NCAA Basketball Betting Kansas @ Arizona

BetOnline Sportsbook bettors know that the Arizona Wildcats (7-3 SU, 5-5 ATS) have been searching for consistency. On Tuesday night they get to test themselves against the defending national champion Kansas Jayhawks (8-2 SU, 4-2 ATS) in NCAA college basketball sports betting action that is slated to get underway at 10:30 PM ET at the McKale Center in Tucson, AZ.

BetOnline NCAA Basketball Sports Betting Odds: ARIZONA -3

Here are some of the NCAA basketball betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* KAN has won 21 of its last 23 games SU

* KAN has covered ten of its last 13 games

* KAN has played nine of its last 12 games UNDER the total

* KAN has covered four of its last five road games

* KAN has played six of its last eight road games UNDER the total

* ARIZ has covered four of its last five games

* ARIZ has won six of its last eight games SU

* ARIZ has covered four of its last six home games

* KAN has won four of the last six meetings SU

A year ago these teams met before the conference season had opened for either of them and Kansas, playing in Lawrence, came away with a hard-earned 76-72 victory. Since then, there has been quite a changeover in their roster as the likes of Mario Chalmers, Darrell Arthur, Darnell Jackson and Sasha Kaun have departed. Chalmers, who was a hero in the national title game against Memphis, was a defensive stopper and sure ball-handler who now starts at point guard for the Miami Heat. His absence is certainly felt, perhaps most of all. On the Arizona side, Jerryd Bayless, who came in as a freshman and virtually took over the offense, went off to the NBA as well and the coaching reins have gone from Kevin O’Neill back to Lute Olson, then to interim mentor Russ Pennell.

The observation on the part of many people who follow the Arizona program was that perhaps the Wildcat offense would be better off without Bayless, as it might encourage more team play. Over the long haul, that remains to be seen, but so far things look to have been spread around more. Chase Budinger seems to be responding, the 6’7" junior forward is averaging 19.1 points and is shooting 54.3% from the field, which includes a blistering 58% from beyond the arc. Nic Wise, who is about as true a playmaker as the Wildcats have, is taking more shots this season and scoring more (13.6 ppg). Jordan Hill has really asserted himself on the inside, not only scoring 18.5 ppg but also pulling down 11.9 board per contests and blocking 2.8 shots. He’s more than a match for Cole Aldrich in the middle.

On an overall basis, the results for Arizona have been mixed. The ‘Cats lost a couple of heart-breakers away from home, beaten by a point each by UAB and Texas A&M. The 69-64 win over Gonzaga, in which Hill had 22 points and Wise 21, was genuinely impressive. But then Lon Kruger’s UNLV team handed it to them by a 79-64 count, holding Arizona to less than 40% shooting and just one basket from beyond the arc.

It would appear that "home cooking" could work for this Arizona squad, however, against a Kansas team that has given considerable minutes to a lot of new people this year and will be the visiting team for the first time all season. Of the Jayhawks’ top nine scorers, six of them are freshmen, and they will be playing in front of a hostile crowd for the first time as collegians. Under the circumstances, we can lay a few with the Arizona Wildcats, the three-point favorite in the BetOnline NCAA college basketball sports betting odds.

JAY’S PLAY: ARIZONA -3 ***

(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

(Charles Jay of http://www.ebookies.com makes his share of shots from downtown as a contributor to the BetOnline Locker Room)