NCAAhoopsJUNKIE
EOG Addicted
I've been treading around .500 the past few days, but I went 2-1 Monday with Providence and Kansas winning and covering, but Cuse lost. Taking that many points for a good team is so tempting, but I keep telling people that these quality Big East teams always seem to win and cover at home, so I don't know why I went agains that. Pitt, G'town, Cuse, ND, L'ville, UConn, Marquette, WV, Nova are all tough places to play, especially the first 6 I just wrote, and most of these teams haven't played many non-conference road games because they know the Big East is gonna be tough enough and good enough for their resume. So, winning on the road against these teams is rare. Anyway, I feel very confident for my Tuesday picks.
SOUTH FLORIDA (-6) vs. DePaul: I'm tempted to call this a lock, but I know that nothing is a lock in sports. But, this is a huge play for me. I had Wake Forest as a huge play at Clemson on Saturday, and they won by 10 as a 2-pt underdog. This is almost as big a pick as Wake was. South Florida won by 22 at DePaul already, and DePaul is terrible. South Florida isn't as bad as some people think. They almost beat Syracuse, losing by 4, and they only lost by 14 to Pitt, which is respectable. They've been in a lot of games this season, they have decent guards with Dominique Jones and Jesus Verdejo, and they're at home in this game. This should be pretty easy.
ILLINOIS (-7.5) vs. Ohio State: This is one of those games where it's tempting to take the points for a good team. But OSU just won at Michigan, so there isn't as much necessity for them to win this game. I think Illinois is probably a little better than OSU right now, and I can't bet against them at home. Illinois' only two losses this year are by 2 to a very good Clemson team and to Michigan, which they already got revenge on. OSU, on the other hand, has been inconsistent.
VIRGINIA (+8.5) at Maryland: Maryland has been very inconsistent, and haven'd played great at home. They lost to Morgan State at home, and they're coming off a tough loss in overtime at FSU. Virginia blew Maryland out last March when Maryland was better and Virginia may have been worse. I'll take my chances with VA and the points.
NC STATE (+19) at Duke: Duke just won a big game over G'town and are now playing a NC State team they figure they'll beat. This is a big game for NC State with the in-state rivalry, and NC State is coming off a big OT win over Ga Tech, so they have some confidence. The WolfPack have competed in all of their road games. They lost by 12 at Clemson, and they almost won at Davidson and at Florida. If NC State plays hard and hustles, and Brandon Costner shoots well from outside, they should be able to keep this one respectable.
PENN STATE (-3) vs. Michigan: This is one of those games that seems like Michigan is the easy choice, as a ranked team getting points against an unranked team. But, Penn State is playing with confidence right now, and they've played well at home. Michigan has been pretty bad on the road. Penn State might be as good as Michigan is. I'll take PSU to get a big Big Ten home win here.
SOUTH FLORIDA (-6) vs. DePaul: I'm tempted to call this a lock, but I know that nothing is a lock in sports. But, this is a huge play for me. I had Wake Forest as a huge play at Clemson on Saturday, and they won by 10 as a 2-pt underdog. This is almost as big a pick as Wake was. South Florida won by 22 at DePaul already, and DePaul is terrible. South Florida isn't as bad as some people think. They almost beat Syracuse, losing by 4, and they only lost by 14 to Pitt, which is respectable. They've been in a lot of games this season, they have decent guards with Dominique Jones and Jesus Verdejo, and they're at home in this game. This should be pretty easy.
ILLINOIS (-7.5) vs. Ohio State: This is one of those games where it's tempting to take the points for a good team. But OSU just won at Michigan, so there isn't as much necessity for them to win this game. I think Illinois is probably a little better than OSU right now, and I can't bet against them at home. Illinois' only two losses this year are by 2 to a very good Clemson team and to Michigan, which they already got revenge on. OSU, on the other hand, has been inconsistent.
VIRGINIA (+8.5) at Maryland: Maryland has been very inconsistent, and haven'd played great at home. They lost to Morgan State at home, and they're coming off a tough loss in overtime at FSU. Virginia blew Maryland out last March when Maryland was better and Virginia may have been worse. I'll take my chances with VA and the points.
NC STATE (+19) at Duke: Duke just won a big game over G'town and are now playing a NC State team they figure they'll beat. This is a big game for NC State with the in-state rivalry, and NC State is coming off a big OT win over Ga Tech, so they have some confidence. The WolfPack have competed in all of their road games. They lost by 12 at Clemson, and they almost won at Davidson and at Florida. If NC State plays hard and hustles, and Brandon Costner shoots well from outside, they should be able to keep this one respectable.
PENN STATE (-3) vs. Michigan: This is one of those games that seems like Michigan is the easy choice, as a ranked team getting points against an unranked team. But, Penn State is playing with confidence right now, and they've played well at home. Michigan has been pretty bad on the road. Penn State might be as good as Michigan is. I'll take PSU to get a big Big Ten home win here.
