Top NCAAB Betting of the Week – January 22nd Edition

Kansas basketball fans will never see touted freshman Billy Preston play a game for the Jayhawks. Preston, whose eligibility has been in question for months, has signed with BC Igokea, a European club located in Bosnia and Herzegovina. KU was investigating the “financial picture” of a car he was driving in a single-car crash in early November. Apparently, Preston was tired of waiting for an NCAA ruling. Here are two interesting NCAAB betting games this week. Check back for College Basketball odds on gameday. Rankings could change come Monday.

Top NCAAB Betting of the Week – January 22nd Edition

Here is Sunday’s updated @CBSSports Top 25 (and one) college basketball rankings with some words on Kentucky at the top. 1. Villanova 2. Virginia 3. Duke 4. Purdue 5. Kansas …https://t.co/0PKHag273I

— Gary Parrish (@GaryParrishCBS) January 21, 2018

No. 20 Clemson at No. 2 Virginia

When: Tuesday, 7 PM ET (ACC Network Extra) Clemson had one a good news/bad news weekend. First the good: the Tigers beat visiting Notre Dame on Saturday, 67-58. Gabe DeVoe had 17 points including a critical 3-pointer with 3:18 left to keep the Tigers out front. Shelton Mitchell had 10 of the Tigers’ final 20 points after Notre Dame cut an 11-point deficit to 47-46, and freshman Amir Simms hit a 3 from the right corner with just over a minute left that proved the winning blow for the Tigers. Clemson had been 0-5 all-time vs. the Irish. The bad news was that the Tigers lost senior starting forward Donte Grantham to a season-ending torn ACL in that game. Grantham suffered the injury in the second half as his right knee buckled after he was fouled from behind. Grantham was averaging 14.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He had started 113 of 114 games in his NCAA career. Grantham considered entering the NBA draft following his junior season but opted to return and play one final year for the Tigers. In addition to ranking second on the team in points and rebounds, Grantham also has the third-most assists (45), second-most blocks (17) and fourth-most steals (15). He was shooting 56 percent from the floor and 42 percent from 3-point range. David Skara, Mark Donnal and Aamir Simms will all be asked to step up and take on additional minutes and responsibilities with Grantham out.

What Else Has Happened with Clemson?

In addition, Clemson lost out on a commitment from prep phenom Zion Williamson on Saturday. Many expected the McDonald’s All-American to go to Clemson as he’s from South Carolina, but he surprised by committing to Duke. Williamson has played in only four games as a senior because of an injury and is averaging 37.0 points and 16.5 rebounds. Duke now has the top three players in the country as No. 1 recruit R.J. Barrett and No. 2 recruit Cameron Reddish already have signed with the Blue Devils. As usual, Virginia is an amazing defensive team.  The Cavaliers lead the nation in scoring defense — holding opponents to 52.6 points per game — and rank first in defensive efficiency, too, per KenPom. UVA has arguably never had an individual defender as good as Isaiah Wilkins at that power forward spot. In addition, the athleticism and length of players such as De’Andre Hunter and Devon Hall causes problems on the wings. The No. 2 ranking is UVA’s highest since March 2, 2015 (No. 2). UVA has been ranked in the AP poll for eight straight weeks and has been ranked in the top 10 in each of the past four polls.  Virginia is the fifth team in ACC history to move from unranked in preseason to the top 3, joining Miami (2012-13), Georgia Tech (2003-04), Wake Forest (1980-81) and North Carolina (1972-73).

Penn State at No. 22 Ohio State

When: Thursday, 8 PM ET (Big Ten Network) Ohio State is one of the surprise teams in the country at 17-4 overall and 8-0 in the Big Ten. This was thought to be rebuilding season when the school abruptly fired coach Thad Matta back in June. Matta won a program-best 337 games during his tenure while losing just 123 times (.733). His teams reached two Final Fours and five Sweet 16s in nine NCAA tournament appearances. The school clearly hit a home run in hiring Butler’s Chris Holtmann to replace Matta. Holtmann went 70-31 in his three seasons at Butler, reaching the NCAA tournament each year. He is the first Big Ten coach to record an 8-0 record in conference play during his first season since Sam Barry went 11-0 to start the 1923 campaign at Iowa 95 years ago. Holtmann is the third coach in conference history to start his career in league play at 8-0 or better. Now healthy, Keita Bates-Diop could push for player of the year honors in the Big Ten. With Bates-Diop carrying the brunt of the workload on offense, teammates like C.J. Jackson, Kam Williams and Jae’Sean Tate have found open spaces to their respective and varied likings offensively. Jackson and Williams are shooting a combined 45 percent from beyond the arc this season, and Tate’s converting 61 percent of his 2-point tries.

Will OSU Get a Better Ranking?

OSU probably will rise from No. 22 in Monday’s polls as it hammered Minnesota on Saturday to already equal its win total from last season. Bates-Diop led the Buckeyes with 17 points and 12 rebounds, his eighth double-double of the season. Bates-Diop reached 1,000 points for his career. He is the 55th player in Ohio State history to reach 1,000 points for his career. Tate had 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. Kaleb Wesson had 15 points and eight rebounds. Penn State (13-8, 3-5) lost a second straight Saturday, 70-61 at Northwestern. The Nittany Lions failed to make a single field goal in the final 10:37 of the game. The Wildcats outscored the opposition 19-6 during that span, in which the Nittany Lions started with a four-point edge and ended up making six free throws. During that 10:37 stretch, Penn State was 0 for 11 from the field. Shep Garner had 22 points in the loss. The 22-point outing for Garner marked his 17th career game with 20 or more points and his highest total against Big Ten competition since having 24 vs. Rutgers on February 4, 2017.

Expert NCAAB Betting Predictions

Virginia will win a low-scoring game vs. Clemson and Ohio State will beat Penn State by double digits.