Arkansas -1.5 over Evansville
I see great value in this game as laying 1.5 with the Razorbacks standing at 3-4 with their 3 wins coming against Southern University, NW State and Charleston Southern. And there 4 losses against Wake Forest by 3 , Standford by 3 and Ga. Tech by 10 both in New York at the NIT tip off tournament and to Akron by 8 at home, The loss ended a 25-game home winning streak against non conference teams for Arkansas, which is now 40-2 under coach Mike Anderson at home in non conference play.
Arkansas has won 56 of its last 57 games at home against unranked non-conference opponents, including a 42-1 mark under Mike Anderson.
The Razorbacks are ranked in the top 25 in the country in points per game, notching 85.7 per contest. Offensively, Arkansas has shot 46.1% while its opponents have shot 45.5%; one staple of the Razorbacks is their stifling defense, which has forced 113 turnovers.
The Razorbacks are led by Dusty Hannahs with 17.6 points per game while hitting an unbelievable 25 out of his 26 free throw attempts on the season. Dusty Hannahs ranks No. 3 in the country with a .962 free throw percentage and leads the SEC in three-point field percentage among players with 20-plus attempts.
Next up for Arkansas is Moses Kingsley, who has notched 16.4 PPG while posting a team-high 9.7 rebounds. Anthlon Bell (15.7 points) and Jimmy Whitt (10.3 points) also average double figures in scoring. Then there is Jabril Durham who is one of four players in the country with three double-digit assist n. He has three of the six double-digit assist performances in the SEC this year and ranks No. 3 in the nation with 8.0 assists per game.
Evansville comes in at 7-1 and their only loss was to providence in the wooden classic in California by 10. Evansville is led by senior guard DJ Balentine who leads the Purple Aces with 22.3 points per game, which is 14th among all Division I players. He also averages a team-best six assists, while shooting 50.4 percent from the field. On the inside, senior center Egidijus Mockevicius is posting double-double numbers with 17.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per contest. He also leads Evansville with 2.6 blocks on average. Overall, the Purple Aces are second in the nation in assists per game (22.4) and fourth in the country in field goal shooting (53.2 percent).
Arkansas lost all five starters from last years team. So it’s a rebuilding year. They are talented, but the depth isn't there and they are incredibly thin in the front court. Arkansas just doesn't have a very complete roster right now. These are the reasons that the line is -1.5.
Now having said all of that, I do not see nor feel that Evansville can win this game. I feel that Arkansas will win this game by 5 to 8 points. I like to catch match ups like this in December where a lower level mid major team travels to take on a solid historic Power 5 conference team that is in rebuilding mode. A team such as Arkansas is right now is one that is being rebuild by Coaches like Mike Anderson from the ground up by defense , defense , defense and stressing not taking a possession off and laying 1.5 points with a team that will surely play defense at home after losing to Akron at home is where I like wagering my money. Win or lose I like this type game to bet on.
My Play
Arkansas -1.5 for 3 units
I'll add a few other plays later
GLTA