BYU Cougars at Weber State Wildcats
Tuesday, 12/21/10, 9:00 PM EDT
Opening Point Spread: BYU -12.5
Current Betting Line: BYU -13
BYU will look to bounce back from its first loss of 2010-11 when playing Weber State in Ogden, Utah at the Dee Events Center. The Cougars dropped a 86-79 contest to UCLA on Saturday in the Wooden Classic and committed a season-high 19 turnovers. “That’s as physical as we’ve been guarded with size all year,” said coach Dave Rose. It must be stated the squad will play its final game of eight straight away from Provo with tonight’s contest. The game will serve as the 36th meeting between BYU and Weber State and the Cougars lead the series 25-10, including a 87-70 victory at home last season. The team is a dominating 20-6 ATS on the road over the past three seasons and listed as a double-digit road favorite on the college basketball lines page.
The Cougars were definitely surprised to fall in defeat on Saturday, especially after winning their first 10 games by an average of 21.8 points. “It’s tough to handle,” said All-American candidate Jimmer Fredette. “You don’t want to lose ever.” It’s hard to imagine the club dropping consecutive games due to winning the last three meetings in the series by an average of 20.7 points. Offensively, the team is shooting 51.9 percent from the floor over the past six games, after hitting at just a 40.8 percent clip through the first five contests.
Weber State concludes its 2010-11 pre-Big Sky Conference schedule by hosting a nationally ranked opponent. “They are the most talented team we have faced so far,” said coach Randy Rahe. “They really don’t have a weakness on either end of the floor.” The Wildcats have lost four straight to Top 25 teams since defeating No. 22 Utah 79-77 on December 9, 2000. Picking up a victory tonight is going to be an uphill battle without leading scorer Damain Lillard who is out for the rest of the season. He broke his foot on December 16 at Tulsa. As a team, Weber State averages 77.8 points and shooting 46.5 percent from the field, while holding opponents to 70.1 points on 46.1 percent shooting. The squad is 36-24 ATS over the past three years.
The Wildcats have captured have captured 10 wins in this series and all of them have come in Ogden. Rahe has enjoyed solid success during his four-plus seasons on campus, compiling an 82-51 overall record, including a 49-9 mark on this court. He is 0-4 versus the Cougars while on the sidelines. Despite losing Lillard for the season, the team can’t be counted out, as it was picked to repeat as Big Sky Champions by the league coaches and media.
Bettors will be interested in the Cougars being 10-4 ATS versus the Big Sky, while the Wildcats are 13-6-1 ATS at home.
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