NCAAB News and Notes Saturday 1/9

College Hoops Betting TV Guide
By RYAN COLAIANNI

No. 13 Connecticut at No. 12 Georgetown (12 p.m. ET, ESPN)

With an 18-game conference schedule, Connecticut knows it is going to be a battle each night and needs to eke out wins against lesser quality teams if it wants to win a conference title. On Wednesday, the Huskies needed a near triple double from Jerome Dyson to escape with an eight-point win against Seton Hall. Dyson had 16 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. Connecticut will need Dyson to be effective against the stout Georgetown defense.

Florida at Vanderbilt (12 p.m., ET, ESPN2)

Despite escaping with a win on a 75-foot shot at the buzzer against NC State last Sunday, the shot outlined a larger problem with the Florida offense. The 3-pointer was just the Gators third 3-point field goal of the game on 24 attempts. Heading into its conference opener against Vanderbilt, Florida is last in the SEC in 3-point field goal percentage, shooting less than 30 percent.

Southeast Missouri State at Eastern Illinois (12 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

Heading into Monday’s win over Jacksonville, Southeast Missouri State knew the importance of getting off to a strong start. Southeast Missouri State scored eight of the first 10 points of the game en route to its first home conference win since the 2007-08 season.

"The last 48 hours we preached defense and getting out of that block," junior guard Anthony Allison told the Southeast Missourian. "I feel like we stepped up."

Rutgers at Providence (12 p.m., ET, Big East Network)

Down 14-0 in the early minutes against Louisville Wednesday, Providence fought back to cut the Louisville lead to just one point with 13 minutes to go in the second half. But the Friars were unable to get any closer, falling by 22 points.

“Sometimes you see great stretches like we had there in the first half happen,” Providence coach Keno Davis told the Providence Journal. “In the second half, it wasn’t there,”

No. 10 Michigan State at Iowa (1:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network)

Even when Michigan State has an off night, it finds a way to win. On Wednesday night, the team shot just 38 percent and star Kalin Lucas went 3-of-13 from the field but still beat Wisconsin 54-47. Despite the Spartans’ struggles from the field, they out-rebounded the Badgers 41-27, continuing to show that they can win at any pace.

No. 7 Duke at No. 20 Georgia Tech (2 p.m., ET, ESPN)

The Duke Blue Devils might be the quietest Top 10 team in the country and they are led by one of the quietest players in America, Jon Scheyer. Scheyer scored 31 points against Iowa State Wednesday night, in a game that was played in Scheyer’s home town of Chicago. Scheyer was consistent, going 10-of-19 from the field and continues to show why he is one of the premier players in America.

No. 11 Kansas State at Missouri (2 p.m., ET, ESPN2)

Surprising Kansas State will face its toughest road test when it travels to Missouri. Kansas State has flown up the Top 25 thanks to the play of guard Jacob Pullen, who has averaged 20.1 points per game. Missouri will try to pressure Kansas State, which has averaged more than 15 turnovers per game.

“It’s the most prepared we’ve been in my three years as head coach,” Kansas State coach Frank Martin told the Kansas City Star of entering conference play.

Creighton at Wichita State (2 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

Each of the last two seasons, Wichita State has struggled on the road, going just 1-8 in conference play. On Wednesday, Wichita State took an important first step in reversing that trend and also showing that it is for real in a win at Missouri State. The Shockers are now 14-2 including a win over Texas Tech. They are 3-1 in conference and will need more conference wins if they hope to make the NCAA Tournament.

Ohio State at Minnesota (3:30 p.m., ET, Big Ten Network)

Evan Turner was out of the lineup for six games after a scary back injury and without him the Buckeyes looked lost. Against Indiana Wednesday, Turner returned and Ohio State looked like a completely different team in a 25-point win. Turner’s stat line was not overly impressive (he had eight points, four rebounds and five assists), but his intangibles make him a player that Ohio State can’t be successful without.

TCU at Utah (3:30 p.m., ET, MTN)

Utah has struggled throughout the season with injuries and it got worse this week. Utah lost Kim Tillie for three weeks to a knee injury. Utah may also be without Jay Watkins for the Mountain West Conference season opener against TCU. Watkins has missed time due to an abdominal strain and left the team last week after his stepfather died.

UNLV at No. 15 New Mexico (4:00 p.m., ET, Versus)

New Mexico’s loss to San Diego State Tuesday raised a lot of questions about the 15th-ranked Lobos. Was the loss a fluke or will they be a force come March? New Mexico struggled against the physical play of San Diego State and its lack of size could continue to be a problem as the season progresses.

Northern Iowa at Illinois State (4:00 p.m., ET, ESPN2)

Northern Iowa set a school record with its 12 straight win with a victory over Southern Illinois Wednesday, which improved the team to 4-0 in conference. Northern Iowa is getting the wins thank to solid play in the second half. Over the course of the last nine games, Northern Iowa has outscored its opponents by an average of nearly nine points per game in the second half.

North Dakota State at Iowa State (4:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

Iowa State had a chance to prove that it is ready to compete with the top programs in the country when it took on Duke Wednesday night. But the Cyclones were unable to handle the pressure from Duke and fell by 21 points. Iowa State kept it close until early in the second half when Duke blew the game open.

“We can’t have a bad stretch against a team as good as them, and we had a few of them tonight,” ISU forward Marquis Gilstrap told the Ames Tribune. “That’s what did us in.”

No. 4 Purdue at No. 17 Wisconsin (5:30 p.m., ET, Big Ten Network)

They may not win pretty, but Purdue is 14-0 because of its lockdown defense. Purdue held Minnesota to 30.8 percent from the field in a win Wednesday and continue to post impressive defensive numbers.

"We've really bought into how coach Painter wants us to play defense. If we can rebound, we can be a very good team. We're a good team right now. If we can keep on making strides, it can take us further than where we are right now,” perimeter defender Chris Kramer told reporters.

Murray State at Austin Peay (6:00 p.m., ET, ESPN2)

Murray State is the best offensive and defense team in the Ohio Valley Conference, scoring 78.9 points and allowing just 62.2 points per game.

“We win with our defense and we're tough to beat when we are playing good defense,” Murray State coach Billy Kennedy told the Murray Ledger & Times. “But the key for us is to defend for both halves and not just the first or second half like we have in a couple of games already this year, but no question, we take our defensive effort seriously.”

Wake Forest at Miami (6:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

After dropping back-to-back games in non-conference play to William & Mary and Purdue, many did not expect Wake Forest to challenge in the ACC for an NCAA Tournament berth. But after rattling off seven straight wins, Wake Forest heads into the heart of its conference schedule as one of the hottest teams in the conference.

San Diego State at Wyoming (6:00 p.m., ET, MTN)

Usually in rivalry games, it does not take much to motivate the players, but in Wyoming’s loss to rival Colorado State, Wyoming came out flat and fell by 10 points.

“We got out-toughed,” Wyoming coach Heath Schroyer told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. “We got out-toughed and out-executed and it really pisses me off, but that is the truth.”

Tulsa at Houston (7:00 p.m., ET, CBS College)

Tulsa has lived up to expectations after being picked to win Conference USA in the preseason.

"We lost to the best team in the conference and one of the better teams we've played all year," Tulane coach Dave Dickerson told the Tulsa World after his loss to Tulsa earlier in the week.

Tulsa will have to improve its play on the road however, with all three of its losses coming away from home.

No. 8 West Virginia at Notre Dame (8:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

For the last three weeks, West Virginia point guard Truck Bryant had been relegated to the bench by coach Bob Huggins because of his failure to take care of the basketball. Following an embarrassing loss to Purdue, Huggins elected to return Bryant to the starting lineup and it resulted in a 34-point win over Rutgers. Bryant had 15 points in 20 minutes and more importantly had just one turnover.

Illinois at Indiana (8:00 p.m., ET, Big Ten Network)

Following Illinois’ loss to Gonzaga last weekend, coach Bruce Weber decided to shake up his lineup against Iowa Wednesday. Jeff Jordan and Bill Cole made their first starts of their careers, replacing Demetri McCamey and D.J. Richardson. Richardson responded to the benching by scoring 17 points, including five 3-pointers in Illinois’ win over Iowa.

"It was more motivating than anything," Richardson told IllinoisHQ.com. "It gave me a chance to try something different. He told us not to take it in a bad way, and we didn't. We learned from our mistakes, and I think we both played pretty well, and so did Jeff and Bill."

Memphis at Southern Mississippi (8:00 p.m., ET, CSS)

It has been a long time since Memphis entered Conference USA play as anything but the favorite for the league crown. Now, Memphis enters needing to rack up conference wins just to make the NCAA Tournament. Memphis was unable to get any quality wins in the non-conference point of its season, falling to Kansas, Syracuse, Tennessee and Massachusetts.

No. 25 BYU at UTEP (9:00 p.m., ET, CBS-College)

BYU’s Jimmer Fredette has single-handedly led his team to a couple of wins, including a 49-point effort over Arizona. But against UNLV Wednesday, Fredette had to rely on his teammates to help BYU to a win and improve to 15-1. Fredette was sick against UNLV and scored just seven points. But his teammates picked up the slack, leading to a four-point win.

"If our leading scorer doesn't have what he's supposed to, we're all going to chip in," Noah Hartsock told the Salt Lake Tribune.

Air Force at Colorado State (9:00 p.m., ET, MTN)

Colorado State coach Tim Miles won just nine games last season and eight games the year before in his first year at the helm at Colorado State. The team’s win over Wyoming Wednesday was win No. 10 this season.

"Our job is to show progress. I think we are, but at the same time, I think we have a lot of work to do to be decent in the Mountain West,” Miles told the Fort Collins Coloradoan.

Gonzaga at Portland (10:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU)

Portland had just beaten Army in its final non-conference game of the year on Jan. 2 and the talk quickly turned from the victory to its game against Gonzaga a week later. Portland players started lifting in the weight room and talked about 5 a.m. practices to prepare for Gonzaga.

"I haven't beaten (Gonzaga) in my career, and Portland as a program hasn't beaten them much in the past 10 years, so I think we're excited for it," Luke Sikma told the Oregonian.

USC at California (10:30 p.m., ET, FSN)

In Cal’s overtime loss to UCLA Wednesday, the Golden Bears struggled mightily against UCLA’s 2-3 zone, failing to make shots from the outside. Cal hit just 2-of-18 from beyond the arc in the team’s conference opener. A promising season that saw the Bears ranked in the Top 25 in the preseason has quickly turned south. Cal is just 9-5 on the season.

"We didn't have any energy," coach Mike Montgomery told the Daily Californian. "We have a very difficult time moving the ball against the zone. We've got to solve that somehow.”

NCAAB News and Notes

Saturday, January 9

Information on the best of Saturday's college hoop games........

Georgetown won last three games vs UConn; underdog covered four of last five in series. Hoyas lost last game by 3 at Marquette; so far in Big East, Hoyas are scoring 64 ppg. UConn is 1-3 away from home, losing only true road game by hoop at Cincinnati. Big East home favorites are 8-6 vs spread in league games.

Florida won 10 of last 12 games vs Vanderbilt, losing two of last three visits to this unusual gym (one bench on each baseline). Gators are 2-0 on road, winning last game at NC State on 65-footer at buzzer. Vandy is won last five games vs stiffs; they're 5-4 as favorite this year. Best wins are 89-83 over Missouri, 84-72 over Arizona in Maui.

Home side won seven of last nine Mississippi State-Ole Miss tilts; State lost three of last four visits to Oxford, losing by 10-12-11 points. Rebels won eight of last nine games, losing only at West Virginia- they're 5-2 vs spread as a favorite. Bulldogs are 12-3, 3-1 on road, losing last game at Western Kentucky 55-52. Ole Miss played slightly harder schedule.

Purdue won last four games vs Wisconsin, taking last two visits here by 72-67/64-63 scores; underdogs covered last three series games played in Madison. Badgers beat Duke here last month, they're 9-0 at home with a win over Marquette. Boilers are 2-0 on road, winning by 8 at Alabama, 11 at Iowa. Purdue is an underdog for first time this season.

Home side won four in row, seven of last eight Missouri-Kansas State games; Wildcats lost last two visits here by 3-20 points. Mizzou won last seven games, Wildcats won last nine; they're 2-0 on road, beating UNLV on Strip 95-80, winning by 13 at Alabama. Experienced guards on K-State are interesting matchup for Missouri's constant pressure.

Villanova won last three games vs Marquette, taking last two by total of three points; Wildcats (even) won 74-72 in Milwaukee last week- they held Eagles to 40.7% from floor. Marquette's three Big East games were decided by total of nine points; they're 0-2 on road, losing at Wisconsin by 9, at est Virginia by 1. Villanova covered last five games as favorite.

Home side won seven of last eight UNLV-New Mexico games; Rebels lost four of last five visits here, losing by 4-8-14-4 points. Underdog is 5-2 vs spread in last seven series games. UNLV lost by 4 at BYU in its MWC opener, their first loss in four road games (3-0 vs spread as dog). Lobos are 9-2-2 against the spread as a favorite this season.

Wm&Mary's first four CAA games were all decided by single point, as underdog covered all four, with Tribe winning in OT at Delaware (trailed by 7 in OT) at Hofstra. Tribe won three of last four vs Drexel, with two wins by a points. Dragons are 3-1 in CAA, winning its two home games by 1-3 points. CAA home favorites are 6-9 vs spread in league play.

Home side won five of last six Hofstra-Old Dominion games; Monarchs beat Hofstra 52-51 in CAA tourney last March, but are just 3-2 in last five Hofstra visits here. ODU won five of last six games, winning CAA home games by 21-2 points (0-1-1 as home favorite). Underdog is 3-1 vs spread in Hofstra's CAA games; Pride's losses are by 1-4 points.

Northern Iowa beat Illinois State three times LY by total of nine points; two of the games went OT; Panthers are 4-2 in last six visits here, with dog covering five of the six games. Redbirds won eight of last nine tilts, are 3-1 in Valley, 4-0 vs spread, winning home games by 15-7 points. UNI won last 11 games; they've won at Creighton, Southern Illinois.

Home side won five of last six Boston College-Clemson games; Eagles lost last two visits here, 74-54/78-56. Eagles beat South Carolina/Miami, lost to Harvard/Maine- they're 2-0 on road, winning at Providence and Michigan- they're 2-0 as underdog. Clemson got hammered at Duke by 21 in ACC opener; they're 7-4 as a favorite this season.

UCLA won last six games vs Stanford, winning last visits here by 76-67 76-71 scores; Bruins won four of last five games, are 2-1 in Pax-10 with wins by total of three points- they're 1-1 on road, losing at Notre Dame by 11, winning by 1 at Cal. Stanford lost four of last six games; they're 2-4-1 vs spread as a favorite. Pac-10 home favorites are 3-8.

Seton Hall lost last four games (two went OT) all vs top 50 teams; they are 1-3 as favorite. Pirates won three of four against Cincinnati, with last three all decided by four or less points. Bearcats lost last two visits here by 10-3 points. Cincy is 1-2 on road, winning at Rutgers, getting beat at Xavier by 4 in double OT, by 17 at UAB. Big East home faves are 8-6.

Wake Forest won five of last seven games vs Miami, splitting four tilts at this site, with dogs covering three of the four. Deacons won seven in a row, are 3-1 on road, winning at Gonzaga/UNCW/UNCG, losing by 11 at Purdue. Miami won six in row vs stiffs since losing ACC opener by a point at Boston College. Hurricanes are 4-1 vs spread as a favorite.

Oklahoma won last 12 games vs Baylor, winning last six games at Waco; favorites covered seven of last nine series games. Baylor is better than Sooners for first time in long time though; Bears won last eight games, with wins over South Carolina, Arkansas- their last loss was Nov 26 in Orlando against Alabama. Bears are 2-1 vs spread as a favorite.

Home side won five of last six West Virginia-Notre Dame games; WVa lost last three visits here by 11-3-13 points, but they beat Irish twice LY, by 11 at home, 12 in Big East tourney. Favorite covered last three series games. Mountaineers are 2-1 on road, winning at Cleveland State by hoop, by 6 in OT at Seton Hall, losing by 10 at Purdue.

Home side won eight of last nine Texas Tech-Oklahoma State games, as Tech lost last six visits here by 4-29-11-2-1-19 points; Cowboys won last three overall in series by 4-1-10 points. Raiders are 1-2 on the road, losing by 2 at Wichita, 15 at New Mexico, winning at TCU. Cowboys are 4-0-1 vs spread as favorite- they've won six of last seven games.

Gonzaga is 12-0 vs Portland the last six years, winning by 15-16-14-12-22-15 points in this gym (5-1 vs spread); Pilots are 5-1 at home, losing to Portland State- they're 3-5 since upsetting UCLA/Minnesota, and in looking at Bruins, that wasn't such a big deal. Zags are 4-2 away from Kennel; lost only true road game by four points at Michigan State.

Home side won last five USC-Cal games; Trojans lost last two visits to Berkeley by 10-3 points, but they beat Bears 79-75 in Pac-10 tourney LY (+1.5). Dogs covered three of last four series games. USC is 0-3 on road, losing by 19 at Texas, 26 at Ga Tech, 1 at Stanford. Bears are still banged up with Gutierrez out; they're 7-2 as a favorite this season.

In four MAAC games, Siena has taken 68 more FTs than opponents, as they won by 13-27-11-20 points (3-1 vs spread); Saints won 8 of last 10 vs Niagara-- Eagles lost last four regular season games here by 6-12-16-17 points. Niagara is 2-2 on road, losing at Auburn/Akron, winning at Illinois State/Mt St Mary- they're 2-0 as an underdog this season.

(13) UConn (11-3, 4-7-1 ATS) at (12) Georgetown (11-2, 5-4 ATS)

The Huskies hit the road for just the second time this season when they visit the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C., for a Big East tussle with Georgetown.

UConn is coming off consecutive conference home wins and covers over Notre Dame (82-70 as a seven-point chalk last Saturday) and Seton Hall (71-63 as a 6½-point favorite on Wednesday). The Huskies are 7-2 in their last nine games (3-3-1 ATS in lined action), and the losses were by a total of five points at Big East foe Cincinnati (71-69 as two-point road underdog) and No. 4 Kentucky (64-61 as a one-point neutral-site favorite). Jim Calhoun’s squad is 0-2 SU and ATS against Top 25 teams, falling to Kentucky and then-No. 7 Duke (68-59), both at Madison Square Garden.

The Hoyas’ three-game winning streak was halted in Wednesday’s 62-59 loss at Marquette as a 1½-point road underdog. Georgetown stumbled despite outshooting the Warriors 48.9 percent to 38.9 percent, but Marquette hit 12 of 26 three-point shots. The Hoyas have scored 57 and 59 points in their two losses while producing at least 66 points in nine of their 11 victories. John Thompson’s squad sports one of the top defenses in the nation, yielding just 57.8 ppg in Division I contests.

The Hoyas swept last year’s season series against the Huskies (1-1 ATS) and have won the last three in a row following an 11-0 SU run by UConn. Georgetown is also 4-1 ATS in the last five head-to-head clashes, but the Huskies are 3-1 ATS in their last four trips to Washington D.C., and the ‘dog has cashed in four of the last five.

UConn is 3-0-1 ATS in its last four games, all against winning teams, and 5-2-1 ATS in its last eight after a spread-cover. Conversely, the Hoyas sport nothing but negative pointspread trends, including 9-19-1 overall, 2-9 at home, 7-19 in conference play, 4-10 after a SU loss and 8-20-1 on Saturday.

The under is on steaks of 7-2 for the Huskies on the road, 5-1 for Georgetown overall, 6-1 for Georgetown in Big East contests, 4-0 for Georgetown on Saturday and 35-17-1 for Georgetown after a SU defeat. However, the total has alternated in the last eight meetings in this rivalry, with the final contest last year staying low.

ATS ADVANTAGE: UCONN and UNDER

(4) Purdue (14-0, 7-6-1 ATS) at (17) at Wisconsin (12-3, 8-5 ATS)

The unbeaten Boilermakers face their toughest road test of the season when they visit the Kohl Center for a Big Ten battle with 17th-ranked Wisconsin.

Purdue dominated Minnesota 79-60 as an 8½-point home favorite on Tuesday, improving to 2-0 (1-1 ATS) in Big Ten play. The Boilermakers, one of just four undefeated teams remaining in Division I, have won 12 games by double digits, including the last five in a row during which they’ve averaged 76.4 ppg and given up just 58 ppg.

The Badgers saw their six-game winning streak end Wednesday when they went to Michigan State and lost 54-47 to the 10th-ranked Spartans, coming up a whisker short of covering as a six-point road underdog. Despite the defeat, Wisconsin held its sixth straight opponent to 58 points or less, and Bo Ryan’s club is yielding just 47.7 ppg during this stretch. The Badgers are a perfect 9-0 at home this year – including a 73-69 victory over No. 6 and unbeaten Duke as a 4½-point underdog – and they’re yielding just 50 ppg at the Kohl Center. Also, prior to falling at Michigan State, Wisconsin had been 3-0 SU and ATS against ranked teams.

Purdue has swept the two-game season series from the Badgers each of the last two years, cashing in all four games. In fact, the Boilermakers are on a 7-0 ATS run in this rivalry, including 4-0 ATS in their last four trips to Madison. Last year, Purdue prevailed 65-52 as a six-point home favorite and 64-63 as a one-point road ‘dog. The pup has covered in six of the last seven clashes.

The Boilermakers have cashed in back-to-back games and are on additional ATS runs of 5-2 on Saturday and 6-0-1 against winning teams, but they’ve failed to cover in seven of their last 10 on the highway and are 3-9-1 ATS in their last 13 after a spread-cover. Wisconsin is on pointspread rolls of 5-2 overall, 6-1 at home, 4-0 after a defeat and 5-1 after a non-cover, but it is 1-3-1 ATS in its last five Saturday outings.

The Badgers are on “under” streaks of 6-0 overall, 4-0 at home, 4-0 in Big Ten play and 14-5 on Saturday, and five of the last seven meetings in this series have stayed low.

ATS ADVANTAGE: PURDUE and UNDER

(5) Duke (13-1, 9-4 ATS) at (20) Georgia Tech (11-3, 6-3 ATS)

Duke takes a seven-game winning streak into Alexander Memorial Coliseum as it meets up with ACC rival Georgia Tech, which is coming off a surprising loss to rival Georgia.

The Blue Devils trounced Iowa State 86-65 as a 12½-point favorite on a neutral court in Chicago on Wednesday. Since getting upset at Wisconsin on Dec. 2 – its only true road game to this point – Duke has peeled off seven wins by an average of a whopping 30.1 ppg, the last six being by margins of 21, 21, 49, 21, 25 and 45 points. The Blue Devils have scored at least 74 points throughout their win streak and have topped 70 points in 11 of 14 games while holding the opposition under 60 points seven times.

The Yellow Jackets opened the ACC season with a 66-59 overtime loss to Florida State as a 5½-point home favorite on Dec. 20, then ripped off three straight non-conference wins (1-0 ATS in lined games). But on Tuesday, they made the short trip north to Athens to face Georgia and stumbled 73-66 as a five-point road chalk). Georgia Tech is 7-1 SU at home, outscoring lined opponents by 19.5 ppg (77.5-58).

Duke has won five in a row and nine of the last 10 in this rivalry (7-3 ATS). In last year’s lone meeting, the Blue Devils went to Atlanta and cruised 70-56 as 12-point road favorite. Going back to the 1998-99 season, Duke is 22-2 SU and 18-6 ATS against Georgia Tech, including 10-1 SU and 9-2 ATS in its last 11 visits to Alexander Memorial Coliseum

Also in this series, the chalk is 4-1 ATS in the last five clashes and 8-2 ATS in the last 10, while the host has covered in six of the last nine.

The Blue Devils are on ATS tears of 5-1 overall, 4-1 on the highway, 6-2 against winning teams and 6-1 when coming off a victory of more than 20 points, but they’re just 4-10-1 ATS in their last 15 Saturday outings. Georgia Tech is on pointspread surges of 10-3 overall, 9-4 on Saturday, 4-1 against ACC foes and 8-3 against winning teams.

These teams have stayed under the total in nine straight meetings, including four in a row in Atlanta. The under is also 19-7 in Duke’s last 26 ACC contests, 6-0 in its last six against winning teams and 10-1 in Georgia Tech’s last 11 versus winning opponents.

ATS ADVANTAGE: DUKE and UNDER

(11) Kansas State (13-1, 7-2 ATS) at Missouri (12-3, 5-4 ATS)

Kansas State visits an opponent’s gym for just the second time this season as it opens Big 12 play with a trip to Columbia, Mo., to take on the Tigers, who have won seven straight overall and 30 in a row at Mizzou Arena.

The Wildcats pounded South Dakota State 91-69 in a non-lined home game on Sunday, their 10th consecutive victory. Kansas State’s only blemish is an 86-74 loss to Ole Miss in a preseason tournament in Puerto Rico on Nov. 20, failing as a 1½-point favorite. In their only true road game this year, the Wildcats went to Las Vegas and destroyed UNLV 95-80 as a 2½-point underdog, part of an ongoing 6-0 ATS run in lined contests. Last year, Kansas State split its eight conference road games (2-5-1 ATS).

Missouri followed up last Saturday’s 89-61 rout of Georgia as a 16-point home favorite with Wednesday’s 74-45 destruction of Division II Savannah State in a non-lined game. Prior to Wednesday, the Tigers had scored more than 80 points in six straight games, and they’re averaging 86.3 ppg during their seven-game win streak.

Missouri’s last home loss was a 75-73 setback to Oklahoma State in February 2008. Since then, the Tigers are 30-0 in their arena, including 9-0 in Big 12 action (6-3 ATS). This year, Missouri is 11-0 at home, averaging 90.2 ppg against lined competition (50.4 percent shooting) and allowing 59.4 ppg (36.7 percent).

The host is on a 5-0 SU and ATS run in this rivalry, with the winner averaging 87.9 ppg. Last year, Kansas State prevailed 88-72 as a three-point home pup, then went to Columbia and got whacked 94-74 as a 10-point underdog. Going back further, the home team is on a 8-2 SU and ATS roll between these teams, and the winner has covered the spread in each of the last 11 matchups.

Both teams have identical offensive numbers against Division I foes, averaging 83.5 ppg while making 47.5 percent of their shots.

While K-State has cashed in six straight games overall and is 36-15-1 ATS in its last 52 on Saturday, it is 7-15-1 ATS in its last 23 road contests and 6-18-2 ATS in its last 26 conference games. The Tigers are on positive pointspread surges of 18-8 overall, 19-7 at home, 4-1 in Big 12 play, 9-3 after a SU win and 7-0 when coming off a blowout victory of more than 20 points.

There’s nothing but “over” trends for these high-scoring teams, with the Wildcats on “over” runs of 6-2 overall, 4-0 on the road, 5-0 on Saturday and 7-0 against winning teams, while Mizzou is on “over” streaks of 5-0 overall, 4-0 at home and 8-0 versus opponents with a winning record. Finally, the last eight meetings overall – including the last four in Columbia – have hurdled the posted total.

ATS ADVANTAGE: MISSOURI and OVER

Ohio State (11-4, 7-8 ATS) at Minnesota (11-4, 8-6 ATS)

The Golden Gophers look to extend the home team’s dominance in this Big Ten rivalry when they welcome Ohio State to Williams Arena.

After opening the conference season with a pair of road losses that knocked them out of the Top 25, the Buckeyes got back on track Wednesday with 79-54 rout of Indiana as a 14-point home favorite. Ohio State ended an 0-6 ATS drought with that spread-cover, but it is 0-3 SU and ATS on the road this year (74-66 loss at No. 22 Butler; 65-43 loss at No. 23 Wisconsin; 73-64 loss at Michigan).

Minnesota returns home after a two-game conference road swing that began with an 86-74 rout of Iowa as a 10-point favorite and ended with Tuesday’s 79-60 loss at fourth-ranked Purdue as an 8½-point underdog. Tuesday’s setback snapped Minnesota’s seven-game winning streak (6-1 ATS). The Gophers are 9-0 at home, going 6-2 ATS in lined games while outscoring those eight opponents by nearly 30 points per game (87-57.3) and outshooting them 52 percent to 35.2 percent. Going back to last year, Tubby Smith’s squad is 13-1 at Williams Arena (9-4 ATS).

The host has taken four straight meetings in this rivalry both SU and ATS. Last year, Ohio State went to Minnesota and fell 68-59 as a 3½-point underdog, but got revenge with a 65-58 win as a 4½-point home chalk. The Buckeyes are 7-3 ATS in the last 10 series clashes, and the SU winner covered in nine of those 10 contests. Also, the favorite has gotten the money in each of the last six battles.

Ohio State has failed to cover in six of its last seven overall and four straight after an outright victory, but it is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 Saturday contests. Minnesota is on pointspread upticks of 6-2 overall and 5-1 at home, but it is also in ATS ruts of 5-13 in conference games, 1-5 against winning teams and 5-11 ATS after a SU defeat.

The under is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings between these schools (4-1 “under” at Minnesota), with the last three in a row staying low. Also, the Buckeyes are on “under” rolls of 5-1 overall, 11-5 on the road, 7-2 in Big Ten games, 35-15-1 on Saturday and 7-1 against winning teams. Conversely, the Gophers are riding “over” streaks of 6-2 overall and 6-1 at home, but 38 of their last 56 Saturday outings have stayed low.

ATS ADVANTAGE: MINNESOTA

UNLV (12-3, 9-4 ATS) at (15) New Mexico (14-2, 10-4-1 ATS)

Two teams that opened the Mountain West Conference season with road losses meet up at The Pit in Albuquerque, where New Mexico will try to extend a 17-game home winning streak with a victory over the Runnin’ Rebels.

UNLV, playing its first game since a 19-point Christmas Day loss to USC in Honolulu, went to Provo, Utah, on Wednesday and gave 25th-ranked BYU all it could handle but eventually succumbed 77-73. The Rebels did easily cover as a 7½-point road underdog, improving to 4-1 ATS in their last five games. Prior to Wednesday, UNLV had won its first four road games, and it is now 4-1 ATS as a visitor this year.

The Lobos took their No. 15 ranking to San Diego State on Tuesday and lost 74-64 as a four-point road underdog. After starting the season 12-0, New Mexico has split its last four games (1-2 ATS), but both defeats came on the road. As part of its 17-game home winning streak, New Mexico is 9-0 SU and 6-2-1 ATS this year while outscoring visitors by more than 17 ppg (79.3-62).

The Runnin’ Rebels were the last team to give New Mexico a real scare at The Pit, taking the Lobos to overtime last February before falling 73-69 while eking out the cover as a five-point underdog. A month earlier, the Rebels won 60-58 at home as a five-point chalk. The host has won eight of the last nine meetings, but is just 5-4 ATS. Finally, New Mexico has cashed in seven of the last 10 against UNLV, but the ‘dog is on a 5-2 ATS roll.

UNLV ended a six-game Mountain West ATS losing skid with the spread-cover at BYU, while New Mexico dropped to 1-5 ATS in its last six league games with the loss at San Diego State. From there, though, the Lobos carry positive pointspread trends of 12-4-1 overall, 35-16-1 at home, 3-1-1 on Saturday, 6-2 against winning teams and 6-0 after a SU loss.

The over is 5-2 in the last seven Rebels-Lobos matchups and 6-2 in UNLV’s last eight Saturday games. However UNLV has stayed low in seven of its last 10 on the road and New Mexico is 4-1 “under” in its last five on Saturday.

ATS ADVANTAGE: NEW MEXICO and OVER

(8) West Virginia (12-1, 5-7 ATS) at Notre Dame (13-3, 5-4-1 ATS)

West Virginia, which is off to a 3-0 start in conference play, heads to the Joyce Center in South Bend, Ind., for a nighttime Big East showdown against the Irish.

The Mountaineers rebounded from their first loss of the season – a 77-62 setback at fourth-ranked Purdue on New Year’s Day – with Wednesday’s 86-52 drubbing of Rutgers, easily covering as a hefty 19½-point home chalk after a 1-4 ATS downturn. West Virginia had won its first two Big East games by a total of seven points (63-62 versus Marquette at home; 90-84 overtime win at Seton Hall)

Notre Dame bounced back from last Saturday’s 82-70 loss at UConn by edging South Florida 74-73 on Tuesday, pushing as a one-point road favorite. The Irish have scored at least 70 points in nine straight games, topping 80 points seven times and 90 points four times. Notre Dame has won 11 of its first 12 home games this year (4-2 ATS in lined action), averaging 88.3 ppg (52.5 percent shooting) and yielding 71 ppg (44.4 percent).

West Virginia took down Notre Dame twice last year, wining 79-68 as a 9½-point home favorite, then rolling 74-62 as a six-point chalk in the Big East tournament. Prior to that, the Irish had won 13 of 14 in this rivalry (8-6 ATS). The home team has prevailed in each of the last four regular-season tussles (2-2 ATS), and the favorite has covered in the last three after the ‘dog got the money in the previous four.

West Virginia is on ATS slides of 1-4 after a SU win, 1-4 after a victory of more than 20 points and 2-5 after a spread-cover, while the Irish carry pointspread trends of 6-13-1 in Big East play, 4-10 on Saturday and 8-18 after a SU victory.

Notre Dame has topped the total in seven straight lined games overall, all five home contests this season and six of eight on Saturday, while the Mountaineers have gone over the number in five straight roadies. However, the under has hit nine straight times in this rivalry, going 3-0 in the last three in South Bend, and the under is 11-5 in West Virginia’s last 16 league contests, 10-1 in its last 11 against winning teams and 10-1 in Notre Dame’s last 11 against winning teams.

ATS ADVANTAGE: NONE

(22) Texas Tech (12-2, 6-2 ATS) at Oklahoma State (12-2, 5-2-1 ATS)

Two teams that enjoyed a lot of success in the non-conference season finally tip off Big 12 play at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Okla., where the Cowboys host 22nd-ranked Texas Tech.

After barely squeaking past McNeese State 76-75 in a non-lined home game on New Year’s Day, the Red Raiders came back and dominated UTEP on Sunday, winning 86-78 as a one-point home favorite. Texas Tech, which averages 80.4 ppg (46.6 percent), has tallied 74 points or more in 11 of its 14 games this year, including the last eight in a row. On the downside, Tech’s last two losses both came on the road (90-75 at New Mexico as an eight-point underdog and 85-83 at Wichita State as a six-point pup).

Oklahoma State rebounded from last Saturday’s 63-59 loss at Rhode Island as a two-point underdog with a 79-61 thrashing of Coppin State in Tuesday’s non-lined home contest. The Cowboys are 6-1 in their last seven games (3-1 ATS in lined play), and like Texas Tech they’ve been filling the bucket, scoring 77 points or more eight times and at least 65 points in all but two games. Oklahoma State has won 13 straight home games, going 8-0 this season, but only two were against Division I opponents (1-0-1 ATS).

The Cowboys’ current home winning streak began with an 81-80 win over Texas Tech last February, but they came up way short as a 12½-point underdog. Oklahoma State followed that two weeks later with a 92-82 win in Lubbock as a 1½-point road favorite, and they’ve now beaten the Red Raiders three straight times (2-1 ATS). Prior to the Cowboys’ win in Lubbock last year, the home team had won seven straight regular-season meetings (4-3 ATS). However, Texas Tech is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 trips to Stillwater, and the favorite has cashed in four of the last five series clashes.

The Red Raiders are 6-1 ATS in their last seven overall and 5-2 ATS in their last seven on the road. Meanwhile, going back to Valentine’s Day of last year, Oklahoma State is on a 16-3-1 ATS roll in lined action (5-0-1 at home). The Cowboys are on further moneymaking surges of 21-7-2 at home, 13-3-1 after a SU win and 5-1-1 on Saturday, and they covered in nine of their final 10 conference games last year, including four straight at Gallagher-Iba Arena.

Texas Tech carries “over” trends of 33-16-2 overall, 20-6 on the highway, 20-8-1 in Big 12 play, 6-2-1 on Saturday and 16-5 after a SU win. On the flip side, OSU is on “under” streaks of 4-0 overall, 4-0 at home, 4-1 on Saturday, 6-2 in league action and 4-1 versus winning teams. Also, the under is 4-2 in the last six meetings between these squads.

ATS ADVANTAGE: OKLAHOMA STATE