X and Cinnci

[Woody12]

I am leaning Xavier here myself but wanted to see what you Ohio guys thought of the line.

I see +9's and +8.5's and +4.5 for the first half.

HUGE factor I see too is the SOS...Sragin has cinnci at #341 overall and X at #94.

X's losses are old dom, miami-oh, florida, and gonzaga...tough opponents.

Cinnci's bigger wins are seton hall, and dayton and they beat Miami-oh by 20.

I think X'a bench is a little shallow at the moment so may go the first half route only.

Any opinions?

[Nigel Tufnel]

Tough call on tonight's Crosstown Shootout. Guess I'll just give a few tidbits on the game tonight:

1. UC is better than X this year.

2. X is so thin that their margin of error against even decent teams is razor thin. If they get in foul trouble tonight, they're going to get killed. If someone gets injured, they're going to get killed. If they aren't shooting well, they're going to get killed.

3. UC's seniors have never beaten X...so something tells me they are going to be highly motivated tonight. On the flip side, UC just cracked the Top 25 and this is a win that X really needs if it has any hopes of getting an at large look in March.

4. While X struggles to score, their defense has really tightened things up lately. Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised to see a low scoring game and with points at a premium, 8 to 9 points seems like pretty good value.

5. After Holloway, Lyons and Jackson at the guard positions, X has to go immediately to walk ons to play the guard position....a pretty scary scenario in a heated rivalry game.

6. X has performed well as underdogs in this series.

7. UC hasn't played a very strong schedule...however, UC killed Miami...X lost to Miami. UC beat Dayton by 30+ points...it would take X five wins against Dayton to reach that type of spread.

8. Last, and most importantly, and I'm not trying to be cliche, but you can literally throw all the stats, previous performances and trends out the window in this game.

I'd probably lean to X getting that many points in what I expect to be a low scoring, ugly game. At the same time, as stated above, if X gets in foul trouble or someone gets hurt (which is likely in such a hotly contested game), X gets crushed.

Probably a good game to watch because of the intensity of the rivalry, but may be a good game to stay away from.

GL whichever way you go. :thumbs:

[Woody12]

It may be one of those games where the points look really enticing but are a perfect trap.

What you said about UC seniors is huge and that may be the difference.

May lay off this one and see what happens.

Thanks for the info!

[Franchise]

Cincy has played well but they haven't been dominating good teams. They have played an abysmal schedule although it does include the clubbing of Dayton. That game fell in a bad spot for UD against a team they beat down in the NIT, which provided ample motivation. I hate Holloway but I expect a tight defensive game where he does enough to keep X in the game. I think the key is Frease and McClean staying out of foul trouble. If one of them has a problem and has to sit Cincy can pound them inside and on the glass. I would lean to X since they always seem to come up big in tough spots and when the chips are stacked against them. That being said they are getting stretched thin and I think they have a beatdown coming in a big way in one of the next 6 games. 6 games in 16 days with @Cincy, @URI and home vs Dayton and Temple. Here's to hoping it's Dayton who is the only one of those teams to deliver a real beatdown on them in some time (although admittedly not in Cincy).

I'll be rooting for X although I have a feeling they won't get the outright win, I'll be hoping for a keep it close and let Holloway take over so they aren't too desperate in 10 days.

[Kevin]

Nice info! Thanks!

[Nigel Tufnel]

The more I think about it, the more I like the under. I think X is going to struggle to get to 60 tonight and I think their defense can hold UC under 70. I mean, X did keep Gonzaga in the 60's in thei building and the zags can score some points.

Barring some kind of insane shooting performance, I think it will stay under the total.

Of course, there's always overtime...

p.s. A Xavier ML play at 3.5/1 is some pretty good value in a game where anything can happen.

[joepa66]

I'll take the UNDER and a bowl a 5-way bowl of Skyline Chili to go along with my Huhdey please! :beerbang:

Tough to take a side in this game. I can't see a clear cut winner or reason to side with either team. The Crosstown Shootout is always a war.

[Nigel Tufnel]

I'll take the UNDER and a bowl a 5-way bowl of Skyline Chili to go along with my Huhdey please! :beerbang:

Tough to take a side in this game. I can't see a clear cut winner or reason to side with either team. The Crosstown Shootout is always a war.

If you can't see a clear cut winner, then 3.5/1 for a half or quarter of a unit seems like a no-brainer in terms of value. I've decided I'm putting a small wager on it just out of principle...god, as a lawyer, I hate it when my clients say that to me...:laughing:(doing something based on principle, just to be clear). Tip...anyone in a legal dispute...if you take a stand based on principle...know this..."principle" can be expensive.

[Franchise]

As much as I hate to see X get pounded I do enjoy when a garbage play like holloway pulled helps the run. Although I don't understand why they didn't lose possession as the Flyers did in the A 10 tourney. Holloway is good but he takes cheap shots.

[TheBeholdah]

X is garbage this year

[Nigel Tufnel]

X is garbage this year

Fact. They are too thin and got nothing from their 3 guards last night in Holloway, Lyons and Jackson. They will be ok in the A10...probably finish in the top 5, but it looks to be an NIT season for X this year.

But to quote Hanz and Franz..."hear me now and believe me later," reinforcements are on the way for X next year. As bad and thin as they are this year, they will deep with talented players and scorers next year. I'm looking forward to X being undervalued next year. Next year, Redford is back, Justin Martin is eligible, transfer PF Travis Taylor will play after sitting out this year, and three very good freshman are coming in who will get significant playing time...PG Darwin Davis, SG/SF Dezmine Wells (absolute freak) and PF/C Jalen Reynolds.

A down year once a decade is something I can live with as an X fan.

Here is a youtube clip of Dezmine Wells...freaks me out that this kid is a junior when this clip was shot...

YouTube - 6'3 Power Dunker Dezmine Wells; Explosive and Aggresive Junior Guard (09-10 Recap)