[Willie Bee]

http://www.sportsbookreview.com/Article/200611291612.aspx

The ACC-Big Ten Challenge comes to a close tonight with five more games between the two conferences on tap. Included is the big one pitting #1 Ohio State versus #6 North Carolina. The other four matchups are Michigan St-Boston College, Clemson-Minnesota, Virginia-Purdue and Iowa-Virginia Tech.

Michigan St at Boston College, 7:00 PM (ET) ESPN

The Conte Forum in Boston is the site for this contest pitting the 6-1 Michigan St. Spartans against the 2-2 Boston College Eagles.

Tom Izzo, in his 24th season over with the Spartans and 12th as their head coach, brings his team into the game averaging 66.3 points per game and shooting 44.9% from the field overall, including a strong 44.6% from long range. Michigan State won their first four games of the season, including a 63-61 decision over the Texas Longhorns in the semifinals of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic on Nov 16.

The Spartans lost in the finals of that tournament, 62-60, to Maryland, almost making up a 7-point halftime deficit and not getting a shot clock violation call against the Terps near the end of the game that Izzo thought should’ve given his team a chance to at least tie it up.

Drew Neitzel (Jr, 6-0) leads Michigan St in the early going with a 17.7 scoring average, also grabbing nearly four rebounds per game and placing second on the team with 4.6 assists. Freshman Raymar Morgan (6-7) is scoring almost 11 per contest, Goran Sutton (So, 6-10) and Marquise Gray (So, 6-8) lead the team with 5.7 rebounds, and Travis Walton (So, 6-2) is dishing out 4.7 assists each night.

Al Skinner is in his 10th season at the helm of the Eagles who have beaten New Hampshire and Rhode Island while falling to Vermont and Providence. BC is scoring nearly 75 per game despite the .500 record, and hitting almost 46% from the floor. A 26.3% percentage from 3-point distance has stymied the Eagles somewhat.

Jared Dudley (Sr, 6-7) tops the squad with 18.3 points and 9.8 boards so far. Tyrese Rice (So, 6-1) leads the team with 5.0 assists, adding 14.8 points, and Sean Marshall (Sr, 6-6) is averaging 14 points and more than five rebounds per game.

BC is a 5-point favorite against the Spartans, and the O/U is 134. Michigan St is 2-0 so far as an underdog this year, and 4-1 ATS overall.

[Willie Bee]

Iowa at Virginia Tech, 7:00 PM (ET) ESPNU

Both Iowa (2-3) and Virginia Tech (3-2) will be looking for a win at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, hoping a victory will springboard them into December before they start tough conference schedules.

In his fourth year as the Hokies’ head coach, Seth Greenberg watched Va Tech annihilate their first two opponents, Coppin St and West Florida, by an average score of 94½-45 before they came back down to earth and dropped two of three leading into this matchup. The two losses, to Western Michigan and Southern Illinois, sandwiched a win over Montana in the Old Spice Classic down in Florida.

Shooting 49.2% from the field as a team, including 37% from behind the arc, the Hokies are led by senior guard Zabian Dowdell’s 16.6 points per game. Deron Washington (Jr, 6-7) is adding 14.2 per contest while Cheick Diakite (So, 6-9) leads the team with a 6.0 rebound average and Jamon Gordon (Sr, 6-3) tops the Va Tech list with a 4.6 assist average.

Steve Alford begins his seventh year at the charge of Iowa and will be trying to coach the Hawkeyes out of a 3-game losing streak after they opened with wins over The Citadel and Toledo. Iowa fell 72-60 to Alabama in the first round of the US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam on Nov 19, then were blown out, 89-60, the next night in the tournament by Villanova.

The Hawkeyes’ most recent loss was a 67-64 defeat in Tempe to Arizona St, losing on a 3-point bomb in the waning seconds of the game and blowing a huge lead by allowing the Sun Devils to outscore them 19-4 in the final six minutes.

Adam Haluska (Sr, 6-5) leads Iowa with 17.0 points, with Tyler Smith (Fr, 6-7) adding 14.6 per game. Kurt Looby (Jr, 6-10) is averaging 6.8 rebounds and Tony Freeman (So, 6-1) Wildcats is first on the team with 4.8 assists.

The Hokies are listed as 8½-point favorites at home for this contest, with a total of 132. Iowa is 0-2 as an underdog with Va Tech 1-2 as a favorite.

[Willie Bee]

Virginia at Purdue, 7:30 PM (ET) ESPN2

The Virginia Cavaliers take their 4-0 record to Mackey Arena on the Purdue campus to take on the Boilermakers (4-1) in this contest that pits a couple of teams capable of lighting up the scoreboard.

Dave Leitao begins his second season with Virginia, and is off a 15-15 campaign last year. The Cavs are averaging over 90 points in their four games, all victories over then-#10 Arizona, Morgan St, UNC-Ashville and Maryland-Easter Shore. Virginia is shooting 48.3% overall, and over 40% from 3-point range.

Sean Singletary (Jr, 6-0) leads four Cavaliers scoring in double figures with a 17.0 average, also dishing out 7.5 assists per game. JR Reynolds (Sr, 6-3) is scoring 16.8 per game, Mamadi Diane (So, 6-5) 16.3) and Jason Cain adds 12.0 per contest while leading the team with a 9.0 rebound stat.

Matt Painter, also in his second season at Purdue, has watched his Boilermakers average 77.6 points overall, and nearly 83 points in their four wins against Northern Colorado, Western Carolina, Oklahoma and DePaul. Purdue’s lone loss was to then #19 Georgia Tech, 79-61, in the Maui Invitational on Nov 20.

Senior Carl Landry leads the team with 19.4 points pergame, also grabbing 7.2 boards. David Teague (Sr, 6-5) is scoring 10.2 per contest while Gordon Watt (So, 6-6) is tops with 8.4 rebounds while contributing 9.2 points. Freshman Keaton Grant leads the Boilermakers to date with 3.8 assists.

The total for this contest is in the 146-point range, with Purdue a slight 1½-point fave at home. The Boilermakers are 2-0 ATS so far this year when favored.

[Willie Bee]

#1 Ohio St at #6 North Carolina, 9:00 PM (ET) ESPN

The Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill is the site of the evening’s marquee contest that has top-ranked Ohio State (6-0) taking on #6 North Carolina (4-1)

Thad Matta, in his third year with the Buckeyes after previous head coaching stints with Butler and Xavier, will face his first real test of the season after Ohio State opened the year with wins over VMI, Loyola-Chicago, Kent St, Eastern Kentucky, San Francisco and Youngstown St. The Buckeyes’ average margin of victory in those half-dozen triumphs is over 26 per game while the team is averaging 87 per contest.

With the squad hitting more than 52% from the field, and over 42% from 3-point range, the primary 1-2 scoring punch is a Senior-Freshman tandem. Young Daequan Cook (Fr, 6-5) leads Ohio St in scoring (17.8) and is second with a 7.0 rebound average. Ron Lewis (Sr, 6-4) is scoring 17 per game and grabbing five rebounds. Mike Conley (Fr, 6-1) is #1 on the assists chart with 6.3 while Othello Hunter (Jr, 6-9) is the Buckeyes’ leading rebounder with a 7.2 average.

For Roy Williams, now in his fourth year as the Tar Heels’ head coach, this will be his young squad’s third straight game against a ranked opponent. After starting the year with wins over Sacred Heart (103-81), Winthrop (73-66) and Gardner Webb (103-50), Carolina ran into Gonzaga in the semi-finals of the NIT Tip-Off, dropping an 82-74 decision to the Bulldogs. The Tar Heels regrouped two nights later on Nov 24 in the consolation contest of the same tournament, picking up a 101-87 win over then-#21 Tennessee after opening a 56-35 halftime lead.

Tyler Hansbrough (So, 6-9) has been the primary force on the NC squad, leading the team with a 20.6 scoring average and topping the charts with 8.8 rebounds a night. Brandan Wright (Fr, 6-9) pours in 16.6 per game with 7.4 rebounds, Wayne Ellington (Fr, 6-4) adds 12.2 points and Ty Lawson (Fr, 5-11) contributes 10.6 per outing while leading the team with 3.2 assists.

In spite of their #1 ranking, Ohio State is a 7½-point dog for this game, with the total set at 160. The Buckeyes are a perfect 6-0 ATS up to now, and this is their first lined game this season where they have been the underdog. North Carolina is currently 1-3 versus the number.

[Willie Bee]

Clemson at Minnesota, 9:30 PM (ET) ESPN2

The Williams Arena in Minneapolis is the site for the final contest in the ACC-Big Ten challenge between Clemson (7-0) and Minnesota (2-4).

Oliver Purnell, now in his fourth season as the Tigers’ head coach, has Clemson off to another fine start. Last year, the Tigers roared to an 11-0 beginning before eventually settling for a 19-13 campaign that ended with a 74-68 loss to Louisville in the second round of the NIT. Clemson is shooting 48.3% from the field thus far in their seven wins, hitting 34% of 3-pointers and averaging almost 75 points per game.

KC Rivers (So, 6-5) leads a balanced scoring attack with a 13.1 average. James Mays (Jr, 6-9) adds 11.9 points and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds per game while guards Vernon Hamilton (Sr, 6-0) and Cliff Hammonds (Jr, 6-3) are each scoring more than 10 points and combining to dish out over 7½ assists each night.

Dan Monson, who has been at Minnesota since 1997, brings his Golden Gophers into this game saddled with a 4-game losing streak, dropping those games to Iowa St (86-63), Marist (63-56), Southern Illinois (69-53) and Montana (72-65). Three of those defeats came in Florida at the Old Spice Classic, and one (Iowa St) came here on their home court.

Minnesota is shooting just 40% as a team and averaging 61.7 points to date. Lawrence McKenzie (Jr, 6-2) leads the Gophers with a 15.5 scoring average. Dan Coleman (Jr, 6-9) and Spencer Tollackson (Jr, 6-9) are the only other players to average double digits in scoring, and lead the team with 5.7 and 6.4 rebounds per game respectively. Kevin Payton (So, 6-5) despite playing just 15.5 minutes per game, leads Minnesota with 2.8 assists.

Clemson, 3-3 against the number up to now, is favored by 6½ in this one with the O/U line set at 129½. The Golden Gophers are 0-5 ATS.

[Peyton2MarvinN06]

Willie, thanks for the info!

I am really liking Purdue tonight... They played real tough against some great competition out in Maui and should be primed to get back on the home court!

Also, really like Ohio State getting 7.5!?!? I know they are on the road and I know its at North Carolina, but they are #1 and unbeaten ATS this year as a heavy favorite! +7.5??? Please let me know what I'm missing here... North Carolina has not been all that impressive this year either...

[Willie Bee]

I like the Buckeyes as well. Expect the game to go down to one side or the other still having a shot at the win on their last heave.

[Razz]

Willie, thanks for the info!

I am really liking Purdue tonight... They played real tough against some great competition out in Maui and should be primed to get back on the home court!

Also, really like Ohio State getting 7.5!?!? I know they are on the road and I know its at North Carolina, but they are #1 and unbeaten ATS this year as a heavy favorite! +7.5??? Please let me know what I'm missing here... North Carolina has not been all that impressive this year either...

On Purdue as well. Good luck with that.
I didn't play the other game, but I could only take UNC. Ohio State has played nobody, haven't played a road game, and UNC is tested and has a huge home court advantage. UNC should dominate inside, and unless OSU's shooters get hot early, this one could be over by the half.

[Illusion]

I really like Boston College tonight -4. I am still looking at the other games.

[bigboydan]

Guys I disagree on your Purdue play. I'm not going to be playing that game, but I was liking Virginia in that game.

[Illusion]

I decided on laying the points with Boston College and North Carolina tonight.

[dave11486]

North Carolina is way OVERRATED right now. They don't play defense and Hansbrough is getting treated like he is the next coming. OSU will keep it close at the least. No way I pass up the Bucks plus the points tonight.

[Razz]

North Carolina is way OVERRATED right now. They don't play defense and Hansbrough is getting treated like he is the next coming. OSU will keep it close at the least. No way I pass up the Bucks plus the points tonight.

UNC is overrated, I'm not even sure they're a top 10 team. Still, if OSU doesn't get off to a good start they will get run out of the gym. Hansborough isn't as nearly as good as some act, but OSU has nobody inside.

[dave11486]

Won't be winning any championships with this "defense."

[Razz]

OSU certainly has some unbelievable shooters. I do think UNC comes back, because nobody can keep up that percentage, but they are damn impressive. Also, OSU got ****** by the officials there at the end of the half. I wouldn't be surprised if that continues in the second half.

Purdue was a tough sweat, glad I played it last night.

[Wassymac]

Purdue slipped a bit down the stretch but with the way they defend it will keep them in a lot of games. When Landry is out they look lost though without an inside presence. D*mn I love how hard they play D and they did it tonight again without one of their starters.

[Razz]

Purdue slipped a bit down the stretch but with the way they defend it will keep them in a lot of games. When Landry is out they look lost though without an inside presence. D*mn I love how hard they play D and they did it tonight again without one of their starters.

Yeah, the only reason they won that game was heart. Everyone that plays for Purdue showed heart all night, Singletary was the only one that really showed much heart for UVA.

[moses millsap]

Huge steal there by UNC, this one is going to come right down to near the number.

[moses millsap]

UNC covers barely

[dave11486]

Well OSU deserved to lose that one, but not by that much. Refs were letting the Buckeyes get mobbed all night. Dick Vitale can eat a dick, ESPN needs to get rid of that ACC rooster gobbler.

[Razz]

Yeah, the wrong team probably covered. We all missed the boat on over though, that was the nuts.

[BuddyBear]

Maybe next year they can replace the Big Ten with the Big East or even the Missouri Valley Conference. How pathetic of these big ten teams, 3 wins and two of them come by 2 points.

[dave11486]

ACC owns the Big Ten. Michigan and Indiana have me disappointed early. Looks like basketball will be just like football this year with only a few carrying the weight of the whole conference.

[dave11486]

Yeah, the wrong team probably covered. We all missed the boat on over though, that was the nuts.

For real. I knew the UNC defense was bad, but I just forgot to look at that O/U until it was too late.

[bigboydan]

I had a feeling the Heels would get this one. However, you guys are right about that score though. I didn't see that comming at all tonight.

[goldengoat]

another beating for the big ten

not surprising this year at all though