Betting news, trends, odds and predictions for from various handicappers and websites for Wednesday 11/21/18
Advocate tournament, Orlando
Florida is off to a 2-1 start, beating two stiffs after they lost by 21 at Florida State; Gators start three seniors, are but are #279 experience team- their bench is playing 4th-most minutes in country. Oklahoma is 3-0 with best win over #123 Wofford; Sooners have made 41.7% of their 3’s so far- they start three seniors, are #24 experience team. SEC teams are 9-12 vs spread away from home; Big X teams are 5-7. With tourney in Orlando, Gators figure to have edge in crowd support.
Wisconsin is off to a 3-0 start, winning 77-68 at Xavier and beating two stiff; Badgers are best team in country at protecting the ball, playing tempo #344. Wisconsin is #22 in country in minutes continuity- they’ve made 42.4% of their 3’s so far. Stanford i already making second trip to eastern time zone; they split pair on Tobacco Road couple weeks ago, losing at North Carolina by 18. Cardinal is #337 experience team; starting three sophs and a freshman. Pac-12 teams are 8-10 vs spread away from home. Big 14 teams are 14-6 vs spread away from home.
Butler is off to a 3-0 start, with best win over #75 Ole Miss; Bulldogs are #19 in minutes continuity- their eFG% is #11 in country. Butler starts two juniors, two seniors. Dayton beat three stiffs to open its season 3-0; Flyers are #294 experience team that is played tempo #305. Dayton starts two sophs and a frosh, plays only eight guys. Flyers are #1 team in country so far on defensive boards, but they also haven’t played anyone yet. Big East teams are 6-8 vs spread away from home; A-14 teams are 9-12.
Virginia beat three stiffs, all by 19+ points, to start season; Cavaliers are #235 experience team that is playing slows tempo in country- they’ve made 47.1% of their 3’s, have #2 eFG% in country. Virginia starts four juniors, one soph. Middle Tennessee has a new coach; they’re #344 in minutes continuity, so everyone is still getting to know each other. Blue Raiders turned ball 24.1% of time during their 3-1 start, playing three stiffs, losing by 19 at Belmont in a game they led by 11 in first half. C-USA underdogs are 9-13 against the spread.
Cayman Islands tourney
Clemson whacked Georgia by 15 Tuesday despite making only 5-20 on arc; Tigers are #44 experience team that is shooting 57% inside arc- they start four seniors. Clemson held three of its last four opponents under 60 points. Tigers start four seniors. Creighton has made 47% of its 3’s in a 4-1 start; Bluejays lost 69-60 at home to Ohio State- they scored 94-93 points in their first two wins in this event. Creighton starts three sophs, two juniors; they’re experience team #296. Big East teams are 6-8 vs spread away from home; ACC teams are 14-6.
Maui Classic
San Diego State came back from 19 down to beat Xavier Tuesday; Aztecs are #228 experience team that starts three sophs, two seniors- they made 39.8% of their 3’s in 3-1 start, with loss by 26 to Duke Monday. Aztecs played four starters 31:00+ vs Xavier. Iowa State is down four guys via injury/suspension; they played three guys 35:00+ in win over Illinois Tuesday, when ISU outscored Illini 50-29 in 2nd half of 84-68 win. ISU is starting two frosh, two seniors. Big X teams are 5-6 vs spread away from home; Mountain West teams are 8-8.
Xavier/Illinois are playing to avoid an 0-3 trip to Maui. Musketeers blew a 19-point lead in loss to San Diego St Tuesday; Musketeers lost their last three games after beating couple of stiffs to start season. Xavier has a new coach; teams have made 41.3% of 3’s against Musketeers so far- they start two sophs, two juniors. Illinois was outscored 50-29 in second half by Iowa State in 84-68 loss Tuesday; Illini has also lost its last three games- they start two frosh and a soph. No Illinois player played 30:00 Tuesday. Xavier played three guys 33:00+ yesterday.
Arizona was up 13 in second half last nite, but was outscored 54-24 over last 17:34 of game in 91-74 loss to Gonzaga; Wildcats are #318 team in minutes continuity as they lost all five starters and all the recruits they had last year. Arizona is 4-1 so far vs schedule #244- they played four starters 30:00+ yesterday. Auburn lost 78-72 to Duke last night after being down 17 early; Tigers’ two guards both played 38:00. Auburn is #37 experience team that is #9 team in US on offensive boards; they’ve made 38.2% of their 3’s this month.
Duke is 17-0 in Maui Classic; they look for 6th title here. Blue Devils are 3-0 with three top 70 wins; they’re #342 experience team that starts four freshmen. Duke outscored Auburn 23-5 on foul line; they played Jones/Barrett 39:00 each. Gonzaga was down 13 early in 2nd half last night, outscored Arizona 54-24 over final 17:55; Zags start two sophs, two juniors- one of their best shooters is out hurt. Gonzaga used four guys 31:00+ last night. WCC underdogs are 8-7 vs spread this month; ACC favorites are 11-5 away from home.
Barclays Center, Brooklyn
Louisville is off to 3-0 start with best win 86-78 over #124 Vermont (schedule #342); Cardinals have new coach, are starting three juniors and a senior- they’re #234 in minutes continuity, are playing tempo #121. Tennessee is 3-0 with best win 66-53 over #80 Ga Tech; Vols are #45 experience team whose eFG% defense is #4 in country. Tennessee is #45 experience team that starts three juniors, two seniors. ACC underdogs are 3-1 vs spread this month; SEC favorites are 8-12 vs spread away from home.
Kansas is 3-0 vs schedule #83; they beat Michigan State 92-87 on a neutral floor, also beat Vermont/Louisiana at home. Jayhawks made 46.9% of their 3’s so far, start two frosh, couple of juniors- they’re little thin because they’re holding out big man DeSousa with eligibility issues. Marquette beat up on three stiffs but lost 96-73 at Indiana; Golden Eagles start three juniors, one frosh- they’re experience team #241 that has turned ball over 21.8% of time this month. Big East underdogs are 3-5 vs spread; Big X favorites are 4-6 vs spread away from home.
T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
Utah State is off to a 5-0 start after they whacked St Mary’s 80-63 Monday; Aggies are starting two frosh and a soph- they’re #293 experience team that is playing pace #39. Aggies’ other four wins are all vs teams ranked #175 or lower. Arizona State is 4-0 after beating Miss State 72-67 Monday; ASU is experience team #292 that is starting three sophs and a frosh- they’ve got #23 eFG% defense in country this month. Mountain West underdogs are 6-8 vs spread this season; Pac-12 favorites are 5-3 vs spread away from home.
Mississippi State beat three stiffs before losing 72-67 to Arizona State Monday; Bulldogs start two sophs, two seniors, are experience team #178, but #8 in minutes continuity- they’ve made only 27.5% of their 3’s this month, but forced turnovers on 25% of opponents’ possessions. St Mary’s is 3-1 with a win at New Mexico State, but they got whacked 80-63 by Utah St Monday, shooting 31.6% inside arc, 6-24 on arc. Gaels start two sophs, two juniors; they’re experience team #285 that is playing 7th-slowest tempo in country so far.