NCAAB News and Notes Saturday 1/15

Orange host Bearcats in Big East betting matchup
By: Joe Freda

The No. 4 Syracuse Orange have begun their season winning 17 straight games, with a 3-2 spread record in their last five ‘board’ battles. Jim Boeheim’s squad looks to extend its streak in Saturday afternoon’s home duel against the Cincinnati Bearcats, who are 1-3 ATS in their four contests against Big East Conference foes.

Syracuse notched its latest victory with Wednesday’s 76-59 win as a three-point road favorite against the St. John’s Red Storm. The Orange held St. John’s to 36.8 percent field shooting, allowing only 2-for-12 to connect from three-point land.

Orange forward Kris Joseph logged a team-high 18 points, hitting 8-of-11 from the field. The junior finished with two steals for a third straight game, while adding five boards.

Joseph’s mate Rick Jackson piled in 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. The Philadelphia native notched his first double-double in four games, while recording two of his team’s five blocks.

The lopsided affair’s combined 135 points leaped above the ‘total’ of 132, ending a 3-0 ‘under’ streak from Syracuse’s prior three games. Jackson and Co. edged out the Red Storm in boards, 32-26, while finishing with 20 turnovers.

Syracuse is 3-6 ATS in its last nine home ‘board’ dates, with the ‘under’ going 6-3. The Orange have put up 76.1 PPG in that span.

Cincinnati picked up a 74-66 win as a 13-point home favorite in Wednesday’s battle against the South Florida Bulls. The Bearcats prevailed despite South Florida sinking 45.7 percent of its field buckets and 21-of-24 free throws.

Bearcats guard Sean Kilpatrick notched a team-high 18 points, playing 23 minutes off the bench. The freshman drained 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, while adding three assists.

Cincinnati’s Dion Dixon grabbed a team-high six boards en route to finishing with 11 points. The Bearcats’ leading scorer (12.5 PPG) failed to log a steal for the first time in three games.

The contest’s combined 140 points soared above the ‘total’ of 121 ½, dropping the ‘under’ to 6-1 in Cincy’s last seven NCAA odds duels. Dixon and Co. logged a sparse seven turnovers, while South Florida committed 18 of them.

Cincinnati is 2-1 ATS in its first three road games, with the ‘under’ also going 2-1. The Bearcats have allowed a stingy 55.7 PPG in that stretch.

Syracuse won last February’s matchup against the Bearcats, 71-54, covering ATS as a four-point road favorite. The Orange went 8-for-16 from three-point range, while Cincy’s Yancy Gates hit 5-of-5 from the field. Both squads struggled to connect from the foul line, uniting to sink a meager 24-of-44.

Saturday’s tip is scheduled for 9 a.m. (PT), with ESPN3.com providing television coverage.

The Orange are in a potential look-ahead situation, visiting the No. 5 Pittsburgh Panthers as part of Monday’s college hoops schedule. Cincinnati will be off for three days, resuming action with Wednesday’s road matchup against the No. 11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Texas A&M, Missouri Big 12 betting brawl
By: Michael Robinson

A battle of offense versus defense will be on full display Saturday afternoon when the No. 12 Missouri Tigers visit the No. 13 Texas A&M Aggies. Missouri has had no luck in recent years against its Big 12 counterpart.

Texas A&M (15-1 straight-up, 6-1-1 against the spread) wasn’t a preseason top-25 team under coach Mark Turgeon. Losing senior guards Donald Sloan and Derrick Roland, plus big man Bryan Davis, was the big reason.

Turgeon has retooled the lineup from year’s 24-10 SU squad. Khris Middleton, a 6-foot-7 sophomore, has increased his scoring average from 7.2 PPG to 15 PPG. He forms an underrated frontline with 6-foot-7 senior Nathan Walkup (10.3 PPG) and 6-foot-8 junior David Loubeau (11.4 PPG).

The scoring is less from the backcourt with the tandem of B.J. Holmes (9.3 PPG) and point guard Dash Harris (3.8 PPG). Dash is only shooting 26.7 percent from the field, but his defense up top sets the tone for the nation’s fifth-ranked unit (55.7 PPG allowed).

Texas A&M is riding a 12-game winning streak after a 71-48 home win over Big 12 Oklahoma State on Wednesday. Loubeau and Walkup each had 16 points and OSU leading scorer Marshall Moses (16.6 PPG) was held to 10. The Aggies are 2-0 SU and ATS in the conference.

The 119 combined points scored against Oklahoma State went ‘under’ the 127 point total. The ‘under’ is 6-1-1 in games that had a total this season.

The Aggies have let up more than 65 points just once this year. That was a 67-65 defeat to Boston College in the Old Spice Classic on Thanksgiving. The BC game was part of a tough non-conference slate that included No. 20 Temple and No. 22 Washington. The Huskies are third in the country in scoring (86.8 PPG), but Texas A&M got a 63-62 home win.

Texas A&M is 10-0 SU at home this year, with only three lined games (2-0-1 ATS). It went 7-1 SU and 6-2 ATS in Big 12 home games last year.

Missouri (15-2 SU, 5-7 ATS) is the nation’s fifth-highest scoring team (85.2 PPG). Coach Mike Anderson is in his fifth year with the team, making the NCAA tourney the last two years (Texas A&M has made five straight).

Anderson is a disciple of Nolan Richardson’s ‘40 minutes of hell.’ His full-court pressure defense causes major havoc for teams not ready for it and some that are. Offensively, Missouri is the top scoring team in the Big 12, and also leads in three-point percentage (38.2 percent) plus is second in three-point attempts (335).

Missouri has five scorers in double-digits led by junior guard Marcus Denmon. He’s hitting a whopping 50.5 percent of his ‘threes.’ Denmon scored 27 points and was 5-of-7 from long range last Wednesday against Nebraska (a 77-69 home win).

The Tigers failed to ‘cover’ as 11-point favorites against Nebraska. Their only other Big 12 game was at Colorado, an 89-76 loss as 3 ½-point favorites. Missouri was 4-4 SU and ATS in Big 12 road games last year.

Anderson is 0-4 SU and ATS against Texas A&M the last four years, with all four going ‘over.’ Texas A&M has won six in row SU against Missouri and nine in a row ATS.

Missouri will try to wear down Texas A&M with its pressure and greater depth, but Texas A&M has the guard play that can handle the pressure.

Neither team is reporting any significant injuries. ESPN2 will have the tip-off from Reed Arena in College Station at 10:00 a.m. (PT).

Kentucky, LSU meet at Rupp Arena
By: Adam Markowitz

Rupp Arena in Lexington is going to be the site of a Saturday afternoon NCAA basketball betting affair, as the Kentucky Wildcats look to sew up another SEC victory at home against the LSU Tigers.

The tip for this matchup is slated for 1 p.m. (PT), and the duel can be seen nationally on ESPN3.com and ESPN Full Court.

LSU might be a 10-win team, but the Tigers are really going to be in for a rude awakening in this one if they think they stand a chance at competing against Kentucky. Sure, a three-point win over the Arkansas Razorbacks was nice, but we know that there isn't a team in the SEC West that can hold a candle to a team this good from the SEC East.

Thus far in 2010-11 on the road, the Tigers only have one even remotely notable win, and that came just last week at the Auburn Tigers. In football, that would be an impressive feat. In basketball, not so much.

The defense for the Bayou Bengals is key, as this unit as held foes to just 54.0 PPG thus far in SEC play. Opponents are only averaging 62.1 PPG for the season, but there really hasn't been a foe of this quality on the slate either.

With Ralston Turner probably out of the lineup on Saturday, all of the offensive pressure is going to shift to Andre Stringer, who is the only other double-digit scorer for the Tigers at 13.4 PPG. He put up just 11 on the Hogs on Wednesday, but the team survived at home regardless.

Stringer rarely comes off the court, playing at least 35 minutes in three straight games, and he might have to go the whole way if the Tigers have any chance of staying competitive here at Rupp Arena.

The Wildcats are still looking for their first cover in SEC play this year, going 0-2 ATS to show for their two performances to date. They beat the Auburn Tigers by 24 on Tuesday, but the end result was a near miss by the hook of beating the NCAA basketball odds.

The youthful 'Cats are averaging just under 80 PPG this year, and they have some tremendous scoring options that they can turn to on a nightly basis. Terrence Jones is the leader of the pack at 18.7 PPG, but Brandon Knight isn't all that far behind at 17.4 PPG. Jones has had the really big nights thus far in conference play, averaging 29.5 PPG and 9.0 RPG against SEC opponents.

Depth is the big problem for head coach John Calipari though, as he only uses eight players on a nightly basis, and his top six all average at least 25.5 MPG.

LSU did win a game here in Lexington two seasons ago, so it knows that the feat can be pulled off. However, last year, the Wildcats absolutely spanked the Tigers, 81-55, in a real show of class. Saturday has been an awful day for LSU backers in general, with the Tigers just 16-40-2 ATS in their last 58 games played on this day of the week.

The Bayou Bengals are 4-1 ATS in their last five trips to Rupp Arena, while the road team is 6-1 ATS in the last seven overall. For 'total' bettors, the 'over' has cashed in four straight meetings between these conference rivals in the Bluegrass State.

Saturday's Early Tips
By Brian Edwards

Vanderbilt at Tennessee

Tennessee (10-6 straight up, 6-9 against the spread) will play host to Vandy in a pick ‘em affair Saturday afternoon in Knoxville.

Vanderbilt (12-3 SU, 7-4 ATS) bounced back from Saturday’s overtime loss at South Carolina in its SEC opener to beat Georgia on Wednesday night. The Commodores captured a 73-66 victory as 8½-point favorites, failing to cover the number for the third time in their last four outings. John Jenkins and Festus Ezeli scored 18 points apiece, while Jeffery Taylor chipped in with 15 points.

Tennessee is winless in a pair of SEC games, dropping an 81-75 decision to Florida in overtime Wednesday at Thompson-Boling Arena. The Gators won outright as 3 ½-point road underdogs. Cameron Tatum had a team-high 21 points in the losing effort. Scotty Hopson added 20 points, while freshman sensation Tobias Harris had 18 points and 10 rebounds.

UT raced out to a 7-0 start that was culminated with an upset win at Pittsburgh as a 7 ½-point underdog. Since then, however, the Volunteers have lost six of their last nine games, limping to an atrocious 1-7 spread record during that stretch.

Bruce Pearl won’t be on the sidelines for the third straight game, as he continues to serve an eight-game suspension levied by SEC Commissioner Mike Slive for lying to NCAA investigators last summer.

Before we write UT’s obituary in the midst of this surprising slump, let’s remember that this team did beat Villanova and, as previously mentioned, Pittsburgh. And neither of those games was played in Knoxville. Also, the Vols still have a respectable RPI ranking of 36.

Vandy is led by Taylor, who averages 14.5 points per game and is one of the SEC’s premier defenders. Also, Kevin Stalling has one of the nation’s best pure shooters in Jenkins, who averages a team-high 18.4 PPG.

Harris, the 6-8 forward who was a McDonald’s All-American, has been ‘as advertised’ as a freshman. He’s averaging 15.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Harris is currently listed as the No. 14 pick of the first round in a 2011 NBA Mock Draft at NBADraft.net.

The ‘over’ is 9-5 overall for Tennessee, 6-5 overall for Vandy.

The home team is 6-2 ATS in the last eight head-to-head meetings between these bitter in-state rivals.

Tip-off is scheduled for noon Eastern on ESPN.

Maryland at Villanova

As the numbers were released late Friday afternoon, most books had Villanova (15-1 SU, 7-5-1 ATS) listed as a 5 ½-point favorite with a total of 146.

Jay Wright’s team hasn’t tasted defeat since a Nov. 26 loss to Tennessee at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Wildcats have won 10 straight games since then, taking the cash their last four times out. They are coming off an 88-74 win over Louisville as four-point home favorites. Corey Stokes scored a team-high 23 points against the Cards, while backcourt mate Corey Fisher had 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Mouphtaou Yarou had 18 points and 11 boards.

Maryland (11-5 SU, 6-5 ATS) has played well since losing its ACC opener at home to Boston College on Dec. 12. The Terrapins gave Duke fits at Cameron Indoor Stadium last Sunday night, losing 71-64 as 14 ½-point underdogs. On Wednesday, they trounced Wake Forest by a 74-55 count as 14-point road favorites. Cliff Tucker was the catalyst with 21 points and eight rebounds, and Jordan Williams went for a double-double with 13 points and 15 boards.

Williams, a 6-10 sophomore center, is averaging team-highs in points (17.7 PPG), rebounds (12.1 RPG) and field-goal percentage (55%).

Maryland has been an underdog four times, posting a 3-1 spread record that includes a 62-39 win at Penn St.

Villanova is unbeaten in 10 home games, going 5-2-1 ATS. ‘Nova is 4-3 ATS as a single-digit favorite (regardless of home/away/neutral).

Stokes is averaging a team-high 17.0 PPG.

The ‘over’ is 8-4-1 overall for ‘Nova, 5-1-1 in its last seven games with a total. On the flip side, Maryland has seen the ‘under’ go 6-4 overall.

When these schools met at Comcast Center on Dec. 6 last season, Villanova captured a 95-86 victory as a 2½-point road ‘chalk.’ Fisher and Stokes scored 20 and 18 points, respectively.

CBS will have the telecast at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Northwestern at Michigan State

As of early Friday evening, most books had Michigan State (11-5 SU, 6-9 ATS) as an 8 ½-point favorite with a total of 142.

Northwestern (11-4 SU, 6-4 ATS) lost its first three Big Ten games both SU and ATS, but it has bounced back with a pair of wins both SU and ATS. The Wildcats went into Iowa City on Wednesday and dealt out woodshed treatment in the form of a 90-71 win over Iowa in a pick ‘em affair. Drew Crawford, a sophomore slasher who is the son of NBA ref Joey Crawford, had 19 points and six rebounds, while senior point guard Michael Thompson finished with 17 points, five assists and three steals.

Tom Izzo’s team played a brutal schedule that’ll prepare it well for March Madness. With that said, the Spartans were somewhat of a disappointment in non-conference play. However, they are off to a 3-1 start in Big Ten play after beating Wisconsin 64-61 in overtime Wednesday. MSU failed to take the cash, though, as a 4 ½-point home ‘chalk.’ Draymond Green was the difference against the Badgers, scoring 26 points to go with nine rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots.

Bill Carmody’s team is 0-4 both SU and ATS as an underdog this year. All four of those losses came to teams with RPI rankings of 27 or better. Northwestern has an RPI of 57, while Michigan St. is 27th.

Michigan St. is 2-5 ATS in seven games as a single-digit favorite. The Spartans are 7-1 SU but just 3-4 ATS at home this season.

These schools have already played this year, squaring off on Jan. 3 in Evanston. Michigan St. captured a 65-62 win at Northwestern, hooking up its backers as a 2 ½-point favorite. Green was the catalyst for the winners, producing 15 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots. Crawford had 17 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots in the losing effort.

The ‘over’ is 8-2 overall for Northwestern, cashing at a 7-1 clip in its last eight games with a total.

The ‘under’ is 9-6 overall for Michigan St., 6-2 in its last eight games.

Tip-off is slated for 1:00 p.m. Eastern on the Big Ten Network.

B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets

The first game that'll come off the board Saturday is Marquette at Louisville on ESPN2 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern. The Wynn opened the Cardinals as seven-point home favorites.

Florida senior power forward Alex Tyus played the best game of his collegiate career in Wednesday’s win at Tennessee. His stat line was excellent – 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, seven rebounds and three blocked shots -- but didn’t tell the whole story. With just a few ticks left in regulation, Tyus had a crucial blocked shot to force the extra session. Then early in OT, he had a steal and break-out dunk to put UF in control for good. The Gators, who have an RPI of 10, are 10-point home favorite vs. South Carolina on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. Eastern.

San Diego State will put its unbeaten 16-0 record on the line tonight at The Pit in New Mexico. The Aztecs, who are No. 2 in the RPI rankings, are one-point road favorites.

Florida St. is in a major letdown situation Saturday when it hosts North Carolina State as an eight-point home favorite. The Seminoles are coming off an upset win over top-ranked Duke on Wednesday as 7½-point home underdogs.

Kansas St. star guard Jacob Pullen declared after Wednesday’s home loss to Colorado that “he will not play in the NIT.”

vegasinsider.com.

Saturday's Showdowns
By Matt Fargo

Matt will be taking a look at the weekend Top 25 matchups in college hoops every week. This week only two games feature a matchup of teams from the AP Top 25.

Missouri Tigers (15) at Texas A&M Aggies (14)

Missouri is fresh off its revenge win, non-cover over Nebraska on Wednesday to improve to 1-1 in the Big XII following an upset loss at Colorado in its conference opener a week ago. That was the Tigers first true road loss of the season although it was just their second road game of the year, the first resulting in a three-point win at Oregon. This will mark the first game this season that Missouri will be an underdog after going 2-5 ATS as pups last season, losing six of those games outright.

Texas A&M is undefeated at home with a 10-0 record and it has won 12 straight games following a two-point loss against Boston College in Florida, its only blemish on the season. The Aggies are coming off a blowout win over Oklahoma St. by 23 points on Wednesday to increase its winning margin at home to 18.2 PPG. While they own solid wins over Washington and Temple as well, only half of their 16 games have been lined showing the overall weakness of the non-conference schedule.

Surprisingly with both teams being successful over recent years, the Aggies have owned this series, winning six straight games while covering nine in a row. Missouri's last win in College Station was February 17th, 2001. The Aggies have won the last three home meetings by an average of 18 ppg which fits right into this year’s home scoring margin. Texas A&M is 12-3-1 ATS in its last 16 games against teams with a winning percentage better than .600 so it has stepped up when needed.

Illinois Fighting Illini (16) at Wisconsin Badgers (20)

The loser of this game is no doubt dropping out of the rankings next week and quite possibly both could be ousted depending on this outcome. Both Illinois and Wisconsin are coming off road losses on Wednesday as the Illini fell to Penn State, the second straight upset for the Nittany Lions, while the Badgers went down in overtime against Michigan St. Even though we are not even half done with January, this is an early season revenge game for Wisconsin.

The first meeting took place in Illinois on January 2nd with the Illini winning by eight points. Wisconsin shot a woeful 35 percent while Illinois nailed 56.1 percent of its shots including 50 percent from long range. The game was as close as it was because the Badgers committed only three turnovers, a category they lead the nation in, averaging only 8.3 tpg. Illinois has now won three of the last four meetings in this series dating back to the start of last season and the favorite is on a 5-2-1 ATS run.

It will be tough to go against the Badgers as they haven't lost consecutive games in more than two years, having won 17 straight games coming off a loss. Returning home certainly helps as well as they are 9-0 this season and Wisconsin has won 30 of its last 31 games at the Kohl Center, with Illinois taking credit for the only defeat. The Illini were the only team to beat the Badgers at the Kohl Center a year ago with a 63-56 win on February 9th. The Illini are a solid 11-5 ATS in their last 16 roadies.

What to watch: College Hoops Betting TV Guide
By Dave Carey

Marquette Golden Eagles at Louisville Cardinals, 11 a.m. ET ESPN2

Forward Terrance Jennings seems to have a permanent place in head coach Rick Pitino’s doghouse for failing to use his massive frame. Jennings earned 13 minutes in a recent win over South Florida and notched had a team-high 12 points, but snagged a mere two rebounds.

“He’s signing his European contract,” Pitino said. “If you’re 6-foot-9 and you don’t rebound and block shots and be the best defensive player on the team then … he’s going to have to get a job like the rest of us.”

Vanderbilt Commodores at Tennessee Volunteers, 12 p.m. ET ESPN

The first SEC road game for Vanderbilt this year? An 83-75 overtime loss to South Carolina that saw the Commodores go scoreless for about the final three minutes of regulation and only notch three points in all over the five-minute overtime period. The problem is the team’s depth.

The Commodores remain shorthanded in the frontcourt without forward Andre Walker, whose sprained left ankle will sideline him at least another week. Overall, the team played just eight players in the loss.

Georgetown Hoyas at Rutgers Scarlett Knights, 12 p.n. ET ESPNU

Rutgers has found its lockdown defender. Sophomore swingman Dane Miller (9.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 1.9 bpg, 1.1 spg) held Providence senior star Marshon Brooks to just 2-for-6 shooting in the second half of an 85-72 win. Overall, the Friars made a mere 30 percent of their field goals. The Scarlett Knights also blocked 10 shots as the team’s emphasis on defense appears to be strong at the start of conference play.

Maryland Terrapins at Villanova Wildcats, 1 p.m. ET CBS

The Terrapins are improving. After losing at Duke by 41 points two years ago and by 21 last season, it took everything the top-ranked Blue Devils had to pull away for a seven-point win last week. One of the reasons for Maryland succeeding has been a move to bring senior Cliff Tucker (11.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.9 apg) off the bench, but give him starter’s minutes.

Missouri Tigers at Texas A&M Aggies, 1 p.m. ET ESPN2

The Aggies seem to finally have found a reliable scorer off the bench. Sophomore guard Naji Hibbert is averaging 7.5 points per game. However, he dropped 14 in a win over Oklahoma last weekend. Hibbert scored in double figures only once last season, but already has cracked double figures six times this year.

Virginia Cavaliers at Duke Blue Devils, 2 p.m. ET ESPN

The already-young Cavaliers suffered an unbelievable blow this week when senior co-captain Mike Scott (15.9 points, 10.2 rebounds) underwent season-ending ankle surgery earlier this week. As a result, the raw-but-athletic, 6-foot-8, 221-pound freshman Akil Mitchell will continue to see the court more and more. Mitchell had a big 3-pointer in the loss to North Carolina, but remains inconsistent.

Nebraska Cornhuskers at Kansas Jayhawks, 2 p.m. ET ESPNU

The Cornhuskers appear to be getting healthy at the right time. Guard Eshaunte Jones missed time attending his grandmother’s funeral in Indiana, but has returned to the team. Guard Brandon Richardson is finally healthy after suffering a knee injury that sidelined him for several games and D-II transfer Drake Beranek is logging big minutes as he continues to adjust to the level of competition.

“Our group and everybody around us really feels confident that we can go in there and at least give a good fight,” Beranek said. “Give ourselves a chance with maybe 4 minutes to go or something like that."

Jackson State Tigers at Texas Southern Tigers, 3 p.m. ET ESPN2

Want to know how the weary Jackson State Tigers wrapped up a stretch of four games in seven days on Monday? Lots of ice baths. After four straight victories and stretching its regular season Southwestern Athletic Conference winning streak to 17 games, the team continued to take coach-mandated tub treatments to stay fresh.

Started earlier in the season, the treatment begins with a 10-minute ice bath in 40-degree water and then is followed up by getting into a tub filled with 120-degree water for a two-minute soak.

Austin Peay Governors at Tennessee State Tigers, 4 p.m. ET ESPNU

Sophomore guard Justin Blake is finally breaking out for Austin Peay. He is averaging just 5.2 points and 1.0 rebounds per game, but has notched 23 total points in the team’s past to victories as he has emerged as the team’s secret weapon.

“They told me all week that I could be that person who could be a game-changer, an x-factor to the team,” said Blake. “I finally got my head in it so I just got to carry it over into the next game.”

South Carolina State Bulldogs at Morgan State Bears, 5 p.m. ET ESPN2

The Bear’s have a dominant low-post rotation they are still figuring out. Morgan State’s rotation of Kevin Thompson, Rodney Stokes, Ameer Ali and Ian Chiles averages more than 23 points and nearly 19 rebounds per game as a unit. The group is also shooting 48 percent from the floor. Ali recently replaced Thompson in the starting lineup, but Thompson is the reigning MEAC Defensive Player of the Year and is averaging 12.5 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.

Boston College Eagles at Miami Hurricanes, 6 p.m. ET ESPNU

The Hurricanes post players are an absolute mess. In a 79-72 loss to Clemson, the team’s post players Reggie Johnson, DeQuan Jones, Julian Gamble and Erik Swoope combined to score only 10 points. Johnson, the team’s best player, matched a season-low with six points (he took only three shots), and didn’t practice all week because of bone spurs in his foot.

"No question he was out of sync,'' Miami coach Frank Haith said. ''The game was really too fast for him to start the ballgame. You've got to work hard when you play against good defensive teams. Clemson did a good job -- their post defense. But you have to work a little harder.''

San Diego State Aztecs at New Mexico Lobos, 6 p.m. ET CBS College Sports

After an awful, 67-66 loss to Wyoming in Laramie, Lobos coach Steve Alford said senior guard Dairese Gary, who had a game-high 24 points in the defeat, is the only player who is guaranteed a starting position. The shakeups started Wednesday night against Colorado State and are expected to continue this weekend. Alford did say that backup sophomore guard Chad Adams may have earned a starting nod, while junior guard Phillip McDonald likely will be coming off the pine.

Dayton Flyers at Xavier Musketeers, 8 p.m. ET CBS College Sports

Musketeers head coach Chris Mack called Billy Donovan after the team’s played earlier this year for his scouting report on his struggling team. The result of that collect call? Xavier demolishing Rhode Island in New England, 72-45.

“That’s a huge deal for us,” XU coach Chris Mack said. “I talked to (Florida) coach (Billy) Donovan a week ago, and I just asked him to analyze our team and sort of what he thought. He said, ‘Hey, I don’t know if we’re going to face too many bigger frontcourts than what we saw with you guys.’ That told me a lot.”

Xavier pounded the ball down low, with forward Jamel McLean notching 19 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks and center Kenny Frease chipping in with nine points and five boards.