Isiah Thomas makes his FIU Coaching Debut vs. North Carolina

NCAA Basketball Sports Betting

Florida International Golden Panthers (13-20 SU, 14-16 ATS) at North Carolina Tar Heels (34-4 SU, 18-19 ATS)
Monday, November 9 - 7 PM ET

BetUS NCAA Basketball Sports Betting Odds: NORTH CAROLINA -30.5

Here are some of the NCAA basketball online betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

• FIU has covered six of its last eight games
• FIU has played ten of its last 14 games OVER the total
• FIU has covered four of its last six road games
• FIU has covered six of its last 18 road games
• FIU has lost 21 of its last 25 road games SU
• NC has won and covered its last six games
• NC has played seven of its last nine games UNDER the total
• NC has won and covered its last five home games
• NC has played seven of its last nine home games UNDER the total

Florida International Golden Panthers thought it could make a real impact on its basketball program by bringing in some big name talent and it did so by hiring Isiah Thomas, whose last coaching gig was with the New York Knicks, where he was also the general manager. Thomas is supposed to vault this program into the big time, and there are possibilities for growth, considering that FIU is a school with 40,000 students and exists in a major market where the other school ( Miami) does not really have a dominant presence.

However, when you look at Thomas' other stops, including the so-so tenure as GM of the Toronto Raptors, three-first round playoff exits as coach with the Indiana Pacers, the disaster in New York, which featured a sexual harassment lawsuit (which resulted in an $11.6 million judgment), prospects don’t seem that good.

Then there is of course the fiasco with the Continental Basketball Association, which Thomas owned and destroyed. Seems like he’s a walking cancer, but he is Isiah Thomas, one of basketball’s true greats.

So, what could FIU really lose? The basketball program had already been dragged through the mud by former coach Shakey Rodriguez, and hadn't accomplished much, aside from one trip to the NCAA tournament (under Bob Weltlich).

Thomas says he is donating his first year's salary back to the school, and that's very nice, but he lost the team's best player, Freddy Asprilla, not to mention Josue Soto, the third-leading scorer last year, and he has refused to honor deals previous coach Sergio Ruoco made with recruits. This could get ugly again.

On the positive side, Thomas was able to recruit small forward Marvin Roberts, the nation's leading junior college scorer, and he'll be a main cog right away. On the negative side, there is no one with size who also possesses talent (no one is over 6'9"). North Carolina Tar Heels may not have Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington or Danny Green any more, but the Heels will have some depth up front with the likes of Tyler Zeller, Ed Davis and the brand new recruit, John Henson, a kid who is 6'10" and under 200 pounds (memories of Austin Daye, anyone?) and reportedly is a tremendous shot-blocker.