With the college football season wrapping up yesterday, many people are turning their attention to the college basketball season. Conference play is well underway and the conference tournaments begin and March Madness is just over two months away.
Tuesday will feature some strong games on the college basketball schedule. The most intriguing game of the night might just be the meeting between Texas Tech and Iowa State in Ames. Iowa State is a 5.5-point home favorite. Texas Tech has not won back-to-back games since the 2020-21 season. But on Tuesday, they will look to avoid an 0-4 start in Big 12 play.
Playing in the Big 12, Texas Tech will have plenty of opportunities to solidify their resume over the next two months. However, they must go. The Red Raiders lost to Creighton and Ohio State in non-conference play. They opened conference play with a loss to TCU and home losses to Kansas and Oklahoma. Texas Tech has zero impressive wins. Their most impressive win was a 9-point win over KenPom’s 145th-ranked Louisiana Tech. Texas Tech is 5-9-1 against the spread to open the season.
Tuesday won’t be easy for Texas Tech. They will travel to Ames to visit No. 14 Iowa State. Iowa State is 3-0 to open Big 12 play, including an impressive road win at TCU on Saturday. On the season, the Cyclones are 8-0 at Hilton Coliseum.
Both teams rank 25th in adjusted defensive efficiency according to KenPom. It should be a very weak and defensive fight. Couple that with the desperation Texas Tech must feel, and it’s probably a good game to pick up points against the road team. With that being said, the Red Raiders are a tough team to root for right now.
The rest of the college basketball slate
There are a few interesting matchups on the college basketball slate on Tuesday night.
In the Big 12, No. 2 Kansas looks to improve to 15-1 on the season and 4-0 in conference play. The Jayhawks are 10.5-point home favorites against Oklahoma. Elsewhere in the conference, No. 11 Kansas State is a 5.5-point home favorite at Oklahoma State.
In the Big Ten, Michigan State is a 1.5-point road favorite against No. 18 Wisconsin. Tom Izzo’s Spartans are 3-1 in conference play, coming off a win over rival Michigan.
In the SEC, No. 5 Tennessee is a huge 17.5-point home favorite against Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, No. 21 Auburn has a short 1.5-point road lead against Ole Miss LSU. LSU is a 1.5-point home underdog against Florida, while Kentucky is a huge 19.5-point favorite against a bad South Carolina team.
Another interesting game will be played in the ACC. North Carolina was ranked No. 1 in the preseason, but they are very disappointing and currently unranked. However, we all know that any night is dangerous. The Tar Heels are 4.5-point underdogs against No. 13 Virginia.
Seven game NBA board
There aren’t many huge marquee matchups on Tuesday’s NBA slate, but if you’re more interested in betting the odds, there are seven games to wet your beak.
The best game of the night will probably take place in Los Angeles, where the Clippers are 1.5-point home favorites against the Dallas Mavericks. Unfortunately, the game is about to get a little more interesting as Paul George Clips has been ruled out.
Elsewhere in the conference, the Golden State Warriors are 11.5-point home favorites against the Phoenix Suns. Steph Curry is likely to return to Golden State after missing nearly a month with a shoulder injury. With Devin Booker and Chris Paul out for Phoenix, DeAndre Ayton is doubtful to play. The Suns have lost six straight and nine of their last ten games.
The NHL has ten games on board
The NHL has a typically loaded Tuesday night schedule with 20 teams in action.
The top two teams in the Metropolitan Division are the Carolina Hurricanes -145 home favorites against the New Jersey Devils. New Jersey has struggled recently, allowing the Hurricanes to hold the top spot in the division.
Elsewhere, the New York Rangers are -140 home favorites against the Minnesota Wild. Both teams got off to a slow start compared to expectations around them, but have been coming into their own in recent weeks.
As teams continue to fall short of expectations, two of the league’s most disappointing teams meet in Denver. The Colorado Avalanche are -130 home favorites at the Florida Panthers. Colorado obviously won the Stanley Cup last season, but they are currently on the outside looking in when it comes to a playoff spot. Even Nathan McKinnon’s return didn’t bring much of a spark. The Florida Panthers were the best team in the league during the regular season last season, but are now six points out of the final playoff spot in the East.
Who paid for the tickets?
Georgia was easily swept as a 13.5-point favorite in the college football national championship game, winning the game by a score of 65-7. The Bulldogs have single-handedly contributed money to the overall contenders. Georgia opens as the betting favorite to win it all next season as they seek their third straight national title.
