NCAAB Betting News, Match-Ups and Trends For Thursday 1/31/19

Purdue won five in row, eight of last nine games; they’re 7-2 in big 14, 2-2 on road, winning last two road games, at Wisconsin/Ohio St. Penn State lost its last seven games, is 0-9 in league, with home losses by 2-19-15-7-4 points. Purdue won its last seven games with Penn State, winning last two visits to Happy Valley, by 7-4 points, both in OT. Underdogs are 4-2-1 vs spread in last seven series games. Purdue is 6-11 in last 17 games as a Big 14 road favorite, 1-0 this year; Nittany Lions are 9-11-1 in last 21 games as a home underdog, 0-2 this year.

Houston is 20-1; its only loss was 73-69 at Temple Jan 9, when Owls outscored Houston 25-11 on foul line. Cougars are 6-3 vs Temple in AAC games, winning three of four games played here, with wins by 14-13-3 points. Temple won five of its last seven games; they’re 2-1 on AAC road- this is their first road game in 15 days. Cougars are 4-0 in AAC home games, winning by 18-13-9-44 points. Owls are 11-8 in last 19 games as a road underdog, 2-0 this year; Houston is 7-4 in last 11 games as a home favorite, 3-1 this year.

Old Dominion lost last game after they led by 18 with 4:43 left to play. North Texas split its last four games after a 16-1 start; their two C-USA losses were by total of five points. UNT is 5-2 in true road games this season. Old Dominion won five of its last six games; they’re 3-1 in C-USA home tilts, winning last three, by 3-1-18 points. Monarchs are 8-0 vs UNT in C-USA games, winning games here by 11-20-7 points. Mean Green is 10-5-1 in its last 16 games as a C-USA road underdog; ODU is 12-19 in last 31 games as a home favorite, 1-3 this year.

Tex-San Antonio won seven of its last nine games after a 2-7 start; Roadrunners are 1-2 on road in league, losing by 10 at UAB, 3 at MTSU. Western Kentucky won three of last four games; they are 4-4 in C-USA, 2-1 at home, winning last two home games by 6-9 points. UTSA won its last two games with WKU by 4-11 points, after losing previous three meetings; Roadrunners lost last two visits to WKU, by 9-21 points. UTSA is 6-9 in its last 15 games as a C-USA road underdog, 1-1 this year; Hilltoppers are 7-9-1 in last 17 games as a home favorite, 1-2 this year.

Xavier rallied back from down 17 in first half to beat Georgetown 81-75 Jan 9; Xavier is 10-2 vs Hoyas in Big East games, winning last two visits here, by 5-12 points. Musketeers lost their last three games, by 10-2-5 points; they’re 3-5 in Big East, 1-2 on road, losing last two away games, by 18-10 points. Hoyas lost four of last six games, including three of last four at home; they make lot of 3’s, force very few turnovers. Musketeers are 5-7 in last dozen games as a road underdog, 1-1 this year; under Ewing, Georgetown is 2-3 as a home favorite, 1-1 this year.

Central Florida held UConn to 32.2% from floor in 65-53 road win Jan 5, their 2nd win in a row over UConn after losing first eight AAC meetings. UConn won its last two games after aa 1-5 skid; Huskies are 3-4 in AAC, losing all three road games, by 8 at South Florida, 2 at Cincy, 6 at Tulsa. UCF split its last four games after a 13-2 start; Knights are 5-2 in AAC, 3-0 at home, winning home games by 5-11-2 points. Since joining AAC, Huskies are 8-17-1 as a road underdog, 1-1 this year; UCF is 13-5 in last 18 games as a home favorite, but 0-3 this year.

Arizona lost three of last four games after a 13-4 start, getting swept in LA last week, by 23-21 points. Wildcats are shooting only 43.3% inside arc in Pac-12 play (were 56.1% LY). ASU won five of its last seven games; they’re 3-1 in Pac-12 home games, winning last three, by 22-3-14 points. Arizona won its last six games with Arizona State, winning last three visits to Tempe, by 12-13-7 points. Arizona is 2-4 in its last six games as a road underdog, 0-1 this year; under Hurley, ASU is 9-11 as a home favorite, 2-2 this year.

Oregon State lost three of its last four games after an 11-4 start; Beavers are 4-3 in Pac-12, losing last two road games, by 3 at ASU, 11 at Arizona. Colorado is 2-5 in Pac-12, splitting home games against the Washington schools; Buffs are 0-4 this season vs top 100 teams. OSU/Colorado split their last four meetings; Beavers lost their last three visits to Boulder, 6-17-7 points. Favorites covered five of last seven series games. OSU is 7-5 vs spread in its last dozen Pac-12 road games, 2-1 this year; Buffaloes are 18-11 in its last 29 home games, 1-1 this year.

Oregon is 3-4 in Pac-12, splitting two road games in Arizona; Ducks are 2-3 overall in true road games, 8-1 vs teams ranked outside top 100- they’re forcing turnovers 25% of time in conference games. Utah won its last four games after a 7-8 start; Utes are 5-2 in Pac-12, 2-1 at home, with only loss to first-place Washington. Oregon is 13-2 vs Utah in Pac-12 games, winning four of five visits here; they beat Utes in three of last four Pac-12 tourneys. Ducks are 118-10-1 in last 29 Pac-12 road games; Utah is 29-14-4 in last 46 home games.

Gonzaga won its last ten games, is 6-0 in WCC, winning road games by 13-23-59 points; they’re 4-1 overall in true road games, winning at Creighton by 11, USF by 13. BYU won four of its last five games; they’re 5-2 in WCC, winning all three home games- they’re stepping up in class here. Gonzaga won six of last seven games with BYU, winning last four visits to Provo, by 7-3-10-14 points. Zags also beat BYU in three of last four WCC tourneys. Gonzaga is 3-7-1 in its last 11 games as a WCC road favorite; BYU covered once in its last five games as a home underdog.

Cal-Irvine won six of its last seven games; they’re 5-1 in Big West, winning all three road tilts, by 17-1-6 points. League foes are shooting 43.9% inside arc vs UCI. UCSB won six of its last seven games; they’re 4-1 in Big West, winning first two home games, by 8-9 points, over Cal Poly/Riverside. Irvine/Santa Barbara split their last six meetings; Anteaters won two of last three visits to the Thunderdome. Irvine is 13-10-1 in its last 24 Big West road games, 1-2 this year; under Pasternack, Gauchos are 4-6 against the spread at home, 0-2 this year.

Siena won its last three games overall since losing 63-60 in OT at home to Monmouth Jan 14; Hawks won nine of last ten series games, with last two going to OT. Saints are 0-5 at Monmouth in MAAC games, with losses by 4-6-16-4-11 points. Siena is 4-3 in MAAC, winning last couple road games, at Marist/Fairfield. Monmouth lost by 14-27 points in western NY LW; Hawks are 4-0 in MAAC home games, winning by 17-16-17-2 points. Siena is 18-23-1 in its last 42 MAAC road games, 2-1 this year; Monmouth is 9-4 in its last 13 home games, 4-0 this year.

Jacksonville State is 7-1 in OVC, winning all four home games- they’ve already swept Belmont this season. JSU is experience team #3 in country. Murray State is 7-1 in OVC with a home loss to Belmont; Racers won all four of their OVC road games, by 10+ points. Murray is 0-3 vs top 125 teams, losing to Alabama, Auburn, Belmont. Murray won six of last seven games with the Gamecocks; teams split last four games played here. Racers are 8-2-1 in last 11 games as an OVC road favorite, 3-1 this year; under Harper, JSU is 1-1 as a home underdog.

By Kevin Rogers

Temple at Houston – 7:00 PM EST – ESPN2

Every team in the country has been dealt at least one defeat this season, while five squads own only one loss. One of those five clubs is Houston (20-1 SU, 14-6-1 ATS), who is the first team to reach 20 victories after beating Tulsa on Sunday, 77-65 as 7 ½-point road favorites. The Cougars have covered in six of seven AAC wins, while posting a perfect 15-0 record at Ferfitta Center.

The only blemish on the season for Kelvin Sampson’s squad came on January 9 in Philadelphia to Temple in a 73-69 defeat. The Owls (15-5 SU, 8-10-2 ATS) held off the Cougars after building a nine-point lead in the second half, aided by 22 points from guard Quinton Rose. Both teams shot under 40% from the floor, while Temple converted 25-of-28 free throws to snap a three-game skid to Houston dating back to January 2017.

Temple is riding an eight-game OVER streak, coming off a 72-68 setback to Cincinnati on Sunday. The Owls were on their way to a cover as 3 ½-point home underdogs, leading the Bearcats, 41-27 two minutes into the second half. However, Cincinnati rallied back to take the lead with less than six minutes remaining as the Owls were handed their first AAC home loss in four tries this season.

Arizona at Arizona State – 9:00 PM EST – ESPN2

It’s the first of two meetings for these Grand Canyon State rivals as the schools hook up in Tempe on Thursday. Arizona (14-7 SU, 10-10-1 ATS) jumped out to an impressive 4-0 start in Pac-12 play, but the Wildcats have gone backwards of late by dropping three of the past four games. The last two defeats in Los Angeles were especially ugly as Arizona lost by 23 points at USC last Thursday and suffered a 21-point setback at UCLA on Saturday.

Arizona State (14-6 SU, 10-9-1 ATS) also spent the weekend in the City of Angels and picked up a split after winning at UCLA and dropping a two-point decision at USC. The Sun Devils were tripped up by Utah as 11-point favorites in their Pac-12 opener, but ASU has not lost in Tempe since then by beating Colorado, Oregon, and Oregon State at Wells Fargo Arena. Last season, Bobby Hurley’s squad put together a dreadful 4-12-2 ATS mark in conference play, but the Sun Devils have already started 4-4 ATS inside the league.

This series has been owned by Arizona, who has captured the last six meetings over the previous three seasons. Since ASU upset Arizona as 8 ½-point underdogs in 2015, the Wildcats have won three straight in Tempe, including a seven-point victory last February.

Gonzaga at BYU – 11:00 PM EST – ESPN2

The top team in the West Coast Conference since 2000 remains on that pedestal this season as Gonzaga (19-2 SU, 15-6 ATS) sits atop the league with a perfect 6-0 mark. The Bulldogs have won all six WCC games by 18 points or more, including a 98-39 thrashing of Santa Clara as a 21-point road favorite last Thursday. Gonzaga jumped out to a 53-17 halftime lead and never looked back as six Bulldogs scored in double-figures, led by 18 points from Josh Perkins. The victory snapped a two-game ATS slide as the Bulldogs improved to 4-2 ATS inside the WCC.

The Bulldogs head to Provo for their first meeting with BYU (13-9 SU, 9-13 ATS) since whipping the Cougars in last season’s WCC tournament championship, 74-54. BYU bounced back from a 19-point setback at San Francisco to knock off St. Mary’s at home, 71-66 last Thursday as short underdogs. The Cougars have hit the UNDER in four of the past five games, while avenging a 20-point road loss to the Gaels earlier this month. BYU moved to 10-1 at home on the season, while winning nine of the past 10 home contests against WCC foes with the lone loss coming to Gonzaga last season.

Gonzaga grabbed all three meetings from BYU in 2018, including a 14-point triumph in Provo. BYU has lost seven of the past 10 matchups with Gonzaga, but interestingly enough all three wins came in Spokane. The last time the Cougars beat the Bulldogs at home was back in 2014, while the last victory by BYU in the series occurred in 2017 as hefty 21-point road underdogs.

Conference USA Action

Old Dominion took a trip to Meltdown City on Saturday as the Monarchs (6-3 in C-USA) squandered a 17-point deficit in the final four minutes of regulation in a 74-73 setback at UTSA. The Monarchs not only saw their five-game winning streak end, but ODU slipped to 2-7 ATS in league action. ODU hosts North Texas (6-2 in C-USA) in a battle of two of the top four teams in the league. The Mean Green bounced back from a three-point home loss to UAB by ripping Middle Tennessee, 70-53. UNT is listed as a conference underdog for the first time this season, while posting a 6-1 ATS mark as a C-USA road ‘dog in 2018.

Rice and Charlotte have each struggled of late as both teams have dropped four of their last five games. The Owls (3-5 in C-USA) have hung in their past three setbacks to UTEP, North Texas, and UAB as Rice lost by a total of five points in those defeats. Charlotte (2-7 in C-USA) has been a beast from an ATS perspective by covering in seven of the past eight contests, including in four straight home games. Rice captured the only meeting last season in a 73-64 victory as a 1 ½-point home underdog.

Both Southern Mississippi and FIU sit in the middle of the conference standings as the teams meet in Miami. The Golden Eagles (4-5 in C-USA) are coming off a demolishing effort against Marshall by handing the Thundering Herd a 50-point defeat last Saturday. Southern Miss has taken care of its business at home in conference play by going 4-1, but is 0-4 away from Hattiesburg. FIU (4-4 in C-USA) has alternated wins and losses in league action after losing by 17 points at home to rival FAU. The Panthers are 1-2 at home in C-USA play, while splitting two meetings with Southern Miss last season.

Louisiana Tech has been tremendous at home (12-0), but has slumped to a 3-7 record away from Ruston. The Bulldogs (5-4 in C-USA) head to Boca Raton to face FAU (3-5 in C-USA), as the Owls snapped a four-game skid by routing FIU last Saturday. Louisiana Tech is coming off a pair of impressive home wins over Marshall and Western Kentucky, but the Bulldogs own an 0-4 road record in C-USA play, including two losses as an away favorite.

Marshall jumped out to an impressive 5-0 record in C-USA play, but the Thundering Herd (5-3 in C-USA) has lost three straight games. The Herd played one of its worst games in program history in last Saturday’s 101-51 drubbing at Southern Miss as Marshall shot 25% from the floor. Marshall hosts UTEP (2-6 in C-USA), as the Miners ended a three-game losing streak in a four-point victory over Charlotte. UTEP failed to cover as five-point favorites, dropping its ATS mark to 1-7, which includes an 0-3 ATS ledger away from El Paso.

UTSA pulled off the comeback of the season by shocking Old Dominion last Saturday by ending the game on a 22-4 run to edge the Monarchs, 74-73. The Roadrunners (6-2 in C-USA) moved to 5-0 at home in league action, but UTSA will try to end a two-game road skid with a trip to Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers (4-4 in C-USA) bounced back from a three-game losing streak to win three consecutive contests prior to a 12-point setback at Louisiana Tech. WKU is riding a six-game UNDER streak, including three straight UNDERS at home.

Temple at Houston: The Cougars are favored by 5.5 with a first half total of 66 and I have Houston leading 32-29 at the half, so an under play in this one. Temple isn’t the defensive giant of a few years ago, but they still play decent defense, at least in the first half, where they’re allowing 32.2 points per game, while the Cougars allow just 28 in the first 20 minutes. The Cougars score 35.8, while Temple scores 33.7.

Southern Miss at Florida International: FIU is favored by .5 points with a first half total of 72.5 and I have this one at 80 points, so an over play in this one. There is a 7.5-point difference between the projection and the first-half line, so will count this as a play, as we moved the difference in overs from 5 to 7 points after a bit of a sluggish start. Southern Miss scores as much in the first half as they do in the second, while FIU allows the same number of points in each half.

James Madison at Charleston: Charleston is favored by 1 with a first half total of 66, while I have the home team leading 30-28 in this one. JMU scores just 30.6 and allows 32.9 in the first half, while Charleston scores 33 and allows 30.

UTEP at Marshall: Conflicting styles here, as Marshall is favored by 5.5 with a total of 71 and I have the Thundering Herd leading 34-31 at the break. Marshall scores 38.6 and allows 38.7 in the first half, while UTEP scores 29.2 points and allows 28.5. The Miners need to stay close, since if they fall behind and have to pick up the pace it will be a long night.

Long Beach State at Hawaii: The Warriors are favored by 4 in the first half with a total of 69 and I have Hawaii leading 33-30 at the break. Both teams have been a bit slow to get started in games, scoring and allowing more in the second half.

Iona at Marist: Iona is favored by .5 with a first half total of 74.5 and I have this one at 68 points, primarily due to Marist’s defense, which is allowing less than 30 first-half points.