OC Dooley
Kentucky / Mississippi Over 145.5
Even though both sides are 6-2 “below” the spot in the past eight games the ODDSMAKERS have made a major statement casting a relatively high total and I for one am following their lead. The Mississippi offense has been held to “64 or less” points three times in the past four outings. Meanwhile the entire country got to see ESPN’s heavy-hyped Saturday primetime encounter where Kentucky lost at home versus sizzling hot Florida as the offense failed to reach the 60 point plateau. One can actually forgive the Wildcats for that dismal performance since they were facing a stout Gators defense that has held the opposition to a very low per game average of 58 points per pop. In the case of Mississippi tonight is a rare National-TV appearance for their controversial star Marshall Henderson who is not afraid to launch long range bombs from behind the three-point line. Getting back to Kentucky my research indicates that dating all the way back to the 1997 campaign when shaking off a “double digit” loss they have responded by going an eye-opening 12-3 OVER/ROAD
Dr. Bob
Opinion - ST. JOHN’S (-9) over Butler
Butler certainly misses former head coach Brad Stevens and stepping up to a strong league hasn’t helped matters, as the Bulldogs are just 2-11 straight up and 4-8-1 ATS in Big East play, including 1-4-1 ATS on the road. St. John’s has been playing great basketball lately, winning 8 of their last 9 games while going 7-2 ATS and they catch Butler in a negative 58-106-3 ATS situation. St. John’s already won 69-52 at Butler and my ratings favor the Red Storm by 9 ½ points, so the line is fair. My issue is that the Johnnies have a tendency to let up against struggling teams, as they are just 4-14 ATS under coach Lavin against a team on a losing streak and just 6-14 ATS when favored by more than 8 points (although 3-3 this year). I’ll still lean with St. John’s based on the situation and their good recent form.