NCAAB Betting Action – Pittsburgh Panthers at Texas Tech Red Raiders
The Pittsburgh Panthers (5-0 SU, 1-1 ATS, 2-0 O/U) and Texas Tech Red Raiders (5-0 SU, 0-1 ATS, 1-0 O/U) have each gotten off to terrific 5-0 starts to the 2008-09 NCAA college basketball campaign.
Tonight, one team’s streak will come to an emphatic end.
The Panthers are coming off a convincing 74-60 victory over Belmont on Tuesday as 6-6 senior forward Sam Young scored a career-high 33 points on 13-of-17 shooting while adding seven rebounds and two steals.
“I took it as a challenge,” said Young, who had a season-low nine points on 4-of-10 shooting on Tuesday. “The team was struggling a little bit and I definitely took it as a challenge. … Coach (Dixon) said during a time-out I needed to be more aggressive. I got some great looks after that and I took advantage.”
Point guard Levance Fields added 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field.
The Red Raiders beat Southeastern Louisiana 74-63 on Tuesday, but have not opened a season with six consecutive victories since winning their first seven games in 1995-96.
John Roberson scored a game-high 20 points on Tuesday, while Alan Voskuil added 18. Both players are averaging 16.0 points apiece.
Here is a look at tonight’s key betting trends, followed by my in-depth analysis and NCAAB Free Pick:
The Panthers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games.
The Panthers are 14-4-1 ATS in their last 19 Friday games.
The Red Raiders are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games vs. a team with a winning S.U. record.
The Red Raiders are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games vs. a team with a winning percentage above .600.
The Over is 13-3 in Panthers last 16 overall.
The Over is 4-1 in Panthers last 5 non-conference games.
The Over is 4-0 in Red Raiders last 4 games following a S.U. win.
The Over is 4-0 in Red Raiders last 4 neutral site games.
NCAAB Odds
Texas Tech +13 -110
Pittsburgh -13 -110
Analysis: While I believe that Pittsburgh has al the tools to make a deep NCAA Championship run this season, I think it’s far too early for the Panthers to be favored by such a huge margin over a quality team, particularly playing on the road.
Maybe it’s me, but I think this matchup is a ‘gimme’ for college basketball sports betting fans everywhere.
Take the Texas Tech Red Raiders to cover while pushing for the outright win.
