Maybe The Hoya Destroya was the right person to turn around the program. After consecutive losing seasons, the Georgetown Hoyas needed to make a change and parted ways with long-time head coach John Thompson III. In his place, the team hired Patrick Ewing, a former player and long-time assistant who had been biding his time and waiting for a chance to get a head coaching job. It was considered a roll of the dice, but so far that gamble has paid off and Georgetown is one of a handful of remaining undefeated teams left in the country. Now, they will try to move to 9-0 when they take on the Syracuse Orange in a clash of former Big East rivals.
This war on the floor will go down Saturday, December 16, 2017, at 12:30 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. The game will be televised live on CBS. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Saturday schedule.
Opening College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
Georgetown has played a very easy schedule so far. The Hoyas have fattened themselves up on cupcakes and the one decent team they have taken on so far was Richmond. Georgetown emerged victorious in that one thanks to a very efficient day from the floor. However, the Hoyas have sleepwalked against their slate since then, picking up wins, but failing to cover spreads in each of their last four. Georgetown was favored by at least 20 points in all of those games, yet was content to just pick up the win and move on.
The Orange have actually gone out and played some quality teams and we have a better idea of what this team is than the Hoyas. Syracuse is 8-1 with the one loss coming at the hands of Kansas and has secured wins against teams like Maryland and Connecticut. However, the Orange haven’t been that good against the spread either with a 3-4 ATS mark
Key Stats
Jim Boeheim is back behind the bench of Syracuse and has this team playing very good defense once again. The Orange are holding opponents to just 61.7 PPG and have dominated the glass too, giving up just 25.6 rebounds per game.
However, the one thing they must work on is closing out on three-point shooters. The 2-3 zone is working well and they are allowing opponents to sink just 38.5 percent of their field goals against them this season. Unfortunately, opponents have been great from downtown against this team too. Syracuse is allowing teams to hit 35.3 percent of their threes, and while the Orange do dare teams to shoot the trey with this defense, that’s too high of a percentage.
Player to Watch
For Syracuse to win this game, the Orange will need to shut down Jessie Govan. Govan has flourished in Ewing’s offense as the guards are giving him the ball down low in the paint pretty often. He has made opposing teams pay and is hitting 63 percent of his field goals this season. Govan is one of the few big men in the country averaging 20 PPG and Syracuse will be quick to collapse on him.
Additionally, Govan has been great on the glass. He averaged just five rebounds per game last season, but now that he is the focal point of the team, he is staying underneath the basket and cleaning up boards. Govan is grabbing 13 RPG and is one of the best rebounders in the nation.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
This is the perfect matchup for a team like Syracuse. Georgetown has been able to do what it wants against teams without the size and the talent to guard Govan and has used an inside-outside game to success. Syracuse’s defense will shut that down and the Orange will get a nice road win in a game that goes under the total.
College Basketball Odds: Syracuse 64, Georgetown 59
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