College Knowledge
-- Seton Hall won its last seven games vs Providence, winning last two here by 12-10 points; Pirates turn ball over 22.8% of time, they're 1-3 vs top 100 teams, losing by 11-19-15 points. Friars (play only seven guys) lost last five games; they're 0-3 on road, losing by 3-1-15 points. Big East home teams are 0-9 vs spread if number is 5 or less points; home favorites of 5 or less are 0-7.
-- Michigan State waxed Nebraska twice in Cornhuskers' first year in the Big Dozen, 68-55/62-34; Spartans won tough game Thursday at Iowa- they're 10-0 at home, beating Purdue by 23 in only conference home tilt. Cornhuskers scored 44 ppg in losing first three league games, by 26-6-15 points. Big Dozen double digit favorites are 7-2 vs spread, 4-2 at home. Problem for State is they turn ball over 22.1% of time.
-- UMass had 7-game win streak snapped in its A-16 opener at St Louis; Minutemen won five of last seven games vs Fordham, but they're 2-3 in last five visits here- four of last five series games were decided by four or less points. Rams are 1-9 vs teams in top 200, with only win by 3 over #81 Princeton. Fordham has won its last three home games. A-16 home underdogs are 3-2 against spread.
-- Michigan is last unbeaten team left in country; Ohio State won seven of last eight games with Wolverines, beating them in last three Big Dozen tourneys. Michigan lost last eight visits here, by 26-10-13-10-18-11-9-15 points. Buckeyes are 2-3 vs top 100 teams (best win vs Washington, #73). Michigan is 3-0 in league, winning by 28-28-15 points; they're 2-0 in true road games, winning at Bradley (8), Northwestern (28).
-- Wichita State won 13 of last 16 games with Evansville, but lost three of last four visits here, with only win by 6 LY; Shockers already won at Drake (12), Bradley (6)- their only loss was at Tennessee. Purple Aces won last three games; their only Valley loss is by 17 at Creighton- they force turnovers 22.5% of time. MVC home underdogs of 5 or less points are 3-1 against the spread.
-- Northwestern won last five games vs Iowa by 17-19-3-19-4 points; Hawkeyes lost last four visits here, by 6-17-3-19. Wildcats are 4-6 last ten games after 6-0 start; eight of its ten wins are vs teams ranked #195 or lower. Iowa lost first three Big Dozen games by 4-28-3 points, but it is possible they started with three best teams in league. Home teams are 4-5 n Big Dozen games with single digit spread.
-- Home teams won 10 of last 11 Maryland-Miami games; Terrapins are 0-6 in last six visits here, losing by 2-14-15-2-14-4 points. 13-2 Terps have played 4th-easiest schedule in country so far- they're 2-2 against top 100 teams, with best win over #73 Stony Brook. 11-3 Miami faced #8 schedule so far; they allowed 55.7 ppg in winning last three games. ACC single digit home favorites are 3-6 vs spread.
-- Purdue won 11 of last 13 games vs Penn State, winning last six here, by 4-14-14-20-1-24 points. Boilers lost last two games by 23-10 points; they shoot 28% behind arc, are 1-2 on road, with only win at Clemson. Big Dozen double digit favorites are 7-2 vs spread, 4-2 at home. Penn St. lost first three league games by 9-23-16 points- its loss in Madison by 9 was their only true road game this season.
-- ASU has a quality PG, now they're winning; Sun Devils gave up 78-82 points in its only two losses (Creighton/DePaul). Oregon won its last two games with Arizona State after losing six in row to ASU before that. Sun Devils won three of last four visits here. Pac-12 home favorites are 4-12 against spread. Ducks allowed 66 points in each of its first couple Pac-12 games, beating Beavers/Arizona. Can they handle prosperity?
-- Manhattan (-1) shot 36% in 62-58 loss at Marist last month, just its third loss in last ten series games; Jaspers are 3-2 in last five visits here. Jaspers lost eight of last ten games, with only wins over teams ranked #287/#265. #256 Marist lost last six games, with five of those six teams ranked in top 160. Red Foxes allowed 84.5 ppg last four games. MAAC home favorites of 8 or less points are 3-6 vs spread.
-- Home side won four of last five Rider-Loyola games; Broncs won last two played here by total of five points. Loyola (-7.5) won first meeting 71-65 at home Jan 4. Rider is 2-8 vs teams in top 200; they're turning ball over 23.5% of time. MAAC home underdogs of 6 or less points are 1-3 vs spread. Loyola beat Fairfield in OT Friday, its third win in a row; they're shooting just 27.4% behind arc.
-- Iona won eight of last 11 games vs Canisius, winning last five played here, by 7-11-19-9-19 points. Griffins got upset in Albany by Siena on Friday; Canisius' third loss in last four games. Gaels won last four games after 6-6 start, scoring 80.8 ppg; they're 2-0 at home in MAAC, winning by 11-8. MAAC home favorites of 8 or less points are 3-6 vs spread. Canisius turned ball over 23.4%+ of time in each of last four games; in first 12 games, they only did that three times.
-- Niagara outscored Fairfield 27-6 from line in 71-67 (-2.5) win Jan 5th at home, its first series win in last seven tries. Eagles lost last three trips to Fairfield by 6-22-8 points. First home game in four weeks for Stags, who lost last two games by 5-4 points; only three of Fairfield's first 17 games were at home. Niagara allowed 75+ points in seven of eight losses; they're 7-1 when allowing less than 75 points.
-- St Peter's was 5-26 LY but beat Siena twice; they've won last four in series, winning last two played here by 10-5 points. Saints snapped its 11-game skid with upset of Canisius Friday; they shoot 42.2% inside arc, turn ball over 23% of time. Peacocks lost last three games, scoring 56.3 ppg; they're 3-3 on road, losing by 8-15-16 points. MAAC home teams are 3-6 vs spread if spread is less than five points.
Armadillosports.com
College Basketball: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Michigan at Ohio State
Lead by Trey Burke (18.2), Tim Hardaway Jr. (16.3) Wolverines having little problem finding the basket net 80.8 points/game while giving up 58.8 points to their opponents. Wolverines unbeaten at this point in the season including wins over Northwestern, Iowa and Nebraska to open Big Ten play face a test at Ohio State. Columbus is always a tough spot for any visitor including Wolverines who enter ridding an 0-11 (5-6 ATS) stretch in Buckeyes' back yard. But, Ohio State entering this fray scoring 75.9 points/game getting most of the production from Deshaun Thomas (20.3) and Lenzelle Smith (10.7) but not much offensive output from anyone else could easily suffer a second conference loss on the campaign. Wolverines on a 7-2 (6-3 ATS) stretch away from home, 9-1 SU/ATS streak in conference play are worth a second look.
Michigan at Ohio State
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
Weekends in men’s college basketball are always jam-packed with a number of great matchups between some of the top teams in the country and this Sunday in no exception. The following is a brief betting guide for the top three showdowns on the slate including our featured game of the day between No. 2 Michigan and No. 15 Ohio State.
Sunday’s Showdown of the Day
No. 2 Michigan Wolverines vs. No. 15 Ohio State Buckeyes
Michigan comes into this matchup as only one of two undefeated teams in the nation along with Duke. Its 62-47 victory over Nebraska this past Wednesday raised its overall record to 16-0 straight up on the year. The Wolverines failed to cover as 21-point home favorites against the Cornhuskers to fall to 4-4 against the spread in their last eight games and 9-5 ATS overall. The total has gone OVER in five of their last six games.
Trey Burke leads the team in scoring with an average 18.2 points a game but it also has three other players scoring in double figures including Tim Hardaway Jr. with 16.3 points and Glenn Robinson III with 12.6. Burke also leads Michigan in assists with 7.3 and Robinson is pulling down a team-high 6.1 rebounds a game. The Wolverines are averaging 80.8 points while shooting a rock-solid 51.4 percent from the field, which is the fourth-highest shooting percentage in the nation. They are averaging 38.4 rebounds a game.
The Buckeyes bounced back from last Saturday’s 74-55 pasting at the hands of No. 12 Illinois as three-point road favorites with a 74-64 victory over Purdue this past Tuesday as eight-point favorites on the road. They are now 12-3 SU on the year and 8-5 ATS. Ohio State returns home where it has won nine of 10 games SU and is 5-3 ATS. The total has stayed UNDER in four of its last six games.
Deshaun Thomas has been a force with a team-high 20.3 points and 6.8 rebounds a game while shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 40.4 percent from three-point range. Lenzelle Smith Jr. is the only other player averaging over 10 points a game and Aaron Craft leads the team in assists with 4.7. The Buckeyes are shooting a respectable 46.1 percent from the field to average 75.9 points a game. They are shooting 36.9 percent from beyond the arc but have struggled from the foul line; hitting just 66.9 percent of their attempts.
Michigan is 6-1 ATS in its last seven games on the road and 26-10 ATS in its last 36 conference games. The total has gone OVER in seven of its last eight games against the Big Ten.
Ohio State is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 home games and 5-2 ATS in its last seven Big Ten games. The total has gone OVER in 12 of its last 15 games at home.
Head-to-head, the underdog is 6-2 ATS in the last eight meetings and the total has stayed UNDER in three of the last five games between the two. The Wolverines have covered in seven of the last nine meetings.
The Best of the Rest
No. 23 Wichita State Shockers vs. Evansville Aces
The Shockers extended their current winning streak to six games with an 82-76 victory over Southern Illinois this past Wednesday as 15-point favorites at home. They are now 15-1 SU on the year and 8-5 ATS with the total going OVER in their last three games. Wichita State is averaging 71 points a game and shooting 45.8 percent from the field. Cleanthony Early leads the team with 15.4 points a game.
Evansville improved to 10-6 SU overall and 3-1 SU in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 62-59 victory over Northern Iowa this past Wednesday as a 5 ½ -point road underdog. It is now 8-5 ATS with the total staying UNDER in two of its last three games. The Aces are shooting 45 percent from the floor and averaging 69.6 points a game. They have struggled under the boards this season with an average of just 32.6 rebounds but defensively they are holding opponents to 63.6 points a game.
Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. No.22 Michigan State Spartans
Nebraska’s loss to Michigan this week dropped its record to 9-7 SU overall and 1-4 SU on the road. It is an even 7-7 ATS and the total has stayed UNDER in its last five games with a posted line. The Cornhuskers are ranked near the bottom of Division I in scoring with just 58.4 points a game and pulling down just 32.8 rebounds a game. They have also had their troubles shooting the ball with a field goal percentage of 41.8.
The Spartans should continue to climb in the rankings this week with a 62-59 victory over Iowa this past Thursday to improve to 13-3 SU overall and 2-1 SU in Big Ten play. They covered as two-point road underdogs but are still just 5-8 ATS on the year. The total has stayed UNDER in three of their last five games. Michigan State is shooting close to 47 percent from the field but just 33.3 percent from three-point range. Keith Appling leads the team with 14.2 points and 4.4 assist a game.
Game of the day: Michigan at Ohio State
By Covers.com
Michigan Wolverines at Ohio State Buckeyes (-2)
Michigan is one of only two undefeated teams left in Division I basketball. The biggest test to the Wolverines’ undefeated record so far will come on Sunday, when they visit rival Ohio State. The 14th-ranked Buckeyes have struggled against highly-ranked opponents in the first half of the season, with each of their three losses coming against teams ranked in the top 11. Michigan has taken its first three Big Ten games by an average of 23.7 points.
The Wolverines have only played one ranked opponent so far - a 79-72 home win over then-No. 18 North Carolina State on Nov. 27 - but will be ramping up the schedule strength considerably over the next few weeks. Ohio State will put pressure on Michigan’s defense with Deshaun Thomas, who is leading the Big Ten in scoring at 20.3 points, and have a guard in Aaron Craft who is strong enough defensively to put pressure on Trey Burke.
ABOUT MICHIGAN (16-0, 3-0 Big Ten, 9-5 ATS): The Wolverines got to ease into the Big Ten with Northwestern, Iowa and Nebraska but will play three of its next four games on the road against ranked teams. Michigan has made it up to No. 2 in the country thanks to an efficient offense led by Burke. The sophomore point guard ranks third in the conference in scoring (18.2 points) while setting the pace for the Big Ten in assists (7.3). Tim Hardaway Jr. has put up 18.3 points over the last three contests since returning from an ankle injury, and Nik Stauskas and Glenn Robinson III are both capable of carrying the team for stretches. The Wolverines have only allowed two opponents to reach even 70 points on the defensive end and are coming off a 62-47 win over Nebraska on Wednesday.
ABOUT OHIO STATE (12-3, 2-1, 8-5 ATS): The Buckeyes have had some trouble replacing Jared Sullinger’s presence on the inside and have Thomas averaging almost 10 more points than any other player. Thomas went for 24 points on 9-of-21 shooting but the rest of the cast shot 28.2 percent from the floor in a 74-55 loss at Illinois on Nov. 5 that knocked Ohio State out of the top 10. The Buckeyes looked like a different team three days later in a 74-64 win at Purdue. Craft (15) and Evan Ravenel (13) each stepped up to join Thomas in double figures as the team shot 56.4 percent. The Buckeyes took two of three from the Wolverines last season, including 77-55 victory in the Big Ten tournament.
TRENDS:
* Under is 5-1-1 in the last seven meetings in Ohio St.
* Wolverines are 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings in Ohio St.
* Wolverines are 7-2 ATS in the last nine meetings.
* Under is 3-1-1 in the last five meetings.
* Underdog is 6-2 ATS in the last eight meetings.
TIP-INS:
1. The Buckeyes are 146-13 at home since coach Thad Matta took over before the 2004-05 season.
2. Michigan shoots 41.1 percent from 3-point range, led by Stauskas’ 52.3 percent.
3. Burke and Thomas were both named to the midseason John R. Wooden Award top 25 on Thursday.