College Basketball Odds – #9 Michigan State at #2 Texas

Tuesday, December 22, 7:00 PM ET

The second-ranked Texas Longhorns (10-0 SU, 6-2 ATS, 4-3 O/U) and ninth-ranked Michigan State Spartans (9-2 SU, 3-7 ATS, 5-4 O/U) will square off tonight in one of the best early season matchups of the 2009-10 college basketball season when they take to the court at Frank Erwin Center tonight at 7 PM ET.

The Longhorns will put their undefeated record on the line tonight when they host a Michigan State team that has won four consecutive games coming into tonight’s contest including a convincing 80-58 win over IUPU-Ft. Wayne on Saturday.

NCAAB Betting Trends:

• Spartans are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 non-conference games.
• Spartans are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
• Longhorns are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games vs. a team with a winning S.U. record.
• Longhorns are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 home games.
• Over is 4-1 in Spartans last 5 road games.
• Over is 4-1 in Longhorns last 5 overall.

Three players reached double figures in scoring for the Spartans, who failed to cover the college basketball point spread as enormous 28.5-point home favorites.

Michigan State has gone just 1-4 ATS over the last five games and a discouraging 3-7 ATS over the last 10 games overall while losing each of its first two games this season against major conference opponents.

Click here to get started betting on Texas -9 vs Michigan State

Texas looked fantastic in knocking off the defending national champion North Carolina Tar Heels 103-90 on Saturday.

Damion James scored a team-high 25 points and added 15 rebounds to lead Texas to victory and help the Longhorns cash in for college basketball betting backers as a 6.5-point home favorite. Texas has gone a robust 6-2 ATS over its last eight games.

Analysis: I don’t think this pick requires much thought as the Texas Longhorns are far and away the better ballclub in this matchup. Texas has won its first 10 games by an average of 28.8 points per game and has averaged a scorching 100.3 points over its last four victories.

Four Longhorns scored at least 20 points against the Tar heels on Saturday and the young team says it wanted to make a statement in that game.

"We knew we had to come today and send a message to the nation that we’re not playing around, that we can also go against good competition," said Dexter Pittman, who scored 23 points and added a season-high 15 rebounds. "We showed that."

The Longhorns are averaging 87.2 points per contest this season and allowing just 57.4 points per game while Michigan State is putting up 82.5 points per contest and allowing 65.1 per outing.

The Longhorns have a perfect mix of experience and youth to go along with a roster full of players that can play both inside and out. 

Michigan State certainly isn’t chopped liver – and tonight’s college basketball point spread may look daunting, but the Texas Longhorns will win and cover as they deliver another resounding message to the elite teams in college basketball tonight.

NCAAB Expert Picks: Longhorns -9 Points