| Range | W | L | P | +/- (Units) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yesterday | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Last 30 Days | 7 | 5 | 0.00 | +3.80 |
| Season to Date | 17 | 9 | 0.00 | +15.38 |
SETON HALL +7½ -106 over Villanova
9:00 PM EST. The Wildcats have been paying off like a broken slot machine. Since the beginning of the 2013/14 season up to its very last game against Georgetown, Villanova has gone an incredible 56-27 against the spread. The ‘Cats are coming off an historic 33-3 campaign and they’re off to another great start this year with a 16-2 overall record, which includes a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play. There is nothing fluky about the Wildcats' success. With such a stranglehold on the league, all it takes is a small regression to offer bettors opportunity. Last year's regular season for ‘Nova was for all intents and purposes perfect. Keep in mind there was literally no time lost to injury out of Villanova's core group of players. With the losses of valuable seniors Darrun Hilliard and JayVaughn Pinkston and Dylan Ennis (transferred to Oregon), covering numbers at such a high clip appears unrealistic. This isn't the type of team you sit back and blindly fade from here on in but there are going to be prime spots and prices to bet against this squad and we trust we found one such case here.
Villanova’s two losses this year came against two ranked teams in Oklahoma and Virginia. The Wildcats didn’t just lose, they lost by 23 and 11 points respectively. The only other two ranked team the ‘Cats played was Xavier and Butler and while they whacked the Musketeers, they won by just five over Butler. 14 days ago, the Wildcats were a 15½-point home favorite over Seton Hall and defeated them by just nine. ‘Nova led by seven at the half and the Pirates hung around throughout with a terrific second half. That score is a little misleading as well, as the Wildcats kept clanging shots off the rim but forward Daniel Ochefu played like a man possessed and kept cleaning up all those missed shots. Villanova is on a serious roll with 49 wins and five losses since the start of last year. To back them here, you are paying a serious premium and that’s something we cannot get behind. Besides that, Seton Hall is absolutely improved but their 3-2 conference mark has them far under the radar.
Things got really bad for Seton Hall last season with locker room issues and the Pirates' two best players and co-alpha dogs, Isaiah Whitehead and Sterling Gibbs, unable to coexist on the floor at the same time. Gibbs is gone, leaving the talented Whitehead in charge. The Pirates have a 20-point win over a greatly improved Marquette squad. They have a notable out-of-conference 12-point victory over Ole Miss. They have a notable road victory over Providence by nine points. Overall the Pirates are a quiet 13-4. Head coach Kevin Willard is brilliant in his preparation and matchups, getting the right people on the floor at the right time. Now Willard has had two weeks to look at game film from his previous encounter with Villanova 14 days ago. The Hall won't garner much betting attention here because all focus is on the Wildcats and that provides us with this outstanding buy-low/sell high opportunity. Upset possibility. Pick: Seton Hall +7½ -106 (Risking 2.12 units to win 2).
