CBI Finals, Game 1
By Brian Edwards
For gamblers that are on fire and have zero interest in taking a break from college hoops until this coming Final Four weekend, well, then you’re in luck! That’s because we’ve got action the next three nights in the secondary tournaments.
These games might fly well under the national radar, but there are lines out, wagers to be made and money to be had. Therefore, let’s take a look at Monday’s Game 1 of the CBI finals in Corvallis.
Las Vegas Sports Consultants opened Texas El-Paso (22-12 straight up, 19-11-1 against the spread) as a one-point favorite with a total of 130. As of early Sunday night, most books had UTEP at one with the total adjusted to 131 ½.
Oregon State (16-17 SU, 14-14 ATS) has enjoyed a revival of sorts under first-year head coach Craig Robinson. For starters, since Robinson is the brother-in-law of President Obama, the Beavers have received some national attention along that front.
Most importantly, OSU has gone from a team winless in the Pac 10 in 2007-2008 to a squad that knocked off NCAA-bound schools like California (twice) and USC during the course of the regular season. And now, despite a below .500 overall record, the Beavers are on the cusp of hoisting a trophy and have set the tone for next season with a trio of postseason victories, the first time they have consecutive postseason games since a 1982-83 NIT run.
In all three games of the CBI Tournament, Oregon St. has been a home underdog. I was tempted to play the Beavers all three times but due to inexplicable reluctance, I only pulled the trigger in their last outing, a 65-62 overtime win over Stanford as four-point ‘dogs.
Lathen Wallace scored a team-high 16 points against the Cardinal. In a 71-70 overtime win over Vermont in the second round, Calvin Haynes scored 19 points and made the game winner with six seconds left. OSU also knocked off Houston by a 49-45 count in the first round.
Oregon St. owns a 12-7 SU record and a 9-6 ATS mark at home. The Beavers have been particularly lucrative as home underdogs, compiling a 9-3 spread ledger.
UTEP finished in a fourth-place tie with Houston in the Conference USA regular-season standings. The Miners have already gone on the road and won twice in this event, winning 79-77 at Nevada in the opening round. They also ripped Richmond 81-69 in their last outing.
Stefon Jackson dropped 34 points on the Spiders. Jackson is one of the nation’s most explosive scorers, averaging 23.8 points per game. He is currently listed as the No. 45 pick in the second round of the 2009 Mock Draft on NBADraft.net.
The ‘under’ is 17-11 overall for Oregon St., 10-5 in its home games. Regardless of venue, the ‘under’ is 10-4 in the Beavers’ last 14 games.
On the flip side, the ‘over’ is 18-11-1 overall for UTEP. The ‘over’ has cashed in each of the Miners’ last five games (regardless of venue).
This game is slated to tip at 10:05 p.m. Eastern.
vegasinsider.com
Texas El Paso Miners vs. Oregon State Beavers
The Texas El Paso Miners and the Oregon State Beavers will both be trying to pick up a win on Monday when they battle at Gill Coliseum in the first game of the championship series of the CBI tournament.
Stefon Jackson scored 34 points in leading Texas El Paso to a 81-69 victory over Richmond in the tournament semifinals last week. That game's 150 points made it OVER the posted total of 143.5.
Randy Culpepper added 19 points for Texas El Paso in that win.
Oregon State advanced to the championship with a 65-62 upset over Stanford in OT last week. That game's 127 points went UNDER the night's posted total of 128.
Lathen Wallace tossed in 16 points from 5-for-8 shooting, and Roeland Schaftenaar added 14 points in that win.
Team records:
Texas El Paso: 22-12 SU, 19-11-1 ATS
Oregon State: 16-17 SU, 13-14-1 ATS
Texas El Paso most recently:
When playing on Monday are 4-6
After a win are 6-4
Oregon State most recently:
When playing on Monday are 6-4
After playing Stanford are 5-5
After a win are 7-3
A few trends to consider:
Texas El Paso is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Texas El Paso is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Oregon State is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
Next up:
Texas El Paso home to Oregon State, Wednesday, April 1
Oregon State at Texas El Paso, Wednesday, April 1
UTEP (22 - 12) at OREGON ST (16 - 17)
Top Trends for this game.
UTEP is 20-11 ATS (+7.9 Units) in all games this season.
UTEP is 20-11 ATS (+7.9 Units) in all lined games this season.
UTEP is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) in road games this season.
UTEP is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) in road lined games this season.
UTEP is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
UTEP is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) in non-conference games this season.
OREGON ST is 5-14 ATS (-10.4 Units) when the total is 130 to 139.5 over the last 2 seasons.
OREGON ST is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) in a home game where the total is 130 to 134.5 over the last 3 seasons.
OREGON ST is 13-24 ATS (-13.4 Units) after a conference game over the last 2 seasons.
OREGON ST is 86-123 ATS (-49.3 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1997.
OREGON ST is 50-75 ATS (-32.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record after 15 or more games since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
CBI Tournament - Championship Series - Best of 3 - Game 1
UTEP at OREGON STATE
UTEP: 6-0 Over when the total is 130 to 139.5
OREGON ST: 7-0 ATS as home dog of 6pts or less
TEXAS EL PASO vs. OREGON STATE
Texas El Paso is 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
Texas El Paso is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Oregon State is 2-4-1 ATS in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Oregon State's last 5 games
NCAAB Today
CBI tournament
UTEP-Oregon State are playing best-of-3 series in finals-- this is Game 1, with Game 2 in El Paso Wednesday, Game 3 back here Friday.
Oregon State's three wins in the CBI are all at home; 49-45 vs Houston, 71-70 in OT over Vermont, 65-62 in OT over Stanford, they trailed two of the three at halftime. UTEP had to win two road games to get here-- 79-77 at Nevada, 81-69 at Richmond- they also beat Northeastern 75-66 at home. Miners lost 88-58 to Arizona State on neutral court, in its only game vs Pac-10 foe, back in November. Beavers won five in row at home
CBI Tournament Research
By Indiancowboy
UTEP vs. Oregon State
As you know, I'm a fan of Oregon State and their coach who used to be an executive in the financial world (when it was successful) and then moved on to coach Brown University in basketball and then chugged along to coach Oregon State. Not bad eh, from financial manager to Ivy League Coach to Pac-10 Basketball Coach. He is also the brother in-law of Barack Obama as well. These two teams have had no recent meetings. Oregon State has accomplished the following in their last 3 games including beating Houston by 4 at home, beating Vermont by 1 in OT and beating Stanford by 3 in OT as well. The last 4 of 5 have gone Under for Oregon State - albeit the Vermont game went over b/c that game went into OT. The total for this game stands at 131.5. Oregon State is a top 120 team and UTEP is a top 80 team. Remember, if Oregon State can defeat a top 80 team in Houston, a top 80 team in Stanford and a top 60 team in Stanford, there is no reason why Oregon State can win this game as well. However, they have had to win these games in OT - nevertheless, they have had the crowd's support behind them. UTEP comes from the C-USA obviously so maybe the CUSA will try to bring a home a championship of another sort today. This team has had a tougher road as they won on the road at Richmond by 11 on the road, defeated Northeastern by home at 9 and Nevada on the road by 2. All three of those teams were top 125 teams. What's interesting about this game is that this UTEP team scores 79, 75 and 81 points in their last 3 games while Oregon State is a defensive team that scored just 45 points against Houston - another C-USA team. UTEP has faced some other Pac-10 teams including losing to New Mexico State by 12 and they have had some other west coast games including defeating St. Mary's by 13 in neutral footing, losing to Arizona State by 30 in neutral footing and lost to Santa Clara by 1 in OT on the road - granted they did beat New Mexico by 13 on the road. I know it seems very easy to Oregon State here and they very well might cover, but from what UTEP has showed over the last few games, they have the ability to win some big games on the road and Nevada and Richmond are both similarly ranked teams Oregon State. A small lean on the under, but I'm just staying away from this game.