CHAMPION SPORTS
Oklahoma City / Toronto OVER 209
Last score was 119-99 (218) Toronto playing hard and looking to build off their Hawks win.
Boston -1
Wtih stops at Dallas and Utah still to come on this trek, it is important for Boston to target this game as the one to get. Houston is 5-14 ATS in their last 19 at home.
California -1
The Bears are better; an experienced team with all four of their dd scorers being seniors. Efficient offensive team, ranking first in the Pac 10 in that category and 14th nationally. At a pick'em or getting points, we can't pass up the Bears.
Triple Threat Sports
2* Cal (-) over Louisville
Big East is struggling in the post season, as they are a combined 3-5 in the NIT and NCAA tournaments, the opponent had the ball in the air with a chance to win or tie in two (Northeastern vs U Conn, Robert Morris vs Nova) of those losses. With all due respect to some of the teams the Big East has faced so far this postseason, Cal had the best season of all of the foes, winning the Pac 10 regular season title and losing in the Pac 10 finals to Washington...who happened to beat a Big East team on Thursday. Looking specifically at this matchup we note that Cal has very good guards, and as such the Louisville pressure defense should not be able to wreak havoc. Another fundamental factor in favor of the Bears is free throw shooting, as they are hitting 76% to 70% for U of L. Finally, note that while the Cardinals were impressive in beating Syracuse in the regular season finale, that was the final game ever at Freedom Hall so U of L was INCREDIBLY up for that game while Cuse was sort of going through the motions. Finally, cannot ignore that the Bears are 18-7 ATS this season as chalk, as they take care of business when expected to. Bears move on.
The Duke's Sports
Oklahoma State (-1') for 3 Units
The Cowboys are undersized in the frontcourt and will have their hands full with NBA bound 6' 10" freshman Favors; however, they are more physical and experienced and that means a lot in tournament play. The Cowboys are also equipped with the most dangerous shooter on the floor in James Anderson who is a matchup nightmare. Few teams have stopped him this year and we see him continuing to flourish here. And keep in mind that the Cowboys have beaten some strong contending teams this year including TX A&M, Baylor, #1 seeded Kansas, and won at Kansas State. The Cowboys are a solid 8-2-2 ATS in non-conference play and sports a solid 15-5-1 ATS mark as a neutral floor favorite. Oklahoma State the call.
Nick "BookieKiller" Parsons
Louisville +1
For a number of different reasons I believe the value in this contest is on Louisville
Ninth-seeded Louisville (22-10) starts two seniors at guard, Edgar Sosa and Jerry Smith, and another senior starter, Reginald Delk, can swing between guard and forward.
Louisville will force an up-tempo game, which starts with Sosa, Smith and Delk pressing and trapping.
Although its struggled in almost every single ATS statistical category, this is a position that the Cardinals have excelled in this year; 4-3 ATS off a loss against a conference rival.
On the other side of the court: The eighth-seeded Golden Bears (23-10) have two senior starters in Pac-10 player of the year Jerome Randle and Patrick Christopher.
Cal is just 1-5 ATS as an underdog; 2-3 ATS when playing on a neutral court this season.
Bottom line: “We're up against it and we know it. We're spending every waking moment studying Cal,” said Pitino. “They're very tough to guard in transition. Randle is equally good off the bounce as he is pulling up. They're an excellent fundamental team. They move well, they pass well. They play like a senior team. They're not going to beat themselves.”
Two very evenly matched teams here but in the end I believe that the experience and depth (the Cards sometimes play 10 or 11 players off the bench) that Louisville has will ultimately be the difference here; play on the CARDINALS!
Rocketman
Arkansas-Pine Bluff +23
Arkansas Pine Bluff played back on Tuesday in the play-in game where they crushed Winthrop. That should have gotten some of the jitters out of playing in the Big Dance. Duke is 2-8 ATS since 1997 as a neutral court favorite of 18 1/2 to 24 points. Duke is 34-59 ATS since 1997 and 5-14 ATS last 3 years when playing in March. Duke is 7-20 ATS on Friday since 1997. Arkansas Pine Bluff is allowing only 64 points per game overall this year. Blue Devils are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 NCAA Tournament games as a favorite of 13.0 or greater. Blue Devils are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a favorite. Blue Devils are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall. Blue Devils are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 NCAA Tournament games. Blue Devils are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 NCAA Tournament games as a favorite. Blue Devils are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games following a SU win. My power ratings have Duke winning by only 15.97 points in this one. We'll play Arkansas Pine Bluff for 4 units tonight!.
Dwayne Bryant
Florida St -1.5
I said in a previous writeup that I will usually back the better defensive team, especially in these tournament games. That would be the Seminoles in this matchup. Florida State is ranked #1 out of 347 Division I teams in defensive efficiency. FSU is also ranked #1 in 2-point shooting percentage allowed (39.9%). The 'Noles allow just 37.4% shooting overall. And all that was achieved while playing in the rugged ACC.
Gonzaga has that name recognition in NCAA hoops, so many bettors will back them blindly in this first round. I think that's a mistake. Yes, Gonzaga was the class of the West Coast Conference, but they did get hammered by St. Mary's in the conference tourney. Granted, the 'Zags knew they didn't need to win the conference tourney, so they lacked the motivation that their double revenge-minded foe did not.
The fact is Gonzaga has not faced a tough defensive team like FSU since they played Duke (currently ranked #4 in defensive efficiency) early in the season. Duke beat Gonzaga by 35 points on a neutral court. FSU is certainly no Duke, but the Seminoles are ranked #19 in the country according to Pomeroy's ratings (Gonzaga is #56). The 'Zags did play and beat Wisconsin (currently ranked #7 in defensive efficiency), but the Badgers couldn't match Gonzaga's size or tempo; FSU can.
By losing their first game in the WCC Tournament, Gonzaga extended their layoff coming into this game. The 'Zags have had 10 days off leading up to this game. Not to mention they had to travel across THREE time zones for this East coast matchup. Between the lengthy layoff and the time adjustment, Gonzaga can't help but be a bit "off" for this one.
Bottom line: FSU is the better defensive team and they earned their #1 rankings playing in what Pomeroy has rated as the toughest conference. Gonzaga had to travel three time zones and hasn't played in 10 days. That's enough for me in what is basically a "pick the winner" situation. I see a Seminoles win by five, so I'll lay the small number with Florida State.
Bob Balfe
Georgia Tech +1.5
At times, Georgia Tech can get wild and sloppy on offense and turn the ball over a lot. In addition, they are a relatively poor foul shooting team. Poor stats within these areas are caused by mental mistakes. However, I believe this team will be focused for today's opening round game. GTech is one of the best teams in the nation in creating turnovers and blocking shots. Oklahoma State takes a lot of quick, rushed shots and are poor at utilizing the shot clock in order to create opportunities for second chance points via offensive rebounds. This Tech defense is very under-rated and should frustrate the Cowboys offense for the entire 40 minutes. Georgia Tech will also win the battle of the boards and be on their way to a big opening round win! Take the Yellow Jackets.
KELSO
15 Units Texas A&M -3
5 Units OSU -17.5
3 Units New Mex St +13
Underground Sports Connection
200* Georgia Tech +1.5
500* Syracuse -15.5
300* New Mexico st +13
Teddy Covers
Thunder
Bucks
C-Star Sports
5000 units Arkansas-Pine Bluff / Duke OVER
JB SPORTS
3* Celtics
St. Bernadines
2* Pittsburgh -9.5
2* Oklahoma St/Georgia Tech Over 139.5
2* Syracuse/Vermont Over 144
2* Louisville ML +110
Sports Brokers Guaranteed Selections
NBA SLAM DUNK MAJOR WAGER
Milwaukee -3.5
DR BOB
2* Oklahoma City (pick) over TORONTO
Oklahoma City blew a chance to extend their winning streak to 6 games when they gave up a 19 point lead and lost at Charlotte on Wednesday. The Thunder are likely to bounce-back given their 19-5 ATS record this season after a loss (47-21 ATS after a loss going back to last season). Toronto, meanwhile, tends to struggle against good teams, especially if their opponent is rested. The Raptors are just 7-36 straight up and 10-32-1 ATS when facing a team with a win percentage of .600 or higher that had the previous night off. My ratings favor Oklahoma City by 1 point, so the line is fair, and I'll take Oklahoma City in a 2-Star Best Bet at -1 or better.