Full Court Press: 2008/2009 NCAA Hoops Picks

accuscoresucks · 11-10-08, 12:36 PM

i like this to
normally i need a huge edge to play any total,however since this is first game of season,seeing how some score guys have gone on to better things,and even without all that i see 146 points top in this game.

gl

EaglesPhan36 · 11-11-08, 02:05 PM

TUESDAY: 11.11.08 - 4pm ET/3pm CT
IUPUI/Northeastern OVER 127.5 (1/2 unit)
An interesting clash of styles in this one with defensive-minded Northeastern taking on an IUPUI team that will look to push the tempo. Northeastern returns its top 9 scorers from last year's squad that averaged just 63.4 ppg in the competitive Colonial Athletic Association. Matt Janning is the key to the Huskies offensive success, leading the team with over 16 ppg in 2007/08 & hitting for over 20, nine times last season. The team's offensive prowess or lack thereof this season could depend on the development of PG Chiasson Allen who averaged about 9 ppg in 2007/08. The frontcourt features returnees Manny Adako (10.6 ppg) and Nkem Ojougboh (9.9 ppg) who should add scoring punch. Defensively, Northeastern held its opponents to 64 ppg last season. For IUPUI, the key to 2008/09 will be replacing the production of All-everything player George Hill who left early for the NBA. Hill was the Jags leading scorer at over 21 ppg. The good news is that IUPUI returns several cogs from last year's 26 win team. Gary Patterson is the leading returning scorer at 12.9 ppg, but he's out with a broken hand. That however has led to the development of freshman Alex Young as IUPUI's next budding star & go-to-guy. Young put up 21 in an exhibition contest against The Univ. of Indianapolis and the Jags put up 83 points despite missing their leading scorer. Four Jags in all scored double figures, including returnees Billy Pettiford & Leroy Nobles. JUCO transfer Robert Glen was big off the bench with 14. They also yielded 75 in that contest which shows their defense might be a bit shotty. At the end of the day, this comes down to who can execute their game plan/tempo more accurately. With a game under their belt in exhibition play, IUPUI should have an idea what they want to do offensively. It'll be the execution that gets this total over or fails. Northeastern while patient on offense, should be efficient against this squad and find itself in the neighborhood of 64-70 points if everyone comes to play. So long as IUPUI can force the tempo some, even with the Northeastern D being stiff, the Jags should find a way to get near 60 or more. Don't be surprised if the game is a bit slow in the 1st half with adjustments and a few more points in the 2nd half.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-11-08, 04:55 PM

TUESDAY: 11.11.08 - 6pm ET/5pm CT Tipoff
Presbyterian/Houston UNDER 137
Simple math to take this one for me. Presbyterian is a team that averaged about 59 ppg last season and then struggled to score 49 against Duke in their opener yesterday. The Pres had turnover issues, commiting 29 in all and shooting just 30% from the floor. Duke - as undersized as they are - worked over The Pres on the boards, 36-23. As for Houston, the Cougars showed that they will take alot of time to adjust to new faces in new places as they scuffled to a 63 point effort against Georgia Southern on Monday. The Coogs shot a measly 35% from the floor and went close to 10 minutes in the second half without a FG! Their total would have been even lower perhaps if not for 27 FT attempts, but Houston struggled, making just 16. Houston did play solid D on Georgia Southern, limiting them to 38% from the floor. My final analysis here, I would find it difficult to fathom Presbyterian adding much more than 10 points off their 49 point offensive performance against the Duke Blue Devils. The Pres did play a little bit better defensively in the 2nd half, limiting Duke to 34 points after a 46 point 1st half. With Houston still looking for rhythm offensively, I'd look for them to probably make it into the 70s - but seeing as Duke (a more prolific scoring team) scored 80, it might be the low 70s for U of H. Barring something unpredicted from these two, the final tally looks like it should fall into the range of about 130 points.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-12-08, 04:05 PM

WEDNESDAY: 11.12.08 - 8pm ET/7pm CT Tipoff
Massachusetts +5
Another interesting stylistic clash tonight in the 2K Sports College Classic. The uptempo Minutemen from UMASS take on the defensive-minded Salukis of Southern Illinois. Both come into the clash at 1-0 with UMASS coasting to a 90-71 win over Arkansas-Monticello. Scoring as it was under Travis Ford last season, should be no problem for first year coach Derek Kellogg's crew. Returnees Ricky Harris, Chris Lowe & Tony Gaffney combined for 56 points in the win. UMASS killed it from downtown, draining 12 of 27 from beyond the arc. Luke Bonner, a 7'1" Center could help this team plenty this year as well IF he can can stay out of foul trouble. He had 8 early points in the opener (2 3 pointers), but then was in foul trouble the rest of the way. Southern Illinois meanwhile had more problems than expected in a 66-52 win over California(Pa). The game was tied at the half before the Salukis found some flow in the 2nd half to pull away. Carlton Fay had a double double to lead the way with 16&11. Only one other Saluki was in double figures. SIU shot just over 41% from the floor and had too many turnovers (19) against an inferior squad. The game will come down to tempo & execution. UMASS will look to push and push some more, shoot 3s and hope they can simply outscore SIU. Lowe & Harris will be tough to contain even for the defense of the home-standing Salukis. SIU will need G Bryan Mullins to clamp down on Lowe to keep the Minutemen in check. Even if he can do that, UMASS seems to have a plethera of weapons that SIU will have trouble matching. The 5 points should be plenty good enough to cover and an outright UMASS win is certainly within reach at +180-175 for those inclined to go all out.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-13-08, 01:07 PM

THURSDAY: 11.13.08 - 11pmET/10pm CT Tipoff
Miami(OH)/UCLA OVER 124.5
UCLA cruised to an 82 point effort against Prairie View A&M in their opener. The Bruins shot close to 52% from the floor and probably would have topped 90 points easily if not for 20+ turnovers. That is to be expected at times with a youthful squad. Darren Collison led the charge with 19. Frosh Jrue Holliday & Malcolm Lee chipped in 12 each. Josh Shipp will need to show up more in the future, he had just 9 points. UCLA limited PV to 58 points, but that did include a 39 point second half effort from PV which shows that UCLA did play a little loose defensively. For Miami, they fought tooth & nail to fend off Weber State, 70-66. Not exactly the way they expected to start the season off as one of the movers & shakers in the MAC going against a Big Sky team. The Redhawks were deadly from beyond the arc, hitting 10 of 20 from distance and shooting 44% from the floor in all. Kenny Hayes was a stud, hitting for 24 points - include 7/7 from 3! Dierkers & Bramos chipped in 13 each. The good news for a prospective over tonight is that Weber State shot 53% from the floor against what last season was a stingy Miami D. Weber hit 9/17 from beyond the arc and attempted 20 FTs. With all due respect to Weber State, one would expect that a UCLA team with loads more offensive talent should be able to surpass Weber's 66 point output yesterday and get anywhere from the mid 70s up. That leaves Miami to likely just need to equal Prairie View's 58 against UCLA to push this total over. With more talent, the Redhawks shouldn't have too much trouble doing that.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-14-08, 12:23 PM

FRIDAY: 11.14.08 - 7pmET/6pm CT Tipoff
Georgia State -1.5(Bowling Green)
Always looking for an edge, I think we have one here. I'm going with this one because Bowling Green will be missing their top two scorers from last season for this opener. Nate Miller and Chris Knight (13.2ppg/10.7ppg) are out along with reserve Cameron Madlock. That leaves the Falcons with a short bench/thin frontline in the opener and a lack of scoring punch from a team that that only averaged 62.5 ppg last season. Miller & Knight both play in the front court, so that could leave a deeper Georgia State team at that position with a key advantage. Georgia State returns their top two scorers from last season in Leonard Mendez & Trae Goldston. Both are solid 3 point shooters. Then comes the transfer class that former Ole Miss Coach Rod Barnes amassed during the off-season. Barnes brings in Bernard Rimmer (Mississippi State), Trey Hampton (Ole Miss), Joe Dukes (Wake Forest) & Xavier Hansbro (Ole Miss) to add depth to the squad. All should see significant playing time with most of those as front court depth to go along with returnee Rashad Chase. The Panthers do have a pair of exhibition games under their belt as well, which should help the chemistry among the returnees & transfers while Bowling Green will have to try and adapt to a few games without their best players after having them around for their exhibition game. This game is being played on a neutral court, so there is no home court advantage. Overall, the depth and talent that returns to Georgia State should be enough to beat a depleted Bowling Green squad in this one.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-15-08, 01:28 PM

SATURDAY: 11.15.08 - 2pm ET/1pm CT Tipoff
Temple/College of Charleston OVER 144
This is a good spot to try and get back on track I think. These two teams played early last season to a 155 point total and both teams bring back some of the same fire power that helped put up points in that contest. Temple showed that they wouldn't miss too much offensively from last season as they put up 79 in their opener against E.Tennessee State. Donte Christmas led the way with 26 points. The Owls put that number up despite shooting just 42% from the floor. 11 threes helped! C of C had a much more difficult time dispatching a D2 squad in a 72-66 win. The Cougars won 72-66 behind double figure efforts from Andrew Goudelock, Jermaine Johnson & Antwaine Wiggins. Those three also hit double figures in last year's tilt with Temple and figure to be key to Charleston's success this season. The Cougars will need all-conference guard Tony White, Jr. to show up today for more points. White only had 8 points in the opener. C of C did shoot 46% from the floor and allowed 9 of 19 from beyond the arc to SIU-Edwardsville in their opener. Temple should be able to exploit that weakness as well. An area that will be key to the win or loss here is FTs. Charleston got the line 27 times, but only made 12. That must be better today. Temple got to the line 19 times and made just 10 vs. ETSU. If those #s hover around 50% again, the OVER will be much tougher to get. If Temple can get Charleston into a little more of the up tempoi style that they now play under Fran Dunphy, look for this game to be close in the end & perhaps if they can nail a few - for FTs to get us past the number.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-15-08, 02:43 PM

SATURDAY: 11.15.08 - 3pmET/2pm CT Tipoff
UAB/Troy UNDER 157
UAB is bringing back just about all of its key members from last year's surprise 23 win club under Coach Mike Davis. The backcourt is loaded for the Blazers with a healthy Paul Delaney returning with sharpshooter Robert Vaden and Channing Tony. All of whom can put up double figure points & more on a given night. UAB lacks size up front, but Troy isn't likely to be able to take advantage. The Trojans struggled last season and bring just one starter back from last season's 12 win squad. They could also be without starting guard Richard Delk (hand). Plus Michael Vogler (ankle) is questionable, as is forward Antywan Jones (ankle). That means a team looking to gel with alot of new people in new roles could not be shorthanded against a talented UAB squad. Troy is trying an uptempo "European" style game that did yield 116 points in an exhibition game. But expecting all the cogs to fire in their season opener against a quality team like UAB might be just too much. This is also the first game that UAB will be involved with exhibition or otherwise. The Blazers should put up plenty of points, but I expect that Troy with some missing pieces will not.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-16-08, 12:40 PM

SUNDAY: 11.16.08 - 1pm ET/12pm CT Tipoff
ETSU/Hofstra UNDER 147.5
Both ETSU & Hofstra enter today's game at 1-1. ETSU lost out to Temple in their opener, 79-65. They rebounded to beat D2 SIU-Edwardsville, 65-62. Hofstra was bullied by a solid Clemson club, 98-69 in the opener & then took out W.Michigan in OT, 71-68. Hofstra is really struggling shooting the ball here early on, hitting just 31% against Clemson and even worse at 28% from the floor against W.Michigan. They're just 11 for 44 from beyond the arc this season. Rebounding has been their saving grace with the Pride cleaning up against W.Michigan 61-52 on the glass and losing just 48-46 to Clemson. 48 of those boards came on the offensive end for second shot opportunities. As for ETSU, they upped their offensive shooting percentage to 42% against SIU-E after a pathetic 36% against Temple. The Buccaneers are not a three point shooting team as they've made just 9 of 30 so far. In looking at these squads so far, the only game of the four played that went over was Hofsta's against an up-tempo Clemson squad. Even going to OT yesterday against Western Michigan, they were still 8.5 points shy of today's number. Throw in an earlier start time today along with their poor shooting so far and that looks like a good UNDER recipe to me.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-16-08, 03:37 PM

Damn. Not a great couple days. I've been talking myself out of winning plays and playing the losers. Time to stop that!

SUNDAY: 11.16.08 - 4pmET/3pm CT Tipoff
Rutgers +4.5
This is one I saw in looking at the lines last night and I wrote down right away as a possible play. The reason - why should Delaware be a favorite? I looked & looked and I can't find a reason. The Blue Hens have yet to play a game this season and are ranked by most counts to be a mid-pack Colonial team. Delaware has a couple nice guards in Marc Egerson (13.4 ppg) and Alphonso Dawson (11 ppg), but does not possess much up front. Meanwhile, Rutgers does have a game to their credit this season. The Scarlet Knights had to fight hard to beat a mediocre-at-best Marist team, 63-61. Rutgers had a great defensive presence as they blocked a school record-tying 16 shots in that game. Two freshmen led the Scarlet Knights in scoring, bit time recruit Mike Rosario had 17 & Gregory Echenique tallied a double-double. Hamady Ndiaye was the eraser inside with 8 of the team's 16 blocked shots. Rutgers should greatly benefit from the return of seniors Jaron Griffin & JR Inman who were suspended in the first game. Getting points here to me is a gift as I think Rutgers wins this won outright.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-17-08, 01:47 PM

MONDAY: 11.17.08 - 6pm ET/5pm CT Tipoff
Davidson -14
Switched up from the Utah State/UCSB as the line got pounded down too much for my liking. Davidson was explosive in its opener, tallying 107 points against nobody - Guilford. They shot a blistering 53% from the floor with Stephen Curry leading the way with 29. They downed 12 of 35 from long range and also hit their FTs, 17 of 22. Defense will need to improve against a James Madison squad that does return four starters from a decent club last year. Still, with a new coach in place to start the year for JMU and just one exhibition game under their belts ... Davidson should be clicking on all cylinders and be just a bit too much for JMU tonight. The neutral court in Norman, OK should have little effect on either side.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-17-08, 02:01 PM

MONDAY: 11.17.08 - 7:30pm ET/6:30pm ET
St.Bonaventure/Marist UNDER 142
The Bonnies won their opener 72-62 over Robert Morris. The defense was solid in holding RMU to 36% shooting. STB shot just under 45% offensively. Chris Matthews is the long range threat, scoring 15 of his 18 in that game on 3s. The only other Bonnie in double figures was Jonathan Hal with 19. This is a St.Bonaventure team that won just 8 games last year and their three best scorers from a year ago are no longer on the team. That means the first game's output may have even been a little high. For Marist, they struggled mightily against Rutgers, scoring 61 points on 33% shooting. This team's roster features alot of young players and just two players who had starts in college before the Rutgers game. While Marist was inept offensively, they can take heart about their defense which held the Scarlet Knights to 62 points. Keep that in mind after Rutgers blistered Delaware on Sunday for 85 points on an amazing 60% from the field. So with a mostly inexperienced squad for Marist going against a team not expected to do much in the A-10, expect defense or poor offense to keep this under the total.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-18-08, 01:19 AM

TUESDAY: 11.18.08 - 10am ET/9am CT Tipoff
Penn ML (Even)
Getting this up early because this will have tipped by the time most of us wake up in the morning. Games with weird tip times are often difficult to gauge, but I see an edge here. Penn has a game under their belt and they played fairly well against #1 North Carolina in losing by 15. The Quakers showed they can definitely score as they will continue the season with their main offense, a barrage of 3 pointers. Penn nailed 11 of 33 against UNC. Tyler Bernardini is the real deal. He had 26 points to lead the Quakers. Four Penn players were in double figures. No shock that they included a couple of the four returning starters for this club. To win however, Penn will need frosh Zack Rosen to awake. He is one of the most high profile recruits for this Ivy league squad and he went 0 for 6 in his college debut. Drexel meanwhile is off a poor 12 win season and is picked to finish low in the Colonial League again. The Dragons do return a pair of seniors as their leading scorers (11.2 ppg the highest), but this is a group that may struggle to score. It is a home game which could help Drexel, but being their first game of the season - it could be a struggle to get going as Drexel will be more guard oriented this season. Drexel did win in OT last season, but this Penn squad is better in my estimation and Drexel is without their top gun from a year ago in 6'9" center Frank Elegar. If Penn has their 3 point shoes on, they could win this straight up. But that won't be easy as Bruiser Flint's club usually plays stifling defense.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-18-08, 03:21 PM

TUESDAY: 11.18.08 - 9pm ET/8pm CT Tipoff
Wisconsin-Green Bay +10.5
It may have just been a blip to start off the season, but any time a D1 squad loses to a D2 squad on their homecourt, it is cause for alarm. Such is the case with Utah as the Utes head into tonight 0-1, losers to Southwest Baptist, 80-79. SW Baptist is one of the better D2 squads, but still. Utah's perimeter D can be blamed for much of the problem as they gave up 16/32 from beyond the arc to SWB. That may not bode well in facing a team tonight in UW-GB that can light it up from outside. Luke Neville had a monster game inside for the Utes and he will be the man again this season. He had 28 pts and 14 boards. The Utes though shot just 44% from the floor and only made 4/12 from distance. UWGB comes into this one with all five starters back from last year's squad. Highlighted by Mike Schachtner, who averaged over 15 ppg. He'll be joined in the front court by hard nosed Terry Evans. In the backcourt, the Phoenix will rely on Ryan Tillema who shot better than 44% from beyond the arc last season along with PG Rahmon Fletcher who averaged 10 ppg as a freshman. UWGB has alot of front court depth, which likely will be tested against Neville & Co. The Phoenix may not have a regular season game to their credit, but they averaged 92.5 ppg in two exhibition contests, knocking down 19 of their 42 3 point attempts. If UWGB can take advantage of the Utah perimeter D and make Neville work for his points, I think they stay within this number and have a shot to pull of an upset if everything falls just right.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-18-08, 07:04 PM

TUESDAY: 11.18.08 - 7pm ET/6pm CT Tipoff
Purdue -18
Late add to the card. Purdue has beaten up both its opponents this season and beat this same Loyola (Chi) team by 30+ points last season.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-19-08, 03:52 PM

WEDNESDAY: 11.19.08 - 8pm ET/7pm CT Tipoff
TCU +5
I kept up with Nebraska in their last game against San Jose State and color me not impressed. After storming to an 18 point half time lead, the Huskers & Spartans spent the first 10 minutes of the 2nd half figuring out who wanted to score LESS as both teams combined for I think it was 12-14 points. San Jose had most of those. Nebraska does have four starters back from last year's NIT squad, but the one missing ingredient was their leading scorer & rebounder. Clearly in their season opener, they did not find anyone but Toney McCray to step forward. He had 17 to pace them, but was the lone Husker in double figures in the 63-46 win. Nebraska shot just 34% from the floor. Obviously, their D did hold down San Jose. For TCU, at 1-2, I find them to be a team with better chemistry having played in a tournament that saw them beat Western Michigan, hang with Clemson before losing by 12 and lose to Charleston by 11. New coach Jim Christian seems to at least have this squad playing hard, which was not the case in the previous regime. The Frogs are averaging a shade under 67 ppf on 43.5% shooting. Edvinas Ruzgas leads TCU with 15.7 ppg so far. Kevin Langford chips in with 13 ppg. The Frogs need to get back to the D that kept W.Michigan down in the opener to have a shot here, but the feeling is that Nebraska lacks the weapons that Clemson & Charleston had offensively to take advantage. Neither of these teams in fact appears to have the arsenal needed to have a definitive advantage over the other. Thus, with the home court on their side, I think the Frogs should contend in this one and won't be surprised if Nebraska - in their first road game - struggles and actually loses straight up.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-19-08, 06:05 PM

WEDNESDAY: 11.19.08 - 7pm ET/6pm CT Tipoff
Niagara/Villanova UNDER 162.5 (Half Unit Play)
Think this is worth a shot on a number that looks to be a bit inflated because of Villanova's offensive outburst against Fordham. The Cats trounced the Rams 107-68 behind 58% shooting, including 7/14 from beyond the arc. Villanova also attempted 36 FTs and sank 30. The defense was solid, holding Fordham to 35% shooting. 'Nova's season opener was a 78-60 win over Albany. 'Nova shot 55% in that one and made 40% from downtown (6/15). Niagara continues to put up a high volume of shots as they did in '06-07, but if their opener is any indication, it will take alot of attempts for them to score. They shot just 37.5%(30/80 & 6/29 3s) from the floor in beating Towson, 79-62. They did hold Towson to 30% shooting. Niagara had FT issues too, just 13/28. Niagara had 29 offensive rebounds which helped them put up points against Towson. They aren't likely to find that # again if their shots are off. Villanova is a better defensive squad and should make Niagara work again to get their points. Nova should have little problems scoring 80+ points, but I expect them to notch up their D a little against a Niagara team that will look to run & gun it. See the total in the 150s and only surpassing the number here if Niagara is on fire or Villanova doesn't turn off the flood gates and goes for 100.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-20-08, 12:57 PM

THURSDAY: 11.20.08 - 1:20pm ET/12:20pm CT Tipoff
Missouri/Xavier OVER 70 (1st Half)
It'll be interesting to see how Xavier responds to the frenetic pace and pressure of Missouri. Mizzou has had little trouble scoring against inferior opponents in their first two contests, throwing up 94.5 ppg. Both 1st halves hit 80 points for the total vs. Prairie View & Chattanooga. Mizzou is shooting close to 46% from the floor in those games. They're also giving up 70 ppg, which should bode well here as Xavier has an efficient offensive crew. The Tigers gave up 34 & 37 respectively in the 1st half to their opposition while putting up 40+ themselves. For Xavier, they've averaged 36.5 point for the 1st half offensively and figure to have a tougher time clamping down on the Mizzou offense. Mizzou should have success up front with Leon Lyons and DeMarre Carroll and their guards could cause some turnovers and easy buckets against a Muskies team that has had too many turnovers against much weaker defenses than Missouri's. The X-men also bring the likes of C.J. Anderson, Derrick Brown and B.J. Raymond who can all score. Looking at a few games last year with teams that employ the pace of Missouri, Xavier didn't mind going up tempo at times. If Mizzou can dictate the pace with their pressure, I look for the 1st half to escape into the mid 70s.

Tigers1230 · 11-20-08, 02:13 PM

do you not post your record?

themajormt · 11-20-08, 02:21 PM

go through and check the record Tiger... Its all in one thread...

sportsguy04 · 11-20-08, 02:22 PM

Lose your 1H by 3.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-20-08, 02:22 PM

Click on the spreadsheet link in my signature. All the plays I post write-ups for are in there. I'm about .500 so far, down over a unit I think.

MexicanStallion · 11-20-08, 02:22 PM

Actually just check out his spreadsheet at the bottom of the posts. That is where all the basketball plays are

EaglesPhan36 · 11-20-08, 02:26 PM

I've had about four plays among the 18 or so I've done that wound up being bad beats. Pretty streaky thus far.

themajormt · 11-20-08, 02:44 PM

Originally posted by EaglesPhan36

I've had about four plays among the 18 or so I've done that wound up being bad beats. Pretty streaky thus far.

Ya I noticed that, luckily I was on the winning side of some VERY close games last night. Its almost freaky how close the games have come. UB was up 17 at half the other night and then the game is tied with 1 minute left...

EaglesPhan36 · 11-20-08, 06:53 PM

THURSDAY: 11.20.08 - 7pm ET/6pm CT Tipoff
Rice -2.5 (1.2 Unit Wager)
Ben Braun brings Rice to Provo, UT to take on Cal Poly on a neutral floor. Braun is in charge of resurrecting a program that won a meager 3 games last season. The Owls however, did play pretty well in their opener in losing 78-74 to a Portland State squad expected to be a potential NCAA bid out of the Big Sky. Riec shot 52% from the floor and looked under control in the 1st half, taking a 36-33 lead. They'd be outcored 45-38 in the 2nd. The good news is the Owls got great contributions outside from Corey Pflieger who had 17, including 3.5 from three. Inside, big man Trey Stanton was solid with 14 while Alex Perka added 15 and 9 boards. The Owls will need to rediscover the D that limited Portland State to 35% shooting in the first half, not the 60% plus they shot in the 2nd to win tonight. That could be a good match though as Cal Poly scuffled to just 40 points against UALR in an opening 67-40 loss. UALR is a stifling defensive club, but 26% from the floor is still disturbing no matter the competition. Cal Poly struggled from beyond the arc as well and shot close to 50% from the line. On the heels of shooting just 42% in their lone exhibition game, Cal Poly may have some confidence issues on offense in this one. If Rice can play solid D and be efficient offensively as they were against Portland State, they should sneak out with a win.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-20-08, 08:57 PM

Finally on the right end of a close game! Thanks Rice!

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 11:30 AM

FRIDAY: 11.21.08 - 7pm ET/6pm CT Tipoff
Akron/Pittsburgh OVER 127.5
This should be another early season blowout with the Panthers looking good early. Pitt clobbered Miami (OH) 82-53 last time out. That Miami team is a clear cut above this Akron team in my book with a better returning cast of players and usually better defensively. What does that mean? That means Pitt should have no trouble putting up 75+ points in this one. Pitt is averaging 84 ppg and shooting 57% from the floor. Their D has been stout, yielding just 52 ppg on about 40% shooting. For Akron, they've had issues scoring early with just 56 against Canisius and a better effort of 72 against Winthrop. The Zips do not shoot the ball well at 38% for the season and under 30% beyond the arc. So expecting more than 60 from them is highly unlikely. With both Pitt's games going over tonight's number, I think it's wise to shoot for the OVER here as well. If Akron can get 55-60, Pitt should easily do the rest of the work.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 12:11 PM

FRIDAY: 11.21.08 - 1pm ET/Noon CT Tipoff
Southern Miss/Miami (FL) OVER 136
Good spot here I think to take a shot at the OVER. If Miami's first game was any indication, the Hurricanes may be even better than last year's squad. Miami ran up 96 points, shooting almost 47% from the floor and 44% from distance. Jack McClinton is the name alot of people don't know, but he's one of the better guards in the country. He led the way with 18. And that may just be the start. Dwayne Collins was dominating down low with 18 pts and 16 boards. Eddie Rios chipped in 17 and was 3/3 from beyond the arc. Southern Miss brings back the talented trio of Jeremy Wise, R.L. Horton and Courtney Beasley this season. Wise being the best after averaging 18.2 ppg last season. He's put up 24.5 ppg so far in Southern Miss' two games. The Golden Eagles are averaging 74.5 ppg on 45% shooting. Their weakness so far has been the 3 pt line where they are just 22% on the year. Southern Miss will definitely find Miami harder to score against, but they are talented enough to get into the 60s or higher if they play at their best. Miami meanwhile should looks to be deep & talented and should get into the 70s or higher. If the Hurricanes press the tempo and take a high volume of shots as they did in their opener (35/75 from the field) - this one should get past the number and into the 140s.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 07:45 PM

FRIDAY: 11.21.08 - 9pm ET/8pm CT Tipoff
Sacramento State/Washington State UNDER 116 (Half Unit Play)
If you like watching paint dry, this game is for you!Rarely are you going to find a total this low that actually looks worth playing on the UNDER. Wazzou has been stifling on defense, nay SUFFOCATING as they've allowing 29 ppg (19% FG shooting) through two games! The totals in their two games reaching 101 & 88. That should be a perfect recipe against a Sacramento State team coming off a 49 point performance against UC-Riverside in a 61-49 loss. State didn't shoot poorly, but was limited to 37 shots for the game, making 20 of them. The Hornets are averaging just 59 ppg through 2 games. The combination of poor offense from Sac State and stellar D from Washington State along with the Cougars own propensity for not lighting it up should find this one landing UNDER the total. IT won't be pretty, but look for Wash State to probably find something in the 60s and for Sac State to struggle in the 40s.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 07:55 PM

FRIDAY: 11.21.08 - 10pm ET/9pm CT Tipoff
Notre Dame -22.5
This game will be playing on a neutral court in the Virgin Islands. The Irish should have little trouble lighting the scoreboard up in this one. Notre Dame used USC-Upstate as target practice in a 94-58 demolition in their season opener. ND shot over 50% from the floor and Luke Harangody dominated with 30 points and 14 boards. Luke Zeller poured in 18 points in 19 minutes of work off the bench and was joined in double figures by Zach Hillesland and Kyle McAlarney, who chipped in with 13 and 10 points. Loyola (MT) have struggled mightily to score this season and that just won't do against a prolific Irish team. The Lions haven't scored more than 55 points in any of their first 3 games. Marymount lost to UW-Milwaukee by 24 in their opener. They then lost to Iowa State by 12 and UC-Davis by 9. Facing an Irish team that is probably 3 times better than anything they've faced as of yet, this should be nothing more than a punishing win for Notre Dame. A first half ND bet at -12.5 might be a great way to back-cover this just in case the Irish ease up at the end, although I expect them to come out fast and never look back.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 09:38 PM

Figures. Washingto State picks today to not play defense. Not to mention they already have 30 with 5:00 left in the 1st. Craptards.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-21-08, 11:47 PM

I've officially hit the skids. Notre Dame will make three straight losses and 6 of 9. Can't believe these yokels let Marymount stick around of all teams.

EaglesPhan36 · 11-22-08, 01:23 PM

SATURDAY: 11.22.08

2pm ET/1pm CT Tip
Boston College -1.5
This is one that screams too easy, but some times you just have to go with the more talented team and a basic pick 'em line. BC has the superioir offensive talent to St.Louis. With Tyrese Rice back in the fold, BC pushed its record to 3-0 after beating St.John's, 82-70 last time out. Rice scored 28. BC is averaging a robust 84 ppg on 49% shooting, including 38% from 3. Joe Trapani & Rakim Sanders are helping in the scoring department, Trapani with 17ppg & Sanders with 13ppg. Both help on the boards as well. St.Louis will be no slouch at home as they took Kent State to OT before falling 76-74 to even their record at 1-1. BC will need to clamp down on the dynamic backcourt duo of Litsch & Liddell who accounted for 41 of the 74 points. The good news was Kent State shot 46% from the floor against a usually tough D from the Billikens. So, BC should take heart that their talented team can find success. A key will be keeping STL off the FT line. They've outscore opponents by 18 points there so far this season. Give BC the nod here as Al Skinner's bunch has the added bonus of having played this team last year, winning by 22 at home. It won't be that easy this time, but BC knows what to expect and should know how to attack the Billikens.

4:15pm ET/3:15pm CT Tip
Morgan State/Utah OVER 128
Utah's offense has hit its gear early this season. The Utes are putting up 80.3 ppg so far through 3 games. Big Luke Nevill leads the way averaging 19.3 ppg as the Utes shoot 49% from the floor and 37% from beyond the arc with a solid FT shooting team as well at 79%. Against Ole Miss yesterday, the Utes couldn't be stopped. 53% from the floor and 48% from 3 pt. territory. Lawrence Borha and Shaun Green are helping take the scoring pressure off Nevill, with both averaging double figure points. As for Morgan State, their offense isn't electric but it has put up an average of about 65 ppg. They've reached at leat 60 points in each of their four games thus far. They're not a great shooting club (40%), but they can catch fire from 3 - 14 makes in their last 31 attempts. Utah has allowed its opponents to shoot over 43% from beyond the arc, so Morgan State could take advantage. Marquise Kately & Reggie Holmes will likely do any damage form the backcourt position. Both averaging in double figures. Utah should be able to continue its offensive output today and I expect they'll work into the mid 70s. So long as Morgan State does enough to hit close to its average, the OVER should work.