Game Time: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 16th, 2022

Venue: Charles Koch Arena, Wichita, Kansas

Where to Watch:  ESPN

 

DraftKings Sportsbook:  NL

Caesars:  Spread: 

VegasInsider:  Spread: 

Cincinnati: 2-2 conf, 12-5 overall (American Athletic Conference)

Wichita State: 0-3 conf, 9-6 overall (American Athletic Conference)

A matchup of AAC teams that doesn’t appear to be very competitive.  The question here is of course can we make some money on Cincinnati?  Traditionally the class of the AAC in men’s basketball is Houston, Memphis, Cincinnati, and maybe SMU or Tulsa when one of them is having a good year.  Wichita State lives in that same AAC world as South Florida and East Carolina.  They take beatings.  Every now and then one of these lower programs will get a good player that was overlooked by the power programs or maybe grew up local and didn’t want to venture too far from home… but not often enough.  

Cincinnati has won 7 of their last ten games, but in that stretch dropped two crucial in-conference games already.  They lost to the Memphis Tigers and the Tulane Green Wave.  Leading the Bearcats in scoring and rebounds is shooting guard Jeremiah Davenport, but he is not a super dominant college player… 13.6 pts and 5.3 rbs shouldn’t lead you team in either category if you want to a successful season in college basketball.  At 6’7 210lbs Jeremiah has NBA size… he needs an NBA game.

Wichita State is on a 3-game losing streak… all in the AAC.  They have lost to the Memphis Tigers (by 18 points), the Houston Cougars (by 10 pts, a W ATS), and the Tulane Green Wave (by 1 pt!).  What jumps out for Wichita State right away is yes they are losing to the class of the conference as Cincinnati has done as well…. But they almost took one off Tulane… and Tulane beat Cincinnati by 8 points.  Wichita State’s leader is combo guard Tyson Etienne who scores 15 pts a game but barely registers in the assist column with an anemic 2.1 per game.  This game may end up as a duel between these two guards.  At 6’2 Tyson Etienne will need to create a lot of separation to get his shot off.

Big time opportunity here to make a big score with your sportsbook with this big game tonight and a TOP TIER in CBB. Get with me here on this play or lock in on a long term pass as we make a move up the leaderboards! Get Brian Bitlers’ pick!!  It's available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. All your NCAA basketball needs for the entire college basketball season!

Cincinnati is 12-5, but 5-8-3 ATS.  They have logged 6 Overs and 10 Unders.  They are 1-2 in road games and will need some conference wins in a hurry to stay on track.

Wichita State is 9-6 on the season, but 6-9 ATS.  They have notched 6 Overs and 9 Unders.  They are 6-4 in home games and you should never be that vulnerable in your own house.

The Bearcats are 190th in the nation in scoring with 71.6 ppg, 65th in rebounds with 35.5 per, and 21st in AST/TO ratio with 1.5.  They are shooting a low 42.5% FG, and a very low 31.4% 3PT, and a spastically bad 65.8% FT.  The saving grace for all the shooting woes is the top shelf defense.  Cincy is 44th in the nation while only allowing 62.7 ppg from opponents.

Wichita State is 267th in scoring with 68.3 ppg, 111th in rebounds with 34.3 per game, and 265th in AST/TO ratio with 0.9.  If you thought Cincy were poor shooters, get a gander at these numbers.  WS 40% FG, 30.7% 3PT, and a slight uptick from the free throw line with 73.6%.  The terrible shooting numbers are also buoyed by an ok defense at 82nd in the nation while allowing 64.5 ppg from opponents.

Our prediction for Sunday, January 16th is…  Bearcats 75 - Shockers 67

Cincinnati is having a bad season that is for sure… but they aren’t going to lose to Wichita State.  The trick here will be the point spread… Cincy isn’t reliable enough to put money on anything larger than -5… so if you find anything bigger avoid the game altogether… because Wichita State isn’t reliable enough to prop you up from the other direction.  So the bet is take Cincy with a decent spread or taske nothing at all.

Don't miss our champion handicappers' Free NCAAB Picks and Premium Selections every day here at Bigal.com.  Just click on Shop Picks for our Best Bets, or click on Shop Subscriptions to join for a week or a month.  And if you enjoyed this Bearcats/Shockers preview, be sure to bookmark Bigal.com for our daily Game Previews and Predictions. And come back for the NBA, NFL, Big Games, college basketball picks, and any current betting odds or betting insights.

 

Bearcats: F R. Banks (covid) Out

Shockers: G D. Dennis (covid) Out ** F M. Udeze (covid) Out

Bearcats: F Abdul Ado, F John Newman III, G David Dejulius, G Mika Adams-Woods, G Jeremiah Davenport

Shockers: G Tyson Etienne, G Craig Porter Jr, G Ricky Council IV, F Clarence Jackson, F Joe Pleasant

Bearcats

Points: Jeremiah Davenport 13.6

Assists: Mika Adams-Woods 3.6

Rebounds: Jeremiah Davenport 5.3

Steals: John Newman III 1.3

Blocks: Abdul Ado 1.6

Shockers

Points: Tyson Etienne 15

Assists: Craig Porter Jr 3.1

Rebounds: Ricky Council IV 5.7

Steals: Tyson Etienne 1.3

Blocks: Craig Porter Jr 1.1

Bearcats: Wes Miller

Shockers: Isaac Brown