Booker paces unbeaten Tigers, Wake Forest up next

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/10/2009 - Clemson, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trevor Booker scored 23 points, grabbed six rebounds and blocked six shots, as No. 12 Clemson suffocated North Carolina State, 63-51, to remain one of three unbeaten teams in the nation.

Top-ranked Pittsburgh hosts St. John's on Sunday and Wake Forest puts its perfect record on the line Sunday night against third-ranked North Carolina.

On Saturday, Clemson's (16-0, 2-0 ACC) perfect record took center stage, and its defense shined.

Clemson held the Wolfpack (9-4, 0-1) to 31.5 percent shooting and forced 18 turnovers. On the offensive end, the Tigers got nine points and 11 rebounds from K.C. Rivers and seven points and four steals from Tanner Smith.

North Carolina State, which has lost four straight against the Tigers, was paced by Courtney Fells' 10 points and seven rebounds.

The Tigers made just 40 percent of their shots, committed six turnovers and only got to the foul line four times, yet swarmed the Wolfpack on the defensive end and posted a 24-17 lead after 20 minutes of play.

Booker led the Tigers with nine points, but more importantly three steals and five of the team's six blocks. Clemson held NC State to 6-of-29 shooting (a 20.7 percent clip), and the Wolfpack managed just 17 points despite nine second chances on offensive rebounds.

The Wolfpack got on the scoreboard over three minutes in, but saw themselves in a 12-3 hole after Smith's transition layup almost halfway home. The Wolfpack also didn't score in the final three minutes of the first half.

The second half started productively for the Wolfpack, who embarked on a 12-5 stretch in the first two-plus minutes to tie the game. NC State was just five points short of its first-half total during the run, which ended with Fells' three-pointer for a 29-29 tie.

Clemson responded from a 33-33 deadlock with an 8-0 spurt capped by easy buckets from Smith and David Potter. The Wolfpack missed four straight shots and turned the basketball over two times as the Tigers again regained control.

The Tigers just exerted their will and expanded their advantage from that point forward. Back-to-back buckets by Booker increased the lead to 57-43 late in the contest, and Clemson rolled to the final horn.

Game Notes

Clemson shot 42.9 percent for the game and came up with 12 steals...Clemson scored 30 points in the paint to just 18 for the Wolfpack...North Carolina State still has a substantial 95-45 edge in the all-time series.

Casioonnet NCAA Basketball Betting News

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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