, is 3-3 on MAAC road.
Iona beat Niagara 65-52 at home Jan 4, pulling away in last 10:00; Gaels won last six series games, winning last two visits here by one point each. Iona's last three visits here were decided by total of 5 points. Gaels are 4-2 on MAAC road, losing at Rider/Fairfield; three of their four wins on road were by 12+. MAAC double digit favorites are 4-6 vs spread, 1-1 on road. Niagara lost six of last seven, including last three home games.
Canisius lost 79-68 at Rider last Sunday; Broncs scored 1.25 ppg, made 8-15 on arc, only 17-30 on line. Rider won last three series games by 11-1-13 points- they won three of last four visits here. Griffins lost four in row, allowing 86.5 ppg; they lost last five MAAC home tilts. MAAC home favorites of 3 or less points are 3-6 vs spread. Rider won six of its last eight games, splitting its last four games on foreign soil.
Fairfield lost 72-66 at Manhattan Jan 2, in brickfest where teams made a combined 10-37 on arc- Stags led by 6 early in second half. Home teams won eight of last nine series games- Jaspers are 1-7 in last eight visits to Fairfield, losing last two by 4-13 points. Stags scored 63 ppg in losing last two games; they're 4-3 at home. MAAC single digit home favorites are 12-15 vs spread. Manhattan won three of its last four games.
Armadillosports.com
Sunday's Tip Sheet
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
While most sports bettors will be focused on Sunday’s Super Bowl 50, there is a trio of college basketball matchups to get the action started before the big game gets underway at 6:30 p.m.
First up is a Big Ten clash between No. 5 Iowa and Illinois in a 1 p.m. tip. In another 1 p.m. start the No. 17 Miami (FLA) will square-off against Georgia Tech in the ACC followed by Pac-12 tilt between Utah and No. 16 Oregon in a 4:00 p.m. ET start in Eugene.
No. 5 Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini
Opening Odds: Iowa -3½
Betting Matchup
Iowa is tied with Indiana for the lead in the Big Ten at 9-1 straight-up and it is 7-3 against the spread in conference play. The Hawkeyes only loss was against Maryland in a 74-68 setback on Jan. 28 as 5½-point road underdogs. They are the second-highest scoring team in the Big Ten with 80.8 points per game and they are shooting 46.5 percent from the field and 39.7 percent from three-point range. Senior forward Jarrod Uthoff is the team’s leading scorer with 18.4 PPG and he has now scored 20 points or more in three of his last five games.
The Fighting Illini out-gunned Rutgers 110-101 in triple overtime their last time out as 6½-point favorites on the road, but it was just their third SU win in their first 10 conference games while going 4-6 ATS. Illinois has been a tough bet at home this season at 3-7-2 ATS and it is just 3-6 ATS when closing as an underdog. Led by junior guard Malcolm Hill’s 19.1 PPG, the Illini are averaging a respectable 74.5 points. However, at the other end of the court they are giving-up 76.2 points a game to their opponents.
Betting Trends
The Hawkeyes are 12-4-1 ATS in their last 17 conference games and they are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 games following a SU win. The total has gone OVER in their last five games played on Sunday.
The Fighting Illini are 0-3-1 ATS in their last four games following a SU win and they have failed to cover in their last four games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has stayed UNDER in 17 of their last 24 Sunday games.
Head-to-head in this conference clash, the favorite is 7-2-1 ATS in the last 10 meetings and the total has gone OVER in five of the last seven meetings in Illinois.
Top Super Bowl 50 Prop
Iowa/Illinois first half points (+ 5½) or Panthers/Broncos total points (-5½)
No. 17 Miami, Fl. Hurricanes at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Opening Odds: Miami -3½
Betting Matchup
Miami bounced back from a bad 85-69 loss to NC State as a 4½-point road favorite with Wednesday’s 79-70 victory against Notre Dame as a five-point favorite at home. The total went OVER in both of those contests after staying UNDER in seven of its previous eight games. The Hurricanes are now 6-3 SU in ACC play with a 4-4-1 record ATS. They are averaging 78.8 PPG and shooting 47.9 percent from the field with Senior guard Sheldon McClellan leading the way. He is averaging 16.1 points and hitting 52.7 percent of his shots from the field.
The Yellow Jackets only win in their last six games was a 90-83 victory against NC State on Jan. 27 as 4½-point road underdogs. They are just 2-7 SU in conference play, but their record ATS is a profitable 6-2-1 in those nine games. The total has stayed UNDER in their last two games. Georgia Tech is allowing an average of 71.8 PPG verse a scoring average of 75.9 points, but it has done a good job under the boards with an average of 40.7 rebounds a game, which is tied for third in the ACC.
Betting Trends
The Hurricanes have failed to cover in their last four road games, but their record ATS is 18-7-1 in their last 26 games following a SU win. The total has gone OVER in 18 of their last 27 road games.
The Yellow Jackets are 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight home games against a team with a SU winning record on the road, but they improve to 7-2 ATS in their last nine games following a SU loss. The total has stayed UNDER in 12 of their last 17 games at home.
The road team in this ACC tilt has covered the spread in the last four meetings and the total has stayed UNDER in the last four meetings at Georgia Tech.
Top Super Bowl 50 Prop
Miami, Fl. total points (-5½) or Cam Newton/Peyton Manning total pass attempts (+ 5½)
Utah Utes at No. 16 Oregon Ducks
Opening Odds: Oregon -6
Betting Matchup
Utah’s five-game SU winning streak came to an end on Thursday night with a 71-69 loss to Oregon State as a 2½-point road favorite. The Utes had been able to cover in their previous four games as favorites and the total has now gone OVER in their last three games. Sophomore forward Jakob Poeltl scored a team-high 20 points in Thursday’s losing effort and on the year he is the Pac-12’s second-leading scorer with 17.4 PPG. He comes into this game with the best field goal percentage (64.7) in the conference.
The Ducks remain at the top of the standings in the Pac-12 at 8-2 SU on the strength of their current five-game winning streak. They have covered the spread in all five victories to move to 7-3 ATS in conference play and the total has gone OVER in four of their last six games. In this past Thursday’s 76-56 romp over Colorado as a 10-point home favorite, Oregon got a big effort from senior forward Elgin Cook with 18 points and six rebounds and defensively it held the Buffalos to a 33.8 shooting percentage from the field. The Ducks have averaged 85 points during this five-game run.
Betting Trends
The Utes are 1-5 ATS in their last six Sunday games, but they have covered in four of their last five games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has stayed UNDER in 23 of their last 30 road games.
The Ducks have covered ATS in 14 of their last 17 home games and they are 16-5 ATS in their last 21 Pac-12 games. The total has stayed UNDER in six of their last eight Sunday games.
Oregon has won seven of the last eight meetings SU including a 77-59 victory on Jan. 14 as a six-point road underdog. They have a 5-2-1 edge ATS in those games and the total has stayed UNDER in the last five meetings.
Top Super Bowl 50 Prop
Utah total points (-15½) or Ted Ginn Jr. total receiving yards (+15½)