Chris Jordan
300* Fresno State
50* Virginia Cavaliers
50* Toronto Raptors
Freddy Wills
4 Dime POD Knicks -3
C-Star Sports
1000 Units Boston/Orlando Under
NHL Pro Picks
Atlanta +164
NY Islanders +120
LA -104 (bet to win 1 unit)
Calgary +126
Minnesota +129
Chicago +110
WAYNE ROOT
Vegas Legend - Oregon -4
Billionaire - Virginia -2.5
Vic Monte Sports
2000* MAX OUT GAME OF THE YEAR - SIENA SAINTS -6
St. Peter himself must be rolling over in his grave, considering he died in the year 67, it may be hard to do... However, I know he would be disgusted if he saw a school named after him competing in games with the offensive output the Peacocks have this shown this season. I mean, 60 points a game is great, if your playing battleship, not college basketball. In some conferences this would be a respectable number, but in the MAAC, your in serious trouble. Let me show you some numbers. Field goal percentage 40% (286TH), 3-Point percentage 30% (304TH), free throw percentage 67% (222ND). Throw those numbers besides the fact that the Peacocks offensive approach is about as boring as watching those inspirational stories on American Idol before everyone sings. Now, if you were not aware of this St. Pete's team before, your probably not a big fan of them now. What you will be a fan of is their opponent tonight the Siena Saints. If you haven't heard already, and I'm rather positive you have not, the Siena is dominating the MAAC. Yet to lose in conference play the Saints sit 17-4 overall with an impressive 6-2 ATS road record. They owe all their success to being really nice kids on and off the court...as well as scoring 77 points per game. This is a scrappy little team that find ways to win and get the the cover. Coincidentally one of their mascots is scrappy the dog. They are led by a well rounded attack with a 3-2 system which has led to 4 of the 5 starters averaging over 12 points per game. The good thing for bettors backing the Saints is their shot selection. They take good shots. Since they do not have any lights out shooters, they work as a team to find the open man who has the best look to score, they simply do not waste any possessions. Tonight we have two teams in totally different leagues. Siena is looking to make more noise in March this year falling 2 points short of the sweet 16 two years in a row. St. Peter's is trying to fit in, but simply don't have the talent.
Trace Adams
$5,000 HIGH ROLLER SELECTION --- USC TROJANS 2.5
With their post season forfeited, what does this USC Trojans team have to play for? Well, truth is, pride and hot Southern Cal girls. This USC team has been doubted by everyone since the announcement that no matter the result, there will be no madness in March for the kids in Southern Cal. The books adjusted, and the public bettors have not. Since December 22nd, the Trojans have covered 8 of their 9 games. Apparently the kids took the movie 300 to serious and decided they wanted to act like Trojans from ancient years. USC comes into tonight's game with the 4th ranked defense in the nation. They are holding teams to only, 55 points per game. Teams are failing to shoot over 38% from the 3 point line, err, check that the field. That's right, opposing teams shooting just 37% from the field against this USC defense. Teams can not crack the 30 percent mark from beyond the arc. USC has held two teams in the thirties this season including Pac-10 opponent Arizona State who only scored 37 on January 2nd. This defense is so strong, it really takes away from the lack of offense and brings the old saying "The best offense is a good defense" to life each and every time USC takes the court.
If Arizona State scored 37 points against this defense, Oregon State may not break the 30 point mark. They are averaging a laughable 59.9 points per game which will be nearly cut in half by this USC defense. Leading scorer Calvin Haynes is scoring just 12 points per game, supporting cast starters chip in with 3 to 10 a game. This team scored 35 points against Stanford, gave up 99 to Seattle on their home floor, and have failed to beat anyone in the Pac-10 with a winning record.
I see USC doing what the New England Patriots and Bill Bellichek did with the whole spygate ordeal. The Trojans are playing with no fear and can take all the chances they want to make this as big a story as possible and show they were worthy of playing come tournament time. This game is going to be a snoozer so don't expect fireworks if you are tuning in. USC is going to completely shut down this Oregon State team and rest late with a very comfortable lead as they are all looking forward to the massive showdown at home against Cal next week.
This isn't Sparta, but its an easy clear cut winner, and another $5,000 added to the bank. Take the Trojans to war with your book tonight and cash the ticket!
KBHoops
5* Purdue -9 **POD**
4* Oregon -4
4* San Francisco +6
4* Montana +5.5
Erin Rynning
Playmaker: Orlando Under 189.5
Teddy Covers
Mavs
Virgina
Seton Hall
MR EAST
NCAAB THURSDAY WRECKING CREW
ST. JOHN'S @ PITT
3 UNITS: PITT -8.5
The St. John;s Red Storm are an improved team for sure, but are young and have not learned to play on the road yet. The Pitt Panthers took several key player losses, but this is a stable program that reloads, and doesn't skip a beat. They have lost 2 straight games, and saw their long homecourt winning streak come to an end vs Georgetown, and will be playing with an edge in this one. Red Storm at 1-8 ATS as a road dog of 7-12.5, while Pitt is 9-3 ATS as a home favorite in the same range. I'll go with Pitt in this one.
Bill Marzano
St. Mary's at Pepperdine
Pick: St. Mary's -12
I really like St.Mary's in this game vs Pepperdine...the Gaels have a lot of matchup advantages in this game I don't know where to start...St.Mary's is ranked 11th in FG% while the Green Wave are ranked 264th...St.Mary's owns this series and most of the games aren't even close...over the last 10 meetings, the Gaels have outscored the Green Wave by 18 ppg...St.Mary's wins going away
The Duke's Sports
UCLA (+4) for 2 Units
Oregon padded their stats early vs a lightweight schedule, then caught the unsuspecting Washington teams napping around the New Year. The Ducks are now showing their true colors as they are in the midst of a 5 game slide. We don't see them snapping out of it here. Oregon is a mere 6-22 ATS following a SU loss, 6-20-1 ATS on Thursdays, and a poor 1-9 SU in this series. The Ducks are defensively soft, and when their shots don't fall, big trouble ensues. The young Bruins have gradually built momentum (6-3 SU run) after a 3-7 SU start. Their defense and shot selection has improved over their winning stretch; consequently, we'll look for the Bruins to continue to disrupt the Ducks who continue to blame each other for repeated mistakes. UCLA is a sweet 21-8 ATS following 3 or more home games and we'll grab the points here.
Nick "BookieKiller" Parsons
Purdue -8
For a number of different reasons I believe the value in this contest is on Purdue:
Purdue (16-3, 4-3) was 14-0 and ranked fourth in the AP poll when it entered Madison on Jan. 9 looking to set a school record for consecutive wins to start the season. Instead, the team lost 73-66 to the Badgers (16-4, 6-2), then dropped its next two as well.
The Badgers have won four of their last five but have averaged 21.7 points in the first half of the last three contests.
Wisconsin trailed 33-25 going into the break against Penn State on Sunday before rallying for a 79-71 overtime win. The Badgers came back from an eight-point deficit in the final two minutes of regulation, led by Jordan Taylor, who added 10 points in overtime and finished with 20; I expect a letdown this evening though.
Wisconsin was 10 of 33 from 3-point range in the win and is shooting 26.5 % beyond the arc over the last six contests; its shoddy play catches up with it tonight.
Non only is Wisconsin 2-4 ATS its last six overall, its also 2-4 ATS its last six on the road.
On the other side of the court: Purdue has exploded after those losses with consecutive victories against Illinois on the road and then recording a 69-59 win against Michigan on Saturday.
Purdue, which is giving up 62.6 points per game this season, had one of its better defensive games against the Wolverines, holding an opponent below 70 points for the first time in five games.
JaJuan Johnson scored seven points against the Badgers earlier this month, but he had 20 points and 10 rebounds in Purdue’s last home game against Wisconsin.
Purdue may be just 1-4 ATS its last five, but its 16-3 SU this season; dating back to last year its 16-1 SU its last 17 in front of the hometown crowd and always plays the Badgers tough; 6-1 ATS its last seven vs. Wisconsin.
Bottom line: The Boilermakers own a 35-2 home record against Wisconsin; look for PURDUE to get revenge from the loss and to move to 9-5 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record and for Wisconsin to fall to 7-8 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record!
7* PURDUE
Rocketman
Dallas +2
Dallas is 30-15 overall this year while Phoenix comes in with a 26-21 overall record on the season. Dallas us 217-159 ATS since 1996 after a non-conference game. Dallas is 7-1 SU this year after allowing 105 points or more. Phoenix is allowing 107.9 points per game overall this season. Dallas has won 4 of their last 5 games overall while Phoenix has lost 7 of their last 9 overall. Dallas has won 6 of 8 meetings against Phoenix past 3 years. Mavericks are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog of 0.5-4.5. Mavericks are 38-18 ATS in their last 56 games as a road underdog of 0.5-4.5. Suns are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite. Suns are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game. We'll play Dallas for 3 units tonight!