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College Basketball

Sunday’s Early Tips

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
5 minute read


The American Athletic Conference (AAC) wraps up its regular season schedule this Sunday ahead of next week’s conference tournament.

One of the featured matchups of the day on the entire college basketball schedule pits the top two teams in the AAC against one another with the regular season title on the line.

No. 10 Cincinnati at No. 11 Wichita State (CBS, 12:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Wichita State -1 ½, Total 143 ½

Betting Matchup

With Thursday’s 78-49 romp against Tulane as 13-point road favorites, the Bearcats moved one step closer to locking up this season’s AAC regular season title at 15-2 straight. They are 26-4 SU on the year with a 17-12 record against the spread. The total stayed UNDER 138 points in that latest win and it has stayed UNDER in three of their last five outings. Cincinnati is 7-1 SU on the road this season in conference play with a 5-3 record ATS.

The Bearcats are ranked second in the nation in points allowed (57.2) and they have held opposing teams below this average in five of their last eight games. At the other end of the court, they are averaging 76.1 points per game behind four different players scoring at least 11 points per game. Junior guard Jacob Evans leads the team in scoring with 13.3 points a game while connecting on 40.9 percent of his shots from three-point range.

The Shockers kept their bid alive for an AAC title in their first season in the conference with Thursday’s thrilling 75-71 overtime victory against Central Florida. This extended their current SU winning streak to seven games, but after failing to cover as 10-point road favorites they sunk to 1-4 ATS in their last five outings. The total has gone OVER in Wichita State’s last 10 games. Returning home for the season finale, it has gone 7-1 SU at home in the AAC with a 5-3 record ATS.

Wichita State is one game back at 14-3 SU in the AAC standings, but it owns the tiebreaker for the regular season title with a 76-72 victory against the Bearcats on Feb. 18 as a six-point road underdog. The total went OVER the closing 141-point line in that game. The Shockers have the more potent offensive attack in this matchup with an average of 83.9 PPG. Both Larry Shamet and Shaquille Morris are averaging over 14 PPG and these two combined for 32 points in the first meeting this year.

Betting Trends

-- The Bearcats have gone 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games against a team with a SU winning record and the total has gone OVER in their last four Sunday games.

-- The Shockers are 1-4 ATS in their last five games following a SU win and the total has gone OVER in their last seven home games.

Connecticut at No. 25 Houston (CBSSN, 4:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Houston -15 ½, Total 141 ½

Betting Matchup

The Huskies stunned Temple 72-66 on Wednesday night as 2 ½-point home underdogs to improve to 7-10 both SU and ATS in conference play. This was only their third SU win in their last 10 games and just the second time they covered ATS in this same span. The total stayed UNDER 139 points in that game after going OVER in seven of their previous nine outings. Connecticut has lost six of eight road games both SU and ATS in conference play with the total going OVER in five of those eight games on the road.

Junior guard Jalen Adams had the hot hand on Wednesday night with 25 points and eight assists. He has led the Huskies in scoring all season long with an average of 18.4 PPG and this was his third straight game with at least 25 points. He is one of three players averaging at 14 PPG or more. Overall, Connecticut is well down the list in Division I in scoring with an average of 67.9 points, but it has scored at least 71 points in five of its last six games. At the other end of the court, it is allowing an average of 72.6 PPG.

Houston is the third nationally-ranked team in the AAC at 23-6 SU with a 13-4 record in conference play. The Cougars have gone 7-1 SU in their last eight games with a 6-1-1 record ATS. The total stayed UNDER 133 ½ points in Wednesday’s 69-56 road victory against SMU and it has stayed UNDER in five of their last seven games. Houston is a perfect 8-0 SU at home this season including victories against Wichita State and Cincinnati while going 6-1-1 ATS. The total has stayed UNDER in six of those eight home games.

With an average of 17.7 points and 4.7 assists, senior guard Rob Grey has led Houston in both categories this season. He put up 19 points and nine assists against SMU as part of a combined 68 points and 27 assists in his last three games. The Cougars are averaging 78.1 PPG and they are shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from three-point range. They have been one of the better defensive teams in the nation this season with a points-allowed average of 65.0.

Betting Trends

-- The Huskies have failed to cover in their last five Sunday games and the total has gone OVER in the last four games played on a Sunday.

-- The Cougars are 4-1 ATS in their last five games against a team with a SU losing record and the total has stayed UNDER in six of their last seven Sunday games.

-- The road team in this conference matchup has covered the spread in the last five meetings and the total has gone OVER in four of the last five meetings in Houston.

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