Welcome to the Thursday college hoops slate, sports betting family. Now that conference play is in full swing and the NFL Playoffs are winding down, you can expect us to cover the college hardwood a little bit more often around these parts.
I can't wait for this Sun Belt matchup between the Ragin' Cajuns and the Mountaineers. This is an early game on ESPN+, so get those wagers in early, my friends. Check out my best bet for Louisiana vs App State below. Good luck and enjoy the game.
Online sportsbooks opened this line at App State -9.5 on the lookahead line yesterday. A little bit of money has come in on Louisiana, so much so that the line is now sitting at App State -8.5 at the time of this writing.
As for the game total, there's been some Over money in the market so far. The line opened at 123, and a few spots are now offering 125.5. As always, be sure to shop around for the best price before pulling the trigger on any bet.
Dorian Finister is the main man of this Ragin' Cajuns offense. The 6'5" junior guard leads the team in both scoring (13.8) and rebounding (5.0). Finister gets a lot of help from fellow guard De'Vion Lavergne, who leads UL in assists with 2.7 per contest.
Defense has been a strong point for Louisiana so far, as they rank 52nd in points allowed and a solid 19th in made field goals allowed. Todd Jones Jr. further adds to the squad's defensive prowess, as he averages 1.1 blocks per game for the Ragin' Cajuns.
Kasen Jennings leads App State in scoring, as he's averaging 14.8 points per game and hitting more than 76% of his free throws. Sophomore center Luke Wilson leads the Mountaineers in rebounding, so he'll be battling for boards against some of UL's big men. Alonzo Dodd is also a capable scorer, as he's averaging 13.6 points per game so far this season.
App State's defense is pretty decent this year. They rank inside the Top 80 in effective field goal percentage allowed and two-point defense. The aforementioned Wilson does a good job of patrolling the paint, as he averages almost 2 blocks per contest.
I played the Mountaineers here at home on Thursday's opening line. I don't usually like to lay this many, but man oh man, Louisiana is BAD! The Ragin' Cajuns are just 5-15 overall and 3-5 in Sun Belt play. Appy State is a much more respectable 11-9 and 4-4 in conference.
I made this line Appy State -15, mainly because it's a good bounce-back spot for them after a tough 2-point loss against Old Dominion last time out. This is a horrific spot for Louisiana because this will be their 3rd straight road game. I know these are college kids, but that much time on the road is rough on the body.
The Mountaineers have a much better offense, a slightly better defense, and they should own the glass in this one. This one has Blowout City written all over it. Let's lay the big wood! Good luck, my friends!