Ivy League Game of the Week – Harvard vs. Cornell
NCAA Basketball Sports Betting
Harvard Crimson (10-10 SU, 2-10-1 ATS) at Cornell Big Red (15-7 SU, 10-6 ATS)
BetUS NCAA Basketball Sports Betting Odds: CORNELL -14.5
Here are some of the NCAA basketball sports betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* HARV has lost its last six games ATS
* HARV has lost four of its last five games SU * HARV has played its last eight games OVER the total
* HARV is 1-4-1 ATS in its last six road games
* HARV has played four of its last six road games
* CORN has won ten of its last 11 games SU
* CORN has covered four of its last six games
* CORN has played six of its last eight games OVER the total
Also…
* HARV has covered three of the last four meetings
* Four of the last five meetings have gone UNDER the total
* HARV is 3-1-1 ATS in the last five meetings as the road team
* CORN has had the shooting edge in six of the last seven meetings
* CORN has made more three-pointers in four of the last six meetings
This is the first of two meetings between these teams; the return match is set for February 29 in Cambridge.
Harvard mounted an impressive second-half comeback to beat the disappointing Brown Bears last Saturday, and won it with no time left when Jeremy Lin hit a free throw. That game broke a four-game losing streak for Harvard, and it came with some more good news, as Evan Harris, who recently returned to the lineup from an injury, came up big with 12 points, eleven rebounds and four blocked shots.
Cornell has lost only once in Ivy League play in the last 21 games; that was a 61-41 defeat at the hands of Princeton in which the Big Red shot just 32% and had only one player in double figures. Cornell came back with guns blazing against Penn last time out, leading by 15 points at the half and cruising to an 88-73 win. Leading scorer Ryan Wittman, son of former Minnesota Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman, had 21 points,
Cornell has the capacity to create some distance in this game, with three-point threats like Wittman (38%), Louis Dale (47%) and Geoff Reeves (43%). Since it looks like Wittman may have busted out of a recent scoring slump, Cornell may be ready for the final drive to the Ivy league wire, and a return trip to the Big Dance.
Harris, who averages 1.4 blocks a game, along with five rebounds, is a difference-maker for the Crimson, and he’ll make the more competitive. But Cornell can extend itself to the perimeter, and has a sizable defensive edge. Harvard is taking to the road for the first time since January 10, and has burned a hole in its supporters’ pockets, with a 2-10-1 spread record. Under the circumstances, we’ll lay the points with Cornell, the 14.5-point favorite in the BetUS Sportsbook.
