Tip off: 7:30 PM EST
Spread: MIS -4
Total: 121
Bet at Bookmaker, where these odds were drawn from.
Auburn
One year at at time, Auburn fans. After a dismal 11-20 finish last season, the Tigers have improved to .500 this year and are 15-15 heading into the SEC conference tournament. They didn’t play particularly well in SEC play though, going only 5-11 against conference foes.
The Tigers have also struggled of late, and have lost 6 of their last 8 games, though they did win by 15 last game against LSU. Frankie Sullivan went for 22 points and received a combined 26 from teammates Chris Denson and Kenny Gabriel. Sullivan has returned to the form he showed in 2009-2010, primarily as a result of seeing the necessary minutes. His scoring average is identical to his sophomore year (12.7 points per game), though he is not shooting anywhere near as well from the floor (39.3% this year vs. 43.1% in 09-10). Sullivan has scored 20 or more five times this season and the Tigers are 3-2 in those games.
In addition to Sullivan’s 12.7, the Tigers also get 12.2 per game from 6’8″ senior forward Kenny Gabriel. Gabriel also leads the team in rebounding with 7.6 boards per contest, and he is a superb defender, blocking over two shots a game and coming up with over a steal per game, as well. Gabriel is the only senior on the team and is a JUCO player. He’s still shooting too many threes for someone who shoots at a 32% clip, but without Gabriel the Tigers would be far below .500 instead of hovering at it.
Tigers Betting Trends:
Last 10 vs Ole Miss: 5-5 SU, 6-4 ATS, 7-3 OU, Avg Total: 147.1
Ole Miss
This season has been pretty similar to last for the Ole Miss Rebels…Last year they won 20 games and lost 14, and posted a 7-9 conference record; this year they are 18-12 with an 8-8 conference record. They were invited to the NIT last year, and they’ll likely be NIT bound again.
They haven’t been scoring anywhere near as well as a year ago when they put up an offensive rating of 118. Losing Chris Warren is the main reason why, of course. In his wake, Terrance Henry and Dundrecous Nelson have played some solid ball, as has big man Murphy Holloway, but it’s still going to take time before Ole Miss makes the climb to being considered a Big Dance threat on an annual basis.
Holloway, a 6’7″ junior, spent a year in South Carolina doing family related things, and has come back strong to average 11.1 points per game and 8.9 rebound s per game. He rarely turns the ball over and has worked well down low with Reginald Buckner, who averages the second most rebounds on the team at 8.4 per game. Holloway has recorded 10 double doubles this season and Ole Miss is 9-1 in those games, clearly illustrating the importance of Holloway’s play.
Henry, now a senior, is having his finest collegiate season. He’s efficient (46.8% FG) from the floor, but turns it over way, way too much with 3.5 blunders per game. He also doesn’t contribute much defensively as far as forcing turnovers, so while his 12.3 points per game are a nice addition, one must be careful not to overstate his importance to this Rebels team.
Rebels Betting Trends:
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Ole Miss’ last 6 games and they are 8-15 ATS in their last 23 against the Auburn Tigers. The Rebels are 4-2 SU in their last 6 against Auburn an the total has gone OVER in 5 of the Rebels’ last 6 contests against Auburn.
