Friday NCAAB Picks
Our team of writers and handicappers hand out their College Basketball picks and predictions for Friday, February 13.
IL-Chicago at Butler, 7:00PM ET
Fresh off a grueling road trip, Butler goes for its 16th straight Horizon League home victory Friday night when it meets Illinois-Chicago at Hinkle Fieldhouse – a place the Bulldogs have dropped just one league game in the past four years.
The 15th-ranked Bulldogs (21-2, 12-1) play their first home game since a 59-51 win over Valparaiso on Jan. 30. After falling 75-66 to Wisconsin-Green Bay on Feb. 2 to open the three-game six-day trip, Butler won back-to-back contests, including Saturday’s 69-51 victory over Wright State.
"This stretch of games – that’s as tough as any stretch I’ve heard of in any league anywhere," Butler coach Brad Stevens said. "I’m really proud of our guys."
The Bulldogs are now back on their home floor, where they’ve gone 31-1 in conference play since a 65-56 loss to Cleveland State on Feb. 10, 2005. Their last Horizon League defeat at Hinkle Fieldhouse was 75-71 to Loyola of Chicago on Feb. 22, 2007.
Sophomore guard Zach Hahn went 5-of-5 from 3-point range in the first half on Saturday and finished with a career-high 17 points. He missed all three from beyond the arc and went scoreless in a 59-52 win at UIC (11-13, 4-10) on Jan. 17.
NCAA Free Pick: Butler – View Game Matchup | Best Line: -12.5 Sportsbook.com
Villanova at West Virginia, 9:00PM ET
Villanova has generally been nothing more than a middle-of-the-pack offensive team during coach Jay Wright’s tenure.
Suddenly, though, the Wildcats are looking like an offensive juggernaut.
Thirteenth-ranked Villanova has topped 90 points in three consecutive games, and it’ll look to keep rolling Friday night at West Virginia as it tries for a seventh straight win.
Wright’s first season with the Wildcats (20-4, 8-3 Big East) was 2001-02, and since then they’re sixth among current conference teams in scoring, averaging 72.7 points.
Villanova never scored more than 81 last season in a conference game and was averaging 73.5 in its first eight league contests this season before going on a tear over the last three.
Scottie Reynolds began the run by scoring 31 in a 94-91 win at Providence on Feb. 4, then Dante Cunningham put up 31 in a 102-85 victory against then-No. 20 Syracuse last Saturday. Reynolds led the way again Tuesday against No. 10 Marquette, finishing with 27 in a 102-84 win.
The Wildcats, seventh in the league in scoring this season, reached the 100-point mark in consecutive Big East games for the first time in school history.
NCAA Free Pick: West Virginia – View Game Matchup | Best Line: -3.5 Sportsbook.com
Pennsylvania at Brown, 7:00PM ET
All games in this series since 1997
BROWN is 12-10 against the spread versus PENNSYLVANIA since 1997
PENNSYLVANIA is 17-5 straight up against BROWN since 1997
4 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL since 1997
Games over the last 3 seasons
BROWN is 3-1 against the spread versus PENNSYLVANIA over the last 3 seasons
BROWN is 2-2 straight up against PENNSYLVANIA over the last 3 seasons
3 of 4 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
All games played at BROWN since 1997
PENNSYLVANIA is 6-5 against the spread versus BROWN since 1997
PENNSYLVANIA is 8-3 straight up against BROWN since 1997
3 of 4 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL since 1997
Games played at BROWN over the last 3 seasons.
BROWN is 1-1 against the spread versus PENNSYLVANIA over the last 3 seasons
BROWN is 1-1 straight up against PENNSYLVANIA over the last 3 seasons
1 of 2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
NCAA Free Pick: Pennsylvania – View Game Matchup | Best Line: +1.5 Sportsbook.com
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Posted: 2/13/09 9:30AM ET
