NCAAB Saturday's Tip Sheet
By Brian Edwards
**Louisville at North Carolina**
-- The Westgate SuperBook opened North Carolina (11-4 straight up, 10-5 against the spread) as a four-point home favorite.
-- North Carolina saw its five-game winning streak both SU and ATS snapped at home Monday night vs. Notre Dame. The Irish went into Chapel Hill and won a 71-70 decision as an eight-point road underdog. In the losing effort, Marcus Paige scored a team-high 15 points, while Kennedy Meeks and J.P. Tokoto finished with 12 points apiece.
-- Prior to the loss to Notre Dame, UNC won its ACC opener in blowout fashion at Clemson by a 74-50 count as a 6.5-point road 'chalk.' Four Tar Heels scored in double figures led by Justin Jackson's 13 points. Meeks had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
-- North Carolina is No. 21 in the RPI Rankings, winning five of nine games against RPI Top-100 opponents. UNC's best wins have come over Ohio St., Florida and UCLA. The Tar Heels have lost a pair of home games to Notre Dame and Iowa, and they fell at Kentucky and vs. Butler in the Bahamas.
-- Louisville (14-1 SU, 3-9-2 ATS) is No. 18 in the RPI, going 4-1 vs. the RPI Top 100. Rick Pitino's team suffered its only loss at home to top-ranked Kentucky, 58-50. The Cardinals own quality wins over Ohio St., Minnesota, Indiana and Long Beach St.
-- Louisville has won three in a row since losing to UK. The Cards are 2-0 in ACC play with wins at Wake Forest (85-76) and vs. Clemson (58-52). They failed to cover the number in Wednesday's home win over the Tigers as 16.5-point favorites. Chris Jones scored a game-high 22 points, while Terry Rozier had 15 points, six rebounds and four assists.
-- Louisville has won both of its true road games this year, but it is 0-2 ATS in those contests. The Cardinals won 76-67 at Western Ky. and knocked off the Demon Deacons, but they were double-digit 'chalk' in both of those situations.
-- U of L has been burning its backers all year, especially in recent weeks. The Cardinals are currently mired in a 0-6-1 ATS slump.
-- Rozier is averaging a team-high 17.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Montrezl Harrell is averaging 15.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while shooting at a 59.7 percent clip from the field.
-- Totals have been an overall wash (6-6) for UNC. The 'under' is 3-2-1 in its home games.
-- The 'under' is 6-5 overall for U of L, 4-1 in its last five games. However, the 'over' has hit in both of its true road assignments.
-- Tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
**Virginia at Notre Dame**
-- The Westgate opened Virginia as a 1.5-point road favorite.
-- As noted above, Notre Dame (15-1 SU, 5-3 ATS) is off a huge win over UNC on the road. Zach Auguste led the way with 18 points, six rebounds and a pair of blocked shots. Pat Connaughton added 16 points, nine boards and three blocked shots, while Demetrius Jackson had 15 points and four assists without committing a turnover. Jerian Grant went 1-of-8 from the field and fouled out with just under three minutes remaining, but Mike Brey's team held on for the victory nonetheless. Grant had eight points, eight assists, four rebounds and two blocked shots.
-- After missing most of last season due to suspension, Grant is back running the show for the Irish. The junior point guard is averaging 17.2 points, 6.3 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game. Grant has a stellar 101/26 assists-to-turnovers ratio and he's making 51.3 percent of his shots from the floor. Auguste and Jackson are averaging 14.9 and 14.2 PPG, respectively.
-- Notre Dame is No. 38 in the RPI, going 4-1 vs. Top-100 foes. The Irish suffered its only loss to Providence by a 75-74 score on a neutral court. They have wins over Michigan St., Ga. Tech, UMass and UNC.
-- Notre Dame leads the country in field-goal percentage, burying 54.8 percent of its attempts from the floor. Grant should get a ton of credit for this stat by creating great looks for his teammates.
-- Notre Dame has won all 12 of its home games while going 2-2 versus the number.
-- Virginia (14-0 SU, 8-4 ATS) isn't just unbeaten, but it has won 12 games by double-digit margins. Tony Bennett's team won 89-80 at Miami and 64-56 vs. La Salle on a neutral court, but every other victory has been by 10 points or more. The Cavaliers are third in the RPI with nine wins over Top-100 foes. The Cavs' best wins are at VCU (by 17!), at Maryland, vs. George Washington and vs. North Carolina St.
-- UVA won a 61-51 decision over N.C. St. on Wednesday night, failing to cover the number as an expensive 14.5-point home favorite. Justin Anderson was the catalyst with 16 points and nine rebounds. Malcolm Brogdon contributed 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Anthony Gill finished with 12 points and seven boards.
-- Anderson averages a team-best 15.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. He is making 53.7 percent of his shots from the field and is draining 3-balls at an amazing 57.7 percent clip. Brogdon averages 13.0 PPG, while Gill is producing 12.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per contest.
-- UVA is second in the nation in rebounding margin behind only Texas. The Cavs have beaten opponents on the glass by a 13.2 RPG margin.
-- Virginia swept the season series from Notre Dame last season. In Charlottesville on Feb. 22, UVA cruised to a 70-49 triumph as an 11.5-point home 'chalk.' In South Bend, the Cavs dropped the Irish 68-53 as 3.5-point road favorites. Both games saw the 'under' emerge as a winner.
-- The 'over' is 5-4 overall for UVA, 4-2 in its last six games. The 'over' hit in both of UVA's road games that had a total.
-- Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN2.
**Georgia at LSU**
-- The Westgate opened LSU as a three-point home favorite late Friday afternoon.
-- LSU (11-3 SU, 6-6-1 ATS) is unbeaten in eight home games with a 3-3-1 spread record.
-- This is a quick turnaround for LSU after losing 74-67 in overtime at Missouri on Thursday night. The Tigers lost outright as three-point road favorites. They got off nights from their stars Jordan Mickey and Jarrell Martin, both of whom scored nine points apiece and shot a combined 7-for-23 from the field. Tim Quarterman had 19 points, six rebounds and two steals, while Keith Hornsby finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Mickey had 17 boards and three blocked shots, but he also committed six turnovers when double teams came fast and furious on his post touches.
-- We should also note that LSU's Josh Gray had a poor performance at Missouri. He scored only two points and had more turnovers (four) than assists (three). Since scoring a season-high 25 points in a win over UMass, Gray has gone five consecutive games without scoring in double figures. In three of those five games, he's had more turnovers than assists.
-- Georgia (9-4 SU, 6-5-1 ATS) covered the spread for first-half bets and led Arkansas for the first 33 minutes and change of their SEC showdown Tuesday in Athens. However, the Razorbacks forced 12 second-half turnover and rallied from a double-digit deficit to capture a 79-75 win as 3.5-point road underdogs. The loss ended UGA's six-game winning streak.
-- Mark Fox's team led by as many as 13 in the first half vs. Arkansas. Nemanja Djurisic buried 7-of-11 shots en route to scoring a team-high 16 points to go with seven rebounds. Marcus Thornton added 11 points and eight rebounds in the losing effort, while Juwan Parker finished with 11 points and seven boards in just 21 minutes of playing time.
-- UGA is 2-1-1 in four games as an underdog this year. The Bulldogs are 2-1 both SU and ATS in three road outings. They won outright at Kansas St. but lost by seven at Ga. Tech in the season opener.
-- Georgia has an RPI of 28 with a 3-4 record vs. Top-100 opponents. The Bulldogs' best win came at home over Seton Hall in a 65-47 blowout that wasn't even as close as the final score indicated. They also have victories over Stony Brook (RPI: 60) and Colorado.
-- LSU has an RPI of 50 with a 2-1 record vs. Top-100 foes. The Tigers have a great win for its resume at West Va. (RPI: 12), and their defeats (besides at Mizzou) came against Old Dominion and Clemson on neutral courts.
-- The 'under' is 4-2 in UGA's last six games, 1-0 in its only road game with a total. Totals have been an overall wash (5-5) for the Bulldogs.
-- The 'under' is 4-3 in LSU's home games, 5-5 overall.
-- ESPNU will have the broadcast at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
**B.E.'s Bonus Nuggets**
-- After opening SEC play with a crucial win at South Carolina on Wednesday, Florida will play host to Mississippi St. on Saturday. Jon Horford, the Michigan transfer who was suspended and didn't make the trip to Columbia, has been reinstated to the team. However, he won't play against the Bulldogs. Michael Frazier II has an upper-respiratory infection and didn't practice on Thursday. Gamblers should check the status of Frazier, the Gators' leading scorer who had 17 points against the Gamecocks.
-- When Texas A&M hosts top-ranked Kentucky on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, it might be without its leading scorer. Jalen Jones (13.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG) is listed as 'questionable' with a sprained ankle.
-- Davidson has been a huge money maker to date, cashing tickets at a 9-1 ATS clip. The Wildcats are a perfect 4-0 ATS at home and they'll take on Saint Louis at 7:00 p.m. Eastern on Saturday night.
-- Here's a list of potential fade squads to put on your radar: Drake (2-10-1 ATS), CSU Northridge (1-9-1), Richmond (2-10), Miami (OH.) (1-9), Tennessee (2-9-2), Pitt (3-10) and Colorado St. (3-10-1) -- Missouri was without its second-leading scorer Montaque Gill-Caesar for its OT win over LSU. He is listed as 'doubtful' (back) for Saturday's game against Auburn.
-- Colorado's Xavier Johnson (12.8 PPG) has a sprained ankle in 'questionable' for next week's game at Arizona.
-- Dayton used an 11-man rotation when it went all the way to the Elite Eight last season. However, after suspending a pair of big men for the rest of the year and losing guard Ryan Bass to a season-ending injury, the Flyers are down to six scholarship players. It hasn't mattered to date, though, and nobody should expect a team coached by Archie Miller to just go away. Dayton cruised to an easy win at St. Bonaventure last night as a one-point road favorite.
