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NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH (8-0) vs. KENTUCKY WILDCATS (5-2)
2010-12-08
SEC/Big East Invitational – Louisville, KY
Sportsbook.com Line: Kentucky -5 & 141
One team is undefeated, the other team is facing a losing streak. One team has five seniors in its starting lineup. The other team has one senior on its entire team. One team is rated 23rd in the nation and rising. The other team is rated 16th and dropping. Welcome to Notre Dame vs. Kentucky.
Undefeated in eight games, the Irish are off to their best start ever under head coach Mike Brey. Despite losing player of the year candidate Luke Harangody to the NBA, the Irish are showing that a team’s experience can help to close the gap when depth appears to be lacking. Notre Dame is being led by senior guard Ben Hansbrough who is leading them in points and assists (15.8 PPG, 4.0 APG), and forward Tim Abromaitis (15.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG) who continues to be one of the most improved players in the Big East from year to year. Last season, Abromaitis averaged 18.2 PPG in league play. Forward Carleton Scott has become a double-digit scorer and is leading the team in rebounds (7.8 RPG). Forward Tyrone Nash (12.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG) is third on the Irish in scoring, and just behind Scott in the rebounding category. With victories over Georgia, California and Wisconsin that helped them win the Old Spice Classic, Notre Dame has gone a long way to enhance its tournament resume (never too early to talk about that stuff kids!). A win over No. 16 Kentucky would take the conversation to a whole new level.
Kentucky is in the part of its December schedule where it will play key out-of-conference rivals in contests that are only moderately important … if you consider bragging rights and life or death “moderately” important. The ‘Cats are coming off of a 75-73 defeat at North Carolina in Chapel Hill. After Notre Dame, Kentucky has a contest against another cross-state rival, Indiana on Saturday. On New Year’s Eve, John Calipari’s kiddie ’Cats will complete the scheduling gauntlet with a game against Louisville, a surprising 6-0 to start the season. The Wildcats lost to UNC despite a 24-point effort from freshman guard Doron Lamb. Freshman Terrence Jones is leading Kentucky in both scoring and rebounding (19.0 PPG, 9.6 RPG), but struggled against the Tar Heels, tallying just nine points and six boards in 28 minutes of play before fouling out. Freshman Brandon Knight (17.0 PPG, 3.4 APG, 3.3 RPG) has been impressive as he continues to fully grasp Calipari’s system.
The last time that Notre Dame started off this well was in 1973-74 when it began the season 12-0. That year, the biggest achievement for the Irish came when they broke up a certain 88-game winning streak belonging to some team from out west. That will not happen this year, but it doesn’t mean that Mike Brey’s squad won’t have a chance to do something else memorable this year. Wednesday in Louisville they have a shot at another tournament-resume-boosting win. While Christmas is just 17 days away, March will be here before you know it, and the selection committee is always interested in who’s been naughty and who’s been nice.
Kentucky won four straight series meetings (SU and ATS) from 2001 to 2004, but Notre Dame was the most recent series winner, 77-67 in 2009. These two trends like Notre Dame to at least cover the spread on Wednesday night
NOTRE DAME is 18-5 ATS (+12.5 Units) versus good teams - outscoring their opponents by 4+ points/game over the last 2 seasons. The average score was NOTRE DAME 72.4, OPPONENT 66.7 - (Rating = 3*).
NOTRE DAME is 19-6 ATS (+12.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons. The average score was NOTRE DAME 73.3, OPPONENT 66.3 - (Rating = 2*).
Sportsbook.com has just put up a variety of props on the Heisman Trophy. Who will finish with a higher finishing positition, Andrew Luck or Kellen Moore? Luck is -300 favorite. Get in the action now at Sportsbook.com.
UCLA BRUINS (3-2, 3-1 ATS) at KANSAS JAYHAWKS (6-0, 3-1 ATS) Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series
2010-12-02
Sportsbook.com using Kansas -16.5
Two legendary NFL Betting Lines programs, one dynamic college basketball setting, history, tradition. That is about all that undefeated Kansas (6-0) and UCLA (3-2) will have in common when they take the court Thursday night in Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks bring a nation-best, 64-game home winning streak into play, and the Bruins will be about as welcome in Lawrence as LeBron James will be welcome Thursday night in Cleveland.
Kansas has been clicking on all cylinders, and they have yet to add top recruit Josh Selby to the rotation. The NCAA ruled recently that Selby can play beginning on December 18. So far without Selby, Kansas is shooting a Division I best 57.8% from the field. Their average margin of victory (35.3 PPG) is also tops in the nation. As a team, they are averaging 22 assists per game. The Morris brothers have been outstanding so far. Marcus Morris leads the team in scoring at 19 PPG, while brother Markieff is averaging 12.3 PPG and a team-high 9.5 RPG. Tyshawn Taylor has been stellar so far at the point, averaging a team high 7.2 APG to complement his 9.2 PPG.
After a 3-0 start, Ben Howland’s Bruins lost in the semifinals and then the consolation game of the Preseason NIT Championship in Madison Square Garden. Sophomore forward Reeves Nelson leads the Bruins in points and rebounds (17.6 PPG, 10.4 RPG), and totaled 30 points and 23 rebounds in the two losses in New York City. Nelson and Tyler Honeycutt (14.6 PPG, 8.0 RPG) are both sophomores, and headline a young Bruins club that does not have a single senior on the team. The poise and discipline of this UCLA team will be sorely tested on Kansas’ home floor. The Bruins have totaled 84 assists and 81 turnovers this season. The combination of a young team that doesn’t protect the basketball, playing in a hostile road environment against an experienced team that has won 64 straight on its home floor and loves to pressure the ball looks like a bad combination for the baby bears. Normally when Kansas and UCLA play, that smell in the air is tradition. Thursday night in Lawrence, that won’t be tradition you’re whiffing, but more like the smell of a young team getting smoked.
69% of action at Sportsbook.com is betting that the Jayhawks will cover the big spread against the Bruins.
KANSAS is 20-5 ATS (+14.5 Units) when playing against a good team (Win Pct. 60% to 80%) over the last 3 seasons. The average score was KANSAS 80.3, OPPONENT 63.6 - (Rating = 3*).
NCAA Hoops: Illinois vs. Texas betting odds and preview
2010-11-18
Sportsbook.com Illinois vs. Texas betting lines: Texas +3.5, O/U 139.5
After disappointing 2009-10 campaigns, which included a one-and-done in the NCAA Tournament, and a third-round NIT loss, Texas and Illinois are on a mission to prove that last season was a speed bump, and this season will be the express lane that will take them deep into the big dance.
The Fighting Illini returned all five starters from last season’s team, are off to a 3-0 start and are showing several good signs early this season. The guard trio of Demetri McCamey, D.J. Richardson, and Brandon Paul are shooting a combined 47.4% from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Illini as a team is shooting over 54% FG on the season. Head coach Bruce Weber has been impressed with his team’s defense, as Illinois is holding its opponents to just 36% shooting from the field. On the interior of that defense, senior center Mike Tisdale is averaging 7.7 RPG to go with 2.3 BPG.
The college basketball betting crowd over at Sportsbook.com think Illinois is the way to bet as an overwhelming 92 percent of the cash is on the Illini.
Texas head coach Rick Barnes spent much of the offseason revamping the Longhorns’ offense. Now he has put that new offense in the hands of the new kids on the block in Austin, freshman point guard Cory Joseph and fellow freshman Tristan Thompson. In the November 10 victory over Louisiana Tech, Joseph had eight points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Meanwhile, all Thompson did was tack on 17 points coming off the bench. Between the two freshmen, and sophomore Jordan Hamilton, who is averaging 22.5 PPG thru two games, the new offense seems to be working well.
Expect Texas to get a major test from the length of Tisdale, Mike Davis and the rest of the Illinois defense. In the backcourt, the challenge of the young Texas guards going against the experienced shooting trio of McCamey, Richardson and Paul from Illinois should be an equally intriguing match-up. Seeing it all play out on the Madison Square Garden stage will be a fitting backdrop for two teams who want nothing to do with returning to the Garden in March for that "other" postseason tournament.
To bet on this game or any other game on tonight’s college basketball betting board, head over to Sportsbook.com now.
NCAA Hoops: Pitt vs. Maryland betting odds and preview
2010-11-18
Sportsbook.com Pitt vs. Maryland betting lines: Pitt -7, O/U 146
For one night in the Garden, east coast basketball fans can pretend that the old Big East-ACC challenge is back when Pittsburgh takes on Maryland in a semifinal game of the 2K Classic. The Panthers (91.7 PPG in three games) are off to a sizzling start offensively, as they have been led by the starting backcourt of Ashton Gibbs and Brad Wanamaker.
Each player is averaging 19.3 PPG. Despite an opening-game scare from the Rhode Island Rams, the Panthers have been generally dominant, winning its first three games by an average of 32 points. In addition to scoring, the 6-foot-4 Wanamaker is also tops on the Pitt’s stat sheet in assists (6.3 APG) and steals (2.0 SPG). Over the past two seasons, Pittsburgh ranked sixth in the nation in rebounding margin, and are picking up where they left off last year. The Panthers are outrebounding opponents by more than 21 rebounds a game so far this season.
The college basketball betting crowd at Sportsbook.com are pro Pitt, as 89 percent of the point spread bettors are backing the Panthers.
Despite those gaudy numbers on the glass, Jamie Dixon’s squad will have a major challenge on its hands in the paint against Maryland. Sophomore center Jordan Williams is off to a phenomenal start. Williams averaged 9.6 PPG and 8.6 RPG last season. So far this year, he is pulling down 13.7 RPG to go along with his 21.0 PPG. The only other ACC player to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds per game in the past decade was Tyler Hansbrough.
While the backcourt of Adrian Bowie and Sean Mosley is still learning the ropes with one another, Gary Williams’ team has gotten a boost from freshman guard Pe’Shon Howard, who had 14 points and the game-winning basket versus Charleston in a one-point win last week. Watching the Panthers team of defenders (six players are averaging at least 5.0 RPG) battle Williams for supremacy on the glass could be the matchup that determines who will step up and take control of this game down the stretch.
This college hoops betting trend favors the favorites covering the point spread tonight.
Play On - Favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points (PITTSBURGH) - an excellent defensive team (<=63 PPG) against an average defensive team (67-74 PPG), after a blowout win by 20 points or more. (68-33 over the last 5 seasons.) (67.3%, +31.7 units. Rating = 2*).
PITTSBURGH is 14-3 ATS (+10.7 Units) versus teams who average 40 or more rebounds/game on the season over the last 3 seasons. The average score was PITTSBURGH 72.9, OPPONENT 64.7 - (Rating = 2*).
Now that you know the scoop for tonight’s game, head over to Sportsbook.com to bet on college hoops.
NCAA Sellout?
2010-06-25
In the years to come we will all look back on this era as a time of change. A time when we inaugurated our first black president, a period that saw our economy turn upside down, and an entire nation affected…even the NCAA, and NCAA betting
The media has been in a frenzy over the expansion of the Pac-10 conference and the possibility of a completely dismantled Big 12. On Thursday, Commissioner Larry Scott announced the dawning of a new day for the Pac-10, as Colorado’s president graciously accepted the invitation to join the ten other West Coast schools. This news may come as a shock from a geographical standpoint. But UCLA head football coach Rick Neuheisel thinks that Colorado will be a perfect fit, “From a proximity standpoint, its closer to Los Angeles than Seattle is,” he said, NCAA betting is not so sure.
Nice one Rick, but the difference is not that great, only about 100 miles, especially considering that the distance from LA to Seattle is over a 900 mile long journey. Make no mistake that Larry Scott is getting his kicks in Denver dollar signs. Why else would anyone want to alter a conference that has been at the pinnacle of college athletic success for the past 30 years? The addition of Colorado is the first to take place since the addition of the two Arizona schools in 1978.
Mama always said, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. As if the expansion of the NCAA tournament wasn’t bad enough? No, yet again college sports fans everywhere will fall victim to the power of the almighty dollar, their opinions ignored and their input invalid.
Is their no sense of tradition, no sense of pride? I for one, admire Texas’ determination to preserve what is left of the Big-12, as they denied their invitation into the Pac-10 late Wednesday. The Big 12 is back, and the Texas rivalries intact, for now. But the additional departure of Nebraska to the Big 10 leaves the conference with ten teams, which would make playing a conference championship game impossible due to NCAA regulations that require a minimum of twelve teams to be present. This will only add to the mess and controversy that surrounds the BCS each year.
To me it seems like a lot of nonsense for nothing. The Pac-10 and Big 12 have acquired two middle of the road teams at best. Colorado adds no competitive value to either football or basketball, and both of those teams will face a challenge as mountainous as the Flat Irons in the near future, as they face a Pac-10 that will be revamped with even more talent for the upcoming 2011 and 2012 seasons. Perhaps now is the time to take advantage of the proximity to LA, and start recruiting some transfers from USC.
As for the Big 10, Nebraska has been a bottom tier team in the Big 12 in recent years, and that will not change. Their addition will hardly be noticeable. As a matter of fact, I thought Nebraska was already in the Big 10.
In all seriousness, this has been much ado over nothing; except for the Denver TV market that Larry Scott finally got his hands on. When it’s all said and done, when you are dealing with cash, you usually get change. Where do you do your NCAA betting? Head over to www.sportsbook.com where everybody bets.
2010 NCAA Basketball Championship: No. 5 Butler Bulldogs vs. No. 1 Duke Blue Devils
2010-04-06
The No. 5 seed Butler Bulldogs will be facing the No. 1 seed Duke Blue Devils; Monday April 5, 2010, tip-off is at 9:15pm on CBS. www.Sportsbook.com had the opening line of this game with the Duke Blue Devils as -6.5 favorites, as I write this preview the line has already moved to 7.5 and the over / under is at 128.5 points. The Blue Devils have proved that they have the talent to beat any opponent. The Duke Blue Devils are the only school to have a better scoring average then the Butler Bulldogs; I guess it was fate that these two teams met at the National Championship game.
When the 2010 NCAA national title game rolls on Monday night, the Duke Blue Devils will be making its first NCAA tournament title appearance since 2001 which is also the last time this prolific program won the championship. Standing in their way will be a team from a no named conference that nobody has cared to believe is a true basketball beast.
Whether the Butler Bulldogs win or lose when they meet the Duke Blue Devils as significant underdogs, they have proven their point. The Butler Bulldogs can attain that dream when they face, what everyone believes has been the best team in this year’s 2010 tournament thus far. If there is one sure bet that we know about Monday night, the Bulldogs will give it their all and even a moneyline bet on these guys wouldn’t be the worst bet you could make.
Now on to the important stuff: The final March Madness Betting Preview
First off let’s look at how good the Butler Bulldogs are they have 25 straight victories and are 33 - 4, 17 - 20 against the spread.
The Butler Bulldogs are 8 - 3 in their last 11 NCAA Tourney games and 5 - 1 against the spread in their last six.
The Blue Devils are 5 - 0 against the spread during this 2010 NCAA Tournament.
Both the Butler Bulldogs (15 - 20 over / under) and the Duke Blue Devils (16 - 22 over / under) have been good under plays this season. The under is 9 - 1 in Butler’s last 10 overall and 2 - 4 in Duke’s last six overall.
Bulldogs’ defense has made a fool of the over/under lines during the tournament. Bulldogs’ games have finished below the total by an average of 15 points in the last four games.
Butler’s tight defense against Duke’s on-point offense will be the tale of Monday night’s National Championship game. Of their last five games the Butler Bulldogs have not let their opponents score more than 60 points on them, a testament to their coach and their will to play. Add to that, the Bulldogs have limited 12 of their last 13 teams they’ve played against to less than 60 points. Even though the Bulldogs shot 30.6 percent from the floor they were still able to frustrate the Michigan State Spartans.
The Blue Devils have unsuccessful reached the 60 point mark only once this whole season, that is only once in 38 games. The Duke Blue Devils put in 78 points in each of their past two games, which were wins over the Baylor Bears in the South Region final and over the West Virginia Mountaineers.
Go to www.sportsbook.com to make your bet on the Duke Blue Devils at -7.5 point favorites, sorry Bulldogs, at least you made it this far.