Hard as it may be to believe, this is the last Tuesday of college basketball’s regular season. In fact, there are several mid-major conference tournaments getting underway Tuesday.
Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com
Arguably the biggest NCAA Tournament bubble game of the night is from the SEC as Mississippi State (19-10) visits South Carolina (17-12) – by all accounts both are on the wrong side of the bubble currently. The winner here would seem to have the upper hand in terms of a potential bid with all other things being equal, and that’s definitely the Bulldogs if they prevail.
That’s because MSU beat visiting South Carolina 79-76 on February 19. Bulldogs star Reggie Perry had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. USC was down 11 with under four minutes left and got as close as a point but could never draw even. The Gamecocks are -3 this time, and both teams are 10-5 ATS in their past 15 this year.
Also from the SEC, Tennessee (16-13) visits No. 6 Kentucky (24-5). Might be a bit of a trap game for the Wildcats after they clinched the 49th regular-season conference title in school history with Saturday’s 73-66 win over No. 15 Auburn to split the season series. If the Cats manage to win out through the SEC Tournament, they have a chance at a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Tennessee was an excellent team last year and reached the Sweet 16 of the Big Dance, but Coach Rick Barnes lost a ton of talent off that squad and the disappointing Vols will not be playing in this year’s NCAA Tournament barring a run to the SEC Tournament title. UT lost 77-64 at home to Kentucky on February 8 and the Cats are -8.5 here. They are 11-1 SU in their last 12 at home in this series.
No. 9 Maryland (23-6) can clinch at least a share of the Big Ten regular-season title with a win at Rutgers (18-11), which is also on the NCAA Tournament bubble thanks to a three-game losing streak. An upset of the Terps would probably lock up a bid. This is the Scarlet Knights’ home finale and they have dominated there with a 17-1 record. Rutgers lost at Maryland on February 4, 56-51. The Terrapins trailed 25-20 at halftime after shooting 24 percent. Rutgers is 0-8 against Maryland since both teams joined the Big Ten in 2014. The Terps are 1-4-1 ATS in their past six this season and are +1.5.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, No. 16 Michigan State (20-9) visits No. 20 Penn State (21-8) with the Spartans looking for payback. PSU won in East Lansing on February 4, 75-70. It was the Lions’ first victory there since 2009 and just the second in 25 games. MSU is -2 but 3-8 ATS in its past 11 on the road.
