Tuesday's College Basketball Plays
3-Unit Play. #557 Take Rider (-3) over Fairfield (7 p.m., Tuesday, January 23)
Rider already beat Fairfield by 19 at home in the first meeting earlier this month, and there isn't enough that has changed from a few weeks ago to avoid another similar outcome for these two. The Broncs have flourished in MAAC play at 6-2 and are putting up some strong offensive numbers at 81.3 points per game. Fairfield are on the opposite end of the spectrum, just 7-11 overall and 2-5 in league play, even allowing more points than scoring. Fairfield are 0-6 against the RPI Top 100, and Rider rank inside that number. Even though the Broncs won over the weekend, they are still coming off their worst offensive outing of the year, narrowly beating Marist and scoring just 60 points. That's another big reason to get on them here, firing with a much stronger effort and chasing another road victory. Rider has as many wins away from home as does Fairfield at home. The MAAC doesn't have an overwhelming home court edge with its team. There is value on the road, and this is one of those spots. Rider gets its second double digit win over Fairfield and sweep the season series in the process.
7-Unit Play. #548 Take Minnesota (-3) over Northwestern (9 p.m., Tuesday, January 23)
January has been a poor month for the Gophers. They were 13-3 prior to January 6's home game against IU, which started a slump which is now five of six losses. Included in that was a 23-point loss at Northwestern. Now they get an opportunity tonight to bounce back, not just against the Wildcats but moreover a simple conference victory to hopefully get them back on track. There are plenty of opportunities left in the conference schedule to right the ship and re-earn a solid seed to the NCAA Tournament. This may not be a marquee win on the resume, but it's argubaly more important to just get a strong win for some momentum into February. Northwestern is just 1-6 against the RPI Top 100, while Minnesota has been dominant at 12-2 against teams with RPI 100+ rankings this season. The Wildcats are 1-5 on the road this season are 10-3 at home. The Gophers are scoring 81.6 points per game at home while Northwestern are producing 20 less at 61.5 in road games. Despite their recent struggles, tonight represents a really great chance to early a win. They need it. Simple as that. More urgency and playing at home, Minnesota puts together a comprehensive win over Northwestern. Gophers get it done by 16.
Best of Luck - Strike Point Sports