Media by Associated Press – Alabama forward Brandon Miller (24) gets free for an uncontested shot against South Dakota State during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)
The College Basketball schedule hits a bit of a lull this week as conference games and big-time matchups take a bit of a break for finals. This leads to a lot of mismatches on paper during the week, although there can still be value to find in those contests. There’s also one high-profile game on Tuesday as No. 4 Alabama hosts Memphis.
Let’s take a look at the best bets for Tuesday’s action across the nation in college basketball.
Alabama -5.5 (-110)
Coming off a massive comeback win over then No. 1 Houston, Alabama is one of three ranked teams in action on Tuesday. No. 5 Houston and No. 9 Arizona are massive favorites against low-majors while Alabama is -5.5 against Memphis.
Alabama is 8-1 overall on the season, 4-0 at home, and they are 5-3-1 ATS. Memphis is 8-2 on the season, 6-4 ATS, and 1-1 in true road games. Last December, Memphis beat Alabama by 14 at home, covering the -4.0 spread with ease as the game also went over by 18 points.
The Tide are led by Brandon Miller who has 17.9 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game. Miller struggled against Houston on Saturday with eight points, all from the line, as he went 0-for-8 from the field. His teammates picked up the slack as Noah Clowney posted a 16-point, 11-rebound double-double, Jaden Bradley had 12 points off the bench, and Ohio transfer Mark Sears scored 11 points.
Memphis beat No. 11 Auburn by nine over the weekend in Atlanta. They are 3-0 against SEC opponents this season, with a road loss to St. Louis and a neutral site loss to Seton Hall. The Tigers are led by guard Kendric Davis with 18.4 ppg, while forward Deandre Williams averages 14.3 ppg.
The Tide rank 26th in the nation in scoring at 82.1 ppg, and they shoot 35% from deep. Memphis averages 74.4 ppg, and they are in the bottom 100 in the nation in 3-point shooting. The Tide grab 49.6 rebounds per game while Memphis gets just 37.1 per game, and the glass could be a big key to this game.
Look for Alabama to back up their win over Houston by taking care of business at home and beating Memphis by more than six.
NC State -6.5
In a non-conference game on Tuesday, NC State (8-3) hosts Furman (7-3), and they are favored by 6.5 points. The Wolfpack are 6-1 at home this season and 5-4-2 ATS. Furman is 2-2 away from home overall, and they are 3-5 ATS.
NC State is 0-2 in ACC play, but they’ve won their last four non-conference games by double digits. Their only out-of-conference loss came by six to Kansas in the Battle 4 Atlantis. Furman lost at home to High Point last week and also has losses to Old Dominion and Penn State in the Charleston Classic.
Furman has struggled on defense this season, ranking 234th in the nation with 70.7 ppg allowed, and they are 307th in the country, allowing 37% shooting from 3-point range. That plays into NC State’s strength as the Wolfpack shoot 36% from deep and rank 38th in the nation at 81 ppg scored.
Look for NC State to get their offense going early and keep Furman off balance as they cover the 6.5-point spread in a non-conference home win.
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