Buckeyes and Spartans meet in key Big Ten bout

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/27/2007 - Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trying to keep within striking distance of the red-hot Wisconsin Badgers in the Big Ten, the fifth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes play host to the Michigan State Spartans in league play from Value City Arena this evening.

The Buckeyes are 5-1 in the Big Ten, following Wednesday's 59-50 victory at Northwestern. It was the team's fourth straight victory and leaves it one game behind the 6-0 Badgers in the conference standings.

The Spartans are within reach as well, sitting at 4-2 in league play. Tom Izzo's squad has also strung together four consecutive wins and enters this contest off a 70-46 pasting of Minnesota on Wednesday. The Spartans are a perfect 14-0 at home this season, but have struggled a bit in true road games, winning just once in four attempts.

The Spartans own a 59-47 edge in the all-time series with Ohio State and have actually won four straight in Value City Arena.

The Spartans abused the Golden Gophers in the paint, outscoring their foe down low 32-4. The team shot 50.9 percent from the floor and held Minnesota to a mere .311 shooting performance. In addition, MSU won the battle on the boards (38-24) and forced 15 turnovers. Raymar Morgan led the way with 14 points, followed closely by Drew Neitzel and Goran Suton, who finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively. On the year, Neitzel has clearly asserted himself as the offensive leader, pacing the team with 18.2 ppg. Most of Neitzel's damage comes from long range, where he has connected on 41.1 percent of his attempts, leading the team with a whopping 62 three-pointers thus far. Morgan is the only other Spartan with a double-digit average, adding 10.8 ppg. Not a flashy offensive team by any stretch of the imagination, MSU is averaging just 68.9 ppg. The team has thrived at the defensive end though, yielding a mere 55.8 ppg, while holding foes under 40 percent shooting (.374).

The Buckeyes can win games at either end of the court, showing the ability to light up a scoreboard when needed (77.6 ppg), while also showing some real grit at the defensive end (61.3 ppg against). It took a little time, but freshman phenom Greg Oden is beginning to assert himself as the best big man in the country. The seven-foot youngster is shooting .658 from the floor and currently leads the Buckeyes in scoring (15.4 ppg), rebounding (10.1 rpg) and blocked shots (47). Daequan Cook and Ron Lewis provide perimeter balance with 13.1 and 12.2 ppg, respectively. In the nine-point win over the Wildcats this week, Oden finished with yet another double-double, posting 17 points and a season-high 17 rebounds. Forward Ivan Harris also finished with double digits in terms of scoring, leading the team with 18 points. OSU really beat up Northwestern on the glass, outrebounding the Wildcats, 39-19.

Gamblingforfun NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Cowboys hope to lasso Cyclones
Stillwater, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys finish up a brief two-game homestand this weekend, as they play host to the Iowa State Cyclones in Big 12 action from the Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwa

<< Top-ranked Gators hit the SEC road
Auburn, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-ranked Florida Gators continue their feverish run through the SEC, as they travel to Alabama this weekend to battle the Auburn Tigers from the Beard-Eaves Coliseum. This is the third strai

<< Jayhawks host Buffaloes in Big 12 clash
Lawrence, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two teams at opposite ends of the Big 12 standings meet this afternoon in Lawrence, as the eighth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks host the Colorado Buffaloes in conference action from the Allen Fieldho

<< High-powered Penguins skate into Phoenix
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins continue their push towards a possible playoff spot this evening, where the up-and-coming club visits the Phoenix Coyotes at Jobing.com Arena. Pittsburgh has won four of its last five ga

<< Scorching Blues hope to end string of misfortune vs. Preds
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The resurgent St. Louis Blues hope to end a long winless drought against the Nashville Predators when the two Central Division opponents face off tonight at Scottrade Center. Nashville boasts 13 consecutive

Top-25 battle pits Tar Heels against Wildcats >>
Tucson, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A rare non-conference treat late in the season takes place in the desert this afternoon, as the fourth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels come calling on the 17th-ranked Arizona Wildcats in Tucson.

Sooners attempt to continue mastery of Aggies >>
College Station, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sitting in a logjam atop the Big 12 standings, the sixth-ranked Texas A&M Aggies return home to the friendly confines of Reed Arena, as they play host to the Oklahoma Sooners in confere

Top-25 Pac-10 tilt features Oregon at Washington State >>
Pullman, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A top-25 battle in the Pac-10 takes place in the Pacific Northwest this evening, as the seventh-ranked Oregon Ducks take on the 20th-ranked Washington State Cougars from Friel Court in Pullman

Trojans attempt to slay Golden Bears in Berkeley >>
Berkeley, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In an attempt to salvage something from their trip to the Bay Area, the 25th-ranked USC Trojans will take on the California Golden Bears in Pac-10 play from Haas Pavilion this evening. The Tro

Tide puts perfect home record on line >>
Tuscaloosa, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa is the site of today's SEC battle between the Arkansas Razorbacks and Alabama Crimson Tide. Not much has gone right for Arkansas lately, as the team has lost four of it

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.