The men's college basketball season continues to work its way through the non-conference portion of its schedule and Indiana remains at the top of the rankings as the best team in the nation with a 9-0 start with Duke, Michigan, Syracuse and Louisville rounding out the top five of last week's AP poll. All-in-all, it has been an exciting start that promises to only get better as the season wears on.
The following is a brief look at the top matchups for each day this week along with a few facts and figures to help handicap the games.
Monday, Dec. 10 - Longwood Lancers vs. No. 15 Georgetown Hoyas
Longwood plays out of the Big South Conference and comes into this matchup at 2-6 straight-up and 2-0 against the spread in its only two games with a posted line. The Lancers beat Florida A&M 86-83 in overtime as eight-point underdogs on Nov.23 and followed it up with an 84-78 loss to Cornell as 18-point underdogs in this season's Las Vegas Invitational.
Georgetown extended its current winning streak to four games with a 46-40 victory over Towson this past Saturday as an 18-point home favorite. The Hoyas are now 7-1 SU but just 2-4 ATS. The total has stayed UNDER in their last two games with a posted line. Georgetown is only averaging 62.3 points a game but it has held its opponents to less than 60 points in six of its first eight games.
Tuesday, Dec. 11 - Binghamton Bearcats vs. No. 3 Michigan Wolverines
The Bearcats, out of the America East Conference, step way up in class in this matchup. They come in at 2-8 SU and none of their first 10 games had a posted line. Binghamton is ranked in the bottom third of Division I in scoring with an average of just 60.5 points a game while shooting a dismal 39.4 percent from the field.
Michigan remained perfect on the season with an 80-67 victory over Arkansas this past Saturday but could not cover as a 15-point home favorite. The Wolverines are now 9-0 SU on the year and 5-2 ATS. The total has gone OVER in five of the seven games. Behind Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr., Michigan has the fifth-best shooting percentage in the nation at 51.5 percent.
Wednesday, Dec. 12- Savannah State Tigers vs. No. 7 Ohio State Buckeyes
The Tigers fell to 5-4 SU and 0-1 SU in the MEAC with a 55-45 loss to Norfolk State in their last outing on Dec.1. There have been no posted lines for any of their first nine games. They face the Buckeyes with an offense that is averaging just 54.1 points a game and shooting just over 40 percent from the field.
Ohio State rolled all over Long Beach State 89-55 this past Saturday as a 21-point home favorite to improve to 6-1 SU and 4-1 ATS. The total has gone OVER in three of its four games with a posted line. The Buckeyes are averaging 78 points a game with Deshaun Thomas lighting things up with 20.6 points a game. He also leads the team in rebounds with 6.1 a game.
Thursday, Dec. 13 - No. 24 Wichita State Shockers vs. Tennessee Volunteers
The Shockers have shocked their way into the top 25 with a perfect 9-0 SU start that includes a 53-51 road win over VCU on Nov.13 as nine-point underdogs. Wichita State is 5-2 ATS and the total has stayed UNDER in two of three games with a posted line. Cleanthony Early and Carl Hall have combined for an average of 27 points and 12.8 rebounds in the first nine games.
Tennessee comes into this game at 4-3 SU and 3-3 ATS after losing to Virginia 46-38 as a 4 ½-point road underdog last Wednesday. It was its third SU loss in the last five games. The Volunteers are averaging 61.4 points a game while shooting 42.2 percent from the floor. Their top two scorers are Jarnell Stokes and Trae Golden, who are each averaging just over 11 points a game.
Friday, Dec. 14 - LSU Tigers vs. Boise State Broncos
LSU will put its 5-0 SU record on the line this Tuesday against Chattanooga before taking the weekend trip out west to face Boise State. The Tigers last game was on Nov.29 when they beat Seton Hall 72-67 as 5 ½-point home favorites. That was just their second game of the season with a posted line after covering as 9 ½-point home favorites in an opening-day 77-63 victory over UC-Santa Barbara.
The Broncos fell to 6-2 SU in a 76-55 romp at the hands of Utah this past Wednesday as 5 ½-point road favorites. This stunning loss dropped them to 4-3 ATS after going a perfect 4-0 ATS in their previous four outings. Boise State is led by Derrick Marks and Anthony Drmic. Marks is averaging 18.6 points and 3.4 assists a game while Drmic is adding 14.3 points and a team-high 5.0 rebounds a game.
Saturday, Dec. 15- No. 6 Florida Gators vs. No. 8 Arizona Wildcats
In the first head-to-head matchup of ranked teams on this week's schedule, the Gators will put their perfect 7-0 SU record on the line. They are coming off a huge 72-47 romp over rival Florida State last Wednesday as six-point road favorites. The victory pushed their record ATS to 4-1 and the total has now stayed UNDER in their last two games.
The Wildcats are also off to a 7-0 SU start after pounding Clemson this past Saturday 66-54 as 5 ½-point favorites on the road. They are 5-1 ATS and the total has stayed UNDER in all three games this season with a posted line. Arizona is averaging 79.3 points a game while shooting a solid 48.6 percent from the floor.
