Boise State Broncos AT Utah Utes
December 17th, 2010 at 9 PM EST
Opening Line: Utah -3
Current Line: Utah -3
Opening Total: 139
Current Total: 138
Opening Moneyline: Utah -155 / Boise State +135
Current Moneyline: Utah -155 / Boise State +135
Tonight brings together two very evenly matched teams that both sport 6-3 records. Boise State has dropped their past three games, however, to Drake, UNLV, and Long Beach State. Utah has won three of their last four, with victories against Fresno State, Bradley, and Pepperdine, and an 11 point loss last game to Michigan.
As you would expect from teams with winning records, both sport positive point differentials, but it is Boise State that has the bigger differential of +12.6, while Utah is +4.4. Boise State is 5-2 ATS this year and 4-1 ATS on the road. Utah is 3-3 ATS and 3-1 ATS at home. These two teams have not met since 2001, and Utah won that match 64-49.
Utah is led by 6’7″ junior forward Will Clyburn and and 6’0″ junior point guard Josh Watkins, who together account for 47% of the Utes’ offensive production. Clyburn plays nearly the entire game most nights and is averaging 35.6 minutes per game. In those minutes, he averages a team high 19.2 points per game and a team high 9.0 rebounds per game, though J.J. O’Brien’s 8.0 leads the team in rebounds per minute (worth noting he’s only played one game, however). Watkins is a solid point guard with 15.1 points per game and 3.9 assists a night. Utah is not a good three point shooting team, despite the fact they attempt 16.7 per game, hitting only 29.8% from behind the arc. If Boise State can lay off Utah’s perimeter players, denying penetration, they will succeed on defense because you want to give Utah the outside shot rather than deal with Clyburn down low.
Boise State is led by the tandem of Robert Arnold and La’Shard Anderson, who average 17.1 points per game and 14.2 respectively, accounting for 43% of Boise State’s points. Arnold, a 6’6″ senior shooting guard, is hitting a respectable 38.5% from downtown and has already had 3 games with 22 points or more. He struggled last game against Drake, going just 2 of 13 from the floor en route to tying his season low of 9 points. He will have to look for his outside shot tonight. He’s streaky (last game he was 0 of 7 from three, the game before he was 4 of 8 ) but can score in a hurry and will give Boise State a strong chance of winning if he can get hot. His backcourt mate, 6’1″ point guard La’Shard Anderson is a poor three point shooter but a good floor general and creator for his teammates, as he averages a team high 4.6 assists per game. Tiny and quick, he will look to pentrate against the Utah guards and break down either the man to man or zone defenses that Utah runs. Stopping his penetration will be a key to the game for Utah.
Tonight’s game promises to be a good one as college basketball oddsmakers have indicated with the 3 point spread. The game could easily go in Boise State’s favor, but because Utah is at home the college basketball odds favor them.
