Arkansas-Pine Bluff ousts Winthrop in NCAA tourney
DAYTON, Ohio -- Smiling Arkansas-Pine Bluff players plopped into the black folding chairs at courtside and checked their cell phones for congratulatory messages before heading out the arena door to get on yet another bus.
Finally, the Golden Lions had found a road trip to their liking.
Allen Smith scored 14 points Tuesday night, including a pair of 3-pointers during the Golden Lions' second-half surge to a 61-44 victory over Winthrop in the NCAA tournament's opening game.
The Golden Lions (18-15) will play Duke, the No. 1 seed in the South Regional, on Friday in Jacksonville, Fla. -- a place they somehow missed during a season-opening jaunt that nearly did them in.
"It seems like we play better on the road than we do at home because we're so used to being on the road," said center Lebaron Weathers said. "
Didn't feel that way at the start of the season.
The Golden Eagles spent the first two months playing some of the country's best teams on the road, going everywhere and getting nowhere. They dropped their first 11 games -- all on the road -- losing at schools such as Texas-El Paso, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Kansas State and Oregon.
Players cranked up their iPods and let their music soothe them during 13-hour bus rides across the heartland in November and December, ones that bonded them for much better things in March.
"We think it brought them together," coach George Ivory said. "You've got to stay together on the road. You get to know each other better. You go through some bumps and bruises on the road, playing in some pretty tough places."
The basketball equivalent of boot camp hardened them for a Southwestern Athletic Conference season that would be much more kind. Their next destination is with history -- a chance to pull off the unprecedented first-round upset of a No. 1 team by a 16 seed.
Ivory knows a little bit about that. He was a star at Mississippi Valley State, which kept up with No. 1 Duke in 1986 before falling 85-78.
"You see Duke a lot on TV," Ivory said. "You see them so much, it's kind of like you just know what they're going to do."
The fast exit was familiar for Winthrop (19-14), which has made the tournament nine times in the last 12 years but has only one victory in all those tries.
Winthrop got the type of game it wanted, but couldn't make a shot as another tournament slipped away. Charles Corbin scored 13 points for the Eagles, who shot 29 percent from the field and went 2 of 21 behind the 3-point arc.
"We picked a bad time to have a bad game," coach Randy Peele said. "We played really frustrated. I hadn't seen that from us for a while."
Neither team shoots particularly well -- no player averages more than 10 points for either one. Instead, they win with tight defense and rebounding.
These mirror-image teams settled in to slog one out on the NCAA's big stage.
Midway through the first half, there were as many shots blocked as made. Bored fans started doing the wave. Arkansas-Pine Bluff's Tavaris Washington missed two dunk attempts. Both teams shot under 30 percent from the field in the first half, which ended with the Golden Lions up 24-23.
Ugly? Not to these two.
Corbin was the only shooter with any semblance of a touch, making his three attempts in the first half. His 3-pointer started a 13-2 run that gave Winthrop a 23-17 lead. The Golden Lions caught up by drawing fouls and making free throws.
Then, Smith changed everything with two uncontested shots.
Smith hit a pair of 3s -- a rarity in this game -- as Arkansas-Pine Bluff pushed its lead to 38-31. He held up his right hand in the "OK" sign -- three fingers extended -- after connecting from the left corner and the top of the key.
Things were anything but OK for Winthrop when the Golden Lions' Terrell Kennedy, a bulky front-line player, swished only his second 3-pointer of the season to beat the shot clock, helping Arkansas-Pine Bluff pull ahead 14. Winthrop would never get closer than nine the rest of the way, unable to make an open shot or get a turnover to set up a layup.
"That became frustrating for me personally," said Mantoris Robinson, the Big South's two-time defensive player of the year. "I felt if we got some stops, our offense would flow. But we didn't shut them down."
For the final touch, Smith got an open 3 from the left wing and swished it with 16.3 seconds left, then gave his "OK" sign one last time.
This road trip was definitely more than OK.
Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press.
College Basketball Betting Locks -- Temple Owls Highlight A-10 Parlay
Two Atlantic-10 battles are dissected in this college basketball twin-pack of free picks, highlighted by the 17th-ranked Temple Owls' home matchup against Duquesne.
College hoops gamblers everywhere should be able to take each of tonight's two A-10 selections all the way to the bank with each matchup looking more like a 'lock' than an agonizing, time-consuming selection.
With that said and both contests just hours away, let me get started.
Duquesne at No. 17 Temple
Dukes vs. Owls (-13)
Duquesne (11-10 SU, 4-11 ATS)
Temple (18-4 SU, 13-9 ATS)
The Temple Owls bounced back from just its second loss this season to beat the LaSalle Explorers 64-52 in a matchup of Philadelphia city rivals on Saturday.
Temple covered the college basketball betting line as an 11.5-point home favorite to snap a two-game ATS slide and improve to 4-6 ATS over its last 10 games.
Duquesne Dukes also bounced back from a loss in its previous outing to beat St. Joe's 74-71 on Sunday.
The Dukes failed to cover the NCAAB money line as 7-point home favorites to fall to 0-3 ATS over its last three games and 3-5 ATS over its last eight.
The Owls are 9-2 SU at home this season, 6-1 against A-10 opponents and 12-3 against non-conference opponents. Temple averages 64.7 points per game at home while holding opponents to just 57.6 points per game defensively.
The Dukes are 1-7 on the road this season, 2-5 against conference opponents and 9-5 against non-conference opponents. Duquesne averages 59.4 points per game on the road while allowing 72.0 points per contest defensively.
Let's take a look at the key head-to-head trends for tonight's matchup.
Home team is 8-0 ATS in the last 8 meetings.
Favorite is 7-3 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
Dukes are 3-7 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
Dukes are 0-6 ATS in the last 6 meetings in Temple.
Analysis: The bottom line for this matchup is that the Owls are playing at home against a really poor Duquesne team.
The home team in this series has gone a spotless 8-0 ATS in the last eight meetings while the favorite has recorded a fine 7-3 ATS mark in the last 10 meetings. Duquesne has gone a dismal 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games against Temple, including a pathetic 0-6 ATS mark in the last six meetings in Philadelphia.
I know the double digit point spread may look a bit high, but I say don't worry as Temple six of its last 10 games by double digits while cashing in as a double-digit favorite twice. Play the Owls to improve on their 6-5 ATS home record with a big win tonight.
NCAAB Expert Picks: Temple -13 Points
Xavier at Massachusetts
Musketeers vs. Minutemen (+8)
Xavier (15-6 SU, 13-7 ATS)
Massachusetts (8-13 SU, 6-10 ATS)
The Xavier Musketeers have won three consecutive games and routed lowly Fordham 108-60 on Sunday to cover the college basketball betting line as whopping 27.5-point home favorites.
The Massachusetts Minutemen are reeling, having lost six of its last seven games, including a dismal 72-58 home loss to Charlotte on Saturday.
Xavier has covered the spread in three straight games and seven of its last 10 games overall while UMass has gone 1-3 ATS over its last four games and a respectable 5-5 ATS over its last 10 games overall.
The Minutemen are 5-3 at home this season, 2-5 against A-10 opponents and 6-8 against non-conference opponents. UMass averages 70.3 points per game at home while allowing 67.6 points per contest defensively.
The Musketeers are 2-4 on the road this season, 7-1 against conference opponents and 8-5 against non-conference opponents. Xavier averages 72.0 points per game but allows 74.0 points per game defensively.
Here is a look at the key trends surrounding tonight's matchup.
Musketeers are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games overall.
Musketeers are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 vs. Atlantic 10.
Minutemen are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as a home underdog.
Minutemen are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games.
Favorite is 3-1-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
Analysis: This pick is pretty simple college basketball betting enthusiasts. Xavier averages nine points per game more than the UMass and allows seven fewer points per contest than their counterparts, telling me they've got more than enough room to cover the spread as 8-point road faves tonight.
The Musketeers have gone an impressive 6-2 ATS in their last eight games overall and identical 6-2 ATS in their last eight games against A-10 opponents.
The Minutemen have struggled to produce an ATS payday, going a bankroll-busting 1-5 ATS in their last six games as a home underdog and 0-4 ATS in their last four home games overall.
The favorite in this series has gone 3-1-1 ATS in the last five meetings -- and tonight, the favorite is Xavier.
NCAAB Expert Picks: Xavier -8 Points
(c) 1994-2009 BetUS.com. All Rights Reserved.
College Basketball Betting - Florida State at #7 Duke
Florida State Seminoles (15-4 SU, 4-10 ATS) at No. 7 Duke Blue Devils (16-3 SU, 12-6 ATS)
Here are some NCAA Basketball Betting Trends which may impact this game:
Florida State: 3-1 ATS in their last 4 games
Florida State: 1-4 ATS on the road
Duke: 3-1 ATS in their last 4 games
Duke: Total has gone UNDER in 3 of their last 5 games
Coming off maybe their most impressive win of the season Saturday, the No. 7 ranked Duke Blue Devils can't have a letdown in Wednesday night's college basketball betting odds. They'll do their best to avoid that, when they host the Florida State Seminoles.
For Duke, it all came together beautifully on Saturday night, in a 60-47 victory against Clemson, in a game that quite frankly wasn't even as the final score might indicate. The Blue Devils held Clemson to just 37 percent shooting for the game, in maybe their best defensive effort of the year.
On offense, Duke is led by maybe the most improved player in college basketball this year, point guard Jon Scheyer. Scheyer- who was once known as strictly a jump shooter- has rounded out his game beautifully this season, as he leads this team in points (18.7), assists (5.7) and leads the nation in assist to turnover ratio.
Because of Scheyer's improved play, several other Blue Devils have elevated their games as well. Guard Nolan Smith has been a scoring machine in 2010, averaging 18.5, after averaging just eight a year ago. Down low Mason and Miles Plumlee provide the first true low post threat for the Blue Devils since Shelden Williams was on campus in 2006. Now if only Kyle Singler- whose point total is down this season- could get his game going, the Blue Devils might be one of the most complete teams in the country.
As for their visitors Wednesday night, the Florida State Seminoles have reeled off two straight conference wins, after dropping their previous two. They are led by another vastly improved player, center Solomon Alabi. Alabi is still a little raw, but there's no doubt that the talent is there, for the seven footer. He's improved his scoring and rebounding from last year, and is also one of the nation's top shot blockers, averaging almost three per game. Forward Chris Singleton adds help on the perimeter, but has been plagued by inconsistency in 2010. Against Georgia Tech over the weekend he scored 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds. A game before he had just two points. If Singleton ever puts forth a consistent effort, this team will become scary going forward.
Over the years, teams with long, athletic front courts have always given the Blue Devils problems, and Wednesday should be no different. Also, remember this: Florida State might be the most underrated defensive team in college basketball: They allow the 22nd fewest points in college basketball (60), but also allow the lowest defensive shooting percentage of any team in college basketball, with the opposition making just 35 percent of their shots.
If you're betting the money line take Duke at home. As well as Florida State is playing, they haven't seen an offense quite this good yet. It's tough to expect a young Florida State team to go into Cameron Indoor Stadium and get a win, it will remain close for all 40 minutes. Expect the Seminoles to scratch and claw, and play the great defense that has quickly become their trademark.
Expect the Blue Devils to win a nail-biter but Florida State to cover.
College Basketball Betting Pick: Florida State +13.
(c) 1994-2009 BetUS.com. All Rights Reserved.
Clemson vs. GA Tech
Atlanta, GA - Clemson and Georgia Tech survived wild finishes over the weekend in order to avoid letdowns and win.
Only one team will be able to win Tuesday night when the No. 17 Tigers visit the 19th-ranked Yellow Jackets in ACC play.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook SPORTSBETTING.com have made the Georgia Tech -2.5 point spread favorites for Tuesday's game against the Clemson. Current College Basketball Public Betting Information shows that 76% of more than 275 bets for this game have been placed on the Georgia Tech -2.5.
Clemson (15-3, 3-1), which has won nine of 10, appeared to be cruising to a third consecutive victory Saturday, but needed two big defensive stops in the final seconds to beat North Carolina State 73-70 in what center Jerai Grant called "maybe the most important win of the year for us."
The Tigers never trailed, but almost saw their 21-point lead evaporate when the Wolfpack's Julius Mays had two 3-pointers rim out during the final five seconds, including one at the buzzer.
"We wanted (this game) more. We dug deep," said Grant, who had 11 points and had a key block on a layup with 35 seconds left and Clemson clinging to a one-point lead. "We couldn't let that first-half lead go to waste."
The Yellow Jackets (13-4, 2-2) also survived a scare Saturday. They blew a 20-point halftime lead before forward Zachery Peacock hit a shot with 25.7 seconds to play to give them a 73-71 win over then-No. 12 North Carolina.
Georgia Tech and the Tar Heels exchanged the lead seven times in the final 4 1/2 minutes before the Yellow Jackets clinched their first victory at Chapel Hill since 1996.
"It shows our toughness," said Peacock, who had six points on 3-for-10 shooting. "To come into a tough environment like this and get a win, it just shows how tough we are. Our problem is being consistent, which we're not too far away from."
While Peacock came up with the clutch basket Saturday, Iman Shumpert posted a career-high 30 points while sinking 10 of 17 shots as he appears to be fully recovered from knee surgery, which forced him to miss six games last month.
The sophomore guard, who is averaging 10.9 points and a team-high 4.2 assists, had totaled 40 points in his first four games back from the surgery, including a 15-point effort in an 82-75 loss at Virginia on Wednesday.
"It's great to see Iman Shumpert getting back into shape and regaining his form after his layoff from knee surgery," coach Paul Hewitt said. "That was his fifth game back from the surgery, and I think he's finally getting back where he was before he got hurt."
Georgia Tech may need a better performance from Gani Lawal on Tuesday after he was held to 12 points for a second consecutive game, making 5 of 15 shots and grabbing 12 rebounds against North Carolina.
On the season, the junior forward is shooting 54.3 percent, while leading the team with 15.2 points and 9.2 boards per game.
Lawal had 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead Georgia Tech to an 86-81 victory over Clemson - also ranked 17th then - in the first round of the ACC tournament on March 12.
Clemson swept the regular-season series last year, including an 81-73 win in Atlanta on Feb. 22 behind forward Trevor Booker's 21 points and 12 rebounds.
Booker, now a senior, leads the Tigers with averages of 15.4 points and 8.3 rebounds. He scored 20 points against North Carolina State.
(c) 1999-2009 TheSpread.com Inc.
College Hoops Betting - UNC vs. Clemson Highlights 3-Game Pack
College basketball betting fans are ready for some Hump Day hoops. Wednesday's NCAA schedule has some classic conference confrontations involving Top 25 programs. Here's a look at the highlights:
North Carolina Tar Heels at Clemson Tigers
If bettors should know anything about UNC coach Roy Williams, it's that he doesn't care about non-conference play. The Tar Heels' goal is to be ready for ACC competition, which was evident in their 78-64 win over the Virginia Tech Hokies as 8-point favorites this weekend.
North Carolina came out a bit flat in the first half, shooting just 13-of-29. However, the Heels turned it on down the stretch and buried their final five 3-point attempts of the game to cover the college basketball pointspread. The outside shooting has been a target since the upset loss to the College of Charleston. In that game UNC made just 1-of-6 from 3-point range and connected on just 5-of-16 from beyond the arc versus the Hokies.
Clemson bounced back from a rough trip to Cameron Indoor last week with a 72-56 win over the Boston College Eagles on the weekend. Trevor Booker remains the key to the Tigers' offense, averaging almost 15 points a game, but junior guard Demontez Stitt has stepped up for Clemson. Stitt is scoring nearly 11 points a game and leads the team with 3.8 assists. He netted 15 points in the win over Boston College.
Pittsburgh Panthers at Connecticut Huskies
Connecticut is coming off a disappointing loss to the Georgetown Hoyas this weekend. The Huskies led the Hoyas for most of the game but went cold down the stretch. The big difference was the production of forward Stanley Robinson in the second half. The athletic leaper scored 12 of his 16 points in the first half but was invisible to his teammates in the final 20 minutes.
Coach Jim Calhoun is pointing the finger at sophomore point guard Kemba Walker. He was solid in the first half, handing out six assists and setting the pace for Connecticut. But in the second half, Walker committed three of his five turnovers and didn't register a single assist, leaving the Huskies' offense to score only 29 points after dropping 40 in the opening half.
Pittsburgh is beginning to find its form after a tough non-conference schedule. The Panthers players are settling into their roles after watching so much talent leave from last year's squad. One of those players knowing their role is junior forward Gilbert Brown.
He scored 17 points off the bench in Pitt's 74-71 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats as a 4-point road underdog Sunday. Brown, whose college career has been plagued with injuries and academic issues, is averaging 10 points in his four games since missing the first semester due to academic suspension.
Minnesota Golden Gophers at Michigan State Spartans
The Spartans have opened Big Ten play with three straight wins, the most recent a 71-53 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes as 14-point road favorites Saturday. Michigan State is still trying to get more from its high-profile players after Kalin Lucas and Durrell Summers have struggled to produce every game. Coach Tom Izzo didn't make any bones about letting his players know they needed to play better. Lucas scored 14 points and had four assists while Summers had just three points on 1-of-2 shooting in the win over Iowa.
Luckily for MSU, sophomore forward Draymond Green has been exceeding expectations. Green has averaged more than 14 points over his last four games, giving the Spartans a boost off the bench. Green does it all for Michigan State, pulling down almost eight rebounds a night, totaling 23 steals and 12 blocks this season.
The Golden Gophers officially threw their hat in the conference ring with a win over Ohio State this weekend. Minnesota locked down the Buckeyes for just 29 points in the second half, pulling off the 73-62 victory as a 4-point home favorite. Coach Tubby Smith has stressed the importance of stopping teams with the offense lacking the same punch as some of their Big Ten rivals.
The Gophers' physical style of basketball got to the Buckeyes. Both teams traded words throughout the game with the referees separating players more than once. Minnesota's biggest weapon heading into Wednesday is red-hot guard Blake Hoffarber, who scored 27 points including hitting 7-of-9 shots from beyond the arc.
(c) 1994-2009 BetUS.com. All Rights Reserved.
Big 12 College Basketball Non-Conference Schedule Embarrassing
Mr. East looks at the BIG12's soft non-conference schedule, and the price they will pay
Here we are a day removed from the BCS National Championship game, with the focus shifting to NCAA basketball. Before you know it the call will be coming to selection Sunday, and the Madness will begin. I'm not sure if anyone that isn't associated, or affiliated with the Big-12 Conference has noticed, but as of this writing the Big-12 is currently 104-1 straight up at home! Let me repeat that, the Big-12 Conference is 104-1 at home!
Let me begin by saying that this is a very good basketball conference, but something has to be done about scheduling. One or more of these teams are going to pay dearly for the price, if the selection committee has the onions to stand up for their own criteria come selection time. That criteria points to scheduling out of conference games that are notable and competitive.
Let's see as conference play has begun how the Big-12 got to 104-1. The schedule is a complete disgrace to the conference and the college basketball world, as it is a joke. They have played a total of 105 home games as they enter conference play. Of those 105 games only 48 of them, that's right only 48 of them have even been lined games! That means 57 were against non-div1 teams, or teams that are so poor they don't even have their games lined. Overall that number represents 54.3% of the scheduled home games. It is an utter disgrace. You can check the lines on every game using our college basketball odds.
It gets even worse. Those 48 lined games saw 16 of them against such inferior competition that 16 of those were lined at 20 points or more for the Big-12 team. That means we are left with 32 of 105 games that had a line of less than -20! That represents 30.5% of all games.
That isn't the end. They had 17 more games lined in double-digits beyond the 20+ games. That leaves 15 games in a conference of 12 teams with a line of under 10! That represents just over 1 per team! The numbers now show just 15 of 105 games with a line of under 10, or 14.3%. Half of those remaining 15 games saw a line of 7 or more, so the reality is, these teams are playing noone!
Baylor may be a better team at 12-1 than most expected them to be, but they are 7-0 at home and have yet to even have any of the 7 home games have a line because they are all cupcakes! There are 7 Big-12 schools that have had 4 lined home games or less. They have gone 65-0 at home, and 13 of the 18 show lines by 10+.
The bottomline here is, if the NCAA selection committee holds their ground by their own indications, when it comes time for March Madness and a Big-12 team or 2 with a lofty record is left behind, the critics will easily be silenced by referring to this report.
(c) 2003 - 2009 BetFirms.
Conference Play
Washington, DC - A pair of losses to St. John's in March contributed to Georgetown's collapse in 2008-09.
Opening Big East play against the Red Storm gives the Hoyas a chance to erase any bad memories from those defeats.
The 13th-ranked Hoyas look to exact a measure of revenge when they host St. John's on Thursday night.
Georgetown was ranked as high as No. 9 in the country last season but would lose 12 of its last 16, falling twice to St. John's in its last four games. The Red Storm had only two other wins in their final 13 games of the season.
St. John's defeated the Hoyas 59-56 in overtime March 3 and beat them 64-59 seven days later in the first round of the Big East tournament. Georgetown had won the previous five meetings.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook SPORTSBETTING.com have made Georgetown -11 point spread favorites for Thursday's game against St. Johns. Current College Basketball Public Betting Information shows that 58% of more than 182 bets for this game have been placed on Georgetown -11.
This season, Georgetown has jumped out to a 9-1 start while St. John's has opened 10-2, with one of those losses coming at then-No. 6 Duke on Dec. 5.
The Hoyas won their first eight before falling 61-57 to Old Dominion on Dec. 19. They rebounded by beating Harvard 86-70 last Wednesday, getting a career-high 34 points from Chris Wright and 16 points and 16 rebounds from Greg Monroe.
Wright, a 6-foot-1 junior guard, shot 13 for 21 and had six rebounds, four assists and a career-best six steals. He scored 21 of his points in the second half.
"I don't even think I was looking for my shot today. I just think I was being aggressive and trying to make plays," Wright said. "I don't think I was really trying to force anything. I was just playing in the flow of the game. I got opportunities today, and luckily I capitalized on them."
Junior guard Austin Freeman matched his career best with 21 points and is one of four players averaging at least 11.1 points for Georgetown. Monroe leads the way with 15.3 per game while Wright is scoring 13.9 a contest.
The Red Storm's top scorer is junior swingman D.J. Kennedy, averaging 16.7 points. He had a game-high 18 last Wednesday in an 80-44 win over winless Bryant of the Northeast Conference.
St. John's is hoping Paris Horne continues his recent strong play after a dismal beginning to the season. The junior guard is averaging 9.0 points and shooting 40.4 percent from the field after leading the team with 14.6 points per game - 16.4 in conference play - in 2008-09.
Horne scored a season-high 16 against Bryant and is averaging 11.5 points over his last four games after going six straight without reaching double figures. He's 9 for 15 from 3-point range in the last three.
"It feels good. I knew it would happen sooner or later," said Horne, who averaged 19.5 points in last season's wins over Georgetown. "I just stayed with it, stayed in the gym and just kept shooting. That's all."
The Hoyas have won their last seven conference openers while St. John's has dropped five of its past six. The Red Storm have lost four in a row at Georgetown since Jan. 18, 2003.
(c) 1999-2009 TheSpread.com Inc.
|
