NCAA College Basketball Weekend Preview
Basketball fans get a few early Christmas presents on the college hoops betting schedule this weekend with a pair of Top 10 matchups, as the No. 6 Duke Blue Devils battle the No. 7 Xavier Musketeers and the No. 2 Connecticut Huskies face off with the No. 8 Gonzaga Bulldogs.
The Blue Devils had 10 days off to dwell on their first loss of the year to Michigan earlier in the month. Duke rebounded nicely on Wednesday night by blowing out N.C. Asheville 99-56. Mike Krzyzewski juggled the lineup to start the game, leaving the regular starters on the bench before plugging them in later on. The result was the blowout and 14-point efforts from Kyle Singler and Gerald Henderson. Still, expect the regulars to be the starters again this weekend.
Xavier improved to 9-0 on the season last time out, which was last Saturday, giving them a week off between games. The Musketeers knocked off rival Cincinnati 76-66 as a 2.5-point favorite on the college basketball odds. Derrick Brown recorded a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds before a pair of technical fouls sent him to the showers early. C.J. Anderson added 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Dante Jackson dropped in 15 points.
It’s been a few years since the Blue Devils and Musketeers last met up. In 2004 Duke edged Xavier 66-63 as an 8-point favorite.
Connecticut totally dominated Stony Brook in a 91-57 rout on Monday night. Jeff Adrien and Hasheem Thabeet each netted 18 points for UConn, and Jerome Dyson had 16 points in the easy victory. The Huskies ruled the glass at both ends of the court in the win, outrebounding Stony Brook 43-21.
Gonzaga is finishing off a busy week on Saturday with their third game in seven days. The Bulldogs started the week with a disappointing upset loss to Arizona, but got a chance to rebound quickly with a much easier game against Texas Southern on Thursday night. Against the Wildcats Austin Daye delivered a season-high 22 points, but Gonzaga leading scorer Josh Heytvelt struggled in the loss with only six points on 1-of-6 shooting.
Last season the Bulldogs made the trip east to face the Huskies and upset Connecticut 85-82 as a 5.5-point underdog in the Hartford Hall of Fame Showcase at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston. Jeremy Pargo led Gonzaga with 23 points while A.J. Price had 22 points for the Huskies.
