Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Tuesday 11/27/18
Tuesday’s games
Davidson won its last five games with crosstown rival Charlotte, winning last three by 15+ points. Wildcats set 71% inside arc in LY’s 85-70 win at Charlotte. Davidson is 5-1, with a 79-58 loss to Purdue on a neutral court in Charleston; Wildcats are experience team #328 whose subs are playing #326 minutes- their bench is thin and they’re shooting only 31.1% on arc, 2% worse than any year for them since 2002. 49ers split their first four games; they’re experience team #333, and are turning ball over 23.7% of time.
Notre Dame is 5-1 vs schedule #310; their only win over a top 150 team was 95-70 over DePaul in last game. Irish are #288 experience team that protects ball well- their only loss was by 3 at home to Radford. This is Notre Dame’s 7th straight home game. Illinois is 2-4 so far this month; they were 0-3 in Maui Classic, are 0-4 vs top 100 teams, with three losses by 9 or fewer points. Illini is experience team #306 that subs a lot- they’re forcing turnovers 25.3% of time and make 40.9% of their 3’s, but young Illini’s defensive eFG% is #317 in country- no bueno.
Virginia Tech won its first five games, beating Purdue in final of Charleston tourney; Hokies are #108 experience team that is forcing turnovers 28.2% of time (#2)- they’ve also made 41.4% of their 3’s so far. VT starts two sophs, two seniors. Penn State is 3-2 this month with losses by total of five points; Nittany Lions are #317 experience team whose bench plays very little (#322)- they split pair of game in Mexico LW. PSU lost 72-70 in OT at DePaul in their only top 100 game this season. Lions start a frosh and two sophs.
Michigan State won its last five games since a 92-87 loss to Kansas on neutral floor; Spartans are beat UCLA/Texas in Las Vegas over weekend- they were down 44-36 at half to Texas in last game Friday, but won by 10, making 12-20 on arc. State starts three juniors, two seniors; they’re experience team #104 that has #12 defensive eFG%. Louisville lost to Tennessee/Marquette over weekend, by 11-3 points. Cardinals are #105 experience team that subs a lot and has new coach. Louisville’s only top 200 win this month was a 86-78 home win over #136 Vermont.
Boise State is off to a 2-3 start, losing two of three games on Cayman Islands last week, one of which was 73-70 loss to Illinois State of MVC; Broncos are #109 experience team that also lost 72-70 at home to #263 Idaho State. Boise starts three juniors and a senior- their bench plays #220 minutes. Drake has its third coach in three years; they’re #116 experience team that is turning ball over 22% of time. Bulldogs won last two games by total of 8 points, with best win over #148 Texas State. Drake’s only loss was 100-71 at #68 Colorado.
Loyola beat Nevada 69-68 in Sweet 16 game LY, two Cinderellas meeting on big stage. Ramblers were down were -6 in turnovers, shot 62% inside arc in game they trailed by 12 early on. Nevada is #2 experience team- they start 5 seniors who were in this game LY. Wolf Pack is 6-0, scoring 96-110 points in easy wins on neutral Vegas court last week. Nevadas’ closest win so far was a 96-86 win over #135 Tulsa. Loyola is 4-2 this year, losing its two top 170 games, by hoop to Furman, by 12 to Boston College. Ramblers are #245 experience team that starts three seniors.
Southern Illinois is off to a 3-3 start, but they won their two games vs teams ranked outside top 200 by 30-14 points. Salukis are #16 team that is turning ball over 23.8% of time- they split a pair of games in Las Vegas over weekend. Colorado State is #220 experience team that has a new coach- their bench is playing #302 minutes- thats a thin bench. Rams are 3-2 this month (vs schedule #306), losing two of three games in Florida over weekend; they’re starting three juniors and a senior, and are playing only 7-8 guys.
Pitt is off to 6-0 start under new coach Capel, but vs schedule #348; Panthers’ best win was over #83 Saint Louis in Brooklyn last week- their defensive eFG% is #18 in country. Pitt starts three freshmen, two juniors; they’re experience team #300- this is their first true road game. Iowa is off to a 5-0 wth neutral floor wins over Oregon/UConn in NYC; Hawkeyes are #250 experience team that is #32 in minutes continuity- they start three juniors, have only one senior, a scrub. Iowa i shooting 59.9% inside arc while playing tempo #42.
Missouri is off to a 3-2 start, vs schedule #75; this is their first home game in three weeks. Tigers are 1-2 vs top 100 teams, beating Oregon State, losing by 17 at Iowa State, by 15 to Kansas State on Virgin Islands last week. Mizzou is #267 experience team that is turning ball over 21.4% of time while playing pace #314. Temple is off to a 5-1 start, losing by 6 to VCU in Brooklyn LW; Owls are #114 experience team that is forcing turnovers 24.6% of time- their best win was 81-77 over Georgia (#119) LW.
NC State is 6-0 vs easiest schedule in country so far; Wolfpack is #146 experience team whose bench is playing #8 minutes in country- they start two juniors, two seniors, force turnovers 26% of time. State’s best win was 78-74 over #175 Mercer, their only top 200 win. Wisconsin is 5-1 after losing 53-46 to Virginia in finals at Atlantis Friday; Badgers are making 42.1% of their 3’s while playing pace #348. Wisconsin is experience team #185 experience team that is starting three sophs, two seniors- their defensive eFG% is #19 in country.
This is Duke’s first game since 89-87 loss to Gonzaga in final of Maui Classic Wednesday; Blue Devils are ##45 experience team that start four freshmen- they’re playing pace #68, making 36.2% of their 3’s. Duke has three top 100 wins, by 34-26-6 points; their bench plays #218 minutes, so their subs are suspect. Indiana is 5-1 vs schedule #319, with 73-72 loss at Arkansas in their only true road game; Hoosiers are experience team #307 that is forcing turnovers 25% of time. Indiana starts two freshmen, two sophs.
Iona beat Ohio U last two years by 4-5 points; Gaels made 14-35 on arc in LY’s 93-88 win at Ohio (Bobcats were 13-28 on arc). Iona is off to a 2-3 start, losing its two top 200 games by 7 at New Mexico, 12 at Providence; Gaels are experience team #59, but MC #309, so they’ve been cobbed together via transfers and JC signings- they’re still getting acquainted. Iona plays seven juniors, a senior and a freshman. Ohio is 2-2 vs schedule #297, beating Austin Peay in OT in last game Saturday; Bobcats are #285 experience team that is shooting 20.4% on arc (#352).
North Dakota/Montana State were conference rivals, before UND jumped to Summit League this year; Fighting Hawks won three of last four series games, beating MSU by a hoop in Big Sky tourney last March. UND is 1-2 vs D-I teams, with three non-D-I wins (schedule #27); they’re #218 experience team that starts two juniors, two seniors. Montana State is experience team #is 0-6 vs D-I teams (schedule #34), with one NAIA win an only one loss by less than 19 points; Bobcats are #25 experience team that starts two juniors, two seniors.
By David Schwab
Tuesday’s betting board for college basketball features a trio of matchups as part of the ongoing ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
First up is the Pittsburgh Panthers on the road against the Iowa Hawkeyes. The North Carolina State Wolfpack are in Madison to take on the Wisconsin Badgers and the highlight of the night is a 9:30 p.m. tip in Durham between the Indiana Hoosiers and the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils.
Pittsburgh Panthers at Iowa Hawkeyes (ESPNU, 9:00 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Iowa -13 ½, Total 152 ½
Betting Matchup
As Pitts’ football team prepares to face Clemson in the ACC Championship, the basketball team will be trying to extend its current SU winning streak to seven games. The Panthers have been able to cover in five of their first six games, including a big 75-73 upset against St. Louis last Wednesday as four-point underdogs. The total has gone OVER in four of those first six games.
Iowa is also undefeated at 5-0 SU, but it has been a tough bet at 2-3 ATS. The total has gone OVER in three of those five games. The Hawkeyes’ biggest win so far was 77-69 victory against Oregon as four-point underdogs on Nov. 15. The next night, Iowa hammered Connecticut 91-72 to easily cover as a 4 ½-point favorite. Sophomore forward Luke Garza has been the team’s leading scorer with 16.2 points per game.
Betting Trends
--The Panthers are just 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games playing a Big Ten Team and the total has stayed UNDER in four of their last five matchups against this conference.
--The Hawkeyes are 5-17 ATS in their last 22 ACC matchups and the total has gone OVER in 22 of their last 30 home games.
--This will be the first meeting between the two in recent memory.
North Carolina State Wolfpack at Wisconsin Badgers (ESPN 2, 9:00 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Wisconsin -7, Total 144
Betting Matchup
The Wolfpack are another ACC team with perfect SU 6-0 start in their first six games. They have been able to cover in four of those six outings after closing as heavy double-digit favorites in all six contests. The total has stayed UNDER in four of the six games. Senior guard Torin Dorn has led the way with 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds a game. He put up 19 points and pulled down nine rebounds in NC State’s recent win against Mercer.
Wisconsin’s lone setback against five SU wins was a 53-46 loss to Virginia last Friday in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship round. The Badgers closed as four-point underdogs and it was the first time they failed to cover in their last five games. Their biggest SU win of the season came against Xavier on Nov. 13 in a 77-68 victory as slight two-point underdogs. Wisconsin is averaging 74.0 points per game while allowing just 57.8 PPG at the other end of the court.
Betting Trends
--The Wolfpack have failed to cover in 20 of their last 27 road games and they are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games against the Big Ten.
--The Badgers are 18-8 ATS in their last 26 games against an ACC team and the total has stayed UNDER in five of their last six games.
--Wisconsin has won the previous two meetings both SU and ATS with the total evenly split at 1-1.
Indiana Hoosiers at No. 3 Duke Blue Devils (ESPN, 9:30 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Duke -13 ½, Total 155
Betting Matchup
Indiana faced Duke at home in last season’s ACC/Big Ten Challenge as 8 ½-point underdogs and it went onto lose 91-81. Heading into this season’s matchup, the Hoosiers are off to a solid 5-1 start straight-up. However, they have failed to cover against the spread in their last three games, including a 73-72 road loss to Arkansas as 3 ½-point favorites. All five wins have come on their home court.
The Blue Devils quickly moved to No. 1 in the nation with an impressive 118-84 victory against Kentucky as two-point underdogs in their season opener. They dropped a few spots in the latest AP Top 25 with last Wednesday’s 89-87 loss to Gonzaga as eight-point favorites. Duke has averaged 91.8 points per game in its SU 5-1 start. It has gone an even 3-3 ATS with the total staying UNDER in four of the six games.
Betting Trends
--The Hoosiers are 1-4 ATS in their last five ACC games and the total has stayed UNDER or ended as a PUSH in eight of their last nine road games.
--The Blue Devils have covered the spread in nine of their last 11 games against a team from the Big Ten and the total has stayed UNDER in 12 of their last 16 home games.
--The road team in this matchup has covered ATS in four of the last five meetings with the total going OVER in three of those five games.