there are 6 games on tv here... just at noon!! and 25 all day. i love it.
i've been way too hot the last week or so. in fact, i'm starting to get a little cocky about it. i'd highly recommend you look to fade these picks. on the bright side... after the 14 i posted last saturday, the dozen or so i have today don't look too bad.
cincinnati (+5.5) 2 units. everybody's jumping on the georgetown bandwagon now. and i've been playing against cincy since kirkland went down. however... i think this will be a very physical, hard-fought, close game. georgetown, coming off their two big wins, may not match cincinnati's intensity.
marquette (+9) 2 units. almost seems too easy. sportsbook.com shows 72% on marquette. that makes me very nervous. i hate to be on the same side as 72% of the bettors, but it's hard to imagine pitt winning this game by double digits. hmmm.... that practically makes pitt a lock today, doesn't it?
iowa st (-1.5) 2 units. i look for stinson and blaylock to show chalmers and robinson what big 12 guard play is all about. iowa state will avenge last year's home loss to kansas. especially stinson, who will be looking to improve upon his 6-20 performance. this was going to be a bigger play for me, but iowa state has not defended their home court very well so far in conference play this year (1-2) and kansas is starting to improve on the road.
vanderbilt (+9) 2 units. florida is reeling. maybe some home cooking will take care of their problems, but i like vandy to keep this close.
temple (+1.5) 3 units. maryland coming off a road win at georgia tech and their next two games are against nc and nc state. hmmm... sounds like a perfect spot for a team that plays a tough zone defense to sneak in and pick up an upset win. this is where losing mccray will hurt.
rutgers (+1.5) 3 units. i was very close to making this a 4-unit play. couldn't quite pull the trigger. louisville has one win in a true road game this year. ONE. biggest factor that scares me... rutgers has been... less than dominant at home this year. however, 2 of their 3 league losses at home were against villanova and pitt, 2 top-10 teams. i don't think louisville is even a top-25 team. if their jerseys didn't say 'louisville', they wouldn't be ranked right now. also, i just love saying this... i think douby will have a big game. c'mon, how can you not love a scoring machine named douby?
william & mary (-10.5) 2 units. WHAT? THIS GODAWFUL TEAM LAYING DD? WHAT THE BLEEP IS SMITTY SMOKING? yeah, this is either one of the worst plays of my life or sheer genius. a team that has lost 9 straight games is laying DD? ridiculous. as bad as jimmy madison is, you HAVE to take them, right? well, that's what i'm hoping vegas wants us to think. well, by 'us', i mean the 3 people who actually considered wagering on this game. about the only things i can find to rationalize this play... JM's closest league road loss is by 11 and william & mary won by 26 on this court last year. i think both william AND mary will both have double doubles this afternoon as they beat up the dukes. i can't believe i'm recommending this play. :scared
wisconsin (+3.5) 2 units. gonna be tough for michigan to get motivated after their big win over the spartans the other night. especially playing a team that just lost to nd state. wisky will play harder than the wolverines and should win a close game.
youngstown st (+4) 2 units. i took the dog the first time these two played 2 weeks ago, and i'm going with the dog again. 2 improving teams - should be a close game. since november, cleveland state has won one home game by more than 4 points - a 6-point win over detroit. in the interest of full disclosure, i am not counting their blowout win over john carroll in late december. john carroll? is that a school or a person? i think they beat one person. fortunately, they beat him by 31 points.
iowa (-2.5) 3 units. i'm going to the well again. iowa is a much better team at home. and i'm not sold on ohio state being anything special.
marist (-8) 2 units. something tells me box and one will have a nice write up on this game. may even have posted it already. i hope he's also on the red foxes. i hate going against my alma mater, but we have always struggled in poughkeepsie. speaking of siena vs. marist... true story... when i played football at siena, we opened our season at marist one year. they were ranked #23 in the country i believe (division III). and let me tell you, we were pretty bad. during practice that week, a scraggly red fox walked across our practice field. we took that as an omen that we were gonna win the game. sure enough, we scored once right before halftime and again to start the second half, and we won. i think the final was 13-6. greatest win i was ever a part of. not that i was a part of a lot of wins on the football field. matter of fact, it may be a stretch to say i was part of that game, since i was on the sidelines with torn ankle ligaments. but i digress...
i've been way too hot the last week or so. in fact, i'm starting to get a little cocky about it. i'd highly recommend you look to fade these picks. on the bright side... after the 14 i posted last saturday, the dozen or so i have today don't look too bad.
cincinnati (+5.5) 2 units. everybody's jumping on the georgetown bandwagon now. and i've been playing against cincy since kirkland went down. however... i think this will be a very physical, hard-fought, close game. georgetown, coming off their two big wins, may not match cincinnati's intensity.
marquette (+9) 2 units. almost seems too easy. sportsbook.com shows 72% on marquette. that makes me very nervous. i hate to be on the same side as 72% of the bettors, but it's hard to imagine pitt winning this game by double digits. hmmm.... that practically makes pitt a lock today, doesn't it?
iowa st (-1.5) 2 units. i look for stinson and blaylock to show chalmers and robinson what big 12 guard play is all about. iowa state will avenge last year's home loss to kansas. especially stinson, who will be looking to improve upon his 6-20 performance. this was going to be a bigger play for me, but iowa state has not defended their home court very well so far in conference play this year (1-2) and kansas is starting to improve on the road.
vanderbilt (+9) 2 units. florida is reeling. maybe some home cooking will take care of their problems, but i like vandy to keep this close.
temple (+1.5) 3 units. maryland coming off a road win at georgia tech and their next two games are against nc and nc state. hmmm... sounds like a perfect spot for a team that plays a tough zone defense to sneak in and pick up an upset win. this is where losing mccray will hurt.
rutgers (+1.5) 3 units. i was very close to making this a 4-unit play. couldn't quite pull the trigger. louisville has one win in a true road game this year. ONE. biggest factor that scares me... rutgers has been... less than dominant at home this year. however, 2 of their 3 league losses at home were against villanova and pitt, 2 top-10 teams. i don't think louisville is even a top-25 team. if their jerseys didn't say 'louisville', they wouldn't be ranked right now. also, i just love saying this... i think douby will have a big game. c'mon, how can you not love a scoring machine named douby?
william & mary (-10.5) 2 units. WHAT? THIS GODAWFUL TEAM LAYING DD? WHAT THE BLEEP IS SMITTY SMOKING? yeah, this is either one of the worst plays of my life or sheer genius. a team that has lost 9 straight games is laying DD? ridiculous. as bad as jimmy madison is, you HAVE to take them, right? well, that's what i'm hoping vegas wants us to think. well, by 'us', i mean the 3 people who actually considered wagering on this game. about the only things i can find to rationalize this play... JM's closest league road loss is by 11 and william & mary won by 26 on this court last year. i think both william AND mary will both have double doubles this afternoon as they beat up the dukes. i can't believe i'm recommending this play. :scared
wisconsin (+3.5) 2 units. gonna be tough for michigan to get motivated after their big win over the spartans the other night. especially playing a team that just lost to nd state. wisky will play harder than the wolverines and should win a close game.
youngstown st (+4) 2 units. i took the dog the first time these two played 2 weeks ago, and i'm going with the dog again. 2 improving teams - should be a close game. since november, cleveland state has won one home game by more than 4 points - a 6-point win over detroit. in the interest of full disclosure, i am not counting their blowout win over john carroll in late december. john carroll? is that a school or a person? i think they beat one person. fortunately, they beat him by 31 points.
iowa (-2.5) 3 units. i'm going to the well again. iowa is a much better team at home. and i'm not sold on ohio state being anything special.
marist (-8) 2 units. something tells me box and one will have a nice write up on this game. may even have posted it already. i hope he's also on the red foxes. i hate going against my alma mater, but we have always struggled in poughkeepsie. speaking of siena vs. marist... true story... when i played football at siena, we opened our season at marist one year. they were ranked #23 in the country i believe (division III). and let me tell you, we were pretty bad. during practice that week, a scraggly red fox walked across our practice field. we took that as an omen that we were gonna win the game. sure enough, we scored once right before halftime and again to start the second half, and we won. i think the final was 13-6. greatest win i was ever a part of. not that i was a part of a lot of wins on the football field. matter of fact, it may be a stretch to say i was part of that game, since i was on the sidelines with torn ankle ligaments. but i digress...
