Sign In $
College Basketball

Monday’s Tip Sheet

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
3 minute read
The final Monday of the year marks the beginning of conference play in the Big East and the American Athletic Conference. There are a pair of featured betting matchups on Monday night that should attract some big betting attention.

The first game pits the Xavier Musketeers on the road against the No. 10 Villanova Wildcats. Later that night, the Tulane Green Wave square off against the No. 8 Memphis Tigers.

Xavier at No. 10 Villanova (FOX Sports 1, 6:30 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Villanova -5.5, 139

Betting Matchup

The Musketeers closed out the nonconference portion of their schedule with a big 67-59 upset over TCU as two-point underdogs. They are 11-2 straight-up heading into their Big East schedule. Betting on Xavier has not been a winning proposition with a 4-8-1 record ATS in those 13 games. The total has stayed UNDER in the last two games after going OVER in the previous six contests. Tyrique Jones posted a huge effort against TCU with 18 points and 14 rebounds. In the Musketeers’ previous win against Western Carolina on Dec. 18, senior guard Quentin Goodin scored a career-high 25 points.

Villanova brings some solid momentum into conference play after its impressive 56-55 road upset against Kansas on Dec. 21 as a two-point underdog. The Wildcats are 9-2 SU with a 4-6-1 record ATS as another sketchy betting team. The total stayed UNDER 147 points in their last game after going OVER in six of their previous eight outings. Jermaine Samuels drained a three pointer with 20 seconds to play to cap the win against Kansas. Sophomore forward Saddiq Bey is the Wildcats’ top scorer with 15.5 points per game. He was held to just seven points in that last game.

Betting Trends

-- The Musketeers are 7-2 SU in their last nine Big East games and the total has stayed UNDER in nine of their last 13 games in December.

-- The Wildcats have won their last 16 home games SU. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five conference games.

-- Villanova has won eight of the last 10 meetings SU with a 7-3 edge ATS. The home team won each meeting last season SU with Xavier covering in each game. The total has gone OVER in three of the last four matchups.

Tulane at No. 8 Memphis (CBS Sports Network, 9 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Memphis -16.5, 143.5

Betting Matchup

Tulane wrapped up its nonconference schedule with back-to-back SU losses to Akron and Towson. It is 8-4 SU overall with a 7-5 record ATS after failing to cover in three of its last four contests. The total has stayed UNDER in four of the Green Wave’s last seven games. In the 86-82 overtime loss to Towson on Dec. 21, junior guard Teshaun Hightower scored a game-high 33 points while shooting a blazing 60 percent from the field. He leads the team in scoring this season with 17.8 PPG. Tulane is averaging 73 points a game while allowing 67.8 points on defense.

The biggest story for Memphis so far has been off the court with the saga of James Wiseman. The potential top pick in the next NBA draft has left the team. In his place, a trio of players are averaging at least 10 points a game. The Tigers closed out nonconference play on Saturday with a 97-55 romp over New Orleans to easily cover the 26 ½-point spread. They have won their last nine games SU as part of an 11-1 record overall. Their record ATS is 8-3-1 with the total staying UNDER in four of their last five games.

Betting Trends

-- The Green Wave have gone 6-13 ATS in their last 19 December games with the total staying UNDER in four of their last six games played on a Monday.

-- The Tigers are 14-0 SU in their last 14 home games. The total has stayed UNDER in their last six AAC games.

-- Memphis has won its last eight games against Tulane SU and it has covered ATS in six of those contests. The Green Wave did cover as 16 ½-point road underdogs in last season’s 83-68 loss. The total has gone OVER four of the last six meetings.

College Basketball News

VegasInsider Staff

VegasInsider Staff

More from VegasInsider Staff
•