12/22 Notes: There probably won?t be much breakdown today, just some one liners; this card is too big. Do them in segments. No D?Aundray Brown yet for Cleveland State, and South Florida has GIANTS down low which could be a big advantage against a CSU team that has trouble grabbling rebounds. It?s a pretty big spot for Cleveland State and a resume booster as well. Somewhat a first true road game for East Carolina as they go to George Washington. I?ve commented on the # of shots that GW usually takes in a game despite playing a middle of the road pace, so I?m assuming they get close to 50 up again here. Last year?s meeting did include 132 shots and went over this listed total in regulation. Gut?s telling me over there. Both UCF and Umass are pretty good defensive ballclubs. I figured UCF would be playing much slower than what its current form is so I?m going under here with UCF coming off a big win and Umass having 11 days off after allowing 100+ points to Seton Hall. I?m going to assume much of the past week?s practice was dedicated to defense. Dayton could be in a tough spot if they don?t slow the pace, they can?t really score with Seton Hall. Pope?s questionable, and they just lost some much needed depth down low in Hall transferring out, so this could be a factor.
Bets
UCF/Umass Under 142 (1 Unit)
12/22 Notes Cont?d: No interest in Detroit continuing the road trip, and Bradley?s lone other PG (Simms-Edwards) hasn?t practiced or played in two weeks and is probably doubtful with conference play starting in a week. Bradley?s lone win after all these injuries to the PG spot is Jackson State. Probably some strong value on Detroit going into what use to be a tough place to play, but it?s not tough this year if EIU and Utah can do it, no reason why Detroit can?t. Probably missing a very good opportunity here. Louisville first road game, and these two teams put up 170+ last year, but lesser offense this year and there was a ton of FT?s shot in that game. Duquesne?s 3 losses have come to the only top 100 defenses they?ve face this year. Their fourth loss was to the #105 Penn State defense. George Mason 2nd game of a roady, but definite value with this defense. Northern Illinois? pace and lack of defense should pretty much allow Southern to put up points whenever it wants tonight. Southern has always been built on defense, but they?re lacking in that department this year in terms of talent. They?ve put together a solid team defense, but it?s not the same what it was. The pace ranking don?t show it, but this is a team built to run with its guards and big men stepping out. Listed total might be a bit high but no reason SIU doesn?t hit 80+ here. North Texas plays fast, which makes an under scary, but the only time they?ve played a top 100 defense this year was Kansas and they scored 60 in that game. Florida Atlantic is playing a 5th straight road game to end their current road trip, while Depaul has played four straight at home. Neither of these offenses scare me and if Florida Atlantic is going to have a chance (which the line suggests), they gotta slow it down, which is what they will probably do to an extent considering the three other games they played this year against big names they scored 66, 50, and 61. Depaul matches up here against some pretty decent guards, but they shut down MKE?s guard slots and played well enough to win against Loyola CHI?s guard spots, so this one gets my under. Pretty big game for Illinois, already offered my thoughts. They got caught looking ahead to Missouri in the loss to UIC. They have too much depth and too solid of guard play too struggle against the press. They match up extremely well defensively too. My guess is you see an entire 360 of what you saw on Saturday. If they bring their A game, this is a rout. Definite value in anything under a possession. You need two things to beat Missouri, guards who can handle the ball and depth that can contribute. Illinois has more than enough of both, a ton of value here. Boise State and Portland should be a good game with some decent matchups. Boise?s defense sort of took a hit on the last road trip, so should be some focus there going on the road again. Portland?s been on the road for four straight and comes home here. This game smells of under, but Portland?s ability to knock down the three-ball and do it well is keeping me off. Revenge game for Oregon State as UIC travels across country after its biggest win in recent years against Illinois with a conference game on deck. Oregon State Coach Robinson has enough ties learn about Illinois-Chicago as he was a former assistant at Northwestern. Yes, they?re coming off a loss to George Washington, but GW never shoots 54% in a game. This is a perfect spot for a UIC letdown with travel added in.
Bets
Oregon State -5
Florida Atlantic/Depaul Under 142.5
12/22 Notes Cont?d: Not really a big fan of Gonzaga at all this year, but not a good spot for Xavier with travel. Southern Miss has been pretty impressive this year scoring 75+ in every game aside from slow tempo South Florida. But, they?ve been on the road for three prior here before going to Mexico and East Tennessee State has been on the road for five prior before going to Mexico, so really no value with an over, especially with the early start time. The Mississippi State program is heading towards the floor. They were supposed to get a big boost with Bost and Sidney coming back into the lineup after missing the first semester, and while Sidney returned, something blew up at practice and he?s been suspended. And Bost has yet to return. Staying far away from Troy and Western Michigan after the up-and-down marathon yesterday. No real interest in any of these tournament games today. Siena and Georgia Tech are two teams who like to get up and down, but there are some injury concerns there. College of Charleston?s losses were to top 50 defenses and they get another one tonight in Clemson. This is really two contrasting styles of play and a spot that Clemson coach Brownell strives for. They have not looked good on the road with losses to South Carolina and Florida State, but this game will feature a bit more up and down, which can turn into a few more turnovers and more scoring opportunities. COC has 40 point revenge from last year?s meeting as well, and have a 1 point loss to Maryland and a 5 point loss to UNC (ACC schools like Clemson), both on the road. With that said, I still like Clemson. This is a spot that Brownell usually comes out ahead in contrasting styles of play. I thought the La Salle line was a tad bit short. Will probably take a shot at Furman here, as it?s a pretty big home game for them this year. South Carolina?s not really all that talented of a team. Yes, they?re 7-2 but they haven?t been overly impressive and I project them close to the bottom of the SEC in a rebuilding year where going on the road in any environment will be tough especially on a two game trek. The loss at Wofford last year and loss at College of Charleston really isn?t any different than this spot here other than SC being younger and in-experienced with no true scorer. Furman has been shooting the ball extremely well, and their offense is pretty smooth which really doesn?t help SC here in an up-and-down game if that?s what they choose to do. They lack some size, but the guards are experienced and the forwards are all-conference possibilities in the SOCON. Confidence is high, they?re shooting the ball extremely well, and they?re coming off a 3-0 road trip. Should be a winnable game.
Bets
Oregon State -5 (1 Unit)
Furman +2 (1 Unit)
Florida Atlantic/Depaul Under 142.5 (1 Unit)
UCF/Umass Under 142 (1 Unit)
Bets
UCF/Umass Under 142 (1 Unit)
12/22 Notes Cont?d: No interest in Detroit continuing the road trip, and Bradley?s lone other PG (Simms-Edwards) hasn?t practiced or played in two weeks and is probably doubtful with conference play starting in a week. Bradley?s lone win after all these injuries to the PG spot is Jackson State. Probably some strong value on Detroit going into what use to be a tough place to play, but it?s not tough this year if EIU and Utah can do it, no reason why Detroit can?t. Probably missing a very good opportunity here. Louisville first road game, and these two teams put up 170+ last year, but lesser offense this year and there was a ton of FT?s shot in that game. Duquesne?s 3 losses have come to the only top 100 defenses they?ve face this year. Their fourth loss was to the #105 Penn State defense. George Mason 2nd game of a roady, but definite value with this defense. Northern Illinois? pace and lack of defense should pretty much allow Southern to put up points whenever it wants tonight. Southern has always been built on defense, but they?re lacking in that department this year in terms of talent. They?ve put together a solid team defense, but it?s not the same what it was. The pace ranking don?t show it, but this is a team built to run with its guards and big men stepping out. Listed total might be a bit high but no reason SIU doesn?t hit 80+ here. North Texas plays fast, which makes an under scary, but the only time they?ve played a top 100 defense this year was Kansas and they scored 60 in that game. Florida Atlantic is playing a 5th straight road game to end their current road trip, while Depaul has played four straight at home. Neither of these offenses scare me and if Florida Atlantic is going to have a chance (which the line suggests), they gotta slow it down, which is what they will probably do to an extent considering the three other games they played this year against big names they scored 66, 50, and 61. Depaul matches up here against some pretty decent guards, but they shut down MKE?s guard slots and played well enough to win against Loyola CHI?s guard spots, so this one gets my under. Pretty big game for Illinois, already offered my thoughts. They got caught looking ahead to Missouri in the loss to UIC. They have too much depth and too solid of guard play too struggle against the press. They match up extremely well defensively too. My guess is you see an entire 360 of what you saw on Saturday. If they bring their A game, this is a rout. Definite value in anything under a possession. You need two things to beat Missouri, guards who can handle the ball and depth that can contribute. Illinois has more than enough of both, a ton of value here. Boise State and Portland should be a good game with some decent matchups. Boise?s defense sort of took a hit on the last road trip, so should be some focus there going on the road again. Portland?s been on the road for four straight and comes home here. This game smells of under, but Portland?s ability to knock down the three-ball and do it well is keeping me off. Revenge game for Oregon State as UIC travels across country after its biggest win in recent years against Illinois with a conference game on deck. Oregon State Coach Robinson has enough ties learn about Illinois-Chicago as he was a former assistant at Northwestern. Yes, they?re coming off a loss to George Washington, but GW never shoots 54% in a game. This is a perfect spot for a UIC letdown with travel added in.
Bets
Oregon State -5
Florida Atlantic/Depaul Under 142.5
12/22 Notes Cont?d: Not really a big fan of Gonzaga at all this year, but not a good spot for Xavier with travel. Southern Miss has been pretty impressive this year scoring 75+ in every game aside from slow tempo South Florida. But, they?ve been on the road for three prior here before going to Mexico and East Tennessee State has been on the road for five prior before going to Mexico, so really no value with an over, especially with the early start time. The Mississippi State program is heading towards the floor. They were supposed to get a big boost with Bost and Sidney coming back into the lineup after missing the first semester, and while Sidney returned, something blew up at practice and he?s been suspended. And Bost has yet to return. Staying far away from Troy and Western Michigan after the up-and-down marathon yesterday. No real interest in any of these tournament games today. Siena and Georgia Tech are two teams who like to get up and down, but there are some injury concerns there. College of Charleston?s losses were to top 50 defenses and they get another one tonight in Clemson. This is really two contrasting styles of play and a spot that Clemson coach Brownell strives for. They have not looked good on the road with losses to South Carolina and Florida State, but this game will feature a bit more up and down, which can turn into a few more turnovers and more scoring opportunities. COC has 40 point revenge from last year?s meeting as well, and have a 1 point loss to Maryland and a 5 point loss to UNC (ACC schools like Clemson), both on the road. With that said, I still like Clemson. This is a spot that Brownell usually comes out ahead in contrasting styles of play. I thought the La Salle line was a tad bit short. Will probably take a shot at Furman here, as it?s a pretty big home game for them this year. South Carolina?s not really all that talented of a team. Yes, they?re 7-2 but they haven?t been overly impressive and I project them close to the bottom of the SEC in a rebuilding year where going on the road in any environment will be tough especially on a two game trek. The loss at Wofford last year and loss at College of Charleston really isn?t any different than this spot here other than SC being younger and in-experienced with no true scorer. Furman has been shooting the ball extremely well, and their offense is pretty smooth which really doesn?t help SC here in an up-and-down game if that?s what they choose to do. They lack some size, but the guards are experienced and the forwards are all-conference possibilities in the SOCON. Confidence is high, they?re shooting the ball extremely well, and they?re coming off a 3-0 road trip. Should be a winnable game.
Bets
Oregon State -5 (1 Unit)
Furman +2 (1 Unit)
Florida Atlantic/Depaul Under 142.5 (1 Unit)
UCF/Umass Under 142 (1 Unit)
