College basketball bettors were treated to an “extra” betting opportunity to start this season. The “extra” teams are now included in the betting lineup. An astute bettor with direct knowledge of these teams has an advantage. Extra games are those involving teams that are from Division I conferences that aren’t always included in the normal rotation. They include teams from the following conferences: American East, Atlantic Sun, Big South, Mid Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Northeast, Patriot League, Southland, Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC)  and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Traditionally, these teams have only been included in preseason tournaments. More recently, Don Best started adding a handful of games when an extra team would play a power conference, provided it was televised. It would benefit sharp bettors to know which teams they may see in the extra games during November and December so that they didn’t have to handicap every extra team. Now, they are all available. Not widely available yet and definitely for lower limits at most places, but it’s a start.

Jeff Boals’ third year at the helm of Stony Brook looks promising as he has the Seawolves off to a 11-3 start. Led by versatile forwards Elijah Olaniyi and Akwasi Yeboah, Stony Brook boasts wins over South Carolina, George Washington and Rhode Island. This is mostly a young team except for senior point guard Jaron Cornish. American East opponents will have trouble keeping the 25th ranked offensive rebounding team off the glass. While Vermont is looked at as the favorite in the league race, the Seawolves are coming into conference play full of confidence.

One thing that can make a huge difference in these extra conferences is a dominant big man. Most teams just don’t have the size inside to battle the power conference teams. Which is why NJIT should thrive in conference play. Eventually, after getting information regarding his status in the 2018 NBA Draft, 6-10 senior center Abdul Lewis pulled his name from the draft and then decided against transferring to a bigger school. Highlanders fans couldn’t be happier to have him back. The rotation should have been more experienced but the emergence of freshman point guard Zach Cooks and redshirt freshman San Antonio Brinson has forced Brian Kennedy to go younger. Lewis is a rim protector and post scorer that has no match in the Atlantic Sun. Vermont may be the best team, but NJIT is not far behind.

In my notes for Longwood coach Griff Aldrich I wrote “in over his head?” It seemed that he was hired from UMBC only because of his affiliation with the March darlings after they upset no. 1 seed Virginia. Wrong. Aldrich took a 7-26 team that lost two starters and immediately transformed them into a competitive 7-5 team against Division 1 opponents. The Lancers play defense and are ranked 64th nationally in effective FG% defense. The key will be the return of senior guard Isaiah Walton. Longwood is 4-1 with him in the lineup and 2-4 without. Radford is unquestionably the best team in the Big South, but expect Longwood to finish near the top of the secondary mix of teams.

Abilene Christian has been outstanding at 7-2. While Stephen F. Austin is the perennial favorites in the Southland Conference, the Wildcats are the best team this year. The trio of Jalone Friday, Jaren Lewis and Jaylen Franklin have no equal in the conference. Franklin is an experienced point guard while Friday and Lewis are great small conference post players. The strength of this team is in the turnover category as they are very stingy with the ball. They like to keep it awhile when they get it. On defense they are constantly pressuring the ball. They also have rim protectors, as evidenced by their 66th ranking in block pct. by KenPom. Expect Joe Golding’s squad to win the regular season title and be favored going into the conference tournament to get to the big dance in March.

The WAC conference is the only extra conference with a winning record to this point. New Mexico State has been dominant in this conference of late, with Bakersfield emerging recently. Utah Valley and Grand Canyon both have programs on the upswing while new member Cal Baptist is used to winning prior to joining the WAC. The best team is Jim Hayford’s Seattle Redhawks. Redshirt sophomore point guard Terrell Brown has been the key. He leads a balanced attack with 5 double digit scorers, including wings Morgan Means and American U transfer Delante Jones. The posts are outstanding led by lone returning starter Matej Kavas who can step out and hit the three. But the biggest difference for Hayford’s squad has been 6-9 Seton Hall transfer Myles Carter, averaging 14 ppg, 8 rpg and 2.5 bpg. His shot blocking presence allows for a different defensive mindset knowing Carter will protect the rim.

The MEAC and SWAC conferences are worth mentioning for dubious reasons. The combined win-loss record for all teams in these two conferences is an abysmal 31-214 (13%). It’s really difficult to tell who has the best team because they have played mostly road games. Combined, the two conferences have played only 44 home games and 201 road or neutral games. Going forward, it will be profitable to keep a close eye on these results in the early part of conference play, looking for any reason that the dog may have some value.

Micah is on a current 13-5 run in college basketball. His overall record this college basketball season is 85-69 (55.2%). Get your subscription today!