Ralph Michaels
Atlanta -6.5
The Hawks are streaking again winning and covering 4 straight, 5 of 6 at home (won all 6 SU) and 10 of 12 overall and with their 2 losses to the best team in the NBA, Golden St, and the current #2 seed in the East, Toronto. Meanwhile Washington comes in having won 4 straight but that's why were playing against them here. The Wizards only road game in the 4 game win streak was at Philly, worst team in NBA by far, and they failed to cover it and in their last game they needed to come back from an 18 point deficit to get eh win versus NY. In fact Washington is 2-8 ATS their last 10 away with both covers as road favorites, something they are not here. We also like that when the Hawks win they do so soundly as their average margin of victory of their last 12 games is +11.3 ppg (#1 in the NBA since 2/25).
Vermont -4.5
LY Seattle made was invited to the CBI Tourney and sold out both home games. So this season with a 7-7 conference record they again got invited and got to host the first 2 rounds. If you are looking at the matchups for this game that is not a typo as Seattle is 15-16 on the season while Vermont comes in at 22-13 having won 8 of their last 9 and while their road record of 8-9 is respectable they actually won 7 of their last 10 on the road. The Catamounts are deep and talented and over their last 9 games they have 5 players averaging double digits. With the disappointment of losing to Stony Brook in the America East tourney behind then look for this post-season savvy group (8th straight year in post-season action) to we'll call it here, win the CBI. FYI: Teams had only one common opponent so not a fair comparison but both hosted UC Santa Barbara with the Catamounts winning 75-68 and the Redhawks losing 88-50.
Harry Bondi
WASHINGTON +5.5 over San Diego State
San Diego State is a veteran team that had much bigger expectations this season than playing in the NIT so we don't think there will be a ton of excitement here tonight, especially when you consider the arena was half-empty during the team's first round NIT win. Washington, meanwhile, is a team full of underclassmen that's excited to still be playing. The Huskies were a profitable 6-3 ATS on the road this year and always fight hard until the final buzzer, as seen by eight of their last 12 losses coming by seven points or less. And Washington's young guns certainly won't be intimidated by the Aztecs since they already played a rigorous Pac 12 slate and went 17-9 ATS this season against winning teams. Take the more motivated team catching the generous points.
Bob Balfe
George Washington +2.5
Here we have two teams that wish they were in the NCAA Tournament. Monmouth won some big road games against well known programs this year, but lost to some really bad teams. I think these teams are right where they belong. I will take the A-10 over the MAAC any day of the week and especially a team that beat Virginia this year. Monmouth’s upsets seemed big at the time, but most of those teams are huge schools living on yesterdays name. Take George Washington.
Georgia Tech +4
Speaking of conferences, there is none better than the ACC as they dominate the remaining field in the NCAA Tournament. South Carolina is dealing with suspensions and guys who are not healthy. Georgia Tech is a good basketball team that played better competition this season. I like this team to cover and win the game outright. Take GTech.
Dr. Bob
Opinion - San Antonio (-6) over CHARLOTTE
Charlotte is a pretty good team but the Hornets have been relatively worse against good teams. Charlotte has lost all 3 games against Golden State and San Antonio by 10 points or more (an average of 15.7 points), including a 20 point loss in San Antonio. The Spurs have made a habit of covering the spread against mediocre and bad teams as long as they’re not laying too many points. In fact, San Antonio is 30-10 ATS this season as a favorite of less than 13 points against teams with a win percentage of less than .625. The Hornets apply to a 37-127-5 ATS negative momentum situation that is based on their upset loss to Denver and my ratings favor San Antonio by 7.3 points. I have some concern about a possible letdown by the Spurs after beating the Warriors on Saturday night but San Antonio is not generally the type of team that suffers a letdown. Still, that’s enough to keep me from making the Spurs a Best Bet.
Opinion - UNDER (156) : Duquesne at MOREHEAD ST Under 155 or more.
Jeffery James
Seattle +4.5
Talk about a road trip it does not get much farther from home for Vermont than playing in Seattle. Vermont was just 8-9 SU on the road this season and they have only covered 3 of their last 17 lined games. Seattle has the better defense and with this long a distance the home court will mean a ton. Take the underdog Redhawks as the play of the day.
OC Dooley
Monmouth -2.5
One can argue that there would have been a “true” Cinderella side in this year’s Sweet Sixteen round of the Big Dance if the committee had invited Monmouth’s famous “bench mob” to the proceedings. Monmouth played only ONE game at home during the non-conference portion of their schedule in both November and December. Monmouth was the ONLY team in the land to garner 17 different “neutral” court victories which included outright upsets versus a host of major foes (UCLA, USC, Georgetown and Notre Dame). Monmouth has successfully COVERED the spread in 12 out of 15 overall attempts against opposition with above .500 overall records. On the flipside after actually “failing” to cover the number 4 consecutive times George Washington long term (4-13 ATS) has been a disaster where it counts