A Nice Pair of College Hoops Matchups

Two games really stand out in college basketball this Wednesday, one a conference matchup between Top 25 teams and the other a sharp non-conference clash which is a measuring stick for both combatants. Wisconsin has emerged as a possible surprise player in the Big Ten and travels to Michigan State. It seems to happen every year, if Syracuse gets off to a fast start, sometime in January they hit a slump of not playing well. Off their first loss of the season at home against Pittsburgh 82-72, The Orangemen will look to keep this to an isolated incident, getting ready for Memphis.

Wisconsin at Michigan State 6:30E BTN

It’s not that Tom Izzo has given up preaching defense; he just has more skilled offensive players and has built his team around their strengths. Michigan State (11-3, 4-9 ATS) is averaging 82.4 points per game, powered by guard Kalin Lucas. The Spartans have the athletes to quickly cash in on turnovers, jetting down the floor for easy scores. Michigan State blasted a good Northwestern squad 91-70 on the road as five-point favorites and is giving 5.5-points to Wisconsin according to DiamondSportsbook.com. Sparty is 11-1 ATS roll as a home favorite by 6.5 or less.

At this point it should come as no surprise; Bo Ryan is a great coach for the Badgers. Wisconsin (8-4 ATS) is never given enough credit, since it lacks the type of big time recruits normally associated with Top 25 programs. Instead, Ryan gets the type of players he feels that have the right work ethic and in his view can get better with hard work through their careers in Madison. Trevon Hughes and Jon Leuer are perfect examples of Ryan’s way of thinking, as each has been a big part of Wisconsin’s 12-2 start and lofty ranking this season. The Badgers are well-suited by physical basketball and are 31-14 ATS versus teams who average 40 or more rebounds a game.
Michigan State has won seven straight conference home openers and is 8-2 and 5-5 ATS against Wisky at home.

Memphis at Syracuse 7:00E ESPN2

Coming into the season, Memphis (10-3, 3-5 ATS) didn’t look like they had the size to be a good rebounding team and it was going to be more dependent on guards to fight for a rebounds that were below the rim. This has largely proven to be true, but the 73-72 loss to Massachusetts brought it home, being outrebounded 44-24. In a one-point defeat, losing 21-4 in second chance points was immense. “I had trouble sleeping, because we gave this game away. -said Roburt Sallie. We’ll see what Memphis learned against Syracuse and see if they improve on 41-23 ATS record as a road underdog or pick.

Syracuse (13-1, 7-3 ATS) lost a large amount of talent, played its toughest non-conference schedule in years and has everyone rethinking how good the Orangemen can really be. Iowa State transfer Wes Johnson has been a cyclone for coach Jim Boehiem leading the Orange in just about everything, including unselfishness. Syracuse observers have marveled how willing this team is to share the ball, with guards Scoop Jardine and Andy Rautins each averaging more than five assists per game. With Rick Jackson and Arinze Onuaku fighting for every rebound, the Orange has a definite advantage in this contest. Boehiem’s bunch is at their best when score 75-80 points. (43-23 ATS)

Even with the loss to Pittsburgh, Syracuse is still 12-4 ATS as a home favorite in last 16 tries and is favored by nine-points with total of 146.5. Memphis hasn’t covered the spread since Dec. 9 and they might have difficulty doing so again as their outside shooting in fair at best, which is a big challenge against the Orangemen’s zone defense.