Jeff Benton
10 Dime Utah St
JB Sports
Miami
Master Sports
3* Miami
3* Boston
4'* Michigan St.
4* Boston College/Duke Over
3* Boise St./New Mexico St. Over
California Sports
3* Towson
The Duke's Sports
Boston College (+16') for 2 Units
BC's covered 4 of the last 5 in this series and poised for a competitive showing here. BC is coming off a sluggish outing at FSU last Saturday but their HC Donahue should have them ready to play tonight; after all, the Eagles are 5-2 ATS off a SU loss and play well on Thursdays at 12-5 ATS. Duke controls a sour 2-7 ATS mark vs the ACC and just 1-4 ATS at home. Yes, Cameron Indoor Stadium is a dominant venue for Duke; however, their just 1-4 ATS in their last 5 there and they're coming off a blowout of ACC lightweight Wake Forest. The Blue Devils are just 2-5 ATS in their last 7 off a SU win of 20+. The Eagles have some veteran players in Reggie Jackson, Trapani and Raji who should help keep them poised tonight. BC takes good care of the basketball and should make a game of this. We believe this is a bit of an overlay for a well coached underrated BC club.
Ben Burns
10* Houston / Dallas Over 204
10* Mississippi St +7
8* Michigan / Michigan St Under 126
Wayne Root
Millionaire - Virginia +4
Billionaire - California -9.5
Money Maker - Mich St -10.5
RAS
Hofstra/VCU Under 140
Depaul/S Florida Over 132.5
Anthony Redd
40 Dime Cal Poly S.L.O.
RAS
1.5 Units UC Davis -3.5
Maddux Sports
10 Units Heat/Knicks Over 212
10 Units Depaul +10
10 Units Nevada -6.5
PPP
5% Miami Ohio
5% Mississippi St
4% Michigan St.
4% Boston College
4% Nevada
4% Gonzaga
Jeff Benton
10 Dime Utah St
This is the epitome of two teams going in different directions. Utah State, which cracked the Top 25 this week, is 18-2 and off to a 7-0 start to the Western Athletic Conference season. San Jose State is 9-9, losing six of its first seven league contests. True, the Aggies are just 3-4 ATS in league action, including failing to cover in an 80-71 home win over San Jose State, but they were favored by 17½ in that contest.
In its other three non-covers, Utah State was favored by 14½, 20 and 20½ and won all three of those games by double digits (59-49 win over New Mexico State, 74-57 win over Louisiana Tech, 74-66 win over Hawaii). Another commonality with respect to the Aggies’ four ATS setbacks: They were all at home. In three WAC road games, Utah State is 3-0 SU and ATS, including blowout victories at Fresno State (52-39) and Nevada (81-67).
The Aggies’ nine-point home win over San Jose State on New Year’s Eve is part of a six-game winning streak in this rivalry. That includes an 81-65 rout in last year’s visit to the Bay Area, with the Aggies easily cashing as an eight-point road chalk while shooting 61.7 percent and holding the Spartans to 42.6 percent.
Some more stats to chew on: San Jose State is pouring in nearly 76 points per game on its home court … but the Spartans are shooting just 38.2 percent from the floor (31.7 percent from beyond the arc). More disturbingly, they’re giving up 75.7 ppg at home, with opponents shooting 44.2 percent (37.5 percent on 3s). Hence the reason San Jose State is just 4-3 at home and 1-4 ATS in its last five.
By comparison, Utah State is averaging “only” 66 ppg on the road, but is shooting 49.5 percent overall and 43.4 percent from long range, while the Aggies’ suffocating is limiting opponents to just 59.4 ppg/37.3 percent overall/30.3 percent on 3s – again, this is on the road!
Finally, San Jose State has failed to cash in 10 of its last 14 WAC contests, while Utah State is on ATS runs of 9-3 on Thursdays, 5-2 as a mid-range chalk (7 to 12½ points) and 19-9-1 when coming off a non-cover.
John Ryan
25* Houston Rockets
MTi Sports
4* Boston Celtics