Strike Point Sports
West Virginia (-15) over Texas A&M
The Aggies haven't challenged themselves all year away from College Station. That being said, Morgantown is he wrong venue to try and get your first road win of the year. The Mountaineers are stifling on defensive and at home they are even better. Bob Huggins is getting the most out of his squad this year, and despite a few league losses the past week WVU is about as sound a team defensively and misc. as you can ask for. TAMU won't have an answer on offense to counter the pressure as well as the stalled guard play that West Virginia comes with. It should be a double-digit win for Huggy Bear and his program.
Allen Eastman
Utah (-6.5) over Memphis
I expect a blowout in this Jazz game. Utah has been as hot as any team in pro basketball. They just had a six-game winning streak snapped and they are 11-4 in their last 15 games overall. They have gone 22-9 in their last 31 games and this team is dominating at home. Memphis beat Utah on Jan. 8, and I think that the Jazz are going to want revenge in this one. Memphis just got blown out by 24 points at home to Houston on Saturday and this has been a .500 team over the last month without much hope of improving. I will lay the points in this one and look for another strong effort from the streaking Jazz.
Brandon Lee
Baylor vs. Ole Miss
Play: Baylor -7
Most are going to look at this game and expect Baylor to struggle to put away Ole Miss because they have a big game against Kansas on deck. Sure the game against the Jayhawks is big, but I don't think it's going to keep the Bears from winning here by double-digits. The talent gap is big in this one and this will easily be the best team Ole Miss has faced since losing by 23-points at home to Kentucky. Let's also not overlook the Rebels lost by 22 at home to George and just lost at home by 4 to Texas A&M. That's not the homecourt edge you are looking for when taking down an elite team. The Big 12 is without question the better conference overall and Baylor has non-conference wins over the likes of Oregon, VCU, Michigan State, Louisville and Xavier.
Black Widow
Oregon State vs. Utah
Play: Oregon St +21
Bets against favorites of 20 or more points (Utah), a hot team having covered 6 or 7 of their last 8 against the spread, a good team (60% to 80%) playing a team with a losing record are 37-10 ATS since 1997. This situation's record this season is 2-0 alone. Utah may not be able to get up for Oregon State today after hosting No. 10 Oregon on Thursday. I suspect a hangover effect could be in store for the Utes here.
Jimmy Boyd
Florida State vs. Syracuse
Play: Florida State -3
I really like the value here with the Seminoles as a short road favorite against the Orange. Florida State comes into this game off an ugly 56-78 loss at Georgia Tech as a 10-point favorite. The thing is, that was a clear letdown spot for the Seminoles, who had just played a 6-game gauntlet against the likes of Virginia, Virginia Tech, Duke, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Louisville.
I'm not letting that loss to the Yellow Jackets keep me from backing FSU in a clear bounce back spot against an inferior team in Syracuse. The Orange are a quality team and have been playing better of late, but most of that success has come against the middle of the pack and bottom feeders of the ACC. The only two elite teams they have played in conference are UNC and Notre Dame and both were ugly. They lost 68-85 to the Tar Heels and 66-84 to the Irish. While both of those were on the road, we essentially just need the Seminoles to win outright here with this line.
Syracuse is just 11-22 ATS in their last 33 off a home win and just 6-20 ATS in their last 26 games played on Saturday. The Orange are also just 9-20 ATS in the last 3 seasons against strong defensive teams, who are holding opponents to a shooting percentage of 42% or worse.
Dave Price
DePaul vs. Creighton
Play: DePaul +15½
The Key: The Creighton Bluejays have no business being this heavily favored against DePaul in their current state. They recently lost their best player in Mo Watson Jr. to a season-ending injury, and the results without him have not been pretty. They were upset 94-102 at home by Marquette and blasted 51-71 at Georgetown in their first two games without him. After all, Watson accounted for 38% of Creighton's points this season at the time of his injury. His loss cannot be overstated. DePaul just took a very good Butler team to overtime in its last game as 12-point underdogs. The Blue Demons haven't played since last Saturday, giving them a big advantage in rest here against a Creighton team that just played on Wednesday. I anticipate the Blue Demons keeping this one closer than expected.
Matt Fargo
Illinois vs. Penn State
Play: Penn State -2½
Illinois snapped a three-game skid with a win over Iowa on Wednesday at home to improve to 3-5 in the Big Ten. The Illini have been very solid at home with a 10-2 record with just one conference loss against Maryland. The road has been a different story however as they are 0-4 with none of those defeats coming by fewer than nine points and Illinois is getting outscored by an average of 18.2 ppg in those games. Penn St. is also 3-5 in the conference following three straight losses. The last two were on the road at Wisconsin and Purdue which are a combined 12-3 in the conference and all five losses have come against teams with non-losing conference records that are a combined 26-13 in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions own impressive home wins over Minnesota and Michigan St. where they are 9-4 overall. Going back, the Nittany Lions are 9-1-1 ATS in their last 11 games as a favorite of fewer than seven points while the Illini are 2-7 ATS in their last nine games as a road underdog of fewer than seven points.
Matt Josephs
George Mason vs. UMass
Play: George Mason +5
The Patriots look for the regular season sweep of UMass on Saturday. They won the first matchup at home 86-81 in a game where they were outshot but were hot from long range. That's not the norm for Mason who relies more on their inside game. They've already won at Richmond, St. Joe's, Penn, Penn State and Northern Iowa. Marquise Moore averages a double double and has three other double digit scorers as well. Go figure UMass who has lost two straight and six of their last eight. They fell at home last week to Fordham and are very inconsistent. This team beat Dayton at home by 12 holding them down defensively. I'm going to play the road team with an atmosphere in UMass that will be less then intimidating.
Larry Ness
Denver vs. Phoenix
Pick: Phoenix -3.5
The Nuggets beat the Suns 127-120 Thursday night in Denver and tonight will be in Phoenix in an effort to sweep this home-and-home set with the Suns. However, the Nuggets will have to do so without their budding star, the 6-10 Nikola Jokic. He did "more than his part" with 29 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and two blocks in Thursday's win but went down late and was diagnosed with a left hip strain that could keep him out of the next few games. "It's mixed emotions in the locker room," Nuggets coach Michael Malone told reporters after the win. "Nikola is truly beloved by all of his teammates. He has no ego, he's a young kid, he likes to have fun, he's a little bit goofy, and the guys love him for that. For all the success that he's having he's still the same kid, and that's why everybody cares about him and respects him." Jokic is averaging 15.5 and 8.5, falling in right behind a pair of SFs, Gallinari (17.0-5.0) and Chandler (15.7-6.9).
The absence of Jokic should give Phoenix even more room to operate on the offensive end, after it fell despite shooting 53.9 percent from the floor on Thursday. Shooting that well and scoring 120 points should be good enough to win but the Suns rank 29th in points allowed (111.8 PPG) and opponents shoot 46.9% against them, ranking 26th. If those numbers don't improve, the play of Bledsoe and Booker won't allow this team to move up in the standings. Eric Bledsoe (21.0-5.0-6.2) finished with a team-high 28 points in Denver, boosting his scoring average to 27 points over the last six contests. Devin Booker is averaging 20.7 PPG, after reaching the 20-point plateau in each of his last 11 games (27.0 PPG in that stretch).
The Nuggets are on a roll (have won six of eight) and have taken the last five in the series. However, the loss of Jokic is huge. He is one of just five players -- along with Russell Westbrook, DeMarcus Cousins, Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Davis -- to be averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in January. I'm backing the home team.
Stallone Sports
Kansas +7.5
There is just too much value to pass up here with the Jayhawks. Let me start off by saying that I don’t believe either Kansas or Kentucky is as good as the national media thinks they are. That being said, I just don’t trust this young Kentucky team to cover this kind of number against an experienced, tough Kansas Team. I know their depth is an issue with the loss of Carlton Bragg, but I still think the guard play and coaching can keep this game close throughout. If they won it outright I don’t think anyone would be surprised. I just don’t see a 7.5 point difference between this two teams right now, even with the game being in Lexington.
Texas +5.5
I like what I have been from this young Longhorn team in recent weeks. I believe that their brutal schedule has toughened them up and they are beginning to show signs that they are figuring things out under coach Smart. They have been battle tested on the road this season. Although they are 0-5 SU in those games, they lost @ Kansas by 12, @ Baylor by 10, @ Iowa State by 9, @ Kansas State by 3 and @ Michigan by 3. In all of those games, they showed toughness and the ability to keep games close with their defence. These road tests will help them here today @ Georgia where they are catching +5.5. They are coming off a confidence boosting win against Oklahoma and face a Bulldogs team who has lost 2 straight. I think people are too focused on these teams records right now and the markets are not fully understanding how much more difficult the conference schedule has been for Texas. I think Texas is the better team here and even after factoring in home court this number is just too high. Wouldn’t shock me in the least to see Texas win this game against a Bulldogs team who will definitely have a hard time scoring in what should be a defensive grinder.
Kansas State +1
This is most a gut place for me. I really like this Wildcats squad this year, they have a balanced attack, and have shown that they can go toe to toe with anyone in the big 12. Now they get a big step down in class when they face Tennessee in what is a huge flat spot for the Vols who are coming off their big emotional win against Kentucky. K-State has shown they can go on the road and perform, they won @ Ok-State by 8, lost by 2 @ Kansas, by 1 at Texas Tech, and by 5 @ Iowa State in a game where they could have laid down when they were down big, but battled back. Those are all impressive performances an this is a team flying a bit under the radar right now in the Big 12. There is a common theme today, I’m looking to back Big 12 teams in these match-ups vs. the SEC. I think the Vols will struggle to score here against a most physical, tougher, better coached K-State team who will make a statement today and get this road win.
West Virginia -15
Texas A&M has no idea what its going up against today in Morgantown. The Aggies are 296th in the nation in turnover percentage and have turned the ball over on 25.6% of their offensive possessions in SEC play. That is obviously going be an issue here against West Virginia who feats on turnovers. This A&M team is soft an they are going to get bullied here. They have been vulnerable on the road all season and I expect them to get rolled here against the vastly superior Mountaineers.
UNC / Oregon ML Parlay
I like the match-ups for both of these teams today but it was hard for me to lay the points in each game so I’m going to put them both in a ML parlay. This isn’t something I do often but I see value in this one. UNC’s depth and size should be able to overpower Miami in their match-up. I believe they are the vastly superior team, as I am not a believer in Miami this year whatsoever. This Hurricanes team really struggle to score at times and that is an issue today against the Tar Heels who come at you in waves. As for the Oregon game, its really quite simple for me. I’m not stepping in front of them right now. I also am looking for every reason to fade the Buffaloes. Their defence has been horrible in conference play and Oregon should be able to get whatever they want on the offensive end.
SPORTS WAGERS
MONTANA ST -2½ over E. Washington
Eastern Washington seems like a delicious play given the fact the Eagles sit at 14-7 overall with a 6-2 record in the Big Sky conference compared to that of Montana State who sits with a losing record of 10-12. The details will reveal that the assessment of the Bobcats is fairly accurate. Montana State sits at 5-4 in Big Sky play and they are nipping at the heels of EWU in the tournament race. Montana State owns an impressive 8-5 record at home this season while Eastern Washington is just 4-6 on the road.
The details will reveal that the assessment of Eastern Washington is not accurate and thus it embodies teams’ we love to target EWU is one of those fortunate teams’ that has gotten too many lucky bounces already this season, as they are the 3rd luckiest team in all of America and have done so playing the 246th ranked schedule. Just to go over that luck quotient theory one more time in case you missed it, it goes like this; the theory is that games decided by four points or less are either lucky victories or unlucky losses because of missed free throws, bounces off the rim and referee calls. In other words, these types of games are a 50/50 shot so a team that wins a high majority of them is lucky while a team that loses a high majority is unlucky. It all evens out over time.
Contrarily, Montana State sits at 311th overall in terms of luck while playing the 320th ranked schedule in terms of strength. While EWU may have played a tougher schedule, they have caught a lot more breaks than the Bobcats. In addition to the more captivating record by Eastern Washington, the Eagles have been dominant in this series overall as of late. The Eagles have won six of their previous seven against the Bobcats but it is worth noting that EWU is just 2-2 in the previous four in the Bobcats’ den. The market puts emphasis on series history while we only care about what happened most recently with both teams’ carrying the same cast of characters or pretty damn close. We could not care less about what happened six years ago because it has ZERO impact on the outcome of this one.
What we simply have here is an emphasis on Eastern Washington’s victories and their stock being through the roof, even if Montana State is also riding a hot hand. There is an overall reluctance and lack of faith by the general public in the Bobcats compared to the Eagles and now that general public is being offered a poisonous proposition in that they do not have to spot anything. In summarizing, EWU has covered their last five successfully. As a four-point favorite, EWU would defeat Idaho State by seven. Next, they would cover as a nine-point pup at the defending conference champion Weber State when they lost by a three-ball. The Eagles would follow that up with sparkling victories as a 13½ and 14-point favorite in the next two games and cover impeccably. Following that, EWU would win by 12 at Montana as a four-point road pup. The Eagles have been a cash cow recently and so now would be the perfect time to sell.
SANTA CLARA +10 over St. Mary’s
For years, the West Coast Conference has more or less been a two-horse race. There is the perennial conference heavyweight Gonzaga, who sits in the top-three across the board in many prominent polls and then St. Mary’s who has played second fiddle to Gonzaga but has been a consistent bubble team in the NCAA Men’s Tournament discussion. The Gaels currently sit at 18-2, with a sparkling 8-1 conference record. Their one loss was at the hands of the undefeated Zags two weeks ago. Despite that and despite a shocking loss at home when they were undefeated whilst hosting UT-Arlington, the Gaels currently sit as a #6 seed in many analysts’ brackets for March. While Randy Bennett has not led his team to a West Coast Conference championship in five years, while boding a four-year drought from the Men’s Basketball Tournament, Mary’s has nonetheless emerged on the national stage as a perennial power in the NIT and a consistent 20-game winner. Last year, St. Mary’s finished 29-6 and may be well on their way for a similar result in 2017.
Santa Clara comes in at 9-11 ATS with a 12-10 record overall. So on paper, the number seems appropriate for the venue. However, the Broncos stand at 9-4 at home this season. While St. Mary’s bodes insane defensive numbers (as they own the 2nd ranked scoring defense in America), the Broncos are not slouches by any means, as they only surrender a 51st ranked, 65.6 points per game. Both outfits have played nearly identical non-conference schedules in terms of strength and quality but Mary’s has had a bit more good fortune but this market couldn’t care less about good or bad fortune. At the end of the day, it can easily be assessed that Santa Clara truly is undervalued given St. Mary’s reputation.
For St. Mary’s, it’s the same story every single year. It’s like when you were a kid and watched the Wizard of Oz every year. The story always ended up the same way but you watched it anyway. The story of the Gaels is in its final chapter once again. The first three chapters were about a team with a great record that finally ready to knock off the Zags but just like every year, it does not happen. After getting crushed every year in that showdown, the Gaels subsequently crumble afterward. Two weeks ago, St. Mary’s lost to Gonzaga by 23 points and this is their first road game since that crushing defeat. The Gaels will now be spotting inflated points to a team that is coming in off a huge home win against BYU and that has also beaten Valparaiso earlier this season. As a 14-point pooch, Santa Clara had no qualms rolling up their sleeves and scrapping it out with Arizona either in the year and they actually have a chance to win this one on the square but man, these points are juicy. So, just like the Wizard of Oz, this story is likely going to end the same way once again with the Gaels not defeating Gonzaga and suffering a couple of more hideous losses while coming off the bubble and into the NIT. Take the points.
Furman +3 over UNC-GREENSBORO
Earlier this week, we faded UNC Greensboro against Wofford when they were taking back a bucket against a team that the market perceived was inferior to them. The Terriers would rout the Spartans and now we see Greensboro once again coming into a situation where they are vulnerable to yet another funky number. Despite a loss against a Wofford team that owned a losing record, the stock on UNC-Greensboro seemingly has continued to rise. In the latest edition of Bracketology, we have seen UNCG rise from a #16 seed to a #15 seed in the projected tournament brackets.
As we have covered previously, the Spartans are one of the luckiest teams in America. The luck quotient for UNCG sits at 7 and they remain 6-7 ATS as a result. The Spartans were winning games they should have lost and their performance portfolio reflects this. How the Spartans recover from that aforementioned 19-point loss and how the defeat affected their psyche remains to be seen, but one thing is certain and that is they are overvalued once again.
Meanwhile, the Paladins have been steamrolling every team they have come across in the Southern Conference lately. They also have a six-point loss at both Michigan and Georgia earlier this year, not to mention an OT loss to Winthrop. The Paladins are the forgotten team in the Southern Conference because they had not won a post-season game in 40 years prior to last season’s victory over ULM in the opening round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. Along the way, Furman won a school-record 14 home games, including 11 in a row.
Furman head coach, Niko Medved signed a new contract this week that will keep him in Greenville through the 2021-2022 season. Charged with rebuilding Furman’s basketball program prior to the 2013-14 season, Medved guided the Paladins to the finals of the 2015 SoCon Men’s Basketball Championship in just his second season, including scoring victories over the tournament’s #2 and #3 seeds. Last season, he guided the Paladins to a 19-16 overall record, 11-7 league mark and that aforementioned first postseason victory in 40 years. Medved has the 2016-17 Paladins off to a 13-8 overall record and 6-2 league mark, which has Furman in third place in the SoCon standings entering this tilt at first place UNCG. The Paladins are coming off a 3-0 home-stand that extended their school-record SoCon home winning streak to 14 consecutive games. We wanted to give you the skinny on this underdog before our final summarization. UNC Greensboro is a first place conference team at home spotting one possession to a completely unrecognizable program that this market rarely gets behind. The mistake would be to spot that one possession because the line says so. We’re pretty sure the number will rise prior to game time so you may want to wait if you are on board. We're splitting this up and playing Furman +3 -106 for 1.06 units and Furman +137 on the ML for 1 unit to make up our traditional 2 unit wager.
OKLAHOMA +137 over Florida
Though these two schools met on the gridiron in the 2009 BCS National Championship, these two teams have not met on the hardcourt in over 20 years. The last time the two met for a game, current Coach Lon Kruger was at the helm of the Gators, as he had powered the Orange and Blue to the Final Four in 1994. Kruger has achieved similar success during his present regime in Norman, as Oklahoma made it to the Final Four last year, only to fall the current defending champion Villanova.
The point is that Lon Kruger knows how to win at the highest level and his résumé speaks for itself. The markets are bound to be especially sharp in this contest be that it is a fixture of national interest, contributing to a docket of games known as the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Florida comes in with a 15-5 record and #25 ranking next to their name while Oklahoma seems to have taken a step back this season by owning a record of 8-11 overall. When you toss in a ranked team with a strong record against a losing team that is unranked with little lumber to lay, it seems like a surefire play but we say uh-uh. You see, as efficient as Florida has been on both sides of the ball while navigating the 13th ranked strength of schedule, the Sooners are on the verge of some wins because they are loaded with talent, albeit young but they’re growing up fast and paying their dues in the process.
The Sooners have been on the dirty side of the coin on several occasions over their 2016-17 campaign, owning a 349th luck quotient while playing the 5th toughest schedule in all of America. The offensive numbers for Oklahoma may be less captivating compared to that of Florida, but they also played the 4th toughest assortment of defensive units in the country. The Sooners are also the more physical team, as they hold the edge in rebounding. Furthermore, Oklahoma is better from the charity strip, which means this outfit has a multitude of ways to stay in games.
Oklahoma has won five of their eight games at home. They have struggled mightily on the road and have been a sub .500 play straight up in neutral site games. Nevertheless, this team has lost three games in overtime this year and lost five more games by five points or less. With a little bit of good fortune, the Sooners could easily be 11-8, if not better. This is a basketball team that has gone out to West Virginia recently as a 16½-point pup and pulled the upset outright in Morgantown. Oklahoma’s potency for an upset bid is certainly evident. The Sooners are going to be a powerhouse either next year or the year after but the time to capitalize on their talent would be before the market catches up. That time would be now. There is great profit potential on OU and we’re suggesting it begins here. OU outright gets the call.
UC DAVIS +129 over UC Irvine
This play conforms to our position about being reluctant to spot road points in any Big West Conference game, be it that the cast of characters in this conference overall should be in a tragic comedy. The Big West is one of the worst conferences in all of college hoops, a league of marginalized basketball teams that can yield enormous amounts of parody. In conferences of this caliber, the underdogs bode tremendous value, be that the constituents are so bottom-heavy. The teams that sit atop the standings are most prone to upsets and when you factor in home court advantage, the away teams are most susceptible to being licked on any given night. Situationally, Irvine is set up to fail, as they are spotting points, albeit minimal ones, to their arch nemesis, Davis in Sacramento on the Aggies home court. That’s wrong.
The Aggies (Cal Davis) are 6-5 ATS as an underdog and have won their last two games as an underdog outright, both of which were on the road. Their most recent triumph was at the defending conference champion Hawaii’s house where the Aggies would leave the Aloha State with a 76-70 victory. Contrarily, Irvine recently snapped an eight-game winning streak with a hideous loss at home against Cal Poly, losing by 13 despite being a 13-point favorite. With Davis looking for their first win against the Anteaters since 2015, now is an excellent time to fade the Anteaters because they are simply not that good and their confidence took a huge hit in that aforementioned loss to Cal Poly.
Contrarily, Davis is riding high off a big win and they figure to carry that momentum on their court against a most hated foe. A win for Davis puts them in the driver seat of this conference race and we like their chances to get it. At 5-0, Cal Davis is the only Big West team undefeated at home this season. The Aggies pace the Big West in defense at 62.0 points per game in conference play. Winners of six of their last seven games, the Aggies also figure to be well rested, fresh and raring to go. This matchup will mark UCD’s third game in three weeks after having played their first three conference games in nine days while Irvine played just two days ago. To win, the Anteaters have to shoot a high percentage from the floor, which they have so far (51.1%). That’s an unsustainable number and we all saw what happened last game (a 13-point loss to Cal Poly) when the shots weren’t falling for them. The Anteaters will now face the savvy defense of the Aggies, on the road no less, with their shooting confidence taking a hit. Wrong side favored.
Kyle Hunter
San Diego at Portland
Play: San Diego -1
The San Diego Toreros isn't necessarily a good team, but I think they'll be good enough in this one. San Diego has actually played better on the road than at home. They are up against a Portland team that just lost its leader, Alec Wintering, to an injury. Wintering led the team in scoring at 19.5 points per game, and he lead the team in assists and steals as well. Without him, the team was blown away by a bad Pepperdine team in their last game. San Diego is 8-1 ATS on the year, and they play better defense than does Portland. San Diego is good at getting to the line and taking care of business at 75% on the charity stripe. San Diego has been crushed by two really good teams in their last two games. I think they bounce back and beat an injury depleted Portland team.
Brad Wilton
College comp play for Saturday comes in ACC action, as I look for Duke to respond to Coach K's tactic to ban the team from the locker room, and from wearing school gear after the Blue Devils stunning loss at home to NC State earlier in the week.
The Blue Devils are just 2-3 straight up since Jeff Capel took over on the interim basis, and worse still, the Dookies are just 2-7 against the spread in their last 9 games played.
Wake Forest has shown improvement for Danny Manning, but the fact remains, the Demon Deacons are on a 7-16 slide their last 23 lined home games, and they have only bested Duke straight up one time in the past 10 meetings.
Duke has won the last 4 series meetings, and that includes wins and covers the last pair of meetings in Winston Salem.
Banking on the Blue Devils to get their act together after the gauntlet was thrown down by Coach K this week.
Lay the road chalk with Duke.
3* DUKE
Eric Schroeder
My free play is on the Utah Utes tonight, as they're laying three touchdowns to the Oregon State Beavers. That's a lot of points, but in this game, it's warranted.
Utah has a respectable scoring defense and an even better offense, while the Beavers are one of the worst teams in the nation statistically.
Oregon State, which is just 4-17 on the year, is scoring a mere 63.9 points per contest, while its scoring margin of -6.8 ranks 309th in the country. The team doesn't take care of the ball, committing far too many turnovers, and doesn't shoot well either.
This won't be pretty. Lay the big chalk, as Utah rolls to the win and cover.
5* UTAH
Jack Brayman
I'm going to play Santa Clara plus the points at home against an overrated Saint Mary's team that could lose outright tonight.
The Broncos have won two straight and four of their last five, with the lone loss coming at the hands of Gonzaga. Considering this might be the best Gonzaga team coach Mark Few has ever had, I'll give the Broncos a pass.
Considering the Broncos just took care of BYU, 76-68, I'll give them the nod here, with a stingy defense that ranks 50th in the nation in points allowed (65.6).
Over their last four wins, they've allowed an average of 62.25 points, with victories at San Diego, at Pepperdine, vs. Loyola Marymount and BYU. And going back to New Year's Eve, the Broncos have won six of eight.
There is plenty of motivation here, as Saint Mary's hasn't exactly been impressive at the offensive end of the court, and could stumble here if it overlooks the Broncos in its first of three straight road games.
Take the home underdog here.
1* SANTA CLARA