Tuesday's Best NCAAB Bets
By Covers.com
Pittsburgh Panthers at Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1.5, 136)
No. 22 Pittsburgh was held to a season-low point total in Friday’s stunning 59-54 home loss to Wagner.
So the Panthers should be focused for Tuesday’s Big East opener at Notre Dame.
But winning at Purcell Pavilion will not be easy. The Fighting Irish have won 27 straight there, and have won three of their last four overall following a sluggish start.
In addition, Notre Dame has won three straight over Pittsburgh, including a 56-51 road win last season.
The Irish lost senior forward Tim Abromaitis to a torn ACL. In his place, seven different players have led the team in scoring at least once, with sophomore guards Eric Atkins (13.9 ppg, 4.0 apg) and Jerian Grant (12.7 ppg, 4.4 apg) the most consistent contributors.
Pitt guard Ashton Gibbs (17.2 ppg) will be the best player on the floor. He’s struggling with his shot, however, hitting a career-low 37 percent from the field.
Pick: Notre Dame
Minnesota Golden Gophers at Illinois Fighting Illini (-5.5, 126)
Minnesota enters its first true road game off an uninspiring 63-59 home win over North Dakota State last Thursday.
The Illini played well but came up just short in Thursday’s 78-74 loss to No. 8 Missouri in St. Louis.
Despite giving up so many points to the Tigers, Illinois boasts one of the nation’s top defenses. The Illini allow 59.0 points and hold opponents to 39 percent shooting. The offense is balanced, with four players averaging in double figures led by guard D.J. Richardson (14.3 ppg) and center Meyers Leonard (13.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 2.4 bpg).
Illinois has won all eight of its home games, by an average of 16.6 points. The Illini have won eight of the last 10 meetings with Minnesota.
Don’t be fooled by Minnesota’s sparkling 12-1 record, which largely results from its schedule. But give the Golden Gophers credit for winning six in a row despite the loss of leading scorer and rebounder Trevor Mbakwe to a season-ending knee injury.
Minnesota does not have an active player averaging in double figures.
Pick: Illinois
NCAAB Games to Watch
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
College basketball fans will get their first real taste of conference play this week when the Big East and Big Ten begin their conference schedules with a number of key matchups. This week also provides a final chance to see some of the other top schools in the country butt heads against one another in a non-conference matchup before the start of their conference play right after the New Year.
The following is a brief look at the top matchups for each day this week along with a few facts and figures to help handicap the games.
No. 14 Wisconsin Badgers vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Wisconsin extended its recent winning streak to five games this past Friday with a 79-45 romp over Mississippi Valley State as a 29-point home favorite. The Badgers are now 11-2 straight up on the year and 8-2 against the spread. The total has stayed ‘under’ in eight of their 10 games. Wisconsin is 3-1 ATS in four previous road games this season.
Nebraska comes into this game at 8-3 SU, but just 3-4 ATS. It is just 1-4 ATS in its last five games and 1-3 ATS in four home games. The total has gone ‘over’ in five of the seven games. The Cornhuskers are ranked in the bottom third of Division I in both points (66.8) and rebounds (34.6) per game.
PROVIDENCE (11 - 2) at ST JOHNS (6 - 5)
Top Trends for this game.
ST JOHNS is 30-16 ATS (+12.4 Units) on Tuesday nights since 1997.
ST JOHNS is 9-21 ATS (-14.1 Units) as a favorite over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
ST JOHNS is 1-1 against the spread versus PROVIDENCE over the last 3 seasons
ST JOHNS is 1-1 straight up against PROVIDENCE over the last 3 seasons
2 of 2 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
PITTSBURGH (11 - 2) at NOTRE DAME (8 - 5)
Top Trends for this game.
NOTRE DAME is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) in all games this season.
NOTRE DAME is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) in all lined games this season.
NOTRE DAME is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
NOTRE DAME is 3-0 against the spread versus PITTSBURGH over the last 3 seasons
NOTRE DAME is 3-0 straight up against PITTSBURGH over the last 3 seasons
3 of 3 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA (12 - 1) at ILLINOIS (11 - 2)
Top Trends for this game.
MINNESOTA is 15-25 ATS (-12.5 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 15-25 ATS (-12.5 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 5-14 ATS (-10.4 Units) against conference opponents over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 8-20 ATS (-14.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
ILLINOIS is 1-1 against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
ILLINOIS is 1-1 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
2 of 2 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
WISCONSIN (11 - 2) at NEBRASKA (8 - 3)
Top Trends for this game.
WISCONSIN is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) in all games this season.
WISCONSIN is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) in all lined games this season.
WISCONSIN is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
WISCONSIN is 20-6 ATS (+13.4 Units) after allowing 60 points or less over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
PITTSBURGH vs. NOTRE DAME
Pittsburgh is 13-2 SU in its last 15 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Pittsburgh's last 7 games on the road
Notre Dame is 17-8 SU in its last 25 games
Notre Dame is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
MD-EASTERN SHORE vs. VIRGINIA
No trends available
Virginia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Virginia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
PROVIDENCE vs. ST. JOHN'S
Providence is 4-9 ATS in its last 13 games on the road
Providence is 4-19 SU in its last 23 games on the road
St. John's is 13-4 SU in its last 17 games at home
St. John's is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games when playing Providence
WINTHROP vs. GEORGIA
No trends available
Georgia is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games at home
MINNESOTA vs. ILLINOIS
Minnesota is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Minnesota is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games on the road
Illinois is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
Illinois is 11-2 SU in its last 13 games
TEXAS SOUTHERN vs. SAINT LOUIS
No trends available
Saint Louis is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Saint Louis is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
CS BAKERSFIELD vs. TEXAS TECH
No trends available
Texas Tech is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
Texas Tech is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
NEW ORLEANS vs. NORTH TEXAS
No trends available
North Texas is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
North Texas is 21-4 SU in its last 25 games at home
WISCONSIN vs. NEBRASKA
Wisconsin is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games on the road
Wisconsin is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Nebraska is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Nebraska is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Tuesday's Top Trends
Nebraska is 9-23 ATS off a home game (vs. Wisconsin)
Wisconsin is 7-0 ATS off BB wins by 15+ (vs. Nebraska)
Illinois is 7-0 ATS after failing to cover 4 of their last 5 games (vs. Minnesota)
Minnesota is 8-20 ATS vs. team w/ winning record (vs. Illinois)
Notre Dame is 0-6 ATS in all games (vs. Pitt)
Providence is 6-19 ATS off road game (vs. St. Johns)