Super Sunday is always Christmas come early for gamblers, but the wagering isn’t restricted to the Super Bowl. Bettors also have college hoops to whet the appetite before kick-off. Let’s look at several televised games before reviewing some of Saturday’s action in Bonus Nuggets.

**South Florida at Notre Dame**

--Las Vegas Sports Consultants opened Notre Dame (16-7 straight up, 8-8-1 against the spread) as an eight-point favorite.

--South Florida (15-7 SU, 14-6-1 ATS) has won four consecutive Big East games for the first time in school history. The Bulls went into Washington D.C. on Wednesday night and emerged with a 72-64 win at Georgetown as 12 ½-point underdogs.

--USF’s Dominique Jones was the catalyst against the Hoyas, producing 29 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals. For the season, Jones is averaging 22.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.

--Stan Heath’s team has won five of its last six games, covering the spread in each of those six contests. The Bulls and Irish are in a four-way tie for seventh place in the Big East with identical 5-5 records.

--USF’s Augustus Gilchrist has missed 14 straight games with a severely sprained ankle, but he might return to the court in Sunday’s game at the Joyce Center. Gilchrist would be a huge boost for the Bulls, as evidenced by his 18.8 PPG average to go with 7.4 rebounds per contest.

--Notre Dame blasted Cincinnati 83-65 Thursday night as a three-point home ‘chalk.’ Luke Harangody had another monster performance, scoring 37 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. For the year, Harangody is averaging 24.8 points and 9.9 rebounds per game.

--Mike Brey’s team is 14-2 SU and 6-4 ATS at home.

--The ‘over’ is 9-7 overall for the Irish, 7-2 in their home games.

--The ‘over’ is 10-6 overall for USF, 5-1 in its last six games (regardless of the venue).

--This is a noon Eastern tip with the game televised on ESPN’s Full-Court Package.

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**Syracuse at Cincinnati**

--LVSC opened Syracuse (22-1 SU, 14-5 ATS) as a 3 ½-point favorite.

--Jim Boeheim’s squad has won nine in a row, going 7-2 ATS in the process. The Orange are coming off an 85-68 home win over Providence as a 14 ½-point favorite. Arinze Onuaku paced the winners with 20 points, seven rebounds, four blocked shots and two steals.

--Cincinnati (14-8 SU, 5-12 ATS) is mired in a 1-7 ATS slide in its last eight lined games. The Bearcats return home after getting throttled 83-65 Thursday at Notre Dame as three-point underdogs. Deonta Vaughn had 11 points and six assists in defeat.

--Syracuse junior forward Wesley Johnson is “probable” after sustaining a knee injury that limited him to 22 minutes against the Friars. Johnson, a transfer from Iowa St., is averaging a team-high 16.7 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

--Mick Cronin’s team has been a big-time money burner at home, limping to an abysmal 1-6 spread record. However, the Bearcats have won 11 of their 12 home games outright. This is their first home underdog situation this season.

--The ‘under’ is 9-7 overall for the Bearcats, but the ‘over’ is 4-2 in their home games.

--The ‘under’ is on a 6-1 roll in the ‘Cuse’s last seven games. For the season, the Orange have watched the ‘under’ go 9-6 overall.

--When these teams met at the Carrier Dome last year on March 1, the ‘Cuse cruised to an 87-63 win as an eight-point home favorite.

--This game will come off the board at 2:00 p.m. Eastern as a part of ESPN’s Full-Court Package.

**Indiana at Northwestern**

--LVSC opened Northwestern (15-7 SU, 13-5 ATS) as an 8 ½-point favorite, which is its biggest ‘chalk’ spot in Big Ten play this season. The Wildcats haven’t been this heavily favored in a Big Ten game since hosting IU last year as double-digit favorites.

--Indiana (9-12 SU, 10-10-1 ATS) has lost three in a row and six of its last eight, but the Hoosiers have been hooking up their backers at a 7-3 ATS clip in their last 10 outings. They took the cash as 12 ½-point home underdogs in Thursday’s 78-75 loss to Purdue. Verdell Jones III had 22 points, six rebounds and four assists in the losing effort.

--Bill Carmody’s team improved to 4-6 in Big Ten play with Tuesday’s 67-52 win over Michigan as a one-point home favorite. Drew Crawford had a team-high 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. John Shurna added 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

--Northwestern is 11-3 SU and 6-4 ATS at home this year. Meanwhile, IU is 1-3 SU and 2-2 ATS in its four true road games this season.

--Northwestern is in excellent position to attain its first NCAA Tournament invite in school history. The Wildcats have to finish strong but the schedule sets up nicely. They should be favored in at least six, and possibly seven or eight, of their last nine games. The only given underdog spot is a road game at Wisconsin.

--Totals have been a wash for Northwestern both overall (8-8-1) and at home (4-4-1).

--The ‘over’ is 9-8 overall for IU.

--The ‘over’ has hit in eight straight head-to-head meetings between these long-time rivals. Northwestern has a 10-2 spread record in its last 12 games against the Hoosiers.

--Tip-off is slated for 2:30 p.m. Eastern on the Big Ten Network.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

--San Diego senior guard De’Jon Jackson (12.0 PPG) is out for the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury in Thursday’s loss at San Francisco. Jackson will always be a part of NCAA Tournament lore because he hit the game-winning bucket with 1.2 seconds left to lift the 13th-seeded Toreros to a first-round win over UConn two years ago.

--Villanova went down for just the second time this year Saturday, losing 103-90 at Georgetown as a two-point road underdog. However, the Wildcats did cover the spread for halftime bettors who took Jay Wright’s squad as a four-point favorite when trailing by 19 at intermission (equating to ‘Nova +15 for the game).

--Not only did Ole Miss rally from a 20-point deficit at halftime to beat Alabama on Saturday, but it also garnered a miracle push in the 74-67 home victory as a seven-point favorite.

--Behind the best performance that Vernon Macklin has turned in as a Gator, Florida picked up a crucial SEC win Saturday over Mississippi St. UF improved to 6-3 in league play with the win over the Bulldogs.

--Arkansas is in a first-place tie in the SEC West with a 5-3 record following Saturday's 82-79 home win over Auburn.

Brian Edwards can be reached at briane@vegasinsider.com.

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