College Knowledge
-- UConn won its last seven games vs DePaul, last four by 14+ points; Blue Demons lost last three visits here, by 5-7-26 points. Huskies are 7-0 vs teams outside top 100, with four wins by 8 or less points. DePaul got rare Big East road win at Providence Saturday; they're 4-0 on road, with wins at Arizona State/Auburn as well as Providence. Big East home favorites are 3-5 vs spread in conference play.
-- Drexel won last five games vs Northeastern, winning last three here, by 2-14-18 points; 5-9 Dragons are 3-6 vs teams outside top 100, 1-3 in last four home games. Huskies won their first two league games by 10-4 points; they're 3-1 on road, with only loss by 20 at UAB. CAA home favorites are 2-6 againtst the spread in conference play.
-- Duke won four in row, 11 of last 13 games vs Clemson, winning last six at Cameron by 26-8-2-13-11-12 points; Blue Devils are 7-0 against top 100 teams, but don't play true road game until Saturday at NC State. Clemson won at Furman/South Carolina, lost by 23 at Coastal Carolina, so this is Tigers' first game outside Palmetto State; loss at Coastal was their only loss out of five that was by more than 12 points.
-- Missouri won four of six vs top 60 teams, losing only to Louisville, UCLA, with wins by 8-9-2-3 points; this is Tigers' first SEC game, vs Alabama team that lost five of last seven games, with four losses by 7 or less points. Tide is 1-2 on road, with win at #231 Texas Tech. Mizzou is #4 offensive rebounding team in country, grabbing 43.4% of misses.
-- Baylor won eight of last ten games vs Texas Tech, winning last three visits to Lubbock by 18-12-13 points; Bears won by 9 at Kentucky, lost by 7 at Gonzaga in their only two road games. Tech won its last three in row, but all vs teams ranked #253 or lower; they're 0-2 vs top 100 clubs, losing by 28 to Arizona, 4 to Alabama, both at home.
-- Creighton beat Drake three times LY, by 17-8-7 points; Bulldogs lost last three visits to Omaha, by 4-16-17 points. Drake lost first three tilts in conference by 10-12-12 points after 6-5 start; they're 0-4 vs top 100 teams, losing by 3-15-9-12 points. Bluejays won last eight games, with first three wins in Valley by 17-7-13 points. MVC home favorites of 9+ points are 1-4 against the spread.
-- Purdue-Ohio State split eight meetings; Buckeyes won twice LY, by 3-17 points, but they've lost three of last four visits to Mackey. Purdue is just 7-7, 2-4 vs top 100 teams, losing by 5-8-13-23 points. Buckeyes are 0-2 in true road games, losing by 5 at Duke, 19 at Illinois- they're 0-3 vs top 100 teams- best win is over #102 Washington. Home teams are 7-3 vs spread in Big Dozen play (3-2 HU).
-- Pitt won five of last seven games with Georgetown, but lost to Hoyas in LY's Big East tourney; Panthers are 3-2 in last five visits here, but are 0-2 to start Big East play this year, scoring 61-62 points, with loss at Rutgers their first road game of year. Hoyas are 3-2 vs top 100 teams after 49-48 loss at Marquette Saturday. Big East home favorites of less than 5 points are 0-3.
-- Illinois State is 8-3 in last 11 games vs Missouri State, going 3-2 in last five visits here, with wins by 1-3-8 points. Redbirds started Valley play 0-3 after 9-3 non-conference record; they have experienced players with a rookie HC. Missouri State is 2-1 in MVC after going 0-10 vs D-I clubs in non-league play- they're 0-3 vs top 100 teams, losing by 20-8-16 points. Home teams are 6-9 vs spread in MVC play, 2-3 as home dogs.
-- Wofford won its last five games vs Appalachian State, but State is 3-1 in last four visits here-- Wofford beat them in two of last three SoCon tourneys. Terriers have played #19 schedule; they're shooting 39.8% on 2-point shots, turning ball over 22.6% of time. State is 0-3 vs teams in top 200, losing by 16-11-10 points. SoCon home teams are 2-9 against spread, 1-5 when favored.
Armadillosports.com
Games to Watch
By David Schwab
VegasInsider.com
Clemson Tigers vs. No. 1 Duke Blue Devils
Clemson opened-up play in the ACC with a 71-66 loss to Florida State this past Saturday as a 3½-point home favorite. The loss dropped the Tigers to 8-5 SU and 6-3 ATS. The total has gone OVER in their last two games. Clemson is averaging 66.6 points and 34.3 rebounds a game while shooting 45.4 percent from the field.
The Blue Devils rolled over Wake Forest 80-62 as 22½-point home favorites in their conference opener to remain perfect on the season at 14-0 SU. They are 8-6 ATS and the total has stayed UNDER in four of their last five games. Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry continue to lead the way with a combined 35 points a game. Duke is averaging 80.1 points a game and shooting 48.1 percent from the floor.
NCAAB Game of the Day: Pitt at Georgetown
By Covers.com
Pittsburgh at Georgetown (-2)
Both Georgetown and Pittsburgh will be seeking their first Big East victory this season when the longtime foes meet Tuesday at the Verizon Center. It will be the Big East home opener for the Hoyas, who fell 49-48 at Marquette on Saturday. Greg Whittington missed the third of three free throws with 2.3 seconds left as Georgetown fell in its first road game of the season. It was the sixth time in the last eight games that the Hoyas had held an opponent to 50 points or less, but they got zero points from their bench and made only seven free throws in another rough offensive showing. Georgetown averages just 65.1 points, better than only one team (South Florida) in the 15-team Big East. The Panthers enter as one of just two 0-2 teams in the league after falling to Rutgers on Saturday.
ABOUT PITTSBURGH (12-3, 0-2 Big East): After eight straight wins vaulted the Panthers into the national rankings, they dropped their league opener at home to Cincinnati before losing at the Scarlet Knights, 67-62. Pitt trailed by 14 points just minutes into the contest and could not complete a second-half rally in continuing a troubling trend for head coach James Dixon's crew, which dropped its first seven Big East games last season and could wind up 0-3 this time around if it gives the same effort against Georgetown. J.J. Moore scored 14 points off the bench to pace the Panthers against Rutgers. Tray Woodall added 11 points and eight assists.
ABOUT GEORGETOWN (10-2, 0-1): Markel Starks had 18 points and a season-high seven assists in the losing effort Saturday in Milwaukee. Otto Porter Jr. and Whittington had 13 points apiece for the Hoyas, who showed some rust while playing their first game since Dec. 22. Georgetown had just one basket in the final seven-plus minutes. The Hoyas used only seven players and the two that came off the bench -- Jabril Trawick and freshman D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera -- combined to go 0-for-4 from the floor, 0-for-3 from 3-point range and commit three of the team's 10 turnovers. Starks has made 8 of 14 3-pointers (57.1 percent) over his last four games.
TRENDS:
* Panthers are 1-4 ATS in their last five road games.
* Hoyas are 1-4 ATS in their last five home games.
* Hoyas are 0-5 ATS in their last five games following an ATS win.
* Panthers are 1-6 ATS in their last seven games vs. a team with a winning record.
TIP-INS:
1. Pitt leading scorer Talib Zanna was limited to nine points and a season-low one rebound against Rutgers before fouling out on a flagrant foul in the closing minutes.
2. Hoyas junior F Nate Lubick had zero points and four fouls in 32 minutes against Marquette.
3. Georgetown has a 41-35 series advantage but the Panthers are 17-9 in the last 26 meetings.
Tuesday's NCAAB Betting Notes
By Covers.com
Check out our quick-hitting betting notes on all of Tuesday’s ranked college basketball games:
Alabama at (12) Missouri (-10.5)
Missouri coach Frank Haith doesn’t think junior forward Tony Criswell - a valued energy guy off the bench - will be ready for Tuesday. Criswell has missed Missouri's last two games with a broken finger on his left (non-shooting) hand. Keep in mind the Tigers are nasty on the boards, averaging a nation-best 46.7 per game. Alabama is 1-4 ATS in its last five overall and 0-4 ATS in its last four contests vs. a team with a winning record.
Clemson at (1) Duke (-18)
While the sharpshooting of Ryan Kelly (13.5 points per game) and Seth Curry (16.6) from the perimeter is deadly, the Blue Devils like to work the interior through Mason Plumlee (18.4 points, 11.3 rebounds) and play well defensively. Clemson also relies heavily on its 14th-ranked defense (56.2) points per game and is 4-1 ATS in its last five games after a loss.
Drake at (11) Creighton (-21)
Creighton is enjoying its best start in Missouri Valley Conference play since the 2003-04 season. The Blue Jays will look to continue that momentum by winning their ninth contest overall when they welcome Drake. Reigning MVC Player of the Year Doug McDermott showed why he is one of the top scorers in the nation by collecting 25 points and nine rebounds as Creighton recorded a 79-66 victory over Indiana State on Saturday. Drake suffered its third straight loss with a 77-65 setback to Missouri State on Saturday. The Bulldogs are 0-5 ATS in their last five games following an ATS loss.
(14) Ohio St. at Purdue (+6.5)
The Buckeyes were clobbered 74-55 at Illinois on Saturday, shooting just 33 percent from the field (including 21 percent from 3-point range), turning the ball over 16 times (six more than their average) and getting outrebounded 39-28. Purdue also suffered a setback Saturday, falling 84-61 to Michigan State after beating Illinois in its Big Ten opener on Wednesday. Ohio State is 6-1 ATS in its last seven games following a loss and the Boilermakers are 1-6 ATS in their last seven overall.
Pittsburgh at (22) Georgetown (-2)
Georgetown averages just 65.1 points, better than only one team (South Florida) in the 15-team Big East, but boasts a defense that has held six of its last eight opponents to 50 or fewer points. The Panthers enter as one of just two 0-2 teams in the league after falling to Rutgers on Saturday. Pitt leading scorer Talib Zanna was limited to nine points and a season-low one rebound in the loss before fouling out on a flagrant in the closing minutes. The Hoyas are 1-4 ATS in their last five home games.