Friday's Tip Sheet
By Brian Edwards
Bettors can get an early jump on BracketBuster Weekend with a pair of games on tap for Friday night. Also, there are four Ivy League games on the college hoops card.
**Illinois State at Niagara**
--Las Vegas Sports Consultants opened Niagara (21-7 straight up, 17-9 against the spread) as a 2 ½-point favorite with a total of 138.
--Illinois St. (22-5 SU, 13-10 ATS) has won three in a row both SU and ATS, including Wednesday’s 74-59 victory over Wichita. St. as a nine-point home favorite. Chamberlain Oguchi scored a team-high 16 points for the Redbirds.
--Illinois St. owns an 11-5 record in conference play, leaving it one game back of the Missouri Valley co-leaders, Creighton and No. Iowa. The Redbirds played a soft non-conference schedule, however. In fact, they didn’t face one BCS school.
--The winner of this game might have an outside chance at earning an at-large NCAA Tournament bid if they don’t capture their respective conference tournament titles. I say that because Illinois St. is 58th and Niagara is No. 62 in the RPI rankings.
--The Purple Eagles have won eight of their 10 home games, cashing tickets at a 6-4 ATS pace. Unlike Illinois St., they did face a pair of Big East foes. Niagara lost by 15 at Villanova but won by 15 at South Fla.
--Illinois St. has watched the ‘over’ hit at a 14-8 overall clip.
--The ‘under’ is 14-10 overall for Niagara, 5-4 in its home games.
--ESPN2 will provide television coverage at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
**Virginia Commonwealth at Nevada**
--LVSC opened Nevada (15-10 SU, 8-15 ATS) as a three-point ‘chalk.’
--VCU (19-8 SU, 9-14-1 ATS) leads the Colonial with a 12-4 record. The Rams have been atrocious lately for our purposes, limping to a 1-7 spread record in their last eight games.
--Nevada has been horrible at home this year. The Wolf Pack is 8-6 SU but an abysmal 2-10 versus the number in Reno.
--Eric Maynor is the catalyst for VCU. All gamblers remember his last-second shot to beat Duke in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament. Maynor is averaging a team-high 22.9 points and 6.1 assists per game.
--VCU bounced back from a loss at Old Dominion by beating Delaware 78-67. However, the Rams failed to take the money as 14-point home favorites.
--The Rams are 2-3 ATS in five games as underdogs this season. They covered the number in a 71-60 loss at Oklahoma as 14-point ‘dogs. In VCU’s only other game against a school from a BCS conference, it lost 71-66 to Vandy on a neutral court.
--Anthony Grant’s squad has seen the ‘over’ cash in four consecutive games. The Rams have watched the ‘over’ go 13-9-1 for the season.
--The ‘under’ is 13-10 overall for Nevada, 7-5 in its home assignments.
--Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPNU.
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DARTMOUTH (6 - 16) at PENNSYLVANIA (8 - 13)
Top Trends for this game.
PENNSYLVANIA is 50-72 ATS (-29.2 Units) in all home games since 1997.
PENNSYLVANIA is 50-72 ATS (-29.2 Units) in home lined games since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
DARTMOUTH is 3-2 against the spread versus PENNSYLVANIA over the last 3 seasons
PENNSYLVANIA is 4-1 straight up against DARTMOUTH over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
HARVARD (10 - 12) at PRINCETON (9 - 11)
Top Trends for this game.
HARVARD is 3-11 ATS (-9.1 Units) in all games this season.
HARVARD is 3-11 ATS (-9.1 Units) in all lined games this season.
HARVARD is 6-17 ATS (-12.7 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 3-14 ATS (-12.4 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 3-14 ATS (-12.4 Units) in road lined games over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 1-7 ATS (-6.7 Units) against conference opponents this season.
HARVARD is 0-6 ATS (-6.6 Units) in road games on Friday nights over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 4-16 ATS (-13.6 Units) after a conference game over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 7-19 ATS (-13.9 Units) in road games revenging a home loss vs opponent since 1997.
HARVARD is 3-12 ATS (-10.2 Units) off a loss against a conference rival over the last 2 seasons.
HARVARD is 1-7 ATS (-6.7 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
HARVARD is 2-9 ATS (-7.9 Units) versus poor offensive teams - scoring <=64 points/game over the last 2 seasons.
PRINCETON is 6-17 ATS (-12.7 Units) off a loss against a conference rival over the last 3 seasons.
PRINCETON is 4-14 ATS (-11.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record after 15 or more games over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
HARVARD is 3-2 against the spread versus PRINCETON over the last 3 seasons
PRINCETON is 3-2 straight up against HARVARD over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
CORNELL (17 - 7) at YALE (9 - 13)
Top Trends for this game.
CORNELL is 73-41 ATS (+27.9 Units) in road games since 1997.
CORNELL is 73-41 ATS (+27.9 Units) in road lined games since 1997.
CORNELL is 48-30 ATS (+15.0 Units) in road games against conference opponents since 1997.
CORNELL is 48-28 ATS (+17.2 Units) in road games after a conference game since 1997.
CORNELL is 42-22 ATS (+17.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a losing record since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
CORNELL is 4-1 against the spread versus YALE over the last 3 seasons
CORNELL is 4-1 straight up against YALE over the last 3 seasons
4 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
COLUMBIA (10 - 12) at BROWN (7 - 15)
Top Trends for this game.
COLUMBIA is 20-10 ATS (+9.0 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 20-10 ATS (+9.0 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 83-58 ATS (+19.2 Units) as an underdog since 1997.
COLUMBIA is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) in road lined games over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 48-30 ATS (+15.0 Units) in road games against conference opponents since 1997.
COLUMBIA is 32-14 ATS (+16.6 Units) in road games in February games since 1997.
COLUMBIA is 48-26 ATS (+19.4 Units) in road games after a conference game since 1997.
COLUMBIA is 16-6 ATS (+9.4 Units) in road games off a win against a conference rival since 1997.
COLUMBIA is 7-0 ATS (+7.0 Units) in road games after allowing 60 points or less over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 10-1 ATS (+8.9 Units) after scoring 60 points or less over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 12-4 ATS (+7.6 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
COLUMBIA is 25-12 ATS (+11.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a losing record after 15 or more games since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
COLUMBIA is 3-2 against the spread versus BROWN over the last 3 seasons
BROWN is 3-2 straight up against COLUMBIA over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
ILLINOIS ST (22 - 5) at NIAGARA (21 - 7)
Top Trends for this game.
NIAGARA is 19-9 ATS (+9.1 Units) in all games this season.
NIAGARA is 19-9 ATS (+9.1 Units) in all lined games this season.
NIAGARA is 16-8 ATS (+7.2 Units) as a favorite this season.
NIAGARA is 19-9 ATS (+9.1 Units) when playing with one or less days rest over the last 3 seasons.
NIAGARA is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) in non-conference games this season.
NIAGARA is 21-8 ATS (+12.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
NIAGARA is 27-44 ATS (-21.4 Units) in home games after a conference game since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
VA COMMONWEALTH (19 - 8) at NEVADA (15 - 10)
Top Trends for this game.
VA COMMONWEALTH is 3-11 ATS (-9.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
NEVADA is 40-19 ATS (+19.1 Units) in February games since 1997.
NEVADA is 84-58 ATS (+20.2 Units) after a conference game since 1997.
VA COMMONWEALTH is 20-7 ATS (+12.3 Units) after failing to cover the spread in 3 or more consecutive games since 1997.
NEVADA is 2-10 ATS (-9.0 Units) in all home games this season.
NEVADA is 2-10 ATS (-9.0 Units) in home lined games this season.
NEVADA is 8-17 ATS (-10.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
NEVADA is 2-10 ATS (-9.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record after 15 or more games over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
COLUMBIA vs. BROWN
Columbia' is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games
Columbia' is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Brown is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Columbia
Brown is 13-4 SU in its last 17 games when playing Columbia
CORNELL vs. YALE
Cornell is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Yale
Cornell is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Yale
Yale is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Cornell
Yale is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Cornell
DARTMOUTH vs. PENNSYLVANIA
Dartmouth is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Dartmouth is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games on the road
Pennsylvania is 3-8-1 ATS in its last 12 games when playing at home against Dartmouth
Pennsylvania is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Dartmouth
HARVARD vs. PRINCETON
Harvard is 3-16 SU in its last 19 games when playing Princeton
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Harvard's last 7 games when playing Princeton
Princeton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Harvard
Princeton' is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
ILLINOIS STATE vs. NIAGARA
Illinois State' is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Illinois State' is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Niagara' is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Niagara' is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH vs. NEVADA
Virginia Commonwealth' is 1-7 ATS in its last 8 games
Virginia Commonwealth' is 11-3 SU in its last 14 games
Nevada' is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games
Nevada' is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games
NCAAB Today
Notes on today's games.
Penn Quakers (-5.5/) lost 63-60 at Dartmouth Jan 31, their first loss in last 11 series games; Big Green lost last five visits here by 18-27-16-20- 2 points- dog covered last four series games. Dartmouth is 4-4 in the Ivy with three of eight going OT- they're 2-1 as road dog, losing by 13-3 pts on road last week. Road team covered six of Penn's seven Ivy games.
Harvard lost last five visitx to Princeton by 8-22-27-16-14 points (0-4 vs spread last four); Tigers (+6.5) won 77-71 at Harvard Jan 31, as each team made 56%+ from floor- it was first road team win in last six series games. Princeton lost last three games by 12-18-7 points, after 4-0 start in league play. Harvard lost six of its last seven games (1-7 vs spread).
Yale (+12.5) lost 64-36 at Cornell Jan 31, shooting 23% from floor (was 34-13 at half); Bulldogs are 2-1 at home in Ivy, losing by 5 to Penn last game. Cornell is back in first place, winning last three games by 15-21-3 points; they're 2-1 on Ivy road, winning by 12-15- they won six of last seven series games, but lost four of last five visits to this gym.
Brown (+4) lost 65-59 at Columbia Jan 31, shooting 38% from the floor, 3-18 from arc; Bears are 1-7 in Ivy, with favorites 3-0 vs spread in their home games. Lions lost last five visits here by 9-24-9-5-5 points; they're 5-1 in last six games, but 1-2 on Ivy road, losing by 11-28 points, with a 74-63 win at Penn. Ivy League home favorites are 7-12 vs spread.
Illinois State won three in row, five of last six games, winning last three road games by 3-2-22 points- they allowed 57.3 ppg in last three games. Missouri Valley road underdogs are 7-10 vs spread. Niagara won six of last seven games, losing 90-87 at Rider last game- they won four in a row at home. MAAC home favorites are 6-10 against the spread.
Road team won last five Nevada games, as Wolf Pack lost last two home games, to La Tech/New Mexico State; four of their last five games were decided by five or less points. VCU lost last two road games, by 9-4 pts they have very young team, other than stellar senior PG Maynor. CAA road dogs are 17-17 vs spread. WAC home favorites are 12-19.