College Basketball Knowledge
9-0 Virginia has #4 (37.4%) eFG% in country; they haven't played in 12 days since beating VCU by 12, which followed Maryland win- they are 6-0 vs teams outside top 100, with five wins by 19+ points. Cleveland State is 4-5 vs D-I teams with three losses by 5 or less points; Vikings are 0-3 vs top 100 teams, losing by 5-12-5 points.
South Alabama is 2-5, but both wins are vs non-D-I teams; Jaguars have three losses by 10+ points- they're shooting 25.2% from arc, have #319 eFG% in country. Richmond is 4-4 with three wins by 13+ points; they force turnovers 21.7% of time, are 3-0 vs teams outside top 150, winning by 18-24-13 points. USA is second-worst team Richmond has played.
Young Seton Hall team is 8-1, losing by 9 at Wichita State in only true road game; Pirates are making 40% on arc, holding opponents to 42% on 2-point shots- they have #33 eFG%. South Florida lost last three games after 5-1 start in Antigua's first year as coach; Bulls turn ball over 22.6% of time, are 0-2 vs top 100 teams, losing by 11-3 points.
Delaware is 0-7, with five of last six losses by 13+ points; they're making only 33.3% of shots inside arc, 29.7% outside- their 37.6 eFG% is 4th-worst in country- they've been off for 11 days. Temple is 1-4 away from its gym, 0-2 outside Philly; they're making 25.9% on arc, 41.1% inside it. Owls have only one win (#292 LIU) by more than 12 points.
Defending national champ UConn lost three of its last four games, losing twice by a single point; they're 1-3 vs top 100 teams, with best win over #64 Dayton by 11. Duke is 9-0 with only four wins over teams in top 150; Blue Devils are shooting 62.4% inside arc, holding foes to 26.7% on arc- their three top 100 wins are by 10-11-10 points.
Charlotte lost four of last six games with both wins in OT; 49ers are 5-4 with four wins by two points or in OT. Niners beat Appalachian State by 18 LY, holding ASU to 4-24 from arc. Mountaineers are 3-4 with all four losses by 13+ points; five of their seven games have been on road. Charlotte has game with Georgetown on deck, could be looking ahead.
Evansville is 7-2, losing last game at home to Murray State; Aces won by 19 at Miami O in only game vs MAC opponent- they're making 56.7% inside arc- four of its last five wins are by 8 or less points. Ohio U is 3-3 vs #343 schedule, despite playing one road game, losing at Florida Gulf Coast by 17; Bobcats are shooting 28.5% from the arc.
LSU is 7-2, winning by point at West Virginia in its only true road game; Tiger subs play 4th-least minutes in country- they're 3-0 vs teams not in top 200, winning by 14-11-14 points. UAB is 4-6, 0-4 vs top 100 teams, with losses by 29-9-12-4 points- their best win was over #177 Morehead State. Blazers turn ball over 21.6% of time, make 29.3% from the arc.
Nevada lost its last seven games, three of which were to teams outisde top 200; Wolf Pack is making 25.2% from arc; their eFG% is in bottom 10 in country. Pacific is 6-4 with three non-D-I wins; Tigers lost by 11 to Colorado State in only game vs Mountain West opponent- they're 3-0 vs teams outside top 200, winning by 2-7-6 points. Nevada lost to Pacific last two years by 2-6 points.
Oregon State is 7-2 vs 11th-easiest schedule in Tinkle's first season with Beavers; OSU is forcing turnovers 25.3% of time- their 39.9 eFG% is #8 in country- their best win is by 10 over #135 Mississippi State. DePaul is 6-4 with only win against a top 200 team; Blue Demons are 1-1 on the road, losing by 13 at George Washington, winning at #337 Chicago State.
South Dakota State is 4-3 vs D-I teams, splitting pair with Idaho in only games vs Big Sky opponent; Jackrabbits won last three games with win at Saint Louis. Idaho State is 3-5 with two non-D-I wins; they're 0-2 vs teams in top 200, losing by 24-16 points. Bengals are shooting 28.9% on arc, 59% on foul line- their one D-I win is over #283 Grand Canyon.
Montana State is 2-6 vs D-I teams, turning ball over 22.6% of time; they are making only 41.2% inside arc- their 53.7 eFG% is #300- they lost to North Dakota State by 21, in their only game vs Sunnit opponent. South Dakota is 2-8 vs D-I teams with three OT losses; they've played the #90 schedule so far, losing to Creighton by 3, UNLV by 14 last two games.
Portland State is 4-3 vs D-I teams with win at USC; they lost by 12 at Portland in only game vs WCC opponent- they're 1-2 vs top 150 foes, with 22-point loss at Oregon. San Francisco lost last two games at home, to Eastern Washington/Cal Poly; Dons lost four of last six games overall, are 4-1 vs teams outside 200- they're turning ball over 20.9% of time.
Armadillosports.com
Thursday College Hoops Pick
By: Craig Williams
Sportingnews.com
Coming off their 2014 national championship, UConn is struggling out of the gate, stumbling to a 4-3 record (1-4 ATS), including a 45-44 loss to Yale. The Huskies face their toughest task of the early season when they tip off against No. 2 Duke (9-0 SU, 6-3 ATS) at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J. on Thursday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN).
The Blue Devils are playing at a Final Four-level right now. Not only do they boast the nation's No. 3 scoring offense (87.6), but they own 10-point victories over Michigan State and Wisconsin.
Duke heads into the matchup as a large 10.5-point favorite at most Las Vegas bet shops, with a total of 138.5. In their three games played on a neutral floor, Duke's average margin of victory is 13.7. This is the first time the Huskies have been underdogs this season.
The Linemakers' lean: After easily covering their first five games, Duke has covered just once in their last four, but those spreads were -41 vs. Furman, -28 vs. Army and -32.5 vs. Elon. Tonight’s spread is a little more manageable.
Duke’s average score this season has been 87-60. The Devils shoot 53 percent from the floor and also average 18 assists a game. They are looking for a challenge, but UConn may not be able to provide much resistance, as it took a win over Coppin State to halt a three-game losing streak -- all games in which the Huskies were favored.
We’re siding with Duke to keep rolling and for UConn to continue playing below expectations.