Disappointed Bruins battle Salukis in NYC

Cbasketball Betting Lines

11/21/2008 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A third place finish in the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer is on the line this evening, as the fourth- ranked UCLA Bruins meet the Southern Illinois Salukis at Madison Square Garden.

The Bruins were the first highly ranked team to be knocked off this season, dropping a 55-52 decision to Michigan in the semifinals of this event on Thursday. It was a shocking result for UCLA, which defeated Prairie View A&M (82-58) and Miami-Ohio (64-59) in its regional matchups. Following this game, the Bruins will return back to the West Coast to host Florida International on November 29th.

As for SIU, it was handled much easier in its semifinal round contest, falling to 10th-ranked Duke, 83-58 last night. The Salukis had earned their spot at MSG by defeating California-PA (66-52) and Massachusetts (80-73) in the regional's, but were no match for the highly-touted Blue Devils. Upon conclusion of this game, SIU will stay on the road to face Western Kentucky on Wednesday.

The Salukis and Bruins have met twice on the hardwood, with UCLA winning both of those meetings.

The Bruins turned the ball over 17 times and shot poorly at the foul line (5- of-11), as they were stunned by Michigan last night. UCLA has had its share of struggles at the charity stripe early on, hitting just 57.1 percent of its attempts on the season. The Bruins were able to keep things close last night by shooting 42.0 percent from the floor and winning the battle on the boards, 38-25, but it wasn't enough in the end. Darren Collison and Jrue Holiday each scored 13 points to pace UCLA in defeat, while Nikola Dragovic posted 11 points off the bench. On the season, Collison tops the roster in scoring with 16.0 ppg and he is also dishing out 4.0 apg to pace the team in that department as well.

The Salukis shot a dismal 35.1 percent from the field and were outscored 54-35 in the second half of their loss to Duke last night. SIU was also outscored at the foul line, 40-12, and dominated on the boards, 42-28, in the setback. On a positive note, the Salukis did manage to force 19 turnovers and they have fared very well in that department this season, generating 20.3 tpg. Carlton Fay guided SIU in the loss with 17 points and three rebounds, while Kevin Dillard posted 10 points and seven assists. On the year, Fay leads the team in scoring (12.0 ppg), as well as rebounding (6.3 rpg). Dillard checks in with 11.5 ppg.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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