Memphis Will Crush South Florida Tonight

Memphis vs. South Florida, 9:00 ET

The NBA is about to head into the All-Star Break, Hockey is on a break, baseball hasn't started, college and professional football have ended recently. All that is really remaining is soccer and college basketball. Luckily, I've done really well in college basketball this season. The bad news is that this week, when more attention is turned to it, I've been average. The schedule is shortening up a little bit as we head into the weekend, but I think we still have a good opportunity here as Memphis takes on South Florida.

Memphis is one of the few ranked teams that takes the floor tonight. They come into the game with a 20-4 record and are the 14th-ranked team in the nation. This is a conference game for the teams and Memphis has done very well in their conference matchups, going 10-1 to this point in the campaign. It isn't like the American conference is full of really amazing talent or anything, but the team has taken care of business which is the main priority. They are in the midst of a seven-game winning streak and I would expect that they can make it eight tonight. Their last loss was a road game, against Temple. Temple is just above South Florida in the standings so this could be a bit of a trap game for the Tigers if they aren't careful. They still have another road game after this one so it isn't a one-and-done situation for them, but after being in the comfort of their own gym for the past couple of games, this could be a slow start for them. Still, there is no question they have the better talent on the roster and you have to think the majority of times that will carry them to victory over inferior opponents. Their best scorer, PJ Haggerty is averaging 21.6 points per game and is shooting a strong 50% from the floor, 80% from the free throw line, and 43% from deep. South Florida is unlikely to have answers for him even if they sell out to stop him.

Jan 6, 2025; Wichita, Kansas, USA; South Florida Bulls coach Ben Fletcher on the side lines during the second half against the Wichita State Shockers at Charles Koch Arena. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images

South Florida hasn't put together a terrible season, in fact it is currently the definition of an average team, at least overall. Their record before tonight's game is 12-12. They are also just 5-6 in conference play, so also hovering right around that .500 mark. As I write this, I'm searching for an impressive victory on their schedule. They don't really have one. I suppose winning on the road against Wichita State is one that you could consider a good victory. They beat them by almost 20 points as well, so it was certainly dominant even if the Shockers aren't having a great season. They beat Temple two games ago, but this was a home game and it was in double-overtime so not exactly a dominant performance there. The team is just 2-3 over their past five and 3-6 over their last nine games. The wins all have been at home, so that could be an encouraging sign for tonight. 

This game has a line that is a bit closer than I would think it should be. If Memphis is firing on all cylinders, this game probably results in a Tigers victory by 10-15 points. As it stands, the line is just 7.5 which feels too low to me. Memphis has been fine on the road, for the most part, and has handled the American Conference with ease. There really isn't a lookahead situation here either. I'll take Memphis to win this one by margin.