UNLV Runnin’ Rebels at San Diego State Aztecs
Wednesday, 1/12/11, 10:00 PM EDT
Opening Point Spread: San Diego State -5.5
Current Betting Line: San Diego State -5
Opening Total: 130.5
Current Total: 132.5
UNLV recorded a dominating 83-49 home victory over TCU for its first win in Mountain West Conference play last time out and will now travel to San Diego, California for its first road game of the conference season. “For 40 minutes, it was probably the highest percentage of really good possessions both defensively and offensively that we’ve had all season,” said head coach Lon Kruger. “It was good to see that bounce-back effort.” The team fell out of the rankings recently due to a 89-77 home loss to BYU last Wednesday. The team is set to face a major challenge tonight in playing the highest-ranked team in the 12-year history of the MWC. UNLV is 7-8 ATS on the season and 38-37 ATS over the past three years. The squad is currently getting points on the college basketball lines page.
The Runnin’ Rebels are playing their seventh season under the guidance of Kruger, who has compiled an impressive 150-65 mark over that span. UNLV returned al five starters and five other letter winners from last season’s team that finished 25-9. This will mark the 50th meeting between UNLV and San Diego State in men’s basketball, with the Rebels holding a 32-17 all-time lead in the series, but they’ve dropped five of the last six meetings overall. Last year, UNLV was 9-3 in true road games and is currently 3-1 in this situation during the 2010-11 campaign. The Rebels have won 12 of their last 16 true road games overall.
San Diego has held steady at No. 6 in the polls for the second consecutive week and is one of five remaining undefeated schools nationally. The Aztecs also own the second-longest win streak in college basketball and will be playing their only home game in the first 18 days of 2011 tonight. Head coach Steve Fisher has seen his squad win 12 straight and 35 of 37 on its home court, but knows tonight’s opponent will prove tough. “This is a veteran team with a lot of players, that’s deep and well coached,” he stated. “We’ll get their best shot and hopefully we will give them ours.” San Diego State is 10-5 ATS on the season and 7-1 ATS As a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points over the past three years.
The Aztecs are 17-0 for the first time in school history and 11 of those victories have been by 13 or more points. A win tonight would extend Fisher’s longest winning streak to open a season in his storied career. San Diego State has won 24 consecutive home games against teams from outside the AP Top 25. It’s important to point out that the team has excelled in the second half, outscoring opponents 669-486.
Bettors will be interested in knowing that the Rebels are 11-4 ATS on the road, while the Aztecs are 12-5-1 ATS overall.
