First make note this matchup is in the College Basketball Invitational not the NIT. That's important because the CBI doesn't have any teams from the Power Five conferences, or the Big East, this season. Take away those conferences and it leaves the Atlantic 10 as the highest-rated conference according to RPI numbers.

Duquesne is part of the Atlantic 10, which is a much superior conference compared to the Summit League where Nebraska-Omaha resides. Factor in home court advantage with Nebraska-Omaha making a rare East Coast trip and this number is worth laying. Another thing, too, about the CBI is the teams have to pay if they want in. Duquesne, unlike some other schools, really wanted in this tournament. The school is reducing ticket prices to ensure a sell-out.

The Dukes struggled down the stretch playing in a much tougher league than the Mavericks. Still, just two games ago, the Dukes knocked off NCAA qualifier St. Joe's on the road. Duquesne also lost a number of close games - four of their last eight defeats were by four or fewer points, or in overtime. The Dukes have a good bounce back record covering 11 of the past 15 times following a loss.

Nebraska-Omaha hasn't played since March 6 when it lost to Denver in the Summit League tournament. Before that game, the Mavericks also had gone 10 days before playing. That rust was evident against Denver when the Mavericks fell behind by 19 points at halftime. So this is just their third game in three weeks. Nebraska-Omaha has failed to cover during its last four road contests.