Mountain West Tournament Betting - San Diego State vs. #8 New Mexico

The Mountain West may not have the prominence of the Big East or the ACC when it comes to basketball, and the fact that none of the teams are great bets hasn’t helped them gain any popularity. However, as a top-10 team the New Mexico Lobos have a chance to gain some notoriety as an outside bet for March Madness and the national title as they attempt to run roughshod over San Diego State tonight.

The Lobos were able to get past Air Force’s lame duck basketball team by a score of 75-69 but failed to surpass the daunting -17.5 point spread. That loss to the basketball betting line has dropped New Mexico to just 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games despite the fact that they’re undefeated straight up in that stretch.

Against the Aztecs, New Mexico State is just 2-4-1 ATS in their last 7 games, which is mystifying when you consider that San Diego State has a 5-9-1 ATS record in their past 15 games against the Lobos. The Aztecs also went 1-1 SU and 2-0 ATS in the two games against New Mexico. A normalized betting spread is going to help New Mexico get back on track against the line.

San Diego State Aztecs (23-8) vs. New Mexico Lobos (29-3)

Friday, March 12 th --- Thomas & Mack Center --- 9:00pm EST

NCAAB Betting Line: New Mexico -2.5 (134.5)

San Diego State is 7-1 SU in their past 8 games but they’re just 4-4 ATS during that run which makes them a cautionary play tonight if you choose to swing against the grain. And it might not be such a bad idea. San Diego State has been a team that has given New Mexico all sorts of troubles this year.

While New Mexico is the bees knees (an expression I’ve never fully understood) in the Mountain West, they’ve struggled historically in tournament play. Air Force chased them on the scoreboard all night, exposing flaws in their defense that San Diego State’s strong scoring ability can take advantage of.

That doesn’t mean I expect the underdog to win this game outright, but the distance between these two teams isn’t that far on the talent side of things. It’ll be a nail biter that’ll have your heart thumping to escape your chest cavity, but bet on San Diego State to put up a dogfight as they barely lose to New Mexico.