It was a busy week in college basketball as Duke and Michigan State still rule the nation. A lot of eyes are on Arizona right now as they continue to struggle. Viewed as one of the top teams in the country heading into the season, they have really labored. They struggled in the Battle 4 Atlantis, losing three straight times. While falling to No. 18 Purdue is understanding, losses to SMU and North Carolina State are much harder to explain. The good news is they have bounced back, getting a win over Long Beach State on Wednesday and looking very strong in the process. They won by 35 points, which might give them a shot in the arm. We’ll find out more about them very soon as they will play No. 9 Texas A&M on December 5th and then face No. 24 Alabama right after on December 9th.
1. Duke Blue Devils
Last Week: 1
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +300
The Blue Devils (9-0) beat Portland State, Texas in overtime and Florida to win their bracket at the PK-80, then they won at Indiana in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. They’ll return home to host South Dakota and St. Francis (PA) this week, and Marvin Bagley III won the MVP for Duke in Portland. Bagley averaged 27.3 points and 15 rebounds in the tournament, then he added 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win at Indiana, and he continues to look like a future #1 pick in the NBA draft.
2. Michigan State Spartans
Last Week: 2
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +500
The Spartans (5-1) beat DePaul, Connecticut and North Carolina to win their bracket at the PK-80, and they’ll go home to host Notre Dame in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge and Nebraska before visiting Rutgers. Cassius Winston won the MVP for his team in Portland, averaging 15 points, five rebounds and 6.6 assists as the Spartans beat all three teams by an average of 20 points. This allowed them to get some rest for Miles Bridges, who sprained his ankle coming into the tournament.
3. Kansas Jayhawks
Last Week: 4
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +1000
The Wildcats (6-0) routed Oakland and Toledo at home in the Hoophall Miami Invitational, which will continue this week when they play Syracuse in Miami. Kansas will also play Washington in the Jayhawk Shootout in Kansas City. The Jayhawks continue to roll offensive, ranking sixth in the country in points per game and fourth in assists. Five players are averaging at least 13.5 points for the Jayhawks.
4. Arizona Wildcats
Last Week: 3
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +1000
The Wildcats (4-3) lost at the Battle 4 Atlantis to North Carolina State, SMU and Purdue, but they returned home to romp over Long Beach State. The Wildcats will head out to visit UNLV before playing Texas A&M in the Valley of the Sun Shootout in Phoenix. Arizona lost their first two games to North Carolina State and SMU by six points each, but then they lost by 25 to Purdue and are now tied for 181st in points allowed.
5. Kentucky Wildcats
Last Week: 5
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +1200
The Wildcats (6-1) blasted Fort Wayne and UIC at home, and this week, they’ll welcome Harvard to town. Kentucky defeated these teams by an average of 26.5, and their offensive output was encouraging as Kentucky scored 86 points against Fort Wayne and 107 points against UIC. That isn’t bad for a team that is still tied for 132nd in the nation in points, but the Wildcats still have a lot of work to do at that end of the floor.
6. Villanova Wildcats
Last Week: 7
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +1500
The Wildcats (7-0) beat Western Kentucky, Tennessee and Northern Iowa to win the Battle 4 Atlantis, and they begun the Big 5 (a group of schools battled for their own Philadelphia city championship) with a win against Penn. They’ll also play Saint Joseph’s in the Big 5 and Villanova will head to New York to play Gonzaga in the Jimmy V Classic. Jalen Brunson has been lights out to start the season for the Wildcats, averaging 18.3 point while shooting 52% from the three-point line.
7. Wichita State Shockers
Last Week: 6
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +1800
The Shockers (5-1) beat California and Marquette at the Maui Invitational before losing by one point to Notre Dame, then they returned home to host Savannah State. The Shockers will head to Baylor and then return home to host South Dakota State. The loss to Notre Dame might haunt the Shockers as they led by 16 points before the wheels fell off, and they scored 66 points in that game, which is well below their average of 90 points per game.
8. North Carolina Tar Heels
Last Week: 8
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +2000
The Tar Heels beat Portland and Arkansas before losing to Michigan State in one of the finals at the PK-80, then they beat Michigan at home in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. Still, it has been an encouraging start to the season for Luke Maye, who is averaging 20.1 points and 9.4 reboinds through his first four games, shooting 55.3% from the floor and 45.5% from the three-point line. However, he is shooting just 53.1% from the free-throw line and teams will start to key on that if he doesn’t get better.
9. USC Trojans
Last Week: 9
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +2500
The Trojans (4-1) beat Lehigh and lost to Texas A&M at home, and next they’ll visit SMU this week. The Trojans scored just 59 points in their loss to the Aggies, and they’re 107th in the country in points per game and they’re 214th in assists. USC has to move the ball around a little better if they’re going to push the top teams in the country by the time conference play starts.
10. Texas A&M Aggies
Last Week: —
NCAA Basketball Title Odds: +3000
The Aggies (6-0) won at home over Pepperdine and at USC, and they’ll host UT Rio Grande Valley before heading to Phoenix to play Arizona in the Valley of the Sun Shootout. The Aggies, who share these odds with Texas and Cincinnati, have a balanced scoring attack in which five players are averaging at least 10 points per game. D.J. Hogg (16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds) and Tyler Davis (13.7 points, 8.2 rebounds) are an excellent one-two punch that could make some noise in March.
The 2017-18 NBA is well underway. It’s been a wild offseason already, but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest NBA betting lines right here.
