NCAA Basketball Tip Sheet for Saturday, ACC, Big Ten and WCC

In a trio of highlighted Leap Day matchups on Saturday night’s college basketball betting board, nationally ranked teams coast to coast make the list.

Starting on the East Coast in the ACC, the No. 7 Duke Blue Devils head to Charlottesville to face the Virginia Cavaliers. Moving to the Big Ten, the No. 24 Michigan State Spartans are on the road against the No. 9 Maryland Terrapins. Closing out the night in the West Coast Conference, the Saint Mary Gaels take on the No. 3 Gonzaga Bulldogs in Spokane.

ACC Matchup
No. 7 Duke Blue Devils at Virginia Cavaliers
(ESPN, 6:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Duke -3.5, Total 125

Betting Matchup

Duke’s loss to North Carolina State as a road favorite on Feb. 19 was bad and Tuesday’s 113-101 road loss to Wake Forest as an 11-point favorite in double overtime was worse as part of a 1-2 record straight-up and against the spread in the last three games. The total has gone OVER in the Blue Devils’ last four games. They are 23-5 SU (14-14 ATS) overall with a 13-4 record in ACC play.

Duke is third in the nation in scoring (83.3 points). Wake Forest’s 113 points ties the record for the most points allowed in the Mike Krzyzewski coaching era.

The Cavaliers (20-7 SU, 11-15-1 ATS) are 12-5 SU in conference play with five wins in a row. They have covered in the last four with Wednesday’s 56-53 squeaker against Virginia Tech as 2 ½-point road favorites. The total stayed UNDER for just the third time in their last nine games. Defense remains Virginia’s strong suit as the nation’s second-ranked team in points allowed (52.7).

The Cavaliers are way down the list in Division I ball (448th) in scoring (57.6 points).

Betting Trends

-- The Blue Devils are 3-2 SU in their last five road games falling to 1-4 ATS. The total has gone OVER in five of their last seven games on the road.

-- The Cavaliers have won seven of their last 10 games at home SU but they are just 3-7 in those games ATS. The total has stayed UNDER in three of their last five home games.

-- Duke has the SU 7-3 edge in the last 10 games in this series but Virginia is 7-3 ATS. The total has gone OVER in the last two meetings.

Big Ten Matchup
No. 24 Michigan State Spartans at No. 9 Maryland Terrapins
(ESPN, 8:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Maryland -2.5, Total 138

Betting Matchup

Tuesday’s 78-70 victory against Iowa as nine-point home favorites was the Spartans’ third SU win in their last four games. The lone loss was to Maryland (67-60) on Feb. 15. However, they are now 1-6 ATS over their last seven games. Michigan State is 19-9 SU (12-16 ATS) with an 11-6 record in Big Ten play. The total has stayed UNDER or ended as a PUSH in 11 of its last 13 contests.

Cassius Winston led the way on Tuesday with 20 points (19 in the second half). The senior guard is averaging 18.4 points per game this year.

Maryland (13-4 SU) is trying to nail down the Big Ten regular season title with a two-game lead and three games left to play. The Terrapins (23-5 SU, 14-13-1 ATS) bounced back from a seven-point road loss to Ohio State as three-point underdogs with Wednesday’s one-point squeaker over Minnesota as one-point favorites on the road. They were able to erase a 16-point halftime deficit. Maryland moved to 10-1 SU in its last 11 games but the record drops to 2-4-1 ATS over the last seven outings. The total has gone OVER in the last three games.

Betting Trends

-- The Spartans have lost eight of their last 10 games as road underdogs with a 4-6 record ATS. The has gone OVER in eight of those 10 games.

-- The Terrapins have a SU 15-game winning streak as home favorites but they have failed to cover in their last three home games giving points. The total has stayed UNDER in five of their last seven home games as favorites.

-- Maryland won the first meeting SU and ATS to snap a SU three game losing streak. Michigan State still has a 4-2-1 edge ATS in the last seven games between the two. The total has stayed UNDER in seven of the last eight matchups.

WCC Matchup
Saint Mary’s Gaels at No. 3 Gonzaga Bulldogs
(ESPN2, 10:00 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Gonzaga -13, Total 147.5

Betting Matchup

Saint Mary’s is 5-1 SU in its last six games but 1-5 ATS after failing to cover in Thursday’s 78-72 road win against Santa Clara as a 6 ½-point favorite. The Gaels (23-6 SU, 13-16 ATS) wrap up their WCC regular season schedule on Saturday after losing the first meeting against Gonzaga 90-60 on Feb. 8 as five-point home underdogs. They are 11-4 SU in conference play and the total has gone OVER in seven of their last nine games.

Jordan Ford put up 33 points in Thursday’s win. The senior guard is averaging 20.9 PPG this season.

The Bulldogs’ perfect run through the WCC was spoiled on Feb. 22 in a stunning road loss to BYU. They hammered San Diego 94-59 on Thursday as 25-point home favorites to take out some the frustration caused by their only SU loss since early December.

Gonzaga is 14-1 in WCC play as part of a 28-2 record overall. It is 16-13-1 ATS after failing to cover in five of its last eight outings. The total has gone OVER in 11 of its last 12 games. The Bulldogs are scoring 87.8 PPG behind seven players averaging at least 10 points a game. That scoring total is ranked second in the nation.

Betting Trends

-- The Gaels are 2-8 SU in their last 10 road games as underdogs with the total staying UNDER in eight of those games. They are 2-4 ATS in the six road games getting points.

-- The Bulldogs are a perfect 15-0 SU at home this season with a 9-6 record ATS. The total has gone OVER in eight of their last 10 home games.

-- With the earlier win this year, Gonzaga is 8-2 both SU and ATS in its last 10 games against Saint Mary’s. The total went OVER in that first meeting after staying UNDER in seven of the previous eight games between the two.