College Basketball: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
North Carolina at Indiana
Indiana came into the season as the nation's top-ranked team and so far hasn't disappointed with a perfect 6-0 (5-1 ATS) record including an 82-70 overtime win over Georgetown in the Legends Classic championship game. Load with talent the Hoosiers behind Cody Zeller (15.2), Christian Watford (13.2) are averaging 88.7 points/game while holding early opponents to to 56.3 per contest. Meanwhile, Tar Heels despite losing NBA first-round draft picks Harrison Barnes, John Henson, Kendall Marshall, Tyler Zeller from last year's team the have started a solid 5-1 (4-1 ATS) with the single blemish coming against Butler in the Maui Invitational semifinal. Lead by McAdoo (16.8 PPG), Bullock (12.7 PPG) the Heels are netting 85.3 points/game allowing opponents 63.2 per game. If Indiana was going to get nipped before Big-Ten play begins this would be the spot. Tar Heels are on a 10-3 (8-5 ATS) stretch vs the Big 10, Hoosiers are just 2-7 (3-6 ATS) their last nine vs the ACC. But, it's unlikely on Assembly Hall hardwood where Hoosiers are already 4-0 SU/ATS and a venue that has seen the team drop just one game in front of the home crowd the past twenty-two (14-3 ATS).
North Carolina at Indiana: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
North Carolina Tar Heels at Indiana Hoosiers (-8, 156)
Two of the nation’s premier programs will meet Tuesday night when top-ranked Indiana hosts No. 13 North Carolina in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Hoosiers feature a deep, talented roster that includes five players averaging double figures in scoring and three who led the team in scoring in each of the last three seasons. Cody Zeller, a 7-foot sophomore forward, leads Indiana in scoring (15.2) after averaging a team-high 15.6 last season. The Tar Heels have three players averaging in double figures and they've already been stung by a team from Indiana, losing to Butler at last week’s Maui Invitational.
ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA (5-1): James Michael McAdoo has seen his minutes nearly double from last season and his scoring average nearly triple from 6.1 to 16.8 points, but his turnovers are also skyrocketing. The sophomore forward didn’t have more than three turnovers in any game last season, but he’s already had four or more in four of six games this season, including seven in the loss to Butler. The Tar Heels are also experiencing some growing pains with freshman point guard Marcus Paige, who has 20 assists and 19 turnovers while shooting 37.5 percent from the floor this season.
ABOUT INDIANA (6-0): With the emergence of Zeller the last two seasons, senior forward Christian Watford has seen his shot attempts gradually decline. Watford averaged a team-high 16 points two seasons back but fell to 12.6 last season and 13.2 so far this year. Watford, who's best remembered for hitting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer last season to knock off No. 1 Kentucky, is averaging 8.7 field-goal attempts, which would be a career low. He’s making his presence known in other areas, particularly rebounding, where he’s averaging a team-high eight a game.
TRENDS:
* Over is 4-1 in Hoosiers’ last five overall.
* Tar Heels are 4-1 ATS in their last five games overall.
* Hoosiers are 5-1 ATS in their last six games overall.
* Under is 4-0 in Tar Heels’ last four vs. Big Ten foes.
TIP-INS:
1. Zeller’s older brother, Tyler, starred at North Carolina the previous four seasons and now plays in the NBA for the Cavaliers. His other brother, Luke, plays for the Phoenix Suns.
2. Indiana senior guard Jordan Hulls is eight 3-pointers away from moving into No. 2 all time on the Indiana career list.
3. Indiana will be without freshmen Hanner Mosquera-Perea and Peter Jurkin. Both were suspended for the first nine games for accepting benefits from a former AAU coach. The players lost an appeal last week that would have shortened the suspension to five games and made them available against the Tar Heels.
College Knowledge
-- Home teams won last four Detroit-Bowling Green games; Titans lost last two visits here, by 20-6 points. Detroit is 1-2, losing at St John's by 3, Miami by 15, both ranked in top 90. #208 BG is 0-3 vs D-I teams, but all three games were away from home. MAC single digit underdogs are 2-8 vs spread. Horizon road favorites are 4-8.
-- 6-1 Minnesota spent weekend in Bahamas, losing by 18 to Duke, but beating Memphis/Stanford to finish trip well; physical Gophers are #3 offensive rebounding team in country (get 47.3% of misses). Florida St. is 4-1, beating BYU/St Joe's on neutral floors after South Alabama upset them at home. Big Dozen teams are 8-5 if spread is less than 5 points.
-- Virginia Tech made 42.7% from arc in 5-0 start, but none of its victims are ranked higher than #217; Hokies are scoring 85.4 ppg. #58 Iowa split pair of games in Cancun last week, losing to Wichita State by 12. ACC home favorites are 11-5 vs spread. Big Dozen road underdogs are 3-6. Toughest test yet for Tech, which is playing faster with new coach.
-- 4-1 NC State has high expectations, but lost to Oklahoma State by 20 on neutral floor; best team they've beaten is #80 UMass. Michigan won its first five games, beating pair of top 20 teams on neutral floor, Pitt by 5, Kansas State by 14. Big Dozen home favorites are 12-5 vs spread. ACC road underdogs are 7-4 vs spread.
-- Ill-Chicago is 4-1 this year, after going 23-68 last three years; Flames' only loss is by 7 to good New Mexico team- they beat Iona, Mercer on neutral floor. Northern Illinois has 7 freshmen, 2 sophs, a junior, which explains 0-3 record vs D-I teams, losing by 13-23-7 points. Home team won last three series games; Flames lost last visit here by a hoop.
-- Troy is 4-2 with win over Miss State, but are 0-2 vs teams in top 200, losing by 18-23 points. UAB is 2-3 vs D-I teams, 0-3 vs teams in top 300, losing by 17-12-3 points; Blazers beat Troy last four years, with wins by 12-21-18-5 points. C-USA road favorites are 4-6 vs the spread. Sun Belt underdogs are 10-15 vs spread, 3-0 at home.
-- Southern Mississippi is 5-0, with pair of OT wins (WKU/Georgia), and win over good Cal-Irvine team; they lost 59-52 at Denver last year. Pioneers are 1-3, losing by 7-11-7 points to teams that are all in top 103- they lost by 7 at Iona in only road game. C-USA home favorites are 3-5 vs spread. Sun Belt road underdogs are 7-15.
-- Well-coached Wake Forest is 3-2 vs mediocre schedule; they're #3 in country at getting to foul line, but #265 at making foul shots, which is a problem- seven of their top nine guys are frosh/sophs. Nebraska is 4-1, but all five games were at home, and schedule is ranked #322; they've allowed 55.5 ppg in wins, 74 in the only loss.
-- Maryland lost by 3 to Kentucky on neutral court; they're #1 team in country on offensive boards. Terps beat four stiffs after opening loss. Northwestern is 6-0 after beating good Illinois State team in OT in finals of South Padre tournament Saturday; Wildcats had beaten five stiffs before that quality win. ACC teams are 9-6 if spread is 5 or less points.
-- North Carolina was on Maui last week, losing to Butler by 11 in semis of Maui Classic; they're not getting to line much, and making 57.7% once they get there, not good. Indiana is 6-0, beating Georgia/Georgetown on neutral court for best wins- they beat Dawgs by by 13, Hoyas by 10 in OT. Hoosiers are making 59% of shots inside arc, 41% outside it.
-- Fairfield is 3-0 on neutral floors, 0-3 on road, losing at Virginia by 9, Providence by 19; Stags' three losses are to teams ranked in top 80- best team they've beaten is #186. DePaul lost couple games in Cancun last week and also lost at home to Gardner-Webb. Big East single digit home favorites are 13-7. MAAC single digit road underdogs are 2-9.
Armadillosports.com
ACC-Big Ten Challenge
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
If you look at the most recent AP Men’s Basketball Top 25 poll you fill find that four of the top five teams in the nation reside in either the ACC or Big Ten Conference. Well this week, each of these two will be out for bragging rights as the top power conference in the nation when they square off in the 14th annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
This event consists of 12 interconference matchups held on Tuesday, Nov.27 and Wednesday, Nov.28 with the conference with the most overall victories laying claim to the 2012 Commissioner’s Cup.
The following is a brief betting preview for each of the top games for each day as well as a listing for all the games in this year’s challenge. The ACC has won 10 of the previous 13 challenges but the Big Ten has won the past three years.
Tuesday, Nov. 27
No. 18 North Carolina State Wolfpack vs. No. 3 Michigan Wolverines
NC State suffered its first loss of the season in a 76-56 romp at the hands of No. 15 Oklahoma State in the finals of Puerto Rico Tipoff as a 10-point favorite on Nov. 18 after reeling off three-straight victories both straight-up and against the spread. Add in a tight 82-80 win over UNC-Ashville this past Friday in a game that had no posted line and it is plain to see that the Wolfpack need a big win to regain quite of bit of their lost luster after starting the season ranked No. 6.
Michigan has climbed the ranks a bit after opening the year at No. 5 with a perfect 5-0 SU start that includes victories over Pittsburgh and Kansas State. It knocked off the Panthers last Wednesday 67-62 as a three-point favorite and won the NIT Season Tip-Off with a convincing 71-57 win over the Wildcats as 5 ½ -point favorites on Friday night behind Tim Hardaway Jr.’s game-high 23 points. The Wolverines are 3-0 ATS in their first three games with a posted line. The total went ‘over’ in two of those three contests with the team averaging 81.2 points a game.
No. 14 North Carolina Tar Heels vs. No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers
North Carolina took a tumble in the polls after getting tripped-up by Butler 82-71 as a nine-point favorite in last week’s Maui Invitational. They Tar Heels responded by crushing Chaminade 112-70 in a consolation game as 21½-point favorites. The total went ‘over’ in both of those games. Overall, they are now 5-1 SU and 4-1 ATS. North Carolina is ranked 10th in the country in scoring with an average of 85.3 points a game. James Michael McAdoo continues to put-up big numbers all around with a team-high 16.8 points and 8.8 rebounds a game.
Indiana started the season ranked first in the nation and Bovada’s second-favorite at 13/2 (Bet $100 to win $650) to win this season’s national title. The Hoosiers have lived-up to these lofty expectations so far with a perfect 6-0 start SU and a profitable 5-1 ATS. The total has gone ‘over’ in three of the four games with a posted total line. Indiana is the fourth-best scoring team in the nation with 88.7 points a game. It is shooting a rock-solid 52.5 percent from the field and pulling-down an average of 41.2 rebounds a game. The key players behind these numbers include Cody Zeller and Christian Watford. Zeller leads the team in scoring with 15.2 points and he is second in rebounds with 7.7 a game. Watford is second in scoring with 13.2 points and first in rebounds with 8.0 a game.
The other ACC-Big Ten Challenge games on Tuesday’s slate start with No. 21 Minnesota vs. Florida State and Iowa vs. Virginia Tech at 7:15 p.m. (ET). The remaining two games pit Maryland vs. Northwestern and Nebraska vs. Wake Forest in a pair of 9:15 tip offs.
Wednesday, Nov.28
No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. No. 2 Duke Blue Devils
Ohio State has reeled off four-straight double-digit victories in its first four games, but has yet to really play anyone after its season opener against Marquette was postponed. It covered the spread in its last two games with the total going ‘over’ in both, but could only post an 11-point victory over Rhode Island on Nov. 17 as a 22-point favorite. The Buckeyes have done a good job shooting the ball so far with 79.8 points a game while hitting 52.1 percent from the field, but they have struggled a bit under the boards against the weaker competition with just 35 rebounds a game. The player to watch in this matchup Deshaun Thomas. He leads the team in scoring with 24 points a game and in rebounds with 7.3 a game.
The Duke Blue Devils come into this season’s Challenge as the pride of the ACC. They have already beaten a then-No.3 Kentucky 75-68 as 4½-point favorites and then-No. 2 Louisville 76-71 as one-point underdogs this past weekend in the Bahamas. Throw in a routine 67-58 victory over VCU as 6½-point favorites and the Blue Devils are off to a very impressive 6-0 SU start while going 4-2 ATS. The total has gone ‘over’ in four of the last five games. Much of the team’s early success can be attributed to balanced offensive attack. Duke has five players scoring in double-figures led by Mason Plumlee’s 19.7 points a game. The team is averaging 78.2 points a game and shooting a respectable 47.4 percent from the floor. The only area of concern has been under the boards with an average of just 33 rebounds a game.
The remainder of Wednesday’s Challenge starts with a 7 p.m. tip-off between Virginia vs. Wisconsin followed by Purdue vs. Clemson at 7:15 p.m. No.13 Michigan State squares off against Miami (FL) at 7:30 and Georgia Tech takes on No.22 Illinois at 9 p.m. The final conference clash of the night pits Boston College against Penn State in a 9:15 p.m. start.