BY: BRIAN WOLF
Jared Fabian, one of the early followers of Trainwreck Sports, had a simple request. More college basketball content, specifically on the gambling side of the house. Ask, and you shall receive Jared. Ask, and you shall receive.
The slate is light for Saturday, with most coaches taking some time off for the holidays, but we have an old school rivalry, some important Big Ten matchups, and the number one ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs taking on the sixteenth ranked Virginia Cavaliers in Fort Worth, Texas. Do not for one second believe the other eight matchups on Saturday do not mean anything. For the true college basketball junkies, these early season matchups give us all an opportunity to learn about these mid-majors and who might be able to make a run come March.
At 1 p.m., we have one of the best rivalries in college basketball. The Kentucky Wildcats visit the KFC Yum! Center and the Louisville Cardinals. Back in the summer, Louisville head coach Chris Mack made comments about where this game was to be played. With no fans in attendance, he felt that his program was losing a true home game and will have to end up playing at Rupp Arena the following season. Kentucky coach John Calipari was quick to respond, saying, “My hope is they are not trying to end the series.” Enough about the coaches. If you have not been following college basketball this year, Kentucky basketball is off to a bad start. After winning their first matchup against Morehead State, the ‘Cats has lost five in a row. The Wildcats have not lost five in a row since the 1989-90 season, Rick Pitino’s first season at the helm. Calipari has already had to ask freshman Cam’Ron Fletcher to “step away” from the program. For the Cards, this program has been seen their fair share of injuries and have been hampered by Covid-19 issues, missing nearly two weeks of play. Radford transfer Carlik Jones returned to action in Louisville’s 64-54 win over Pittsburgh and leads the team in scoring, averaging 16 per game.
Wolf’s pick – Louisville ML
Another contest in the 1 p.m. slot gives us the No. 6 ranked Houston Cougars versus the UCF Knights. The Cougs are 6-0 on the season, averaging 77 points per game, while allowing just 54.7, ranking them 7th in the country in that category. Houston is led by Quentin Grimes, who is third in the AAC, averaging 20 ppg. Why might you want to watch this game? The Knights’ three wins this year have come against Auburn, Florida State, and Cincinnati. Not bad, huh? UCF was selected to finish 8th overall in the 11-team AAC conference. Another upset win over Houston will do wonders for this team come March if they are a bubble team.
Wolf’s pick – Houston ML
At 2 p.m., the Buckeyes from Ohio State visit Welsh Ryan Arena and the Northwestern Wildcats. Both of these teams are coming off big wins. Ohio State took down the 11th ranked Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and Northwestern upset Michigan State in their Big Ten conference opener and followed that up with a win at Indiana during the week. Ohio State is led by Duane Washington Jr and E.J. Liddell. Both have carried the offense when it needs a spark. Washington can fill it up from beyond the arc, while Liddell can fill it up from the paint, shooting 54% on the season. A trio leads the Wildcats on the offensive side of the ball in Boo Buie (14.5 ppg), and Chase Audige and Miller Kopp, who both average 13.8 points per game.
Wolf’s pick – Ohio State -2
At 4 p.m., the number one ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs take on the No. 16 ranked Virginia Cavaliers. This may be Mark Fews best roster since becoming the head coach at Gonzaga. The Zags already have victories over Kansas, West Virginia and took down Luke Garza and the Iowa Hawkeyes this past Wednesday with a 99-88 victory. The Zags are led in scoring by Corey Kispert (20.8 ppg) and Drew Timme (20.3 ppg), but the player to watch is one of Dickie V’s diaper dandies, Jalen Suggs. Suggs was the No. 6 ranked player in the ESPN 100 and also carried offers from Baylor, Iowa, Marquette, and his hometown school in Minnesota. If there is a tournament at the end of this season, I fully expect Gonzaga to make a run at a national championship. When you think Virginia basketball, you think defense and low scoring. That still remains the MO for this Cavaliers team. They have given up 60 points just two times in their five games so far this season. The O/U for Saturday afternoon is set at 138.5.
Wolf’s pick – Gonzaga -7
The other Big Ten matchup Saturday afternoon gives us the Hoosiers from Indiana traveling to Illinois to take on the No. 18 ranked Illini. Illinois has already played nine games, including wins over Duke and Penn State, but they have lost to Baylor, Missouri, and Rutgers. With such a talented roster, this Illinois team should make a run come March. They are led by 7-foot center Kofi Cockburn, an easy target to find for his teammates like Andre Curbelo and Ayo Dosunmu. For Archie Miller, his Hoosiers are dead last in the Big Ten in assist to turnover ratio. Things were so bad during their loss to Northwestern that he had his team practicing on Christmas Eve morning.
Wolf’s pick – Illinois – 5.5
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