Bobby Maxwell
700* Baylor
Chuck O'Brien
25* Baylor
15* MSU/Tenn Under
Karl Garrett
20* Tenn
10* Baylor
Rated Picks
2 Units Michigan State +2
2 Units Baylor +4.5
Sean Higgs
20* Clippers
10* Michigan St
10* Baylor
BIG AL
3* Duke
National Sports Service
4* Baylor +5
3* Michigan St. +2
ATS Lock Club
4 Units Baylor +4.5
3 Units Tenn -1
3 Units Boston -3.5
Matt Fargo
10* Baylor
9* Tennessee
Kikki Sports
2* Baylor
1* Tennessee
James Patrick Sports
5* Cleveland
3* Phoenix/Minnesota Over 227
Jeff Benton
40 Dime Baylor
As soon as the Tournament brackets were announced two weeks ago today, every pundit across the nation was adamant about Duke having the easiest path of any No. 1 seed in any region. Sure enough, with the exception of a bit of a struggle against Purdue on Friday, the Blue Devils have waltzed into the regional final with a trio of double-digit wins, and they’re the last No. 1 seed standing.
Today, though, Duke’s easy path finally meets with a road block. Because not only do I think Baylor is going to cover this spread, I think the Bears will win this thing outright. And my reasoning for liking Baylor is very similar for my reasoning for liking them Thursday when I issued my 40 Dime Big Dance Game of the Year on the Bears and they crushed St. Mary’s 72-49.
Baylor will field the kind of length, speed and athleticism that Duke hasn’t seen to this point in the Tournament. In fact, St. Mary’s and Duke are very similar when it comes to roster makeup and style of basketball. No, I’m not suggesting Baylor’s going to post another 23-point victory here. But I am saying that Duke is going to struggle with the Bears’ inside-outside game. Whether it’s the backcourt duo of Tweet Carter and LaceDarius Dunn (combined 37 points in Friday’s win over St. Mary’s) or the frontcourt quartet of Anthony Jones, Josh Lomers, Ekpe Udoh and Quincy Acy (combined 25 points and 18 rebounds vs. St. Mary’s), Duke is going to have its hands full on both ends of the court today.
And let’s be honest: While both these teams are very similar in terms of record and overall stats, Baylor’s season has been much more impressive for the simple fact that the Bears had to navigate through the rugged Big 12 while the Blue Devils rolled through the mediocre ACC. In fact, the best team Duke has lost just twice in its last 17 games, but the two losses came against EASILY the two best teams it has faced during this stretch: Maryland and Georgetown. Guess what? Baylor’s better than Maryland and Georgetown.
Another point to make: Baylor has been in EVERY single game it has played this season. Of its seven losses, not one has been by more than seven points (and the last five of those defeats have come against Big 12 opponents that made the Big Dance: Kansas State twice, Kansas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State). Yet as I type this, Duke is laying five points.
Baylor is on ATS runs of 6-2 overall, 10-4 as a ‘dog, 10-3 as a ‘dog at neutral sites, 20-7 overall at neutral sites and 8-1 in non-conference games. Meanwhile, even though Duke has cashed in its first three games of this Tournament, it is still just 5-11 ATS in its last 16 Big Dance contests as a favorite, including 1-6 ATS when laying less than seven points in the tourney. What’s more, Duke hasn’t cashed in four consecutive games all season.
Bottom line: Baylor’s the better team by every measure and it has traveled a much more difficult road to get here (meaning they’re more battle-tested). Even though we’re taking the points, I absolutely see the fourth and final #1 seed bowing out of this tournament, and I’ll call for a final score of Baylor 65, Duke 57.
Marty Otto
Big O - Baylor +5
Tim Trushel
Duke Under
Cleveland Under
KELSO
5 Units Spurs +3.5
4 Units Cavs -13.5
3 Units Suns -9
50 Units Tennessee -1.5
15 Units Baylor +5
Sportsbetsnow
4 units GOM Duke -5
Anthony Redd
60 Dimer - Baylor