*3 Star Play Over* The Denver Pioneers are dead last in defensive efficiency nationally (365th). Denver has allowed 84 points or more in nine of their ten games against Division One opponents. They have allowed 93 points or more in three of their last four against Division One teams.

Northern Colorado is always strong on offense under Coach Smiley. They are 29th in effective field goal percentage this year. Northern Colorado takes a lot of shots from long range. Denver is last in the country in 3 point field goal percentage defense.

Denver's offense is pretty good. The Pioneers should be fairly efficient against a mediocre Northern Colorado defense.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Ohio State Buckeyes and North Carolina Tar Heels meet at State Farm Arena in Georgia for a fun non-conference neutral site contest before both start into league play soon. 

Ohio State has feasted on a lot of weaker defenses so far this season. The Buckeyes have a great leader in Bruce Thornton, but their secondary scoring options are not consistent. 

North Carolina is 5th nationally in effective field goal percentage defense. The Tar Heels are the tallest team in the country, and I think their length will bother the Buckeyes offense.

No one has scored more than 74 points on North Carolina all season. The implied team total for Ohio State here is about 75.5. 

The under is 17-10 at this venue.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Oklahoma Sooners have a top three defense in the country. Oklahoma is 2nd in success rate allowed. They are 1st in rushing success rate allowed. Oklahoma is also third in havoc created, while Alabama is 27th in havoc rate allowed. The Alabama offensive line has played very poorly in recent weeks. 

Ty Simpson is a good quarterback. He hasn't been getting much help from the wide receivers. It also seems Simpson is less than 100% healthy. Williams at WR is definitely banged up too. Alabama's offense has been out of sorts for quite a while now. They scored only 20 at home against LSU. They had just 280 yards of offense against Auburn. They could muster only 7 points against Georgia.

The Oklahoma offense has been a mess as well. Oklahoma had just 212 total yards in the first meeting against Alabama. They were aided by Alabama turnovers in their scoring 23 points. Oklahoma put up only 17 points against Missouri and 17 points against LSU in their last game. John Mateer hasn't been the same since his injury and surgery. The Sooners are 106th in rushing success rate, and that has been the lone way to beat the Alabama defense during this season.

The weather here is interesting as well. A blend of three forecasts calls for sustained winds of 20 mph with gusts in the 30-35 mph range. That should change the game a bit.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* UT Martin is 318th in average possession length. The Skyhawks are trying hard to slow the game down. Tennessee State is 140th in average possession length.

Tennessee State is 357th in the nation in effective field goal percentage offense. They are good at forcing steals on defense, but they aren't efficient in getting points off those steals. The Tigers are still pretty fast paced, but they are more defensive oriented under Nolan Smith this season.

UT Martin has had five straight games below this total. I think this will make a sixth straight.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Seattle Seahawks host the LA Rams in what is one of the biggest games of the season thus far in the NFL. 

Seattle and LA are both top five in the NFL in yards per play. They are also 1st and 7th in the NFL in yards per play allowed. 

The first game between these two was 21-19 in a hard fought battle in Los Angeles. Now, they play in Seattle tonight in some pretty poor weather conditions. 

A blend of three forecasts calls for 20 mph winds at kickoff with gusts to 39 mph. The winds will calm some during the game. In the latter part of the game the winds should be in the 14 mph area with gusts to 25 mph. There are flood warnings in the area too, and off and on rain should change the game too. A combination of wind and some rain does change the game a great deal. 

Seattle's defense is only giving up 3.8 yards per play at home this season.

Lumen Field is 5-2 to the under with winds of 10 mph or higher. The winds will be significantly higher than that tonight.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Indiana State is a completely different team this year. They had to win really high scoring games last year, but their defense has been much improved this season. The Sycamores are 48th in shot quality shot selection allowed. They have allowed an average of 59 points per game at home this season.

Bradley is always one of the best defensive teams in the MVC. The Braves have a nice combination of shot blockers and guards who can steal the basketball.

This total has been pushed up in the market, and I think it is several points too high now. 

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Eastern Illinois Panthers are 324th in the nation in average possession length. This is a team that wants to move very slowly with Simmons as their head coach. SIU Edwardsville is 300th in overall tempo, so I don't expect them to be pushing the issue here either.

Four of the last five games between these two teams have finished with 125 total points or fewer. These teams are both weak on the offensive end, and they aren't good at getting to the free throw line or shooting from the outside.

SIU Edwardsville is loaded with shot blockers led by Sakenis. Eastern Illinois tries to score near the hoop as often as possible.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Delaware Blue Hens defense has been overmatched against good rushing attacks. Delaware has allowed a whopping 23 rushes of 20 yards or more this season. That's among the worst in the nation. Whether it is Lunch Winfield or Walker Howard, I would expect Louisiana to be able to move the ball well in this one.

Delaware's offense is top 25 in plays per minute. They'll push the pace and get plenty of plays off in this one. The Louisiana defense is 127th in the nation in defensive success rate allowed. Delaware's passing attack is likely to move the ball pretty easily in this game.

Delaware played a 61-31 game against UTEP. They played a 59-30 game against Liberty. They gave up 52 points and a whopping 9.7 yards per play against a very mediocre Wake Forest offense.

I think both teams score quite a bit here.

Take the over. 

*Note this line has moved up some since I took this last week. I like this one as long as it is below 63. Thanks and good luck* 

*3 Star Play Under* The Mercyhurst Lakers are dead last in the nation in average possession length. They are stalling in every way possible. They don't have the firepower to win higher scoring games, and they don't have the outside shooters they have had in the past. Mercyhurst is taking a bunch of shots inside the paint and mid range jumpers. Syracuse has elite shot blockers, and I think they'll shut them down here.

Syracuse isn't very good on offense without Freeman. The Orange have had some pretty low scoring games against weak opponents.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Citadel messed around and tried pushing the pace a few times earlier this year, and it went terribly. They have settled back into their very slow pace. Their last five games have all stayed under this total. The Citadel is a bottom 25 tempo team.

Charleston is far slower than they were a year ago. They are 269th in overall tempo this season. The Cougars have played a lot of very good offenses, and they are stepping way down in class here.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Northern Iowa Panthers are an excellent under team. Northern Iowa is 25th nationally in defensive efficiency. They are 352nd in tempo, so they play extremely slowly. The Panthers are 296th in shot selection. They are an impressive 33rd in shot selection allowed.

UIC is 213th in overall tempo. The Flames rely on two things on offense- offensive rebounds and getting to the free throw line. UIC struggles badly in the halfcourt too. N Iowa is excellent in transition defense, and they are very good at defending without fouling and grabbing defensive rebounds. 

Northern Iowa has seen 7 of their last 8 stay under this total in regulation. The one that went over got to just 138 points and it was against an Oakland team that has been an over machine.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Towson Tigers play extremely slowly. Towson is 361st in overall tempo and they are very reliant on second chance points to score on offense. Kansas is always very good on the defensive boards under Bill Self. I don't expect Towson to be able to get those second chances they are getting against nearly everyone else on their schedule.

Kansas will be without Peterson here. The Jayhawks are still a very good team. They have a great defensive identity. Kansas is 4th nationally in blocked shot percentage. They are 9th in defensive efficiency. 

Kansas is 255th in overall tempo, so this Jayhawks team is fine with winning a slower paced defensive battle. They held Green Bay to 51 points. They held Princeton to 57 points. They held Texas A&M Corpus Christi to 47 points.

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Delaware Blue Hens have drastically slowed their pace down this year. Delaware is 350th in average possession length. They were 56th a year ago. 

Rider is 351st in average possession length, so they are very slow as well. Rider has scored 58 points or fewer in five of their eight games against Division I foes this season. They put up 38 points last game against Bucknell. Rider has been without their best offensive player Zion Cruz for the last two games.

Delaware is 361st in FTA/FGA and they are 350th in offensive rebounding percentage. 

Rider is 365th out of 365 teams in the country in effective field goal percentage offense.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Boise State Broncos and St. Mary's Gaels have met on a neutral floor in Idaho Falls the last two seasons. They are back at Mountain America Center for this Sunday evening matchup. 

The last two seasons these games were 63-60 and then 67-65 in OT (59-59 at regulation end last season). These two games were safely under the total. 

St. Mary's is a good offense, but they have only faced one team ranked in the top 68 in KenPom's defensive efficiency rankings. Boise State is 22nd in the nation in defensive efficiency. They are also first in the nation in defensive rebounding percentage. That's important because St. Mary's is excellent on the offensive boards. 

Boise State is relying on a lot of free throws on offense, and St. Mary's is elite at defending without fouling.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Kansas City Chiefs absolutely have to have this one. Kansas City has been great on defense at home this season. They are 8th in the NFL in yards per play allowed at home. The under is 6-1 in their 7 home games. 

The LA Chargers are 4th in the NFL in yards per play allowed on the road. This Chargers offense is very banged up right now. The offensive line in front of Herbert is badly banged up and Herbert himself is banged up as well. The Chiefs should be able to slow them down. On the other side though, the Chargers defense is playing great football right now. 

This projects as a hard fought game where the defenses have the upper hand. The extremely low temperatures with a wind chill of 10 degrees or lower at times could be a benefit too.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Ohio State Buckeyes take on the West Virginia Mountaineers at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on Saturday night. A fun neutral site contest where there will be quite a few fans from both teams. 

Ohio State has played a lot of teams who like to run. The Buckeyes have tended to play to the pace of their opponent under Jake Diebler the last couple years.

West Virginia is 353rd out of 365 in tempo. The Mountaineers will do their very best to stall this game out. The Mountaineers are elite on the defensive glass, and they do not foul much.

The under is 30-19 in the last 49 games in college hoops at Rocket Arena.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks rank 315th nationally in shot selection. They are 330th in FTA/FGA and 339th in offensive rebounding percentage. This is a team that takes a lot of bad shots and rarely gets second chances. 

San Diego isn't playing as fast as they did last season. They are 209th in average possession length. They have been hurt by teams who are good on the offensive glass and get to the line a lot, but N Arizona isn't likely to be the team that can take advantage of that weakness.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Wright State Raiders are playing quite a bit differently this year. Wright State is 254th in average possession length. They are slowing the game down. Wright State is 126th in defensive efficiency this year after struggling badly on defense the last couple years. Wright State has played some very good offenses already this year as well.

Marshall is 81st overall in tempo. The Thundering Herd have faced a much tougher slate of offenses than defenses though, and I believe they are slightly better on defense than offense.

These two are 286th and 294th in the country in FTA/FGA. 

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* These two teams are 344th and 354th out of 365 teams in the country in tempo. They play very similarly, and both are clearly better on defense than offense. These two teams are 318th and 343rd in effective field goal percentage offense. The defenses should have the upper hand in this one. 

This is the type of game that could easily end with the winner only getting into the low 60's. 

Both teams are outside the top 300 in getting to the free throw line.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The South Dakota Coyotes play at an extremely quick pace, and they excel at getting to the free throw line. Prairie View A&M fouls about as much as any team in the country. There should be loads of trips to the free throw line here.

Both teams are very fast paced, and neither team is any good on defense. A lot of offensive rebounds for both sides here too. 

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Cincinnati Bearcats are 9th nationally in defensive efficiency. Wes Miller's team is 5th in defensive rebounding percentage. The Bearcats are much better on defense than offense. Offensively, they are 223rd in overall offensive efficiency. They turn the ball over a lot, and they don't have very many consistent shooters.

Georgia plays extremely fast and that is why this total is so high. The Bulldogs are still pretty good on defense though. They haven't a defense in the top 40 this year either, and now they are facing number 9. 

This is a neutral arena (State Farm Arena) where the under is 16-9 in the last 25 games played here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* Northern Kentucky is pushing the pace a bit more this year, averaging just 16.3 seconds per possession on offense. The Norse are averaging 78.8 points per game this year. Now, they are playing against the team ranked dead last nationally in effective field goal percentage defense.

Bellarmine has seen 7 of their 9 games go over this total. 

Last year's meeting between these two was 86-70. 

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Austin Peay Governors are 96th in defensive efficiency. Corey Gipson's team is a defensive minded one. They have faced a lot of strong offenses already this season and in most games they have held strong.

East Tennessee State is 233rd in average possession length. The Bucs prefer to play slowly. Last year, they defeated Austin Peay 79-57 at home in a slow paced contest.

Both of these teams force a lot of turnovers, and I think we will see quite a few wasted possessions. 

These two teams are 272nd and 279th in FTA/FGA so I wouldn't expect too many free throws in this one.

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Southern Illinois Salukis are 103rd in the nation in tempo, but they are solid defensively, and they do not foul very often. Offensively, they attack the basket at a high rate, but UT Martin is a very tall team with a lot of shot blockers.

UT Martin is 301st in average possession length. They rely on getting to the line a lot, but S Illinois does a good job defending without fouling. UT Martin isn't very good from three, and they only shoot 63.9% from the charity stripe. 

The pace should stay slower than most Southern Illinois games, and I think UT Martin's shot blockers will keep this score down some too.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Boston University Terriers are 362nd in the nation in average length of possession. They are 359th in overall tempo. Maine is 345th in overall tempo.

Maine is one of the worst offenses in the nation. Maine has scored more than 61 points just twice in 11 games this season. They turn it over a lot on offense, and they don't get many second chance points.

Maine is still above average on the defensive end. They are elite at defending the three point line, and Boston U puts up a lot of shots from long range.

These two met last year and it was 59-56. I think it will be higher than that here, but I do think this total is set too high.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The North Carolina A&T Aggies rank first in the nation in FTA/FGA, so they are living at the free throw line. Howard fouls more than the average team. The Bison have actually finished in the bottom quarter of the country at defending without fouling the last two seasons. North Carolina A&T is 48th nationally in overall tempo. The Aggies have played some slower paced teams of late, but I do think they still want to push.

Howard is 152nd in the nation in tempo. The Bison are 336th in the nation in effective field goal percentage defense. Howard has been picking up their pace in recent games, and I expect them to run with North Carolina A&T in this one.

NC A&T has seen 5 of 7 games go over this number.  Howard has seen five straight games go over the total.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* The New York Knicks host the Orlando Magic in an early start game at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. 

Paolo Banchero is back in the lineup for the Magic, and that should mean they play slower. He is a halfcourt type player, and he is a solid defensive player as well. Orlando is second in the NBA in defensive efficiency in the last five games. The Knicks are a little above league average in defensive efficiency during that time too.

The Knicks are second slowest in the NBA in terms of tempo in the last five games. 

These early Sunday start times have trended pretty strongly to the under in the last 15 years or so in the NBA.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Wichita State Shockers and Northern Iowa Panthers meet in a heated battle between two former rivals in the MVC.

Wichita State moved on to a bigger conference and Northern Iowa and the rest of the MVC have held that against them. 

Northern Iowa is a great defensive team. The Panthers are elite on the defensive glass, and that is where Wichita State's offensive has generated points from second chances.

Northern Iowa is 358th in overall tempo and I expect them to control the pace here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* New Hampshire is 357th in the nation in offensive efficiency. They are 360th in the nation in effective field goal percentage offense. 

Boston University has been decent on defense in previous years, but their defense has been way down so far this season. I would guess that they improve a bit from here on out, and this is the worst offense they have faced yet.

Boston is 362nd out of 365 teams in the nation in tempo. New Hampshire is 311th in average possession length on offense. A very slow paced game here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Morgan State Bears always like to play fast and have a frenetic style of play. They are looking to create turnovers and get quick scores off their aggressive pressure defense.

Longwood has played eight Division I games this year. They have played seven of those eight games against teams who are 300th or slower out of 365 teams in average possession length. Longwood wants to run, and they are going to get a chance to run here against Morgan State. Their opponents they have played thus far this season have skewed their games lower scoring.

There should be a lot of free throws in this one.

Take the over. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Delaware State Hornets have drastically slowed their pace down by a couple seconds per possession this year. Delaware State's offense is terrible, and they have to try to win lower scoring games. Delaware State has scored 59 points or fewer in six straight games against Division One opponents. They also scored 58 points against Division II Virginia State.

Delaware averaged 16.5 seconds per possession last year, but they are using 19.5 seconds per possession this year. They have an even more drastic slowdown of the tempo. 

These two teams are 354th and 362nd in the nation in FTA/FGA so they are very rarely getting to the free throw line.

I have to back the under at this number. Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Gardner Webb Bulldogs have allowed a whopping 92.1 points per game so far this year. Their defense is 363rd out of 365 teams nationally in effective field goal percentage defense. They have allowed less than 84 points only once in ten games. 

Georgia Southern is 29th in the nation in tempo. The Eagles foul a bunch on defense and they give up loads of free throws. They have played two very slow paced teams in their last two games, but it is back to a track meet type game here.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* Fordham is 343rd in tempo out of 365 teams. The Rams are very deliberate under Coach Mike Magpayo. Four of their seven games against Division I opponents have finished with 134 points or lower. 

Holy Cross is 325th in the nation in tempo. The Crusaders are very weak and they are coming off a shocking victory over Northeastern.

These two teams are 331st and 348th in FTA/FGA, so I wouldn't expect many free throws here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Texas Tech defense has flown under the radar a bit, but this is a dominant defense that deserves a ton of credit. Shiel Wood is one of the very best defensive coordinators in the country. Texas Tech is third in the nation in defensive success rate. The Red Raiders are 4th in explosiveness allowed. They are also first nationally in both yards per carry allowed and PPA/rush allowed. They are 4th in points per opportunity allowed, so they are keeping opponents out of the end zone.

BYU likes to run the football a bunch with Bachmeier and Martin, but it is very tough to do against this Red Raider defensive front. BYU is 34th in rushing play success rate on offense, and they are running the ball on 56.5% of their offensive plays. They are just 70th in red zone touchdown percentage on offense. BYU is 102nd in pass success rate on offense. They are up against a Texas Tech defense that is 4th in pass play success rate allowed.

BYU defensively is solid as well. They are 30th in success rate allowed. They are 25th in explosiveness allowed. BYU is 8th in red zone TD percentage allowed on defense. 

The first game between these two saw both teams average less than 5 yards per play.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Brown Bears and Bryant Bulldogs are both defensive teams who slow the pace down to the extreme. They've both played a bunch of really low scoring games, and neither team in this one will try to push the pace. Unless we get some red hot shooting in this one, I think it is the type of game where the first one to 63 or 64 or so is the winner. 

These teams are 289th and 304th in tempo. They are 320th and 338th out of 365 in the country in offensive efficiency.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Brooklyn Nets have seen 8 straight games go below this total. Brooklyn's offense is a mess. In that 8 game span, Brooklyn rates third slowest in the league in tempo. The Nets have been held to many low point totals in the last few weeks.

Utah is a high scoring team that has a bunch of games that go very high, and that is why the total is set so high. The Nets though have been having lower scoring games against everyone of late. 

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Denver Pioneers have played seven games. Six of their seven games have finished with at least 154 points scored. Denver is 354th in defensive efficiency nationally and 355th in effective field goal percentage defense. Their coach said in the offseason they might not look very good at times defensively, and that has been the case so far this season.

Eastern Washington is 135th in overall tempo. The Eagles have played a lot of slower paced teams, and they have still had a number of higher scoring games. 

Both teams have been terrible at defending the 3 point shot, and I think we see a lot of long range jumpers attempted here.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Over* The South Dakota Coyotes were an over machine last year. They aren't quite the offense they were last season, but they still play fast and they are still really bad on defense. South Dakota is excellent at getting offensive rebounds and getting to the free throw line. Portland State has fouled at a very high rate for several years in a row because of their aggressive defense.

Portland State prefers to play quickly as well. They turn the ball over a lot, and that could lead to run out chances for South Dakota. The same will happen with Portland State on defense trapping/pressing their way to quick points. 

Take the over here. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Delaware State Hornets are 364th out of 365 teams in the country in offensive efficiency. They haven't been able to score on hardly anyone. Delaware State could only score 57 on Niagara. They scored only 57 on UMBC. They only scored 52 on New Haven. They have topped 57 only once against a Division One team. Delaware State has slowed down their pace, and they are 342nd in average length of possession nationally.

Navy is a below average paced team at 253rd. Navy relies on getting to the line, but Delaware State has been good at defending without fouling. 

I think this total is too high by a good margin.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Maine Black Bears have played nine games. The highest combined total in a Maine game this year was 137 points. Maine hasn't scored more than 65 points in a game this season. Maine has scored 61 points or less than seven of the nine games.

Maine is good defensively. The Black Bears force a lot of turnovers, and they defend jump shots well. 

Ohio has been disappointing this year. The Bobcats have scored 69 points or fewer in three of their last five games. Ohio isn't getting out in transition nearly as much so far this season.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Minnesota Golden Gophers have focused on defense in practice after last game when Santa Clara torched them from long range. Minnesota ranks 355th out of 365 in tempo nationally. The Golden Gophers rely on offensive rebounds and free throw attempts on offense, but Indiana is good on the defensive glass, and they haven't fouled much this year.

Minnesota has played one of the easiest schedules of defense of anyone so far this year, and Indiana's defense will be the best they have seen yet. Indiana is 4th in the nation in effective field goal percentage defense. 

Minnesota slowed a fast paced Missouri team down to 62 possessions. They slowed Stanford down a 64 possession game too.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Loyola Marymount Lions have made a concerted effort to slow the game down this year. Jan Vide was their best offensive weapon, but he is out with a foot injury now. The Lions have scored just 65, 70, and 68 points against questionable defenses in their games without him. 

St. Louis plays very quickly, but they are a good defensive team. They are sixth nationally in effective field goal percentage defense. The are very good on the defensive glass too.

Loyola is 45th in effective field goal percentage defense. The Lions should do their best to slow this game down.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Creighton Blue Jays are 274th in the nation in tempo. Creighton has slowed things down a bit this season. The Blue Jays lost Ashworth, Kalkbrenner, and Neal from last year's team. Those guys were key to the team, and Creighton has been down quite a bit in terms of offensive efficiency this year. 

Creighton continues to be one of the best teams in the country at defending without fouling. The  Blue Jays are bottom 50 in the country in FTA/FGA on offense too. 

Nicholls State is 294th in offensive efficiency,  but a respectable 197th in defensive efficiency. They shoot too many long range jumpers, and they'll likely have trouble scoring here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Freeman is still out for Syracuse and without him the Orange are really limited on offense without their star scorer. Syracuse does play relatively quickly, but them mixing in zone on defense typically slows the opponent down quite a bit. 

Tennessee is a top five defense in the country every single year under Rick Barnes. It's really hard to get open looks against this team. Barnes was disappointed in their defensive effort in the loss to Kansas, and I would expect a bounce back from this Vols defense here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Florida A&M Rattlers have played four games this year. They have played three teams who rank in the top 14 in college hoops in average possession length. The other team was 52nd out of 365 teams. Everyone they have played has wanted to run at an extremely quick pace. 

Now, they go up against a Jacksonville Dolphins team that is 307th in overall tempo. Jacksonville is a very slow paced team that leans on their defense to win them games. Four games in a row of Jacksonville's have finished at 136 points or lower.

Florida A&M is likely to struggle to score here, but Jacksonville's slower pace should keep them down a bit too.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* Bryant has changed up the way they play this year under Coach Jamion Christian. They ranked 6th in the nation in tempo last year. They are 254th overall this year and 320th in average possession length on offense. Bryant is 358th in effective field goal percentage offense. They are good at defending without fouling. Bryant has had some very slow paced games most recently.

Stonehill is 357th in offensive efficiency. They are 285th in average possession length on offense, so they are happy with slower paced games. 

Both of these teams turn it over on more than 21% of their offensive possessions. 

Last year's meeting finished at 133, and that was with a Bryant team who wanted to run.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Jacksonville State Gamecocks host North Alabama on Monday night. These two teams have met quite a bit over the last few seasons. Most of the players are different, but the head coaches remain the same.

Five of the last six games between these two have finished 128 total points or fewer. They have a history of tighter low scoring games.

Both teams rank in the bottom 70 in the country in tempo. They are both better on defense than on offense. Both teams are good on the defensive glass too.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Steelers and Bills both have offensive line injuries. Spencer Brown is doubtful here. Broderick Jones is out for this one. 

The Steelers defense has actually improved on a yards per play basis in recent weeks. They have also played a lot better on their home field. 

The Bills defense is a little below average, but they aren't giving up all that many big plays. The Steelers offense is questionable with Rodgers either playing at less than 100% or Rudolph playing.

The weather here should matter too with steady rain and winds of 15 mph and gusts to 21 mph making this an ugly game where the offenses are up against it.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Citadel toyed with playing quicker earlier this season, but they have gone back to their roots the last couple games. The Citadel has played their last three games to a pace of 61, 60, and 59 possessions. Presbyterian ranks as the second slowest paced team in the country. The Blue Hose have seen six of their seven games against Division One competition finish at 132 points or less.

The pace should be slow the whole way. Presbyterian is 332nd in effective field goal percentage offense too.

These two have a recent history of low scoring games against each other. This is a neutral site game at a venue where the under is 39-28 in the last 67 games here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The West Virginia Mountaineers definitely prefer the slower paced style of former North Texas Coach Ross Hodge. Hodge is a first year coach with West Virginia, and the Mountaineers have already held three teams to 54 points or fewer. They have had three games finish with a total of 124 points or fewer.

Mercyhurst ranks dead last (365th nationally) in average possession length on offense. They are a very weak team, and they should be trailing large in this one. 

West Virginia with the lead has really taken the air out of the ball and I expect they will here as well. 

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Washington State Cougars have been a great under team in the last half of the season. Washington State is playing at a bottom ten tempo out of all 136 teams in the country. Washington State is a very run heavy offense that doesn't take many shots down the field.

Oregon State is 13th in stuff rate on defense and 17th in defensive line yards. Robb Akey's defense is actually not a bad unit. They are 34th in success rate allowed.

Washington State's defense has been excellent in the back half of the season. They are 30th in points per scoring opportunity allowed too, and Oregon State is 123rd in points per scoring opportunity on offense. 

These two just played each other a couple weeks ago and it was 10-7. I expect the defenses to have the upper hand once again.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Drake Bulldogs have played four straight games that have stayed under this total in regulation. Drake is 273rd in tempo. The Bulldogs are 10th best at defending without fouling.

GA Tech ranks 13th in effective field goal percentage on defense. They are 11th in 3 point defense and Drake shoots a bunch of three pointers. Five of their seven games have stayed below this.

A neutral floor too.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Tulsa Golden Hurricane host the UAB Blazers on Saturday in the season finale for both teams. 

UAB has had some major problems inside the football program at the end of the season. It's hard to say how motivated they will be in this one. UAB is only averaging 19 points per game in their last three games. The Tulsa defense has been decent this year, and they don't give up too many big plays.

UAB's defense isn't good, but Tulsa is inconsistent on offense. The Golden Hurricanes often struggle to throw the ball.

The weather forecast here is a big reason why I find this play valuable. The current forecast calls for rain throughout the game and it could be heavy at times. The winds are expected to be sustained at 20 mph with gusts to 31 mph. That kind of weather changes a game significantly. The play calling should be more conservative with more running of the football.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Delaware State has played five games against Division One opponents. They have scored 51.6 points per game in those five games. In their last game, they lost to Virginia State (Division II) 62-58. 

Delaware State takes a bunch of bad shots, and they turn it over early and often. UMBC doesn't foul much at all, and Delaware State next to never gets to the line.

UMBC has slowed their tempo down a lot this year. They are just 211th in average possession length. They are playing through the post more. 

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Oklahoma State Cowboys have been much better in recent weeks. They are fighting hard to the finish in what has been a terrible season. They have a new head coach on the way and I think they can play hard one more time.

Iowa State's defense has played a bit better of late. They are 46th in defensive success rate. They are 35th in PPA/rush allowed. The run defense is the strength of the team. Iowa State has seen 3 of their last 5 games finish 43 points or lower.

Oklahoma State's last two games have been 31 and 20 points total. The Cowboys offense is 131st in the nation in success rate. The Cowboys are likely to have to run here, and that is their biggest weakness.

The weather is a big part of the handicap. Sustained winds of 23 mph with gusts to 38 mph are in the forecast for this one. That should make both teams far more conservative. A lot of running and the clock keeps moving. 

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* This game is played at Acrisure Arena which is clearly playing like an under venue. 

Minnesota is slowing the pace down significantly, and Santa Clara has been playing toward the pace of their opponent most of the time this season. 

These two teams don't have stellar outside shooting.

Minnesota hasn't scored more than 68 points in a game in regulation in any of their last five games (that includes a game against Green Bay). 

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* Colorado was slowed down quite a bit by San Francisco tempo wise and I think Washington will slow them down too. Both teams are really good on the defensive glass. 

Acrisure Arena is clearly an under arena based on the scores here and the overall shooting percentages. The under has done well here in a small sample.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* It isn't easy taking an under with USF. The Bulls play very fast and have had quite a few really high scoring games. They have really played a bunch of teams that like to run though. USF has played seven games, and they have played six teams that rank in the top 82 (out of 365 teams) in overall tempo. USF has played three of their last four games against teams that rank in the top 12 nationally in tempo.

Colorado State ranks 362nd out of 365 teams in tempo, so this is a huge change for USF. Colorado State is a slight favorite here. The Rams have several guys shooting far above their career averages in 3 point percentage, and I think they will regress toward the mean in time.

A neutral site game here too.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Eastern Michigan talked a lot about changing the way they play in the offseason. They appear to have figured some things out on the defensive end. Eastern Michigan locked down Cincinnati a couple days ago. They have slowed the pace down in many of their games as well.

NJIT is abysmal when it comes to offensive efficiency. 

This total has been bet up a bit and I'm going to take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Air Force is without quarterback Liam Szarka and he was the huge key to their offense which was a huge success for much of the season. They were only able to muster 3 points and 2.7 yards per play against New Mexico last week without him. 

Remember earlier in the year when Air Force had loads of high scoring games? Air Force has now played in five straight games that have finished with a total of 45 points or less. The Falcons defense has gradually played better, but their offense has no explosiveness now.

Colorado State is very poor on offense too. The Rams don't have the speed on the outside to take advantage of the Air Force secondary weaknesses. 

A slow paced game with a lot of running of the football.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Wright State is playing completely different this year. They are slowing the pace down a lot. Wright State drastically slowed the pace down against Kent State and Cal. I think they'll try their best to do the same to Butler here.

Butler has played a bunch of extremely quick paced teams which I think is skewing their tempo data some in the early going.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* An 11 am Pacific tip off here in a consolation game played at a neutral site that is tough for jump shooters.

Nevada and Washington's game yesterday only got to 149 because of a very quick whistle in the 2nd half of that game.

San Francisco is a slower paced team who has looked strong on defense so far this season.

Nevada is really inconsistent on offense and they take too many mid range jumpers.

Take the under.

*3 Star Play Under* The Stanford Cardinal have played pretty quick this year. I suspect they are looking to play a bit quicker than in the past, but they have played a lot of teams that are happy to run. Minnesota isn't that type of team. I think Minnesota does their best to grind this pace down.

Minnesota has been mixing in some zone defenses to slow down opposing attacks too.

Acrisure Arena is a good under venue and overall the shooting percentages here have been lower.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Colorado State Rams are 355th in overall tempo out of 365 teams in the country. Wichita State is 204th in tempo. 

With Colorado State really slowing the pace, it is hard to get to this many points especially on a neutral floor where scoring is typically lower.

Colorado State has a lot of guys shooting very high percentages from 3 point range, and I expect that to regress some. Wichita State is very good at defending near the hoop too.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Washington Huskies have played a bottom ten strength of schedule as far as defenses faced this year. They ran up the points against Arkansas Pine Bluff and Denver. They only scored 69 points against Baylor. Nevada has been pretty good on defense this year, and they are playing at a slightly slower than average tempo.

Washington is loaded with shot blockers, and I think that will bother Nevada with their style of play where they like to get in the paint.

Acrisure Arena hosts this game and it has been playing heavily toward the under.

Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Creighton Blue Jays are clearly not nearly as good on offense this year as they have been in some recent seasons. Creighton lost a lot of their consistent outside shooters. The Blue Jays are playing slower this year. Creighton had two very low scoring exhibition games, and now they have scored only 63 against Gonzaga and 60 against Iowa State.

Oregon gets to the free throw line a lot which has contributed to their higher scoring games. Creighton annually has one of the lowest foul rates in the country. 

A neutral floor with this high of a total. I'll take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* UC Irvine is always much better on defense than offense under Coach Russell Turner. UC Irvine has a really good shot blocker down low in Kyle Evans. He should do a really good job keeping S Dakota State out of the paint.

S Dakota State is playing a little slower than last year. They had one game where they put up a ton of points, but they have overall been down this year as far as shooting the basketball.

This is a neutral site game at a location that has trended toward the under through the years.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs have a couple really good shot blockers. Talvin Hester's team is well known for their ability to defend in the halfcourt and make teams work very hard to get good looks.

Louisiana Tech also slows the pace down a lot. The Bulldogs are 317th in the nation in overall tempo. LA Tech has played three games against Division One opponents and they have finished 127 points, 119 points, and 111 points. I do think their games will get higher than that, but this total is significantly higher.

Indiana State lost a lot of key scorers from last year's team. They have slowed their pace some, and their shooting numbers have dropped off. Three of their last four games have finished with 122 combined points or less. 

These two just met in a 60-51 game on 11/19. 

Take the under here. 

*4 Star Play Under* Syracuse isn't the same offensively without Freeman. The Orange are still very tough on defense though. They'll make teams work deeper into the shot block than normal, and they protect the rim very well.

Iowa State is an elite defensive team. The Cyclones have taken on some really good offenses already this year, and I think Syracuse is a step down from several of those teams.

A very high total in an early start time on neutral floor.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Eastern Illinois is a terrible offensive team, but they are a team that slows the pace down in a big way and they are scrappy on defense. Central Arkansas tends to play at the pace of their opponent. This game should be played in the halfcourt and as long as we can avoid a foul fest I like this to stay low. Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Campbell Fighting Camels are trying to play much faster under their new coach. They are 83rd in tempo nationally. Campbell gave up 96 points to Wisconsin and 91 points to Weber State. They allowed 82 points in a win against Western Michigan. 

Wake Forest is 49th in the nation in tempo. Wake Forest put up 88 points on a slow paced American team in game one. They scored 83 points in a loss to Texas Tech. They put up 109 points against UMass Lowell.

Wake Forest is very good at second chance points, and Campbell struggles on the defensive glass. They are one of the shortest teams in the country. 

A lot of pace and I like the over here.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* Northern Iowa is elite at controlling the pace of the game. They haven't allowed more than 63 points in regulation all season. Loyola is way down this year, and I think they'll struggle badly to get open looks here. Both of these teams play very slowly on offense and this is an early neutral site game a long way from home. Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Kansas Jayhawks and Syracuse Orange are both without their star scorers right now. Peterson is the go to guy for the Jayhawks, and they have struggled to get open looks without him on the floor.

Freeman was averaging 18 points per game for Syracuse, and they'll need to get some free help from opponents to put up bigger point totals now. 

Syracuse is first in effective field goal percentage defense nationally so far this season. The Orange are doing a great job protecting the basket.

Kansas is 11th in defensive efficiency. They have a ton of height and shot blocking ability down low. 

With both teams missing their top guy, I'm on the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Georgia State Panthers and Samford Bulldogs meet in Cancun on Tuesday afternoon. This one is played at Hard Rock Riviera in the afternoon and it will certainly be played on this neutral floor in front of a small amount of fans.

Georgia State is 262nd in average possession length nationally. Samford is 303rd in overall tempo as they have slowed some teams down by mixing in zone defenses.

Georgia State hasn't been very good on defense the last three seasons, but the one thing they were good at on defense was defending beyond the 3 point line. Samford takes a ton of three pointers and those aren't likely to be too open here.

Georgia State is 358th in effective field goal percentage offense. 

Neither team commits many fouls.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns are an extremely slow paced team. They rank in the bottom ten in the country in average possession length. They don't have much scoring firepower, so they are attempting to win lower scoring ugly games.

UC Davis is a medium paced team, but they are much better on defense than offense, and they can get pulled into this lower scoring games at times. 

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Over* The Arkansas State Red Wolves have a new coach who was the Alabama offensive guru for the last couple years. It should come as no surprise that Arkansas State is running like crazy and putting up a ton of points. Arkansas State hasn't had a single game this year finish any lower than 155 total points. 

Arkansas State is great at getting to the free throw line, and they shoot 80.7% from the line as a team.

Jacksonville State has played very slow paced teams in their games thus far. This should be a shock to the system for them, and they are likely to have to speed up their pace at least some.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* Cincinnati is a great defense. They are second nationally in defensive efficiency. NJIT is a bottom 25 offense nationally. NJIT is likely to struggle badly in their halfcourt sets in this game.

Cincinnati's Wes Miller is 32-22 to the under when favored by 10 points or more. His teams tend to lock things down on defense in this spot.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Princeton Tigers played some very fast paced teams early in the season. I believe that has skewed their overall tempo numbers. Princeton doesn't want to run. They no longer have a star in Lee to lead them in scoring either. 

Bradley is a defense first team under Coach Wardle. The Braves are inconsistent on the offensive end.

This is a neutral site game and it is in a location where the under is north of 60% all time.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Oregon State Beavers have been very good at slowing the pace of the game down in recent seasons. They have done the same once again this year. Oregon State defensively does a good job not giving up second chance points which is key against UMass.

UMass likes to run and play very quickly, but they are better on defense than offense. Oregon State's shots will be well contested here.

This is a neutral site game played in a gym that has played heavily to the under. Take the under here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Furman Paladins don't seem to be anything like they have been in past seasons. This team has far less offensive firepower, and for that reason this team is slowing down the pace quite a bit. Furman is just 240th in overall tempo this year. 

Queens is a faster paced team, but they aren't the extreme fast paced team they were a couple short years ago. Two years ago they were 10th in the nation in tempo. They are at 160th so far this year.

Queens is coming off an extremely hot shooting night where they scored 1.49 points per possession. They likely come back down to earth a bit.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Northwestern Wildcats have decided to play quicker this season. Northwestern is playing 2.5 seconds per possession quicker on the offensive end than they did last season. They have more scoring options which takes some of the pressure off Nick Martinelli. The Wildcats put up 100 points an exhibition against Illinois State and 72 against a great defense in Iowa State. They scored 81 points in a win at DePaul and 78 in a loss against Virginia.

South Carolina has played slightly faster, and their offensive efficiency is up with better guard play this year. The Gamecocks haven't had a single game finish below this total this season.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Over* The Arizona Cardinals have been moving the ball very well with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback. The problem is Brissett and the Cardinals have been turning the ball over a lot and putting the opposition in good scoring spots. 

Arizona is putting up 5.6 yards per play in their last three games. This Jaguars defense is a below average defense. 

Jacksonville has scored 30, 29, and 35 points in their last three games. Trevor Lawrence is playing better, and the offensive line play has improved. Arizona's defense has slipped of late, giving up 5.6 yards per play in their last three games.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Binghamton Bearcats are a really bad team on offense. They put up only 52 against Maryland-Eastern Shore a couple days ago. They scored only 66 against RIT College and 69 against Misericordia College. This team is playing very slowly, and they are highly reliant on getting to the free throw line to have success on offense. Canisius isn't good on defense in general, but they don't foul much at all.

Canisius is in the bottom five in the country in average possession length. They are stalling in a big way. They put up a lot of long range jumpers, and Binghamton's strength is defending the 3 point shot.

A slow pace.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The UC Irvine Anteaters don't have many good offensive options this year. This team will still fight very hard on defense for Coach Turner though. 

Northern Iowa has been elite on defense this year. The Panthers haven't allowed more than 58 points in a game all season. They'll probably allow more than that here, but it might not be by much.

Two teams who are clearly better on defense than offense. Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Wisconsin Badgers may have the worst power 5 offense in the country. They can't complete passes, and their offensive line isn't nearly as strong as it was in past seasons. Illinois defensively has struggled badly against the pass,  but they are solid against the run. That is a good matchup for Wisconsin, since the Badgers passing attack has been nearly non existent. Illinois is 47th in YPC allowed and 27th in rushing explosiveness allowed.

Illinois is just 62nd in explosiveness on offense. The Fighting Illini are likely to struggle to run against the Badgers defense that is 27th in YPC allowed.

Wisconsin has had 7 straight games go under this low total. I think this will be an 8th straight.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Air Force was an absolute over team earlier this year. The defense is still bad, but they have gotten a bit better. They were allowing more than 8 yards per play in the first half of the season, and they are at 6.4 YPP allowed in their last three games. They actually played pretty well against a good UConn offense last week.

Air Force star quarterback Liam Szarka was injured last week (fracture in hand/arm of throwing arm). Air Force coach said Szarka likely out for the season. The Falcons offense had been struggling a little more of late, and without Szarka this simply isn't the same offense. New Mexico has been excellent at stopping the run. The Lobos are 20th in Defensive Line yards. They are 24th in YPC allowed and 20th in rushing explosiveness allowed. New Mexico's weakness has been against the pass, but with Szarka out Air Force is severely limited through the air.

New Mexico is playing at a very slow pace, and the Lobos offense is just 105th in rushing explosiveness. 

Both of these teams will run the football a bunch here, and this total hasn't been adjusted enough for Szarka's injury.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Niko Medved has really had his Minnesota Golden Gophers slowing the pace of the game down. Minnesota is bottom 15 in the country in tempo. The Golden Gophers aren't likely to want to run here either. 

San Francisco is an underrated defensive team. The Dons usually don't take on strong defenses, and while Minnesota is only ok on defense for a major school, I think they will be good enough to bother San Francisco quite a bit here.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Over* The UTSA Roadrunners are a completely different team at home. UTSA's offense is on a whole different level at home on their fast track in the dome. UTSA is averaging 48.3 points per game at home. They are also allowing 27.3 points per game at home. UTSA is accustomed to track meets on their home turf. Owen McCown has been poor on the road, but at home he has a 74.4% completion percentage and a 13/0 touchdown to interception ratio. 

East Carolina wants to play as fast as possible. They are top three in the nation in all pace metrics. The Pirates want to throw the ball a ton too, and that is a good fit for this one since UTSA is terrible against the pass. UTSA is 114th nationally in yards per pass attempt allowed. UTSA is also 124th in passing explosiveness allowed. Katin Houser's numbers are better on the road than home, and he should play very well here. UTSA's red zone defense has been a big weakness all season long. 

Both teams will be airing it out and East Carolina will push the tempo in a big way. This game should go down to the wire. I expect both offenses to put up a lot of points here.

Take the over. 

*3 Star Play Under* Maryland-Eastern Shore is dreadful on offense. They use up nearly the entire shot clock and then put up a lot of bad contested midrange jumpers. Eastern Shore is actually very solid on defense though. They should be able to hold down a Binghamton team that hasn't been able to score on non Division I opponents either. 

Binghamton prefers a slow pace and they should look good defensively against Maryland-Eastern Shore.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Oklahoma State Cowboys do play very fast, but the Cowboys are better on defense than offense. Oklahoma State is an aggressive defense that contests shots very well. 

Nicholls State has been very solid on defense this year. They held Kentucky to only 77 points in the first game of the season. They had just one poor defensive showing against a really good Murray State offense on the road.

Nicholls is a very poor shooting team. They are likely going to struggle to get open looks against OK State. Nicholls will try to slow the pace here.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The James Madison Dukes have a real opportunity to make the College Football Playoff. It is their defense that has been extremely dominant. James Madison is first in the nation in success rate allowed. They are 5th in explosiveness allowed. They are also 8th in havoc created.

Washington State has been a great under team of late thanks to a couple key things. First, they are playing at an extremely slow pace. Washington State is bottom five in the country in tempo in the last month. They also are only 122nd in yards per play on offense. They are 127th in explosiveness on offense. Second, Washington State has really improved on defense of late. They have allowed just 3.6 yards per play in their last three games (3rd nationally). Washington State is allowing only 11.5 points per game in their last six games and two of those games were against Ole Miss and Virginia.

Both teams are run heavy, and I expect the clock to be moving quickly here. 

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Louisville Cardinals defense is very good. Louisville is 12th in success rate allowed this season. The Cardinals are 9th in PPA/pass allowed. They are 6th best in passing down success rate allowed. SMU is a pass heavy team. The Mustangs have the 20th highest percentage of plays being a pass of anyone in the country. Louisville is 33rd best in the country in explosiveness allowed. 

The SMU defense has been excellent all season. SMU is 3rd nationally in PPA/rush allowed. The Mustangs should shut down the run game here. SMU can be thrown on at times, but they are still 35th in PPA/pass. The important factor for me here is Louisville's offensive line is very weak. They are 87th in havoc allowed. SMU is 6th nationally in havoc created. They should be in the backfield here.

Louisville has a quarterback problem with Miller Moss playing poorly and questions about who will play QB this game.

I see both defenses with an advantage.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Oregon State Beavers and Evansville Purple Aces meet in the Virgin Islands on Friday night. This is a neutral court early season tournament and those in general have trended to the under. 

This specific site has trended even more strongly toward the under with some commenting in the past that it has a difficult shooting backdrop.

Oregon State and Evansville both prefer to walk it up and play very slowly. I think it would take a hot shooting night to get over this total. I think this is several points too high.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The South Dakota State Jackrabbits aren't playing the same way they did in the past. South Dakota State is playing much slower than they did in the past. They aren't as good of a shooting team from outside. They are also turning the ball over on offense too much and hurting themselves efficiency wise. 

South Dakota State is pretty good on defense. They were beaten by the Oregon offense, but Oregon has a good offense and they'll make a lot of defenses look bad. Georgia State is likely to struggle here. The Panthers don't move away from the ball well, and their stagnant sets on offense are likely to burn the clock down a lot.

Georgia State has been an under machine this year. Their coach said they would change their style of play in the offseason, and they have thus far. I don't think the oddsmakers have caught up yet.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Tulsa's Coach Konkol talked in the offseason about changing the style of this team. He thought they had been too dependent on their offense and wanted to change the makeup of the team a bit. Tulsa has played some very good offenses in the early going. Now, they get to play Austin Peay who has the weakest offense they have played thus far.

Austin Peay is 314th nationally in offensive efficiency. The Governors are a scrappy defense that forces a bunch of turnovers and has a good shot blocker in Marshall down in the paint. 

This should be a hard fought game and I think this total is too high.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Siena Saints have been tremendous at controlling the pace this year. Siena has played Albany the last two seasons and both games went under this total. Albany has focused on defense this year and slowed things down, so I think this total is set too high. I look for a lot of halfcourt basketball here. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Marist Red Foxes are a strong defensive team under Coach John Dunne. His teams are always really hard workers on the defensive end. They will force a lot of turnovers and the vast majority of shots very tough looks. Marist also slows the game down in a big way. Marist's best scorer from last year transferred to Colorado State, so their offense has less upside now.

Army isn't a very good team, but I think their defensive numbers are skewed based on who they have played thus far. Marist is the weakest offense they have faced yet.

Take the under. 

*4 Star Play Under* The Houston Cougars have the best defense in the country. Houston is accustomed to absolutely locking down offenses that are lower levels. Rider is one of the bottom 50 or 60 teams in the entire country. Houston should lock them down in a big way here. 

Rider plays at such a slow pace, and Houston prefers to play that way as well. This could be a game played to 60 possessions or lower.

Kelvin Sampson's teams are 15-1 to the under as a home favorite of 25 points or more. They are a massive favorite here, and I think they hold Rider to an extremely low number.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* Cornell and Colgate are rivals thanks to their close proximity to each other in central New York. 

Five of the last six times these two teams have played the game has gone under the total. This is easily the highest total there has been in those matchups too.

Colgate will try hard to slow the game down. They aren't the same strong shooting team they were a few short years ago.

Take the under. 

*3 Star Play Under* The Fordham Rams are slowing the pace down in a big way this year. Most of the teams LIU has played this season have been fast paced, and I think that has skewed their overall season tempo numbers quite a bit. 

LIU isn't a great shooting team, and they do get after it on the defensive end. I think the efficiency numbers are pretty low on offense in this one.

Take the under.