Countinguy, Looks like you have been doing the right thing playing the home team in the Big 10.
Making hay at home
By Jason Lake
Here's an attention grabber for you: the home team in Big Ten men's conference basketball is 19-9-1 against the spread (ATS) this season.
Here at Covers, we encourage our readers to ask any questions they may have about sports betting. Recently, "hogan" wanted to know whether overall, home/away or last five is most important when considering where to place your bets. When it comes to college ball, home is where the money is.
The Big Ten is a big headache for visiting teams. Last year, the home team was 63-25 straight up (SU) in conference action. The winning percentage of 71.6 was the highest in the NCAA.
The home-court advantage doesn't seem to scare people away from the betting window. The home team was 54-33-1 ATS last year.
Why do otherwise-talented basketball teams consistently fail on the road?
Consider Wisconsin, which was 7-1 ATS last year at Kohl Center, but 4-5 ATS away. The Badgers bagged 59.9 points at home and 59.2 on the road. On defense, however, Wisconsin gave up a miserly 49.5 points at the Kohl Center and a very generous 63.9 points away.
The Purdue Boilermakers have a different problem away from the friendly confines of Mackey Arena. Last year, Purdue's high-octane offense averaged 74 points at home and just 62 away.
Especially in college, teams go into opposing arenas with a certain gameplan and watch it unravel under pressure. The Badgers' tough D wilts like old lettuce, while the Boilermakers hit nothing but iron.
It isn't difficult to see why road teams become patsies in the Big Ten. The atmosphere the home crowd delivers is unlike any other.
At Mackey Arena, the Boilermakers have an insane record of 233-65 SU. That's a 78 percent home-court advantage. Any opposing team will be intimidated by those numbers before it even gets out of the parking lot.
Once inside, there's the capacity crowd of 14,123 to deal with. The Boilermakers regularly pack Mackey Arena to the rafters. At one point, Purdue enjoyed a string of 129 consecutive conference sellouts.
The home team will invariably tweak the arena's seating plan in its favor. In 2001, Purdue established a student-only zone for 3,000 people. Those students were situated around the Boilermaker prep band, directly behind the visiting team bench.
Purdue isn't alone when it comes to crazy fans. Michigan has "The Maize Rage" at Crisler Arena, where the Wolverines are enjoying a renaissance at 4-0 SU and ATS this season. They stormed the court after the Wolverines beat Michigan State last week 60-58, bringing back memories of the Fab Five.
Then there's the fans of the Indiana Hoosiers. When their team lost last year to Maryland in the finals of the NCAA tournament, IU students rioted in Bloomington. Police brought out the tear gas in response.
No wonder the Hoosiers won 56 straight games at Indiana's Assembly Hall. Would you want to make their fans angry?
Making hay at home
By Jason Lake
Here's an attention grabber for you: the home team in Big Ten men's conference basketball is 19-9-1 against the spread (ATS) this season.
Here at Covers, we encourage our readers to ask any questions they may have about sports betting. Recently, "hogan" wanted to know whether overall, home/away or last five is most important when considering where to place your bets. When it comes to college ball, home is where the money is.
The Big Ten is a big headache for visiting teams. Last year, the home team was 63-25 straight up (SU) in conference action. The winning percentage of 71.6 was the highest in the NCAA.
The home-court advantage doesn't seem to scare people away from the betting window. The home team was 54-33-1 ATS last year.
Why do otherwise-talented basketball teams consistently fail on the road?
Consider Wisconsin, which was 7-1 ATS last year at Kohl Center, but 4-5 ATS away. The Badgers bagged 59.9 points at home and 59.2 on the road. On defense, however, Wisconsin gave up a miserly 49.5 points at the Kohl Center and a very generous 63.9 points away.
The Purdue Boilermakers have a different problem away from the friendly confines of Mackey Arena. Last year, Purdue's high-octane offense averaged 74 points at home and just 62 away.
Especially in college, teams go into opposing arenas with a certain gameplan and watch it unravel under pressure. The Badgers' tough D wilts like old lettuce, while the Boilermakers hit nothing but iron.
It isn't difficult to see why road teams become patsies in the Big Ten. The atmosphere the home crowd delivers is unlike any other.
At Mackey Arena, the Boilermakers have an insane record of 233-65 SU. That's a 78 percent home-court advantage. Any opposing team will be intimidated by those numbers before it even gets out of the parking lot.
Once inside, there's the capacity crowd of 14,123 to deal with. The Boilermakers regularly pack Mackey Arena to the rafters. At one point, Purdue enjoyed a string of 129 consecutive conference sellouts.
The home team will invariably tweak the arena's seating plan in its favor. In 2001, Purdue established a student-only zone for 3,000 people. Those students were situated around the Boilermaker prep band, directly behind the visiting team bench.
Purdue isn't alone when it comes to crazy fans. Michigan has "The Maize Rage" at Crisler Arena, where the Wolverines are enjoying a renaissance at 4-0 SU and ATS this season. They stormed the court after the Wolverines beat Michigan State last week 60-58, bringing back memories of the Fab Five.
Then there's the fans of the Indiana Hoosiers. When their team lost last year to Maryland in the finals of the NCAA tournament, IU students rioted in Bloomington. Police brought out the tear gas in response.
No wonder the Hoosiers won 56 straight games at Indiana's Assembly Hall. Would you want to make their fans angry?
