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Buckeyes host Hawkeyes in Big Ten actionNCAA Basketball Betting Lines02/07/2010 - Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will attempt to complete the regular-season sweep of the Iowa Hawkeyes when the two meet in Columbus today for a Big Ten Conference clash. Iowa is in desperate need of a victory, as it has suffered three consecutive defeats to fall to 8-15 overall and 2-8 in league play. The Hawkeyes were most recently in action on Wednesday when they struggled at the offensive end in a 57-49 loss to Illinois. Iowa has played six true road games so far this season, and the team has lost five of those tilts. Ohio State has been perfect at home this season, as it has won all 14 of the games it has played in Columbus. The Buckeyes are 17-6 overall, including 7-3 in Big Ten action, and they have won their last three outings. On Wednesday, Ohio State defeated Penn State in a 75-62 final. Iowa owns a 75-71 series lead over Ohio State, but the Buckeyes edged the Hawkeyes by a score of 65-57 final on January 27th. The Hawkeyes have been held to fewer than 50 points in back-to-back affairs, and a lack of offensive production has plagued the team all season. Through 23 games, Iowa is scoring a mere 61.2 ppg on 41.4 percent shooting from the floor. Defensively, the club is permitting 64.8 ppg to foes. Matt Gatens is scoring 12.1 ppg on 36.7 percent shooting from the field, so his team-leading output would be better if not for a lack of efficiency. Anthony Tucker is the only double-digit scorer in the fold for the Hawkeyes, as he is netting 11.9 ppg. In the loss to Illinois last time out, Iowa connected on only 29.6 percent of its field goal attempts. Evan Turner is scoring 18.9 ppg on 55.9 percent shooting from the floor this season to pace Ohio State. More than just a scorer, Turner is pulling down 9.5 rpg to go along with 97 assists. William Buford provides 14.2 ppg for the Buckeyes, while both David Lighty and Jon Diebler add 12.9 ppg. The team is generating 74.9 ppg on 50 percent shooting from the floor, while opponents are being limited to 61.0 ppg on 41 percent field goal efficiency. Against Penn State last time out, Ohio State shot 50 percent from the field and earned an 18-12 edge in points from the foul line. Turner posted 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Buckeyes, while Buford added 19 points and five assists.
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How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later. While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better. For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory. 1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season. 2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped. How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number. Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules. Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically. How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games). Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition. Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets. To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
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