Arthur Ralph
Super Pick: OREGON PAC 10 GOY
900 TRIPLE PLAYS
KENT ST & MISSISSIPPI STATE
HAWKEYE
Virginia Tech at North Carolina
This Saturday, Virginia Tech (14-10) heads to Chapel Hill to face the #5 team in the country, North Carolina. Tech has a big task on their hands if they want to walk away with a win. Sitting on an even 5-5 record (but have lost two in a row) in the ACC, they have been able to play with some of the league's best.
They are virtually a three man show with A.C. Vassallo, Jeff Allen and Deron Washington. The Hokies are not a big squad down low and will have their hands full with Tyler Hansbrough.
Everyone knows what the Tarheels bring to the court. They are a solid team all around. But the thing that hurts them is that they can't seem to put a team away.But it is so hard to win on the road, and Chapel Hill is one of the hardest places to visit. I could go on and on about North Carolina, but what I am going to say here is just bet on them this Saturday, because it is an easy win. I don't think that Virginia Tech is strong enough in the post, and Carolina's gaurds can play with Tech's. Hansbourgh is the difference here!
Take North Carolina minus the points.
#1 SPORTS
Texas @ Baylor
Texas (20-4, 7-2 Big 12) pulled off the upset victory with a fine 72-69 home win Monday night at the Frank Irwin Center, topping the #3 Kansas Jayhawks by knocking down 8 of 20 balls from behind the arc including an improbable 4 for 4 performance from deep by 6'10" 226 junior C Connor Atchley (10.5p, 5.5r, 24 steals, 46 blocks). The truth is, Atchley has a pretty darn good stroke from deep (32 makes in 61 attempts) but it's not every day that the a player racks up 4 blocked shots in a game matches that total with sweet strokes from downtown. The loss of 2006-2007 National Player of the Year, Kevin Durant (25.8p, 11.1r), to the NBA hasn't made a dent in Coach Rick Barnes's (236-90 in 10th season at Austin, 165-11 in Big 12) offense because he returns 4 starters (and every start made by a player other than Durant) from the crew that finished 25-10 last season, including 6 of his 7 top scorers led this campaign by junior guards D. J. Augustine (19.3p, 2.9r, 5.8a, 31 steals) and 5'11" A. J. Abrams (17.7p, 2.7r, 40 steals). Augustine in particular has thrived, becoming one of the nation's best point guards with a 22 assists versus just 5 turnovers in the Longhorns' current 4-game winning streak. If you like hustle, then you've got to check out 6'7" 230 sophomore F Damion James (12.7p, 10.7r, 28 blocks). Though not the biggest player at his position - especially in the Big 12 Conference - this kid is an absolute horse on the glass, racking up 10 double/doubles already this season including against Kansas against whom he piled up 12 points and 13 boards in the second half alone. Coach Barnes prefers going with a speedy lineup so 6'2" sophomore G Justin Mason (6.8p, 3.8r, 2.5a, 30 steals) rounds out his starting lineup but Texas boasts a ton of young size he can bring off the bench in 6'7" 235 freshman F Gary Johnson (6.0p, 4.1p), 6'7" 241 freshman F Alexis Wangmene (23.3p, 2.3r, 14 blocks), 6'10" 299 sophomore C Dexter Pittman (2.9p, 1.9r, 10 blocks), and 6'10" 245 freshman C Clint Chapman (1.5p, 1.8r). Offensively explosive at 76.9 points per game and deadly from 3-point range (.391 as a team), ball handling is the key to the Longhorns' success. Just 9.5 turnovers per game is impressive under any circumstances and paired with a team 1.4 assists/turnover ratio treats the faithful at "Forty Acres" to some of the best basketball anywhere in the country. Under coach Barnes, a 9th consecutive 20-win season is already in the bag as is a 10 consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament with a possible 5th ticket to the Sweet 16 in the last 7 years a definite possibility.
Baylor (17-5, 5-3 Big 12) also faced Kansas last trip out, losing a 90-100 contest in Lawrence, the victims of some extremely inhospitable home cooking at Allen Fieldhouse exemplified by a blatant 18 to 46 deficit in free throw attempts. If that sounds like we are Bear fans, well there is plenty to root for this season. Coach Scott Drew (36-69 in 5th season at Waco) came from 10 seasons as part of his famous father's coaching staff at Valparaiso (Homer Drew who is now assisted by Scott's brother and former NBA player Bryce Drew) that captured 9 consecutive conference championships to take over a Baylor program in 2003 crippled by NCAA penalties that included being stripped of half of their scholarships (full scholarships restored last season) plus a ban from non-conference play in 2005-2006 - a dead end career move for some but a great challenge for this kid. Coach Drew earned a reputation as one of the nation's top recruiters, bagging top-20 classes in his final five seasons at Valpo and has pulled of nothing short of a miracle bringing in talent at Baylor. In 3 of his first 4 seasons with the Bears, Coach Drew scored national top-20 recruiting classes (to Baylor!) plus into this season he shocked college basketball by scoring 6'4" freshman G LaceDarius Dunn (12.4p, 4.0r, 50 of 117 from 3-point) who was ranked #24 nationally by Scout.com among incoming freshman. While Dunn polishes his game coming off the bench, starting guards 6'1" junior Curtis Jerrells (15.1p, 3.9r, 3.6a, 29 steals), 6'0" junior Henry Dugat (11.6p, 4.1r, 1.8a, 32 steals), and 6'3" senior Aaron Bruce (10.5p, 2.1r, 2.2a, 25 steals) are scorching opponents from behind the arc with a combined mark of 108 of 288 from deep. Add in the shooting stroke of 5'10" freshman G Tweety Carter (8.1p, 1.7r, 2.8a, 24 steals) who has come off the bench to nail 31 of his shots from 3-point range and it's pretty clear how the Bears have averaged 81.1 points per game in 2007-2008. Certainly this is a guard-driven team (a lesson for young recruiters - let the Big Boys battle over the Big Boys while you snatch up the ball handlers) but they do have a couple of decent players on the blocks with 6'9" 240 junior F Kevin Rogers (12.3p, 7.6r) and developing 7'0" 265 sophomore C Josh Lomers (4.4p, 2.6r) getting the starts. The Baylor front line has made all 110 possible starts this season but the Bears have no less than 11 players that are averaging at least 10 minutes of playing time per game.
In the first meeting between these clubs this year, Texas came out on top 80-72 in Austin where the Bears battled under a free throw (where they shoot a fine 71.4% as a team) deficit of 17 attempts to the Longhorns' 29. It seems that as far as Coach Drew's squad has come it's still hard to get respect on the highway in the Big 12. This time around at the Ferrell Center we give them a legitimate shot against a Texas group coming off their biggest win in a couple years. Keep your eye on Baylor's game at Oklahoma on Wednesday and take Baylor plus the points on Saturday.
BAYLOR BEARS - 1
BIG TIME SPORTS
Memphis at UAB
Is this the week that the number one team in men's D-1 college basketball suffers a blemish on their so far perfect record? The mighty Memphis Tigers travel to Birmingham, Alabama on Saturday for a game against the host Blazers of UAB.
While John Calipari's club will likely be pushed at home by Houston on Wednesday, this is clearly the more dangerous situation as it pertains to continuing the win streak. Although Memphis gets all the attention as the best team in the land, and therefore king of their conference (USA), UAB boasts perfection as well. The Blazers are a noteworthy 11-0 on their home floor this season.
Indiana transfer Robert Vaden is the leading scorer for UAB, dropping nearly 21 ppg on opposing clubs. Channing Toney and Lawrence Kinnard also contribute double-digit scoring each game, and both are solid rebounders too. Coach Mike Davis has been forced to alter his lineup throughout the season, mostly due to injuries, but this is a solid club with a real shot at winning this ball game if they remain patient and calm throughout what will most likely be a very quick-paced contest.
For Memphis, the pressure grows as the season wears on. Each time the Tigers take the floor, they can expect every opponent to deliver their best effort of the season. Memphis has defeated every adversary so far, but they have one glaring weakness; free throws. This team makes just 58% of their foul shots. Senior forward Joey Dorsey is a dominant force on the boards, ripping down over 11 rebounds per game, but he is a very embarrassing 33% from the line. Sophomore guard Doneal Mack is the only player on this club who makes at least 7 out of every 10 free-throws... but he's only had 20 attempts. This is a terrific Memphis team, but dismal foul shooting is their Achilles heel.
This is the first road game this month for Memphis. We'll look for the home team and a raucous crowd to provide an extremely hostile environment for the top ranked team in the nation. Take the Blazers and the points in what will probably be the most intense battle on the Saturday card.
UAB plus the points.
BIG TIME SPORTS
KANSAS -25 OVER COLORADO
HAWKEYE
MARSHALL -1.5
TONY WESTON
We're back at it with a nice Big XII clash in the Lonestar State as Texas takes on Baylor in a game the Longhorns will dominate.For awhile there Baylor looked like that team that was creeping up on everybody out of nowhere as it started Big XII play 4-0 with wins SU against Oklahoma State and Texas A&M.But since then, the Bears have reverted back to being Baylor and have gone 1-4 SU and ATS its last five games.Now they take on a Texas team that's 7-1 SU its last eight games and is 4-1 ATS its last five games.During that stretch the Longhorns have mixed in a win at home against this very Baylor Bears team, a game in which Texas won 80-72 as seven-point favorites. Very little has changed since then, except for the fact that Texas has won more games and Baylor has lost more games.Texas will pick up the season sweep against Baylor with an easy victory.
Take the Horns on the road.
3* TEXAS (1* to 5* Scale)
Big Al McMordie
Cleveland St. Vikings v/s Butler Bulldogs
At 2 pm, our complimentary selection is on the Butler Bulldogs minus the points over Cleveland State. Earlier this season, the Vikings defeated the Bulldogs 56-52 for its first win over a ranked team in nearly 22 years. For those with short memories, its win 22 years ago was a famous one, as it stunned then-No. 16 Indiana in the 1986 NCAA Tournament. But Cleveland State is having a nice season under Gary Waters, with a 17-10 record, including 10-5 in Horizon League play. Still, I think this will be a tough game vs. the revenging Bulldogs, as Butler falls into a same-season revenge system of mine that is 77-49 ATS which plays on certain home favorites priced from -9 to -16 points, if they're unbeaten at home this season, and play with revenge from a road loss to a conference foe. Brad Stevens' Bulldogs are a perfect 9-0 at home this year, and a win this afternoon would give them their best start (at 24-2) thru 26 games in school history. Lay the points
JEFF BENTON
This is what you would call a perfect situational play. See, Kentucky is coming off Tuesday's disgusting 93-52 loss at Vanderbilt, their most lopsided SEC loss in history. It was just ugly all the way around, as the Wildcats got outshot 55.4 percent to 32.7 percent; made just 1 of 10 three-point attempts; had just five assists (to Vandy?s 20) and 15 turnovers (to Vandy's six).
The very next night, LSU, still reeling from last week?s stunning firing of coach John Brady, went to Gainesville, Fla., and caught the two-time defending champs napping, beating the Gators 85-73 as a 13?-point underdog. It was the biggest win of the year for the Tigers, who are just 9-14 overall, including 2-7 in the SEC. Well, because of those two results, and because LSU has sprung to life a bit with four consecutive spread-covers, we?re looking at an extremely short line.
Fact is, had Kentucky which had won and covered five straight before Tuesday?s debacle at Vanderbilt at least remained competitive against the Commodores, and had LSU lost as expected at Florida, we?d be looking at the Wildcats laying nearly double digits today! So I?m throwing out both teams? results this week and focusing instead on these facts: LSU is still just 1-5 ATS in lined home games this year, 3-13-1 ATS in its last 17 lined home games dating to last year, 6-12 ATS overall this season and 1-7 SU in its last eight games against Kentucky (3-5 ATS). In fact, the Wildcats have cashed in each of their last three trips to Baton Rouge, and the visitor is 6-1 ATS in the past seven series meetings.
Look for Kentucky to show some pride in this contest, and if the ?Cats get up by a decent margin, they will not take their foot off the gas ? not after getting embarrassed like they did at Vanderbilt.
5* KENTUCKY WILDCATS
(Based on a 1* to 10* rating system)
JAKE TIMLIN
Saturday selection is the Kansas Jayhawks.
Kansas just might be the best team in the nation and their overwhelming talent will be on show today. Yep in what is going to be a blowout in the eyes of Vegas I look for the Jayhawks to eclipse today huge price tag as they approach a 40 plus victory. After all with the Jayhawks having won 37 of the last 38 meetings and dominating the board at 27-12 ATS, including 7-2 over the last 9 Colorado is in for a beat down today. Especially once you see that on average that Kansas is winning by 27 ppg at home. Plus, given the fact that Kansas is off a rare defeat look for the Jayhawks to play mad. Flat out the numbers have been kind to Kansas in this series and thanks to an overwhelming gap in talent look for the numbers to continue to favor the Jayhawks.
Jim Feist
BOS Bruins/TOR Mapleleafs
Take "BOS Bruins"
The Bruins just cooled off the Pittsburgh Penguins with a solid 2-1 victory, the first of five straight games away from Boston. They are 3-0 their last 3 road games, and dominated the Penguins right from the start, outshooting them 13-4 in the opening frame and are battling NY for the 8th seed. Toronto is going nowhere, last in the division, losing 7 of 10 games. Bruins have dominated the last three meetings, winning 5-2, 4-2 and 2-1.
Play the Bruins!
NAS Predators/MIN Wild
Take "Under"
Nashville struggles to score away from home, averaging just 2.6 goals on the road. Their last 11 road games: 8-2-1 under the total. Minnesota is 9th in total defense, and they allow just 2.4 goals per game at home. In 4 recent home games they went 3-0-1 under the total. Look for a defensive duel on the ice on Sunday, play the
Predators/Wild under the total
Jerry Lambert
Tennessee (-) over Georgia
The Vols have simply owned the Georgia Bulldogs, as they are 16-4 ATS ve Georgia since 1997 including 5-0 ATS vs the Bulldogs the last three years. The Tennessee Volunteers are also 7-2 ATS when playing in the peach state since 1997, and the are 7-3 ATS vs conference opponents this year. The Vols is also having a good February going 3-1 ATS, and Tennessee is also 7-2 ATS after a conference game this year. The Tennessee Volunteers are 6-2 ATS off a win vs a conference rival this year, and 6-1 ATS when playing a team with a winning record after fifteen or more games this year. The Georgia Bulldogs is only 2-4 ATS as an underdog this year. We look for the Tennessee Volunteers to roll over the Georgia Bulldogs for the road ATS Win & cover on this Saturday.
PLAY TENNESSEE
Greg Daraban
Texas (20-4) at Baylor (17-6)
TV ESPN: Big 12 squabble in Waco.
The home town Bears have just surprised everyone with a 17-6 record for Head Coach
Drew. Two years ago this program was under heavy restrictions allowed to play leage games only.Texas has been a tough customer with Guard D.J Augustin, but they will be walking into a hornets nest tonight. Baylor is led by Curtis Jerrells 15.0 and Lacedarius Dunn 13.0. With the crowd at a fever pitch the Bears get win 18 on the season.
Take Baylor
Brandon Lang
25 Dime - Vanderbilt
5 Dime - Kansas State
5 Dime - Marshall
5 Dime - Northern Iowa
5 Dime - Texas Tech
Free Pick - Wright State
Pure Lock
Utah
Cappers Access
Syracuse
Providence
Baylor
Scott Spreitzer
Air Force
Glen Mcgrew
St Bon
Redzone Sports
South Fla
Flyers
COMPUTER SPORTS
SYRACUSE +2
PLATINUM PLAYS
STANFORD + 2
EASY MONEY
BRADLEY -3
John Fina
Wisconsin -11
DARK HORSE
Washington State +1.5
BIG AL
Eastern Illinois +14.5
ARTHUR RALPH
VCU
THE VEGAS STEAMLINE
Take Wright St -4
TRACE ADAMS
Michigan State
HUDDLE UP
Northeastern -2
HD'S ACTIONLINE
Canisius -1
TV HOTLINE
AKRON -3
NEVADA SHARPSHOOTER
MISSOURI ST -12.5
DR VEGAS
Virginia Tech +14
Paul Leiner
10* Syracuse +2.5
Bobby Bo
1* Baylor -1
Donald Tran
Vanderbilt -6
Kyle Baugues
Connecticut -6
HeadWaiter Sports
Edmonton Oilers +150
LAS VEGAS SPORTS ADVISORS
Boston
FAT JACK SPORTS
Arkansas +5.5
Michael Barger
Middle Tennessee +6
The Sports Scholar
Fairfield +5
Tony Mathews
Providence +5
STEPHEN DIAMOND
JAMES MADISON
WEST COAST INSIDER
CS NORTHRIDGE
MIKE MEADOWS
OLE MISS
BRAD DIAMOND
NEW MEXICO