NCAAB News and Notes Thursday 12/18

JAMES MADISON vs. MOREHEAD STATE
James Madison is 8-16 SU in its last 24 games
James Madison is 2-13 SU in its last 15 games on the road
Morehead State is 3-9 SU in its last 12 games
Morehead State is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games at home

MISSISSIPPI STATE vs. CINCINNATI
Mississippi State is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games
Mississippi State is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Cincinnati is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
Cincinnati is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games

CHARLESTON SOUTHERN vs. FLORIDA STATE
No trends available
Florida State is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games
Florida State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

EVANSVILLE vs. NORTH CAROLINA
Evansville is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
Evansville is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
North Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
North Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

NIAGARA vs. DREXEL
Niagara is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games
Niagara is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Drexel is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Drexel is 7-13-3 ATS in its last 23 games

UNC GREENSBORO vs. KENT STATE
UNC Greensboro is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
UNC Greensboro is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Kent State is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games
Kent State is 15-7 SU in its last 22 games

NORTH FLORIDA vs. FURMAN
No trends available
Furman is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Furman is 0-4-1 ATS in its last 5 games

BRESCIA vs. TENNESSEE-MARTIN
No trends available
Tennessee-Martin is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
Tennessee-Martin is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games

FLORIDA ATLANTIC vs. TROY
Florida Atlantic is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games
Florida Atlantic is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Troy
Troy is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Florida Atlantic
Troy is 10-5 SU in its last 15 games when playing Florida Atlantic

IONA vs. WESTERN MICHIGAN
Iona is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
Iona is 7-18 SU in its last 25 games on the road
Western Michigan is 15-7 SU in its last 22 games at home
Western Michigan is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games at home

LOUISIANA TECH vs. SAMFORD
Louisiana Tech is 8-17 SU in its last 25 games
Louisiana Tech is 2-21 SU in its last 23 games on the road
Samford is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games
Samford is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home

MCNEESE STATE vs. SOUTHERN MISS
No trends available
Southern Miss is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games at home

NORTH CAROLINA A&T vs. TULANE
No trends available
Tulane is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
Tulane is 6-13 SU in its last 19 games

WISC-GREEN BAY vs. OAKLAND
Wisc-Green Bay is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Wisc-Green Bay is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the road
No trends available

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL vs. ARKANSAS STATE
Florida International is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Arkansas State
Florida International is 2-12 SU in its last 14 games when playing Arkansas State
Arkansas State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Arkansas State is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games

WESTERN KENTUCKY vs. SOUTH ALABAMA
Western Kentucky is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against South Alabama
Western Kentucky is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing South Alabama
South Alabama is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
South Alabama is 21-2 SU in its last 23 games at home

NORTH TEXAS vs. LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE
North Texas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
North Texas is 5-10 SU in its last 15 games on the road
Louisiana-Lafayette is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games when playing at home against North Texas
Louisiana-Lafayette is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing North Texas

MISSISSIPPI vs. LOUISVILLE
Mississippi is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games
Mississippi is 4-8 ATS in its last 12 games on the road
Louisville is 16-6 ATS in its last 22 games
Louisville is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games

TEXAS SOUTHERN vs. GONZAGA
No trends available
Gonzaga is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Gonzaga is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games

MONTANA vs. UC RIVERSIDE
Montana is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Montana is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
UC Riverside is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
UC Riverside is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

PEPPERDINE vs. CS NORTHRIDGE
Pepperdine is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
Pepperdine is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
CS Northridge is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games at home
CS Northridge is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games

UMKC vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON
No trends available
Eastern Washington is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
Eastern Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

NORTHERN COLORADO vs. FRESNO STATE
Northern Colorado is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Northern Colorado is 4-19 SU in its last 23 games on the road
Fresno State is 4-9 SU in its last 13 games

NCAAB Today

Notes on the best of today's games.

Mississippi State coach Stansbury was in hospital most of week with viral nfectional, is expected to coach here; Bulldogs lost three of last four games, won only road game, 76-71 at St Bonaventure. Cincinnati is 7-2, losing to Florida State, Xavier; this is their third game in six days. SEC road dogs are 1-6 against spread.

Florida Atlantic lost by 11 at Denver Tuesday in Sun Belt opener; they beat Troy twice LY, 93-88/99-93, holding Troy to 21-83 from the arc. Trojans are 3-6, losing their Sun Belt opener by 28 at Middle Tennessee last week- they're 3-2 at home, winning last three after losses to UAB, Centenary. Quick turnaround after long road trip for Owls.

Arkansas State is 5-2 vs D-I teams, winning at both Indiana State, Ball State, beating Murray State at home; ASU beat FIU 68-59 LY (-4.5). FIU is 4-6, 0-3 on road, getting clubbed at Washington (74-51), UCLA (89-54), Buffalo (70-56). Panthers lost five of their last six games.

South Alabama beat Western Kentucky twice LY, 65-61/69-64, then the Hilltoppers got NCAA bid and won a game- you could make the case for both sides having revenge motive of sorts. USA is 6-4 but won four of last five games. WKU is 5-2, winning at Louisville, but they lost by 32 at Evansville in last game, an alarming score.

Home side won both North Texas-ULL games LY, with UNT winning 72-65 at home (-8) then losing 63-58 in Lafayette (+1) when UNT was just 14-31 from charity stripe. ULL won Sun Belt opener Monday, by 28 over UL-Monroe; they're 3-4 vs D-I teams. UNT us 7-2, with three wins already by a single basket.

Ole Miss is struggling badly, losing by 33 at New Mexico, then barely beating Alabama State Monday; they're 7-3, 2-2 away from home, but lack depth at guard, size up front. Louisville beat Austin Peay by 19 in last game, after only being up by hoop at half- they're 6-1, and have a trip to Minnesota Saturday to face Tubby Smith's unbeaten Gophers.

Cal State-Northridge (+1.5) won 97-89 at Pepperdine LY, Matadors are 1-6 vs D-I teams, beating Denver by 27 in only home game of the seven they lost at UCLA (18), Stanford (18), New Mexico (11). Waves are 0-8 vs D-I teams, losing by 18 at Pacific in last game- they've lost games to Irvine (8), Long Beach (19), so they're 0-3 vs Big West teams.

Morehead State got crushed 89-57 at James Madison LY; Eagles are 2-0 in OVC, 1-7 outside of it, losing four games by six or less points. Dukes are 5-4, 2-1 on road, winning at Radford, Fordham, losing at Longwood by 3. OVC favorites are 3-4 vs spread, 3-3 at home. CAA road dogs are 10-12 against spread.

Niagara is 7-2 after winning at South Florida Sunday; Eagles are 3-1 on road, losing only at Villanova- they're 6-0 when they score more than 62 points. Drexel is 2-3, losing by point at home to George Mason in CAA opener, by 6 at improved Fairfield, by 28 at Georgetown. MAAC faves are 8-11, 0-1 on road-- CAA dogs are 13-15 vs spread, 2-3 at home.

Samford (even) won 73-70 in OT at Louisiana Tech LY; they're 1-4 vs D-I teams, beating Lipscomb 57-50 in only home game- they lost game at Ohio State 59-22- they had six points at halftime. Tech is 5-5, 2-2 on road, losing last game 61-44 at McNeese State. WAC road dogs are 10-7 vs spread. Southern Conference favorites are 5-6, 2-3 at home.

Western Michigan (-4) lost 67-62 at Iona LY; Broncos are 2-7, scoring 65 or less points in five of last six games. WMU is 1-3 vs spread when favored this year. Iona is 4-5, but four of their five losses are by either one or two points- they're 4-0 vs spread as a dog. MAAC road dogs are 8-8 vs spread. MAC home favorites are also 8-8.

Montana won its last four games, is 5-4 vs D-I teams, winning first road game in four tries at Fresno Sunday. Big Sky road teams are 15-18 vs the spread. Cal-Riverside is 5-2, winning last two games while allowing 57.5 ppg. Big West home teams are 8-8 vs spread. UCR is already 2-0 vs Big Sky teams, beating Sacramento State, Northern Arizona.

Thursday's Tip Sheet
By Brian Edwards

**Mississippi State at Cincinnati**

--This game won’t be played on campus. Instead, tip-off at 6:30 p.m. Eastern will be at US Bank Arena in Cincy. ESPN2 will have the telecast.

--Las Vegas Sports Consultants opened Cincinnati (7-2 straight up, 2-2 against the spread) as a 4 ½-point favorite.

--Mississippi State (7-3 SU, 2-2-1 ATS) won its first five games against cupcake squads. Since then, the Bulldogs have lost three of their last five contests. They are coming off a 79-60 home win over South Alabama as 7½-point favorites. Junior center Jarvis Varnardo had 21 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots against the Jaguars.

--Mississippi St. head coach Rick Stansbury was released from a Tupelo hospital and cleared to travel with the team on Wednesday. Stansbury was hospitalized Sunday with a viral infection.

--Cincinnati is playing its third game in six days. The Bearcats lost a 76-66 decision to cross-town rival Xavier on Saturday. They failed to hook up their backers as two-point home underdogs. On Monday, Mick Cronin’s squad bounced back with a 74-55 triumph over Charleston Southern in a non-lined affair.

--Cronin has one of the most explosive scorers in the country in junior guard Deonta Vaughn, who averaged 17.3 points and 4.1 assists per game in 2007-2008. However, with defenses focusing so much effort on containing him, Vaughn has struggled for the most part this year. He still leads the Bearcats in scoring with a 14.6 PPG average, but he’s making just 36.6 percent of his shots from floor and only 34.9 percent of his attempts from 3-point land.

--Mississippi St. has the nation’s premier shot blocker in Varnardo, who is rejecting 6.2 shots per game this year. The Bronsville, TN., native has 284 blocked shots in 79 career games. Varnado is also showing improvement offensively, averaging 12.4 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.

--The Bulldogs’ losses have come in neutral-site games against Texas Tech and Washington St. and at home to Charlotte. If you can call a home win over So. Alabama ‘quality,’ that’s the closest thing MSU has to one.

--Cincy has quality victories at UNLV and vs. UAB. The Bearcats’ other defeat besides the aforementioned Xavier loss came at the hands of FSU in Las Vegas.

--These schools haven’t met since Dec. 21 of 2001 when Cincy captured a 90-56 victory as a 9 ½-point home ‘chalk.’ However, Mississippi St. came out victorious in the most important meeting between these squads. In the Elite Eight round of the 1996 NCAA Tournament at Rupp Arena, Dantae Jones, Darryl Wilson and Erick Dampier led the Bulldogs to a 73-63 win.

--The ‘over’ has hit in three straight Cincy games with a total. On the other hand, the ‘under’ is 3-1-1 overall for MSU.

**Ole Miss vs. Louisville**

--This game will also be played in Cincinnati 30 minutes after the conclusion of Cincy-MSU. ESPN will have the telecast. LVSC opened Louisville (6-1 SU, 4-3 ATS) as a 17-point favorite.

--Rick Pitino’s team has won four consecutive games since taking its only loss of the season to Western Ky. back on Nov. 30. But the Cardinals have failed to cover the number in back-to-back games, including Saturday’s 94-75 win over Austin Peay as 23-point home favorites. Samardo Samuels paced the winners with 21 points and 12 rebounds.

--Ole Miss (7-3 SU, 4-4 ATS) bounced back from its worst loss of the season – a 103-70 shellacking at New Mexico in The Pit – with a tougher-than-expected 85-81 win over Alabama St. in a non-lined matchup. David Huertas, a transfer from Florida, led the Rebels with 25 points, six rebounds and four assists.

--Huertas is averaging a team-high 21.0 PPG. Teaming with sophomore point guard Chris Warren from out of Orlando, the Rebels have one of the SEC’s best backcourts. Warren is averaging 19.8 points and 4.0 assists per game.

--Andy Kennedy’s squad took a big hit in the first week of the season when a pair of players went down with season-ending injuries. Eniel Polynice, who averaged 10.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game last year, had knee surgery earlier this month. Trevor Gaskins, a sophomore guard who earned SEC All-Freshman Team honors, was expected to be one of the team’s premier 3-point shooters before tearing his ACL.

--Other than the Hilltoppers, Louisville hasn’t played any team of substance all season, beating up on the likes of Ohio, Morgan St., Lamar and Indiana St. The Cards have been favored by at least 19 1/2 in each of their previous games.

--The ‘under’ is 5-1 overall for Louisville. On the flip side, the ‘over’ is 6-2 for Ole Miss. Dating back to last year, the Rebels have seen the ‘over’ go 13-3 in their last 16 games.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

--As I’ve stated many times in recent days, the SEC is way down this season. With that said, Vandy and Tennessee came through for the league on Tuesday with a pair of wins. The Commdores beat South Florida and the Vols knocked off Marquette to give the SEC a 2-0 lead in the SEC/Big East Invitational. We should note, however, that those games were played in Nashville and that both SEC squads were favored.

--I love what I’m seeing out of Wake Forest sophomore guard Jeff Teague, who is averaging 19.4 points, 4.6 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game in leading the Demon Deacons to a 9-0 record.

--Pittsburgh stayed undefeated with last night’s 79-66 home win over Siena. The Saints took the cash as 17-point underdogs.

vegasinsider.com.

Mississippi (7-3, 4-4 ATS) vs. (9) Louisville (6-1, 4-3 ATS) (at Cincinnati)

The SEC/Big East Invitational continues, with Louisville meeting Mississippi on the neutral floor of Cincinnati’s U.S. Bank Arena.

The ninth-ranked Cardinals dropped Austin Peay 94-75 Saturday for their fourth straight win, but they failed to cover as a heavy 23-point home chalk, their second straight ATS setback. Since a stunning 68-54 upset loss at Western Kentucky on Nov. 30, Louisville has run off four straight victories by an average of 30 points per game (87.5-57.5). Against the Governors, Louisville’s leading scorer Samardo Samuels (17.0 ppg) had 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Preston Knowles contributed 21 points and Terrence Williams had 20 points and eight assists.

Mississippi held off Alabama State 85-81 Monday in a non-lined game, bouncing back from Saturday’s 103-70 blowout loss at New Mexico, and the Rebels have alternated SU wins and losses over their last five games (2-1 ATS in lined contests). Against Alabama State, David Huertas (21.0 ppg) led four players in double figures with 25 points, and Ole Miss hit 20 of 25 free throws, helping make up for Alabama State’s 56.9 percent shooting from the field.

These schools haven’t squared off on the hardwood since a home-and-home series a decade ago, with Mississippi winning and cashing as a favorite in both contests.

For the season, Louisville is averaging 80.0 ppg while giving up just 56.1 (15th in the nation), and the Cards have held opponents to just 25.8 percent shooting from 3-point range, which ranks fifth nationally. Mississippi is averaging 77.5 ppg and allowing 72.9.

The Cardinals are on ATS rolls of 21-8-1 overall, 6-1-1 after a non-cover, 13-5-1 against winning teams, 12-5 after a SU win and 9-4 in non-conference play. The Rebels, meanwhile, have cashed in seven of their last nine games against winning teams, but they are on pointspread skids of 0-4 on Thursday and 2-6 at neutral sites.

The under for Louisville is on runs of 5-1 overall, 11-3 against the SEC, 6-2-1 after a SU win and 5-2-1 on neutral floors. On the flip side, the over for Ole Miss is on streaks of 13-3 overall, 5-1 at neutral sites and 23-9-1 in non-conference action.

ATS ADVANTAGE: LOUISVILLE

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