Missouri and USC meet in San Juan

Cbasketball Betting Lines

11/23/2008 - San Juan, PR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The fourth-place game of the Puerto Rico Tip- Off features a pair of 3-1 teams, as the USC Trojans meet the Missouri Tigers.

USC opened the season with back-to-back home victories, both by double figures, before heading to San Juan. The Trojans dropped a heart-breaking 63-61 decision to Seton Hall to open play at this event, but they bounced back strong with a 73-46 romp over Chattanooga on Friday. Clearly, a victory over a Big 12 opponent this afternoon could help the squad down the road.

Like USC, Missouri posted back-to-back home wins to open the season before traveling to Puerto Rico. The Tigers lost to Xavier by four points in their first game at this event, but they bounced back strong with a resounding 87-59 decision over Fairfield on Friday. Missouri was not a factor in the Big 12 last season, but this year's group figures to have a much better chance of competing.

The all-time series between the Trojans and Tigers is tied at 5-5, and Missouri won the most recent meeting in 2002.

Missouri is racking up 86.8 ppg while limiting opponents to 68.5 ppg. The Tigers have had their trouble at the foul line, as they are knocking down just 57 percent of their attempts from the charity stripe. Fortunately, they have been able to outrebound foes by nearly five boards per contest. Leo Lyons has cooled off a bit since scoring over 20 points in each of the first two games, but he is still averaging 18.3 ppg. DeMarre Carroll is close behind with 18.0 ppg, and Matt Lawrence is netting 10.5 ppg. The Tigers shot 50 percent from the field against Fairfield last time out and finished with 27 assists against only 11 turnovers. A 47-29 rebounding advantage also played a major role in the victory. Carroll paced his team with 15 points in the clash, and Lawrence contributed 14 points. Lyons added a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.

USC has been outstanding at the defensive end through the first four games of the season, as the squad is limiting opponents to 56.0 ppg on 33.9 percent shooting from the floor. Offensively, the Trojans are netting 71.2 ppg despite 22.6 percent efficiency from three-point range. The top performer for USC thus far has been Taj Gibson, as the big man is posting 18.8 ppg to go along with 12.3 rpg and six blocks per contest. Dwight Lewis is the only other double- digit scorer on the roster, as he is posting 15.5 ppg. In the victory over Chattanooga last time out, four of the five starters for USC reached double figures offensively, and the lone exception was Leonard Washington, who tallied nine points and 12 rebounds. Gibson contributed 17 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks, while Lewis netted 16 points. Keep an eye on freshman DeMar DeRozan, one of the most highly regarded recruits in the nation.

Wwwgo2hk Cbasketball Betting News

<< South Alabama seeks upset of No. 3 Louisville
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Louisville Cardinals try to make it two in a row to start the season as they host the South Alabama Jaguars in the next round of the Billy Minardi Classic at Freedom Hall this afternoon. On

<< Devils head south to take on Lightning
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a perfect homestand, the New Jersey Devils aim for a season-high fourth straight win this evening in a visit to Tampa Bay to take on the Lightning at St. Pete Times Forum. After dropping the start of a home-and-home

<< AZ doubles up on Ajax to take over top spot
Alkmaar, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - AZ Alkmaar moved to the top of the Eredivisie table on Sunday with a 2-0 win over Ajax at Almaarderhout. Demy De Zeeuw converted a penalty kick midway through the opening half and Ari added a seco

<< Sixers aim to snap skid vs. Warriors in Philly
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Golden State Warriors embark on a five-game road swing Sunday when the arrive in the City of Brotherly Love to face the Philadelphia 76ers. The Warriors may also be sporting a new toy for coach Don Nelson after the te

<< Hurricanes take on Preds aiming for fourth straight win
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Hurricanes will try to run their season-high winning streak to four games this afternoon, when they host the Nashville Predators tonight at RBC Center in the only meeting between the teams this year. After lo

Waves challenge 15th-ranked Sun Devils in Tempe >>
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-ranked Arizona Sun Devils will do battle with the Pepperdine Waves this afternoon in a non-conference tilt from Well- Fargo Arena in Tempe. Pepperdine opened the season with three straight home games and

Puerto Rico Tip-Off title tilt pits Xavier against Memphis >>
San Juan, PR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The championship game of the Puerto Rico Tip- Off features two unbeaten teams, the 13th-ranked Memphis Tigers and the Xavier Musketeers. It appeared that Xavier was headed for a heart-breaking overtime loss to

No. 10 Duke hosts Montana >>
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a tournament title in the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer, the 10th-ranked Duke Blue Devils return to Durham and put a 62-game homecourt winning streak against non-conference opponents on

San Diego and Wisconsin square off in Paradise Jam >>
St. Tomas, VI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a day of rest, the San Diego Toreros and 25th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers get back at it tonight, as they clash in the semifinal round of the Paradise Jam at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center. The victor of t

Hurricanes try to blow past Huskies in St. Thomas >>
St. Thomas, VI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In the biggest game thus far for both opponents, the 17th-ranked Miami-Florida Hurricanes take on the second-ranked Connecticut Huskies in the semifinal round of the Paradise Jam this evening. The winner of thi


Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.