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Saturday's Early Tips
January 30, 2015
Men’s college basketball closes-out the month of January with a full slate of action that features 21 of the AP’s current Top 25 teams. ESPN gets things started with a Saturday afternoon triple-header starting at noon that features showdowns in the Big Ten, Big 12 and the ACC. Wisconsin gets the ball rolling with a road trip to Iowa. Next up is a storied in-state rivalry between Kansas State and Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence. The afternoon trifecta closes things out with Louisville playing host to North Carolina in a head-to-head matchup of nationally ranked teams.
No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers vs. Iowa Hawkeyes (ESPN, 12 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: OFF
Wisconsin has just one straight-up loss in its last 12 games, but it has been a train wreck against the spread lately with a 2-5-1 record in its last eight outings. However, one of the games the Badgers easily covered in was an 82-50 romp over Iowa on Jan. 20 as 10-point home favorites. Senior forward Frank Kaminsky has been a force with a team-high 17.2 points and 8.2 rebounds, but the Badgers have missed the veteran presence of senior guard Traevon Jackson due to a fractured foot. He was averaging 9.4 points a game and a team-high 2.9 assists.
The Hawkeyes followed-up that embarrassing loss to Wisconsin with a tough 67-63 loss to Purdue last Saturday as 1 ½-point underdogs on the road. They are now an even 3-3 in their last six games both SU and ATS. Iowa returns home where it is 7-4 ATS this season. Senior forward Aaron White has remained a shining star all season long with 15.1 points and 6.6 rebounds a game while hitting 52.4 percent of his shots from the floor, but he remains questionable for Saturday with a neck stinger. The Hawkeyes are averaging 69.4 points per game and shooting 41.6 percent from the field.
Betting Trends
The Badgers are 2-5 ATS in their last seven games following a SU win and they are 1-3-1 ATS in their last five games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five road games.
The Hawkeyes are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 conference games and they have covered ATS in just four of their last 15 home games. The total has stayed UNDER in five of their last six games following a SU loss.
The underdog in this matchup is 7-1 ATS in the last eight meetings and the total has gone OVER in five of the last six games played at Iowa. Wisconsin has won the last four meetings SU and it has covered in the last two.
Kansas State Wildcats vs. No. 9 Kansas Jayhawks (ESPN, 2 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Kansas -11 ½
The Wildcats have lost two of their last three games SU, but they remain a healthy 5-2 ATS in their last seven outings. They fell to West Virginia this past Tuesday 65-59 as one-point home favorites. The bigger loss could be senior forward Nino Williams, who hurt his knee in that game and remains doubtful for Saturday. He is second on the team in points (11.7) and the leader in rebounds with 4.9 a game. Kansas State is already ranked 226th in the nation in scoring with 65.4 PPG.
Kansas is picking-up some steam with a 6-1 SU start in Big 12 play that includes victories against Oklahoma and Texas earlier this month. While the Jayhawks are a solid 13-7 ATS on the year, they are an even 2-2 ATS in their last four games. The total has gone OVER in three of those contests. Kansas is averaging 72 points behind sophomore guard Frank Mason III (12.9 PPG) and junior forward Perry Ellis (12.6 PPG). Mason is shooting 48.6 percent from the field and Ellis leads the team in rebounds with 6.6 a game.
Betting Trends
The Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last five road games and they have covered ATS in four of their last six games played on a Saturday. The total has gone OVER in 12 of their last 16 Saturday games.
The Jayhawks are a perfect 5-0 ATS in their last five home games and they are 7-2 ATS in their last nine games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five games played at home.
Head-to-head in this heated rivalry, the home team has gone 13-3 ATS in the last 16 meetings and the total has gone OVER in three of the last four games. Kansas has won six of the last seven meetings SU.
No. 13 North Carolina Tar Heels vs. No. 10 Louisville Cardinals (ESPN, 4 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Louisville -3 ½
The Tar Heels are rolling with a SU six-game winning streak, but they are just 1-4-1 ATS during this run. The total has gone OVER in five of the six games. This past Monday, they earned a PUSH against Syracuse in a 93-83 victory as 10-point home favorites. Junior guard Marcus Paige led the way in the win over the Orange with 22 points and forwards’ Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson each tallied 17 points. North Carolina is 16th in the nation in scoring with 80 PPG and it is shooting 46.8 percent from the field.
Louisville has won its last two games with road victories against Pittsburgh and Boston Collage as a favorite to improve to 5-2 SU in ACC play; however it is a costly 2-5 in these games ATS. The Cardinals are 11-2 SU at home this season, but they have failed to cover in their last five outings at the KFC Yum Center. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five contests overall. Sophomore guard Terry Rozier leads a foursome of players scoring in double figures with an average of 18.1 PPG. Louisville is averaging 73.4 PPG while allowing 58.5 points on defense.
Betting Trends
The Tar Heels are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games on the road, but they are just 2-10-1 ATS in their last 13 conference games. The total has gone OVER with seven of their last 10 road games.
The Cardinals have covered in just one of their last 12 home games and they are a costly 3-12-2 ATS in their last 17 games overall. The total has stayed UNDER in six of their last seven games at home.
North Carolina squeezed-out a 72-71 victory in the first meeting this season, but it could not cover as a three-point favorite at home. The total went OVER the closing 140-point line in that game and it has now gone OVER in the last six meetings.
January 30, 2015
Men’s college basketball closes-out the month of January with a full slate of action that features 21 of the AP’s current Top 25 teams. ESPN gets things started with a Saturday afternoon triple-header starting at noon that features showdowns in the Big Ten, Big 12 and the ACC. Wisconsin gets the ball rolling with a road trip to Iowa. Next up is a storied in-state rivalry between Kansas State and Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence. The afternoon trifecta closes things out with Louisville playing host to North Carolina in a head-to-head matchup of nationally ranked teams.
No. 5 Wisconsin Badgers vs. Iowa Hawkeyes (ESPN, 12 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: OFF
Wisconsin has just one straight-up loss in its last 12 games, but it has been a train wreck against the spread lately with a 2-5-1 record in its last eight outings. However, one of the games the Badgers easily covered in was an 82-50 romp over Iowa on Jan. 20 as 10-point home favorites. Senior forward Frank Kaminsky has been a force with a team-high 17.2 points and 8.2 rebounds, but the Badgers have missed the veteran presence of senior guard Traevon Jackson due to a fractured foot. He was averaging 9.4 points a game and a team-high 2.9 assists.
The Hawkeyes followed-up that embarrassing loss to Wisconsin with a tough 67-63 loss to Purdue last Saturday as 1 ½-point underdogs on the road. They are now an even 3-3 in their last six games both SU and ATS. Iowa returns home where it is 7-4 ATS this season. Senior forward Aaron White has remained a shining star all season long with 15.1 points and 6.6 rebounds a game while hitting 52.4 percent of his shots from the floor, but he remains questionable for Saturday with a neck stinger. The Hawkeyes are averaging 69.4 points per game and shooting 41.6 percent from the field.
Betting Trends
The Badgers are 2-5 ATS in their last seven games following a SU win and they are 1-3-1 ATS in their last five games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five road games.
The Hawkeyes are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 conference games and they have covered ATS in just four of their last 15 home games. The total has stayed UNDER in five of their last six games following a SU loss.
The underdog in this matchup is 7-1 ATS in the last eight meetings and the total has gone OVER in five of the last six games played at Iowa. Wisconsin has won the last four meetings SU and it has covered in the last two.
Kansas State Wildcats vs. No. 9 Kansas Jayhawks (ESPN, 2 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Kansas -11 ½
The Wildcats have lost two of their last three games SU, but they remain a healthy 5-2 ATS in their last seven outings. They fell to West Virginia this past Tuesday 65-59 as one-point home favorites. The bigger loss could be senior forward Nino Williams, who hurt his knee in that game and remains doubtful for Saturday. He is second on the team in points (11.7) and the leader in rebounds with 4.9 a game. Kansas State is already ranked 226th in the nation in scoring with 65.4 PPG.
Kansas is picking-up some steam with a 6-1 SU start in Big 12 play that includes victories against Oklahoma and Texas earlier this month. While the Jayhawks are a solid 13-7 ATS on the year, they are an even 2-2 ATS in their last four games. The total has gone OVER in three of those contests. Kansas is averaging 72 points behind sophomore guard Frank Mason III (12.9 PPG) and junior forward Perry Ellis (12.6 PPG). Mason is shooting 48.6 percent from the field and Ellis leads the team in rebounds with 6.6 a game.
Betting Trends
The Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last five road games and they have covered ATS in four of their last six games played on a Saturday. The total has gone OVER in 12 of their last 16 Saturday games.
The Jayhawks are a perfect 5-0 ATS in their last five home games and they are 7-2 ATS in their last nine games against a team with a SU winning record. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five games played at home.
Head-to-head in this heated rivalry, the home team has gone 13-3 ATS in the last 16 meetings and the total has gone OVER in three of the last four games. Kansas has won six of the last seven meetings SU.
No. 13 North Carolina Tar Heels vs. No. 10 Louisville Cardinals (ESPN, 4 p.m. ET)
Opening Odds: Louisville -3 ½
The Tar Heels are rolling with a SU six-game winning streak, but they are just 1-4-1 ATS during this run. The total has gone OVER in five of the six games. This past Monday, they earned a PUSH against Syracuse in a 93-83 victory as 10-point home favorites. Junior guard Marcus Paige led the way in the win over the Orange with 22 points and forwards’ Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson each tallied 17 points. North Carolina is 16th in the nation in scoring with 80 PPG and it is shooting 46.8 percent from the field.
Louisville has won its last two games with road victories against Pittsburgh and Boston Collage as a favorite to improve to 5-2 SU in ACC play; however it is a costly 2-5 in these games ATS. The Cardinals are 11-2 SU at home this season, but they have failed to cover in their last five outings at the KFC Yum Center. The total has gone OVER in four of their last five contests overall. Sophomore guard Terry Rozier leads a foursome of players scoring in double figures with an average of 18.1 PPG. Louisville is averaging 73.4 PPG while allowing 58.5 points on defense.
Betting Trends
The Tar Heels are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games on the road, but they are just 2-10-1 ATS in their last 13 conference games. The total has gone OVER with seven of their last 10 road games.
The Cardinals have covered in just one of their last 12 home games and they are a costly 3-12-2 ATS in their last 17 games overall. The total has stayed UNDER in six of their last seven games at home.
North Carolina squeezed-out a 72-71 victory in the first meeting this season, but it could not cover as a three-point favorite at home. The total went OVER the closing 140-point line in that game and it has now gone OVER in the last six meetings.
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