Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Tuesday 12/25/18
Diamond Head Classic, Hawai’i
Colorado is 8-3 vs schedule #267, losing first two games here by 5-8ot points; Buffaloes are experience team #291 whose subs play minutes #32- they’re 9-40 on arc in first two games this week. Buffs are playing fast (#50) tempo. Charlotte is 3-7 vs schedule #157 with experience team #333 and new coach; they scored 57-61 points in first two games this week. 49ers are turning ball over 23.0% of time (#332), shooting only 28.3% on arc (#321); they’re 0-4 vs top 100 teams, losing by 20-8-25-14 points.
Hawai’i is 5-5 vs schedule #203; Rainbows are 1-3 vs top 100 teams, losing by 10-15-19 points, with an OT win over Colorado Sunday. Rainbows are experience team #83 that plays slow (#313) tempo that a is making only 32.2% of its 3’s (#242). Rhode Island is 6-4 vs schedule #156; they won three of last four games. Rams were up 11 late in first half- they played two starters 38:00+. URI is experience team #300 with a thin bench (minutes #326); they’re shooting 24.5% on arc, 3rd-worst mark in country, but are forcing turnovers 21.2% of time.
UNLV is 6-5 vs schedule #219; they’re #222 experience team whose bench plays minutes #77- their best player Juiston is out for year. UNLV turns ball over 22.9% of time (#330) but they’re #2 team in country on offensive boards. Rebels get 23.4% of their points on foul line (#30). Bucknell lost three of last four games, is 5-6 vs schedule #74; Bison is experience team #124 that is 4-3 vs teams outside the top 100. Bison score 37.2% of their points behind arc (#64); they made 17-47 3’s on arc in first two games of this tournament.
Indiana State scored 78 ppg in winning first two games of this event; Sycamores are 8-3 vs schedule #71; they’re making 45.2% on arc, #1 in country, but only 44.9% inside arc. ISU is 1-2 vs top 100 teams, with losses by 20-17 points, and win over Colorado. TCU won its last seven games, is 10-1 vs schedule #205; Horned Frogs are experience team #188 whose only loss was at home to #58 Lipscomb- they’re 7-0 vs teams ranked outside top 100, with six wins by 17+ points. TCU scored 82-82 points in winning first two games here, by 25-17 points.
Preview: Colorado vs. Charlotte
Colorado came to Hawaii riding a six-game winning streak and hopes to leave without losing all three contests at the Diamond Head Classic when it takes on Charlotte for seventh place Tuesday in Honolulu. The Buffaloes dropped a 72-67 decision to Indiana State in the first round before a disappointing performance on the boards and cold shooting led to a 70-62 overtime loss to Hawaii on Sunday.
“We are not executing from the neck up,” Colorado coach Tad Boyle told reporters. “We didn’t do it against Indiana State, we didn’t do it against Hawaii (Sunday). We talk to our guys about communication all the time. But these guys are very reluctant to talk, reluctant to communicate on the floor. … It was just absolutely atrocious execution by (us) and that’s on the coach. I have to own it.” Sophomore guard McKinley Wright IV led the way with 20 points, eight rebounds and five assists but had seven turnovers Sunday for the Buffaloes, who shot 33.9 percent from the floor and outrebounded 48-35 by Hawaii. “We have five of our first seven on the road in league play so we’re going to have to grow up and grow up quickly between the ears and in our chests, with out hearts,” Boyle told reporters. “I have confidence that this team can do that.” Charlotte beat Oklahoma State early in the season, but has lost five of its last six after falling 75-61 to Rhode Island in the consolation round Sunday night.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, ESPNU
ABOUT COLORADO (8-3): Wright averages 14.8 points and a team-high 5.8 assists for the Buffaloes after connecting on 14-of-22 from the field in the tournament, and junior forward Lucas Siewert (12.4 points) scored 19 against Hawaii. Sophomore guard Tyler Bey, who averages 12 points along with team-highs of 9.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks, was just 1-of-6 from the field Sunday to end a string of three straight double-doubles. Freshman forward Evan Battey (3-of-14) and junior guard Shane Gatling (0-of-6 versus Hawaii) have also had shooting woes in the tournament.
ABOUT CHARLOTTE (3-7): Senior guard Jon Davis is the only double-figure scorer (19.2) and leads the team in assists (4.2) after totaling 31 points in the tournament on 10-of-23 shooting. Freshman guard Malik Martin scored 16 points against Rhode Island to push his average to 9.8 for the 49ers, who fell behind by 20 in the first half before battling back to give themselves a chance. Sophomore forward Milos Supica from Serbia averages 7.1 points and a team-high 5.3 rebounds while freshman guard Brandon Younger (5.5 points) has scored 8.8 per game over the last four games.
TIP-INS
1. Colorado senior G Namon Wright averaged 13.3 points the first four games of the season and 4.4 in seven contests since.
2. Davis needs three points to pass Leemire Goldwire (1,677) for ninth most in Charlotte history.
3. The Buffaloes won the only previous meeting with Charlotte 76-74 in 2002 at home.
PREDICTION: Colorado 76, Charlotte 66
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Preview: Indiana State vs. TCU
TCU seeks an eighth straight victory overall and a second over Indiana State in 10 days when the teams meet in the championship game of the Diamond Head Classic Tuesday night in Honolulu, Hawaii. TCU forced 20 turnovers to defeat the Sycamores 90-70 at home on Dec. 16 and showed the same kind of focus on defense to pull away from Bucknell for an 82-65 victory in Sunday’s semifinals.
The Horned Frogs led just 44-41 at halftime against Bucknell before limiting the Bison to 29.6 percent shooting in the final 20 minutes, including 3-of-13 from 3-point range, and scored 27 points off turnovers overall. “We knew we had to lock down better on defense since they were shooting (46.2) percent in the first half, and our M.O. this year is to be a really good defensive team,” TCU senior point guard Alex Robinson told reporters. “That was our focus and I think we accomplished that.” Indiana State leads the nation in 3-point shooting percentage (45.5), but connected on just three of their 16 attempts from behind the arc in the first matchup with the Horned Frogs before draining 14-of-28 in the first two games of the tournament. The Sycamores, who are led by junior guard Jordan Barnes (21.5 points per game), will be playing in their first nonconference tournament championship game since 1999 when they won the Indiana Classic.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2
ABOUT INDIANA STATE (8-3): Barnes, who scored 17 in the loss to TCU, is averaging 23.5 points in the tournament after recording 28 and dishing out five assists against UNLV in the semifinals Sunday. Sophomore guard Tyreke Key averages 17.2 points on 55 percent shooting while junior guard Christian Williams (11.7 points, team-high 8.3 rebounds) gives the Sycamores three talented weapons on offense. Senior center Emondre Rickman poured in season-high 13 points against UNLV - almost eight above his average - and owns a team-best 17 blocks.
ABOUT TCU (10-1): Robinson, who is averaging 12.9 points, is second in the nation with nine assists per game and has 22 in the last two games - one away from the tournament record set by Kyle Collinsworth of BYU in 2015. Junior guard Desmond Bane leads the team at 14.6 points per contest and is 22-of-37 from the field in the past four games while sophomore forward Kouat Noi averages 13.9 points. Junior guard Jaylen Fisher is fourth on the team in scoring overall (12.3) while connecting on 29-of-63 shots from behind the 3-point arc in the last seven contests.
TIP-INS
1. Robinson passed Prince Fowler (514) for second on TCU’s all-time assists list and is 58 away from Corey Santee (575).
2. Barnes and Key have combined to make 49 of their 91 attempts from 3-point range this season.
3. TCU freshman C Kevin Samuel tops the team in rebounding (7.0) and is shooting 74.5 percent from the field.
PREDICTION: TCU 78, Indiana State 68
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NCAAB
Long Sheet
Tuesday, December 25
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COLORADO (8 - 3) vs. CHARLOTTE (3 - 7) - 12/25/2018, 1:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
COLORADO is 0-7 ATS (-7.7 Units) in road games in December games over the last 2 seasons.
COLORADO is 2-9 ATS (-7.9 Units) in road games after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 10-25 ATS (-17.5 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 10-25 ATS (-17.5 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 9-23 ATS (-16.3 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 0-8 ATS (-8.8 Units) in road games when playing with one or less days rest over the last 3 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 11-25 ATS (-16.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 3 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 77+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
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RHODE ISLAND (6 - 4) at HAWAII (7 - 5) - 12/25/2018, 3:30 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
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UNLV (6 - 5) vs. BUCKNELL (5 - 6) - 12/25/2018, 6:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
UNLV is 9-19 ATS (-11.9 Units) when the total is 140 to 149.5 over the last 3 seasons.
UNLV is 77-52 ATS (+19.8 Units) in December games since 1997.
UNLV is 58-35 ATS (+19.5 Units) when playing with one or less days rest since 1997.
UNLV is 134-102 ATS (+21.8 Units) after a non-conference game since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.
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INDIANA ST (8 - 3) vs. TCU (10 - 1) - 12/25/2018, 9:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
INDIANA ST is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) as a neutral court underdog of 9.5 to 12 points since 1997.
TCU is 26-14 ATS (+10.6 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TCU is 184-232 ATS (-71.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
TCU is 1-0 against the spread versus INDIANA ST over the last 3 seasons
TCU is 1-0 straight up against INDIANA ST over the last 3 seasons
1 of 1 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
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