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College basketball Top 25 Saturday betting cheat sheet
(4) Duke Blue Devils at (7) Louisville Cardinals
*In Duke's past two games, both losses, they have allowed an average of 88.5 points per game while finishing with an average scoring margin of minus-14 ppg.
*The Cardinals are averaging 10.2 steals, ranking fifth in the nation, while snatching double-digit steals in 13 of their 14 games this season. Five Louisville foes have had more turnovers than field goals this season.
(17) VCU Rams at Duquesne Dukes
*VCU has only met Duquesne twice, the past two seasons, but has won both contests by an average of 21 points.
*The Dukes outshot and outrebounded Saint Louis, but failed miserably at the free-throw line, converting only 13 of 34 attempts in failing to take advantage of the home team’s 26 fouls.
(14) Wichita State Shockers at Evansville Purple Aces
*Ball security has been a strength of the Shockers this season, as they've only given up 4.1 steals per game this season.
*Over the last six years, no other MVC school has averaged more assists than the Purple Aces. Evansville has posted an average of 14.9 per game from the beginning of the 2008 season until the end of the 2014 slate
(2) Virginia Cavaliers at Boston College Eagles
*The Cavaliers have held their opponents scoreless for five or more minutes 13 times this season. Virginia has also limited its opponents without a field goal for eight or more minutes seven times.
*The Eagles have been struggling inside the paint this season, with only three rotation players over 6-foot-5. It doesn't help that backup Will Magarity is averaging eight fouls per game.
(25) Ohio State Buckeyes at Iowa Hawkeyes
*In the last meeting between the teams, Buckeyes coach Thad Matta had insisted on playing strictly zone defense. After Iowa's offense shredded the Buckeyes, the coach has withdrawn that and is now playing man coverage.
*Watch for Aaron White to have a big game on the offensive glass, as OSU F Marc Loving has been abused all season-long at rebounding.
Miami Hurricanes at (12) Notre Dame Fighting Irish
*Miami's upset over Duke can be attributed to its perimeter play. The Hurricanes shot 10 of 20 from beyond the arc while holding Duke to just 6 of 21 from distance.
*So far this season, Notre Dame is shooting 53 percent from the floor, which is the best shooting percentage in the nation.
(23) Baylor Bears at Kansas State Wildcats
*Baylor’s defense has held teams to an average of 13 points below their season scoring averages.
*The Wildcats’ three conference victories were won by a total of 15 points as Kansas State allowed an average of just 55.7 points.
(1) Kentucky Wildcats at Alabama Crimson Tide
*Kentucky's reach advantage, five players in the top nine are 6-foot-9 or taller, could cause rebounding issues for an Alabama team who were easily outrebounded by South Carolina in their last game.
*The Tide have held eight of their last nine opponents to 61 or fewer points in each game. Over the stretch, the Alabama defense has held the opposition to an average of 52.7 points per game,
Michigan State Spartans at (11) Maryland Terrapins
*Michigan State is shooting .418 from 3-point range this season, leading the Big Ten and ranking fourth in the nation.
*Maryland's improvement this season can be attributed to a new offensive scheme that utilizes four perimeter players and one big in the post.
(3) Gonzaga Bulldogs at Loyola Marymount Lions
*Bulldogs' Przemek Karnowski has shown development on an up-and-under move to counter defenses zeroing in on his patented left-handed hook.
*Loyola Marymount leading scorer Evan Payne came off the bench for the Lions in the win over Portland, a game removed from being benched against BYU due to a “coach’s decision”. Payne scored just seven points in 23 minutes versus the Pilots.
(15) West Virginia Mountaineers at (20) Texas Longhorns
*The Mountaineers' have been forcing turnovers in 31 percent of their opponents possessions thanks in large to a renewed defensive scheme. WVU's focus on smothering man-to-man coverage is keeping offenses out of sync.
*Texas ranks second nationally in blocked shots per game (7.7 bpg).. The Horns have blocked at least seven shots in 12 of their first 16 contests.
(8) Utah Utes at (9) Arizona Wildcats
*The Utes have the best scoring margin (+20.7) in the league despite only having one player among the Top 30 in scoring. Also, Utah has no player among the Top 10 in minutes played.
*Arizona is only allowing opponents to nab an offensive rebound on 19.1 percent of their opportunities, which is the second-best rate in the country.
(5) Villanova Wildcats at Pennsylvania Quakers
*Since the start of 2013-14, Villanova is 36-1 (.973) when scoring 70 or more points in a contest. When they fails to score 70 or more points, Villanova is 6-5 (.545).
*Penn has shot better than 50 percent from the field in two of the last three games; three of the last six contests; and five times in its last 10 outings.
(24) Oklahoma State Cowboys at (18) Oklahoma Sooners
*Oklahoma State has proven that they will dog you on defense, which is a formula that West Virginia used to topple the Sooners earlier this season.
*The Sooners had committed 10 or fewer turnovers in six of eight games before giving it away a season-high 22 times to West Virginia.
(10) Kansas Jayhawks at (13) Iowa State Cyclones
*Kansas has out-rebounded 12 of 16 opponents this season with six of those by double figures. Included are three of the last five games and four of the last seven contests.
*Iowa State’s three conference games have been decided by five total points.
Ole Miss Rebels at (19) Arkansas Razorbacks
*Ole Miss has lost two of its first three conference games by a combined seven points following a 75-71 loss to LSU.
*The Razorbacks own an 11-0 record when forcing 15+ turnovers and 9-0 mark when scoring 80+ points.
(4) Duke Blue Devils at (7) Louisville Cardinals
*In Duke's past two games, both losses, they have allowed an average of 88.5 points per game while finishing with an average scoring margin of minus-14 ppg.
*The Cardinals are averaging 10.2 steals, ranking fifth in the nation, while snatching double-digit steals in 13 of their 14 games this season. Five Louisville foes have had more turnovers than field goals this season.
(17) VCU Rams at Duquesne Dukes
*VCU has only met Duquesne twice, the past two seasons, but has won both contests by an average of 21 points.
*The Dukes outshot and outrebounded Saint Louis, but failed miserably at the free-throw line, converting only 13 of 34 attempts in failing to take advantage of the home team’s 26 fouls.
(14) Wichita State Shockers at Evansville Purple Aces
*Ball security has been a strength of the Shockers this season, as they've only given up 4.1 steals per game this season.
*Over the last six years, no other MVC school has averaged more assists than the Purple Aces. Evansville has posted an average of 14.9 per game from the beginning of the 2008 season until the end of the 2014 slate
(2) Virginia Cavaliers at Boston College Eagles
*The Cavaliers have held their opponents scoreless for five or more minutes 13 times this season. Virginia has also limited its opponents without a field goal for eight or more minutes seven times.
*The Eagles have been struggling inside the paint this season, with only three rotation players over 6-foot-5. It doesn't help that backup Will Magarity is averaging eight fouls per game.
(25) Ohio State Buckeyes at Iowa Hawkeyes
*In the last meeting between the teams, Buckeyes coach Thad Matta had insisted on playing strictly zone defense. After Iowa's offense shredded the Buckeyes, the coach has withdrawn that and is now playing man coverage.
*Watch for Aaron White to have a big game on the offensive glass, as OSU F Marc Loving has been abused all season-long at rebounding.
Miami Hurricanes at (12) Notre Dame Fighting Irish
*Miami's upset over Duke can be attributed to its perimeter play. The Hurricanes shot 10 of 20 from beyond the arc while holding Duke to just 6 of 21 from distance.
*So far this season, Notre Dame is shooting 53 percent from the floor, which is the best shooting percentage in the nation.
(23) Baylor Bears at Kansas State Wildcats
*Baylor’s defense has held teams to an average of 13 points below their season scoring averages.
*The Wildcats’ three conference victories were won by a total of 15 points as Kansas State allowed an average of just 55.7 points.
(1) Kentucky Wildcats at Alabama Crimson Tide
*Kentucky's reach advantage, five players in the top nine are 6-foot-9 or taller, could cause rebounding issues for an Alabama team who were easily outrebounded by South Carolina in their last game.
*The Tide have held eight of their last nine opponents to 61 or fewer points in each game. Over the stretch, the Alabama defense has held the opposition to an average of 52.7 points per game,
Michigan State Spartans at (11) Maryland Terrapins
*Michigan State is shooting .418 from 3-point range this season, leading the Big Ten and ranking fourth in the nation.
*Maryland's improvement this season can be attributed to a new offensive scheme that utilizes four perimeter players and one big in the post.
(3) Gonzaga Bulldogs at Loyola Marymount Lions
*Bulldogs' Przemek Karnowski has shown development on an up-and-under move to counter defenses zeroing in on his patented left-handed hook.
*Loyola Marymount leading scorer Evan Payne came off the bench for the Lions in the win over Portland, a game removed from being benched against BYU due to a “coach’s decision”. Payne scored just seven points in 23 minutes versus the Pilots.
(15) West Virginia Mountaineers at (20) Texas Longhorns
*The Mountaineers' have been forcing turnovers in 31 percent of their opponents possessions thanks in large to a renewed defensive scheme. WVU's focus on smothering man-to-man coverage is keeping offenses out of sync.
*Texas ranks second nationally in blocked shots per game (7.7 bpg).. The Horns have blocked at least seven shots in 12 of their first 16 contests.
(8) Utah Utes at (9) Arizona Wildcats
*The Utes have the best scoring margin (+20.7) in the league despite only having one player among the Top 30 in scoring. Also, Utah has no player among the Top 10 in minutes played.
*Arizona is only allowing opponents to nab an offensive rebound on 19.1 percent of their opportunities, which is the second-best rate in the country.
(5) Villanova Wildcats at Pennsylvania Quakers
*Since the start of 2013-14, Villanova is 36-1 (.973) when scoring 70 or more points in a contest. When they fails to score 70 or more points, Villanova is 6-5 (.545).
*Penn has shot better than 50 percent from the field in two of the last three games; three of the last six contests; and five times in its last 10 outings.
(24) Oklahoma State Cowboys at (18) Oklahoma Sooners
*Oklahoma State has proven that they will dog you on defense, which is a formula that West Virginia used to topple the Sooners earlier this season.
*The Sooners had committed 10 or fewer turnovers in six of eight games before giving it away a season-high 22 times to West Virginia.
(10) Kansas Jayhawks at (13) Iowa State Cyclones
*Kansas has out-rebounded 12 of 16 opponents this season with six of those by double figures. Included are three of the last five games and four of the last seven contests.
*Iowa State’s three conference games have been decided by five total points.
Ole Miss Rebels at (19) Arkansas Razorbacks
*Ole Miss has lost two of its first three conference games by a combined seven points following a 75-71 loss to LSU.
*The Razorbacks own an 11-0 record when forcing 15+ turnovers and 9-0 mark when scoring 80+ points.
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