Tag Archives: NCAA Basketball

Wyoming Cowboys visit San Diego State Aztecs: NCAA Betting

Posted on by
Reply

Wyoming at San Diego St.
When: 10:30 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Viejas Arena, San Diego, California

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

THE STORY: After losing three straight games for the first time since 2008, No. 25 San Diego State is hoping to regain momentum in time for the Mountain West tournament. Thanks to a 6-1 start in conference play, the Aztecs remain tied for second with UNLV, behind first-place New Mexico. Like the Aztecs, Wyoming is looking to snap a three-game skid. The Cowboys have lost four straight to San Diego State, including a 52-42 defeat on Jan. 22. The 42 points allowed were the fewest surrendered by the Aztecs in 70 contests between the teams.

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, The Mtn., Channel 4 San Diego

ABOUT WYOMING (18-8, 4-6 Mountain West): After shooting 1 of 10 against the Aztecs in January, San Diego native JayDee Luster would love to rebound with a strong showing in his hometown. The senior guard leads the Mountain West in assist-turnover ratio (2.3) and ranks sixth in assists (3.6). Guard Luke Martinez averages 12.8 points, and he scored 15 on five 3-pointers in the Cowboys’ 54-46 loss at Colorado State on Saturday. Forward Leonard Washington, who had 12 points and eight rebounds in the first matchup with San Diego State, averages 12.5 points and a team-high 6.7 boards. Wyoming is 5-7 in games decided by fewer than 10 points, and the Cowboys have led at halftime in each of their last three losses.

ABOUT SAN DIEGO STATE (20-6, 6-4 Mountain West): The Aztecs are optimistic that leading scorer and rebounder Jamaal Franklin will return after missing Saturday’s game against Air Force with a sprained ankle. Franklin had 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds against Wyoming in January. Garrett Green started in Franklin’s place against Air Force and grabbed 10 rebounds before leaving early in the second half with an ankle injury. He’s questionable to face the Cowboys. San Diego State had only seven scholarship players available at the end of the Air Force game, and its lack of depth is a concern. The Aztecs average 70.9 points, while Wyoming allows 54.2 points to lead the conference.

TIP-INS: CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. San Diego State is 6 of 30 (20 percent) shooting from 3-point range in its last two games.

2. Wyoming leads the series 37-33, but has dropped 15 of the past 22 matchups.

3. The Aztecs held a players-only meeting after being upset at Air Force, which was 1-74 all-time against ranked opponents before beating San Diego State.

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

online gambling

Duke Florida State Betting: College Basketball Betting Pick

Posted on by
Reply

The Florida State Seminoles beat the North Carolina Tar Heels once this season. They defeated Duke as well, and they get a chance to take down the Blue Devils again. Can they?

Duke Blue Devils @ Florida State Seminoles – Thursday, February 23
Sports betting line: No line

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

Why Duke Will Win

When you do your homework and assess your sports bet on this game, an appreciation of the odds is really the first and best place to start. Florida State snuck up on Duke in the first meeting of the season between these two teams. Nobody expected the Seminoles to go into Durham, North Carolina, and pull out a win inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke’s almost impregnable home arena. Yet, that’s exactly what the Seminoles did on a Michael Snaer three-pointer at the final buzzer. Florida State is having a terrific season, but the Seminoles lost to Boston College and Clemson in Atlantic Coast Conference competition. They experience many lulls and letdowns over the course of a 30-game slate, and they lost at home to Princeton earlier this season while also losing their other marquee non-conference contests in November and December.

It’s only in January that Florida State began to play well, and the Seminoles – who are unaccustomed to playing for ACC regular-season championships – are likely to feel the pressure of this moment far more than Duke, which has been through so many high-stakes battles over the years under Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski. It would be harder to think that Florida State could sweep Duke than to think that the Blue Devils will gain a season split. Pure odds stand in favor of Duke, not against it.

Why Florida State Will Win

The college basketball betting experts who follow the Atlantic Coast Conference are plainly aware of one very simple truth: Florida State plays up to the competition when it is facing a highly-credentialed foe, and down to the competition when it is facing a lower-tier team in the ACC. Florida State’s losses this season in the ACC have come against bottom-feeders, but the Seminoles have handled the best teams, beating both North Carolina and Duke. This game is on FSU’s home floor in Tallahassee, Florida, giving coach Leonard Hamilton’s squad yet one more occasion in which to gather its emotions and play a high-energy game in front of an amped-up home crowd. Florida State is in position to play well in this game, and it is likely to throw a strong defensive effort at the Blue Devils, a team that can easily fall into bad habits at the offensive end of the floor. Duke sometimes slips into a pattern marked by a lot of deep three-pointers within a context of one-on-one play and an unwillingness to rotate the ball around the perimeter. Duke can be impatient, and if the Blue Devils exhibit that trait, Florida State not only can, but will, take advantage.

Who Will Win

The odds will likely have the final say here. Duke will likely play a more focused, determined and airtight brand of ball. Florida State will put up a good fight, but Duke should prevail and get a split of the season series.

College Basketball Betting Pick: Duke

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

online gambling

NCAA Basketball Odds: Boise State Broncos at UNLV Rebels

Posted on by
Reply

Boise St. at UNLV
When: 10:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

THE STORY: Twentieth-ranked UNLV returns home after losing back-to-back road games, including Saturday’s 65-45 blowout at New Mexico. The Runnin’ Rebels scored a season-low for a half (18) and entire game in the loss, and shot a season-worst 31.1 percent. UNLV is 2-4 in Mountain West Conference road games, but is a different team at home, where the Rebels are 14-0 this season and shooting 50.7 percent from the field. Boise State is riding a three-game win streak, including a victory over TCU, which had dealt UNLV its first of the back-to-back defeats.

TV: 10 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

ABOUT BOISE STATE (13-12, 3-7 MWC): The Broncos rallied from 12- and nine-point deficits in the first meeting before losing 77-72 in overtime Jan. 25. Boise State will need to pressure UNLV just as it did the first time, forcing 14 turnovers and grabbing 43 rebounds. The Broncos are young, with 11 underclassmen, but have matured rapidly. Freshman Anthony Drmic leads Boise State with 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds. Derrick Marks paced Boise in the first meeting with 21 points, while Thomas Bropleh added 17 off the bench.

ABOUT UNLV (22-6, 6-4 MWC): If UNLV gets ahead of Boise State this time, don’t look for any significant rallies by the Broncos. Whatever their road hazards have been, the Runnin’ Rebels are unstoppable at home, winning by an average of 22 points. Mike Moser led UNLV in the last meeting with 18 points and a career-high 21 rebounds. Moser is seventh in Division I averaging 11 rebounds per game, and leads the team with 14.7 points. Chace Stanback (13.1 points) will be looking for improvement after being held to just four points against New Mexico. Stanback leads the MWC making 45.7 percent of 3-pointers.

TIP-INS: CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. UNLV ranks second in Division I with 18.4 assists per game, while Boise is 235th with 12.1 per game.

2. In the first meeting, UNLV went through a 6-of-26 shooting slump in the first half.

3. UNLV leads the conference in offensive rebounds with 12.3 per game; Boise State is third averaging 11.3.

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

online gambling

NCAA BBall Predictions: Kansas Jayhawks against Texas A&M Aggies

Posted on by
Reply

Kansas at Texas A&M
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Reed Arena, College Station, Texas

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

THE STORY: No. 5 Kansas must avoid looking ahead to Saturday when it travels to Texas A&M. The Jayhawks, who will play rival Missouri over the weekend with first-place in the Big 12 on the line, have won four straight since falling against the Tigers on Feb. 4. Before the conference season, this was the matchup forecast to be pivotal atop the league standings, as Kansas and Texas A&M were pegged as the co-favorites to win the Big 12. The Aggies have stumbled to a 4-10 league record, though, and won’t make an NCAA Tournament appearance without winning the conference tournament in March.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2, ESPN3.com

ABOUT KANSAS (22-5, 12-2 Big 12): With an 83-50 blowout of Texas Tech on Saturday, the Jayhawks picked up their 1,000th conference victory, the most of any school in the country. The record speaks to the consistency established at Kansas, which has won or shared the Big 12 title in seven straight seasons under coach Bill Self. This season, the Jayhawks are finding success inside with the play of Thomas Robinson (17.7 points, 11.8 rebounds) and Jeff Withey (6.6 rebounds, 3.4 blocks). Guard Tyshawn Taylor’s 16.6 points per game complement the interior duo.

ABOUT TEXAS A&M (13-13, 4-10 Big 12): The Aggies’ only conference wins this season are against Texas Tech (twice), Oklahoma and Oklahoma State — the other three schools in the bottom of the Big 12. The problem continues to be on the offensive end, where Texas A&M has topped 70 points only twice in league play and five times all season. Junior forward Khris Middleton — a preseason All-Big 12 selection who has been riddled with injuries — is starting to show signs of picking things up, scoring a team-high 15 points in the Aggies’ loss to Missouri last weekend.

TIP-INS:  CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. Texas A&M (60.2 points) and Kansas (60.4) lead the conference in scoring defense.

2. The Jayhawks beat the Aggies 64-54 on Jan. 23 in Lawrence.

3. Withey has 20 blocked shots in the past three games.

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

online gambling

Missouri Kansas Betting: NCAA College Basketball Betting Saturday, February 25

Posted on by
Reply

The Missouri Tigers and Kansas Jayhawks both laid the Baylor Bears at their feet. As a result, these Border War rivals will play for the 2012 Big 12 regular season basketball championship.

Missouri Tigers @ Kansas Jayhawks – Saturday, February 25
Sports betting line: No line

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

Why Missouri Will Win

When you do your homework and assess your sports bet on this game, you need to be cognizant of the fact that Missouri is an extremely resilient team. Kansas outplayed Missouri for the first 38 minutes of the teams’ previous regular-season meeting on Feb. 4, taking a 71-66 lead into the final two minutes. However, the Tigers just kept coming at the Jayhawks, and their persistence was rewarded. Marcus Denmon, the playmaking guard who has been so noticeably fearless for Missouri this season, knocked down two big-time threes to give Missouri a 72-71 lead and – eventually – a 74-71 victory over Kansas. Denmon is part of a veteran core of starters that has given stability and cohesion to the Tigers this season under first-year coach Frank Haith, a frontrunner for the national coach of the year award.

Missouri embodies the kind of team that’s extremely hard to knock out. The Tigers are not a dominant team, but they stay in the ring until the very end and play with the energy needed to endure 40-minute games played at a blistering pace. The prospect of playing a road game at the intimidating Phog Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas, would disturb and unsettle many teams. It’s not likely to make Missouri flinch. This team will push Kansas to the limit, and if Denmon can stick a few more jumpers in crunch time, the Tigers will take the Big 12 title before they head off to the Southeastern Conference.

Why Kansas Will Win

The college basketball betting experts who follow Big 12 basketball know that while Missouri did win the first matchup between these teams in Columbia, Missouri, the Tigers received a definite stroke of luck with 1:43 left in that contest. Kansas forward Thomas Robinson – an NBA-ready performer who devastated Missouri in that game three weeks ago – made a spin move to the basket for a lay-up that appeared to put Kansas up by seven points, at 73-66. Instead, the far-side official called a charge when the Missouri defender clearly flopped. That one call swung momentum in the game; a proper no call would have given KU a three-possession advantage. Instead, Missouri found the gateway toward a final finishing kick and a 74-71 win.

You can bet your bottom dollar that Kansas will come out fired up in this game… not just because the Big 12 is on the line or because Missouri is a hated rival, but because the Jayhawks believe that they were wronged the last time these teams met. Kansas has every incentive to play its best game of the year. The Jayhawks won’t be mildly motivated; they’ll be supremely motivated.

Who Will Win

In Lawrence, on the Jayhawks’ home court, it’s naturally going to be tough for Missouri to win. The fact that Kansas is playing its best basketball of the season will make the task that much more difficult for the Tigers. It would be very surprising if Missouri won; pick Kansas to win the Big 12 once again.

College Basketball Betting Pick: Kansas.

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

online gambling

Michigan State Spartans visit Minnesota Golden Gophers: NCAA Online Betting

Posted on by
Reply

Michigan St at Minnesota
When: 8:30 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Williams Arena, Minneapolis, Minnesota

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

THE STORY: After a stretch in which No. 6 Michigan State dropped three of five games to end January, it hasn’t lost since. The Spartans, who lost those three contests on the road by a combined nine points, have rolled to five straight double-digit victories in February – including three against ranked teams – by getting back to coach Tom Izzo’s usual trademarks, rebounding and defense. While Minnesota is fourth in the Big Ten in field goal percentage, the Spartans’ hard-nosed defensive approach could rattle the turnover-prone Golden Gophers, who commit a conference-worst 14.3 turnovers per game.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network

ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE (22-5, 11-3 Big Ten): During their five-game winning streak, the Spartans are enjoying a plus-11 advantage in rebounding and are holding opponents to 34.3 percent shooting. In Sunday’s win at Purdue, Michigan State forced the Boilermakers to miss 22 of their first 23 field-goal attempts in the second half after Purdue shot 46.7 percent in the first half. Back-to-back Big Ten Player of the Week honoree Draymond Green leads the conference with 15 double-doubles and has been impressive in February, averaging 17.8 points, 11.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists – all slight increases over his totals entering the month.

ABOUT MINNESOTA (17-10, 5-9 Big Ten): Despite their three-game slide, the Gophers have been able to count on a couple of key facets all season – their ability to block shots and the 3-point shooting of Julian Welch. Minnesota has led the conference in blocks each of the past three seasons and is doing it again, averaging 5.1 this campaign. Welch is shooting a team-best 44.3 percent beyond the arc – fifth best in the Big Ten – and is coming off a season-high 21-point outing in Saturday’s setback at Northwestern.

TIP-INS: CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. Since allowing Northwestern and Illinois to shoot 50 percent from the field in consecutive losses last month, Michigan State has held eight straight opponents under 40 percent.

2. Ralph Sampson III needs 16 points to become the fifth Gopher in school history with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 150 blocks

3. Green, who is 15 rebounds shy of becoming the fourth Spartan to hit the 1,000-rebound plateau, is also on pace to become the first player from a power-six conference since Tim Duncan in 1996-97 to average 15 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

online gambling

NCAA Basketball Lines: Wichita State Shockers at Illinois State Red Birds

Posted on by
Reply

Wichita St. at Illinois St.
When: 8:05 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Redbird Arena, Normal, Illinois

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

THE STORY: Wichita State prides itself on winning away from Koch Arena, and the 19th-ranked Shockers have a chance to clinch the Missouri Valley Conference title outright on the road against Illinois State. Wichita State will have a great shot if Joe Ragland comes anywhere close to duplicating his last performance. The senior point guard scored 30 points on 11-of-14 shooting in a 91-74 rout at Davidson on Saturday. The Redbirds, however, nearly rallied from a 23-point deficit in the first meeting Jan. 10. Ragland scored 15 points and Garrett Stutz and Toure’ Murry each hit free throws in the final 30 seconds to seal a 65-62 victory. Nic Moore scored 20 of his season-high 23 points in the second half for Illinois State. Wichita State has won the last four meetings. The Shockers ended a three-game losing streak in Normal, Ill., with a 65-61 victory last season.

TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, Kansas 22 (Cox)

ABOUT WICHITA STATE (24-4, 14-2 Missouri Valley): The senior-laden Shockers are playing their best basketball as March rolls around. Wichita State has won 22 of 24, including six straight since a triple-overtime loss to Drake on Jan. 28. Stutz, a 7-foot senior, is the leading scorer, but Ragland has been red-hot, averaging 18.2 points over the last seven games. Ragland and the Shockers shot a scorching 80 percent (20 of 25) in the second half against a solid Davidson team. Murry broke out of an 11-for-31 slump by scoring 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting versus the Wildcats. The eighth-most efficient offense, according to Ken Pomeroy’s ratings (1.18 points/per possession), ranks 18th in the nation in scoring (78.6) and eighth in field goal percentage (49.2. The Shockers also play lock-down defense (39.9 field goal percentage – 38th) and are 18th in rebounding margin (8.5).

ABOUT ILLINOIS STATE (17-11, 8-8 Missouri Valley): The Redbirds ended a two-game losing streak with a 79-75 victory over Oakland on Saturday. Jackie Carmichael scored 25 points and pulled down 19 rebounds. The 6-foot-9 junior forward, who leads the MVC in rebounding (9.3) and is third in blocks (1.2), is averaging 18 points and 13.7 rebounds over the last four games. Junior guard Tyler Brown is the conference’s second-leading 3-point shooter (42.1), but has hit just three of his last 15 attempts and now faces the MVC’s stingiest perimeter defense (30.5 percent). The Redbirds boast the third-best field goal defense in the conference (41.4). They held the Shockers to 41.5 percent from the field in the first meeting.

TIP INS:  CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. “We step into every day with the mindset that we’re road warriors,” –Ragland, on the Shockers’ 10-1 road record.

2. This is the highest the Shockers have been ranked since 2006, when they reached 16th. Wichita State is 8-3 against teams in the top 100 of the RPI.

3. The last five meetings have been decided by an average of 7.2 points.

CLICK HERE to place your College basketball bet at Bovada Sportsbook

online gambling

NCAA Gambling: Rutgers Scarlet Knights vs Marquette Golden Eagles

Posted on by
Reply

Rutgers at Marquette
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

THE STORY: Despite being hit hard by injuries in the frontcourt, No. 10 Marquette has positioned itself for a high NCAA Tournament seed by winning 10 of its last 11 games. The Golden Eagles have been riding a high-octane offense that ranks among the national leaders in scoring, assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. Rutgers comes in with a five-game losing streak, including a bitterly fought 74-64 defeat against No. 2 Syracuse on Sunday. Marquette earned a 73-65 road win over the Scarlet Knights last season, their fifth straight triumph in the series.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, Big East Network, Sports32 (Milwaukee/Green Bay), MSG (New York City), WFMZ (Philadelphia), ESPN3.com

ABOUT RUTGERS (12-15, 4-10 Big East): The Scarlet Knights have remained competitive thanks in large part to a defense that still ranks among the league leaders in steals (8.4) and holds opponents to 64.7 points on 41.2 percent shooting from the floor. Rutgers has been turnover-prone on offense (14.7 per game) but makes up for it by forcing plenty of mistakes (15.8) at the other end. Six players average at least seven points apiece for the Scarlet Knights, led by freshman guard Eli Carter (13.4). Sophomore forward Gilvydas Biruta had 21 points in the loss to Syracuse.


ABOUT MARQUETTE (22-5, 11-3 Big East): The Golden Eagles, tied with Notre Dame for second place in the conference, have been getting by despite knee injuries to their top two centers — senior starter Chris Otule is out for the year, and sophomore Davante Gardner is still doubtful after missing the last five games. Marquette remains potent offensively, led by the outside-inside senior combo of guard Darius Johnson-Odom (18.6 points) and forward Jae Crowder (16.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals).

TIP-INS: CLICK HERE for 500 Handicappers Package FOR 5$

1. Marquette has been dominant on its home floor against Rutgers, winning their three games in Milwaukee by an average of 24.3 points.

2. The Golden Eagles have won at least 10 Big East games in six of their seven seasons since joining the league in 2005-06.

3. Marquette plays its next two games on the road against West Virginia (Feb. 24) and Cincinnati (Feb. 29) before returning home to wrap the regular season against Georgetown on March 3.

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

online gambling

Betting On North Carolina Virginia: NCAA College Basketball Betting

Posted on by
Reply

The Virginia Cavaliers are still quite likely to make the NCAA Tournament, but a win at home against the North Carolina Tar Heels would make them a lock for the upcoming Big Dance.

North Carolina Tar Heels @ Virginia Cavaliers – Saturday, February 25
Sports betting line: No line

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

Why North Carolina Will Win

When you do your homework and assess your sports bet on this game, it’s hard to avoid a very simple conclusion: North Carolina is likely to overwhelm Virginia on the glass. The Tar Heels have not been shooting the ball well from three-point range this season, but even when they miss, their big men – Tyler Zeller and John Henson – are frequently able to rebound the ball. On eight occasions this season, the Tar Heels have grabbed at least 20 offensive rebounds. That’s simply a ridiculous statistic, and it’s also an indication of the profound advantage the Heels have even when they miss shots.

Zeller and Henson own large wingspans and can pluck the ball over and against smaller, less athletic defenders. It’s true that Carolina’s perimeter players need to hit more threes, but even if Virginia slows this game down and plays at the pace it wants, the Tar Heels are still likely to win the rebounding battle; unless it turns the ball over a lot, North Carolina is in very good position to win this game in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Why Virginia Will Win

The college basketball betting experts who follow the Atlantic Coast Conference for a living know that Virginia has struggled recently; the Cavaliers enter this game without a winning record in the month of February. A hand injury has limited the effectiveness of leading scorer Mike Scott, and the Cavaliers have wilted at the offensive end of the floor. However, coach Tony Bennett – who has steadily improved the program in his tenure – regularly gets his team to play sound halfcourt defense, and that’s exactly what can counter North Carolina’s foremost strengths.

North Carolina wants to push the pace and get out in transition; that’s the style Tar Heel coach Roy Williams desires. Bennett, though, won’t let Williams engineer a racehorse game from the bench. Virginia will slow the tempo, pack in its defense, and make it hard for Tar Heel point guard Kendall Marshall to feed the ball to big man Tyler Zeller in the low post.

The only perimeter shooter Virginia has to worry about is Carolina two-guard Harrison Barnes. If Virginia can contain Barnes as a three-point shooter, the other four Cavs on the floor can make life difficult for Zeller and minimize the impact of North Carolina’s size and length near the basket. The ingredients exist for a Virginia upset, and they exist at the defensive end of the floor.

Who Will Win

It’s a nasty place for Virginia to be: Even if the Cavaliers play great defense, they have to protect the defensive backboard, and that’s very hard to do against North Carolina’s length. This game will probably be low-scoring and tailored to Tony Bennett’s tastes, but even then, North Carolina is likely to get 15 offensive rebounds and enough second-chance points to win a close game. Take the Tar Heels on the road.

College Basketball Betting Pick: North Carolina

20% Sports Welcome Bonus: Sign up now at Bovada and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus.

online gambling

Live Betting Lines: Kentucky Could Lose Tonight at Mississippi State

Posted on by
Reply

Talent-wise, one could argue that Mississippi State is the second-best team in the Southeastern Conference. But the Bulldogs often don’t play to their talent level. However, don’t rule out a possible upset by MSU tonight when red-hot and top-ranked Kentucky visits. UK is a 9.5-point favorite and there will be live betting available at Bovada’s NCAA basketball odds.

Check out Bovada’s Sports Welcome Bonus:
Sign up and deposit for your 20% Free Bet Bonus up to $100

Kentucky (26-1, 12-0) can clinch at least a tie for the regular-season SEC title with a win – although it’s a foregone conclusion that UK will win the title outright with a three-game lead over second-place Florida. The Cats have won 18 in a row since their only loss, which came on a buzzer-beater at Indiana. On Saturday, Kentucky had little trouble with Ole Miss in a 77-62 victory. Terrence Jones led the way with 15 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Player of the Year candidate Anthony Davis had a fairly quiet game due to first-half foul trouble. The freshman had 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks (to add to his national-leading total). The win over Mississippi was UK’s 50th in a row at home. Defensively, UK is holding opponents to just 36.2 percent shooting from the floor, lowest in the NCAA.

Mississippi State (19-8, 6-6) dropped its third straight Saturday, 65-55 at Auburn (the previous two losses were both by two points in OT). The Bulldogs played without big man Renardo Sidney due to back spasms, and Auburn took advantage with several scores in the paint and outrebounding the Bulldogs by five. Sidney will be a game-time decision tonight. He averages 10.4 points and 5.2 rebounds a game and will be needed to deal with Davis. The Bulldogs are led by Arnett Moultrie, who is the lone player in the SEC averaging a double-double with team-highs in scoring (16.5 ppg.) and rebounding (10.8).

MSU coach Rick Stansbury has never beaten a top-ranked team in his coaching career and is 1-8 vs. ranked Kentucky teams. The Bulldogs have hosted the No. 1 team just once under Stansbury, a loss to Florida in 2007. MSU and Kentucky have split the past six meetings, although UK is on a three-game winning streak. This is the only scheduled meeting of this season. The road team has covered the past five meetings.

LEGENDS IN THE MAKING: Bet on NCAA basketball at Bovada

online gambling