When you watch ESPN’s doubleheader on Monday, you’ll be watching four teams who could be making some noise during March Madness. And they are the kinds of schools who could make that run because of the defensive nightmare they present to opponents.
College Basketball Betting Sites
So what to make of this lineup? Well, we have a parlay for you to jump on that makes a lot of sense, and we hope you do it at America’s Bookie. So hurry and take advantage of some bonuses and a lot of wagering options!
Let’s go:
#12 Texas Tech Red Raiders at #14 West Virginia Mountaineers
Red Raiders vs. Mountaineers Picks
When: 9 PM ET
College Basketball Betting Odds: West Virginia -2, Total 137
These programs are very much alike, in the sense that they don’t shoot all that tremendously, but create their own second-shot opportunities,and of course they defend like hell.
Texas Tech may have to shake some rust off, with this being their first game in nine days because of some postponements, but we just saw WVU do that, as they came off two weeks without a game and then throttled Kansas State 69-47, forcing 28 turnovers in the process.
In general though, these Mountaineers have done less in the way of turning the opponent over then they have in the past under Bob Huggins. And the Red Raiders take care of the ball reasonably well. What Huggins still likes to do is take away a team’s top offensive weapon, but that’s not an easy thing to do against Chris Beard’s squad, which really has some balanced scoring, with four players averaging in double figures.
Ultimately we’ll see if the Mountaineers and their 6-10 big man Derek Culver can stop the infiltration of a Texas tech team that loves to get to the line. I always like Chris Beard’s second-half adjustments, and let’s not forget that the Raiders have already taken to the road to beat nationally-ranked Oklahoma AND #5 Texas. We’re okay with being on the take.
The Play: TEXAS TECH +2
Shop for the Best Odds for Your CBB Bets
Syracuse Orange at #13 Virginia Cavaliers
When: 7 PM ET
College Basketball Betting Odds: Virginia -7.5, Total 130
Jim Boeheim’s team is feeling good about itself after outstanding efforts against Notre Dame and Virginia tech, so they carry momentum into this trip to Charlottesville.
Syracuse offers an intimidating presence close to the basket, with multiple shot-blockers, so I guess it’s fortunate that Virginia can hit threes with a lot of verve (38.9%). The truth is, these Cavs can do a lot of things very well. They are going to takes great care of the ball (fourth best nationwide in that department); they’re going to hit free throws when they get that opportunity (also fourth best); they do a great job of hitting the offensive boards, and they are going to control the tempo (dead last among 357 teams in Adjusted Tempo, as per the metrics at KenPom).
Well, USUALLY they are going to control tempo; that wasn’t possible against Gonzaga in a 98-75 loss, but that’s understandable.
They also have a big man in Jay Huff who can step back and hit outside shots. It’s just one more thing to make Syracuse and its matchup zone worry about. That’s the thing; if you can shoot over Boeheim’s scheme, you can have some success. The Orange, though, are great at coming out and defending the perimeter (allowing 28.6%). Yes, they are a tough nut to crack.
For our purposes, the major difference between these teams lies in the difference between the schemes. When you play a matchup zone, you’re going to leave yourself vulnerable to offensive rebounds and second shots, because you’re not boxing out people specifically. Indeed, Syracuse allows opponents to grab 32% of those available caroms. That’s 300th in the country.
But Virginia’s Pack Line defense is designed to collapse and preclude those second chances (Cavs are 13th in Defensive Rebounding Percentage).
And look at last year’s matchups. Virginia demonstrated what they can do in making it a chore shooting inside the arc by holding the ‘Cuse to a combined 16 of 57 (28%) from TWO-point range. That’s the kind of thing they do. Slightly different cast, same system. And Syracuse does not shoot threes well enough (just 32%) to mitigate that.
So we’ll lay the chalk.
The Play: VIRGINIA -7.5
Find your winning combination at AMERICA’S BOOKIE, where you have a multitude of wagering options at your disposal, including live betting.
Make sure you check out the rest of our college basketball picks for tonight.
