VEGAS SPORTS PICS
Virginia Tech Hokies + 2.5 over (at) NC State Wolfpack
NC State (14-7, 3-4) in ACC games ranks last in the league averaging 68.1 ppg. The Pack is 1-6 last 7 ACC games. Virginia Tech (14-8, 5-3) in ACC games ranks 2nd in the league allowing 74.0 ppg.
Purdue Boilermakers - 11 over Penn State Nittany Lions
Penn State (11-10, 3-6) is 2-5 ATS last 7 Big Ten games. No.24 Purdue (17-5) at 8-1 is off to its best Big Ten start since 1990. Teams met on January 23rd, Purdue won at Penn State 64-42
DOCS
4 Unit Play. #520 Take Northern Illinois -1 ½ over Buffalo
Buffalo has yet to record a victory in MAC Confernece play this season and yet enter this games as only a slight underdog on the road. NIU is nothing to brag about but still plays much better at the Convocation Center in DeKalb, IL. The home squad has owns an edge in the all-time series winning 13 of the 21 meetings and win No. 14 will come this evening.
4 Unit Play. #524 Take Illinois State -3 ½ over Drake
This is the game we have all been waiting for in the MVC, as the Bulldogs will finally suffer their first setback of the season in conference play. The home squad loves to play @ Redbird Arena, as they have yet to be defeated there this season currently 11-0. ISU has dominated this series winning 43 of the 66 meetings and also has revenge on their mind, as they lost in Iowa earlier this season by six points.
5 Unit Play. #530 Take Purdue -11 over Penn State
The Spartans took the Lions lighting on Saturday and it cost them dearly, but that will not occur on Tuesday as that games will get Purdue’s attention in a big way. Penn State is still terrible without Claxton and Purdue has already beaten them in Happy Valley, 64-42. They also lead the all-time series 19-9 and are just a better team then Penn State and the present moment. Penn State has had a home heavy schedule and that has ended, as four of their next five come on the road. They have still lost six of their last seven games and only 1 loss has come under tonight’s posted number. That was at home against Minnesota, a game in which Claxton played. He will be in street close on Tuesday and thus Purdue will win this game comfortably.
4 Unit Play. #536 Take Creighton -7 over Northern Iowa
The Blue Jays are always a tough out at home and already knocked off the Panthers in Iowa earlier this season. Creighton has won 23 of the 34 match-ups and get back on track with a victory on Saturday against Wichita State. They just seem to have the Panthers number and that again will become evident on Tuesday.
STRIKE POINT SPORTS
5-Unit Play. #531 Take Butler -135 over Valparaiso
The Bulldogs took care of Valpo at home earlier this season, and here they will make it a season sweep of the Crusaders. Butler is the better team, and outside of a one-point loss to Wright State and a four-point setback to Cleveland State, they have been nearly flawless this season. And part of the reason for one or both of those losses is they were not completely healthy. This team is back on track and a strong effort by the Bulldogs will earn them a nice road win in Horizon play.
FERRINGO
3.5-Unit Play. Take %24 Illinois State (-3.5) over Drake
Note: If your book has -4 I still endorse a play, but I would be buying a half-point.
I said at the beginning of the season that I thought the Redbirds were the best team in the conference and I’m sticking by it. Drake recently pulled out a road win at Indiana State and I think it will be extremely difficult to get two back-to-back roadies in a conference where home court is such a huge asset. We have an unranked home favorite against a ranked team and that has been money for us lately. We’ll go to the well.
2-Unit Play. Take #531 Butler (-2.5) over Valparaiso
1-Unit Play. Take #531 Butler (-140) over Valparaiso
Admittedly, this is a super square play. All of the action is on Butler and we have a reverse line movement, and the Bulldogs have been idle for a week. However, Top 25 teams that have been small road favorites (Pk to -3.0) are a sensational 10-1 ATS over the past two weeks. The home dogs are getting a bit too much respect. Butler handled Valpo at home three weeks ago despite being outshot 37 percent to 48 percent. I think they’ll be prepared and will be sharp and I think they take down a sliding Valpo club.
2-Unit Play. Take #530 Purdue (-11) over Penn State
Purdue is streaking and Penn State is sagging. The Panthers are coming off a stunning upset over a flaky Michigan State team but I smell a letdown as they head out to face a hot Boilers team. Purdue is deep and strong, and there isn’t much drop off on their bench even if this one gets out of hand I have faith that the Boilers bench can seal the deal for us. They beat PSU by 22 points on the road already this season and while I don’t quite think it will be that bad I do think Purdue has a 15-point home win in them tonight.
1.5-Unit Play. Take #536 Creighton (-6.5) over Northern Iowa
Large home favorites in the Missouri Valley have been exceptional over the past month and we’ll see if the trend can continue. I think there will be a slight carry over on the Blue Jays’ big second half against Wichita State over the weekend and I think they will be able to exploit NIU’s backcourt. Creighton got its scare over the weekend and will come out focused and ready to go. They’ve won eight straight in the series and have covered five straight so I see them laying another big second half on NIU for a comfortable win.
Tom Stryker
Penn State vs. Purdue (NCAAB)
Play: Purdue
With a pair of conference wars against Wisconsin and Michigan State on deck, Purdue can't afford to overlook Penn State on Tuesday night.
The Nittany Lions enter Mackey Arena off their home upset win over the Spartans on Saturday and they'll be primed for revenge. Back on January 23rd, the Boilermakers strolled over to Happy Valley and smashed PSU 64-42. Respect is certainly given to State's payback motivation. Unfortunately, the technical power rests with the home team and I'm backing Matt Painter's troops in this contest.
If you plan on fading Purdue in West Lafayette, you better have a darn good reason. The Boilers have quietly cruised to a 27-2 SU mark in its last 29 home games. Also, off a SU and ATS win and matched up against a sub .550 opponent, PU is a sensational 30-14-1 ATS including 17-2-1 ATS in this role running with three days of rest or less!
On the visitor's side of the court, Penn State has struggled when running with same season single revenge notching a soft 12-24-1 ATS record. In addition, as a Big 10 guest battling a winning team, the Nittany Lions are a stiff 31-52 ATS including 18-36 ATS in this set provided PSU carries a won/loss percentage less than .655.
The young Boilermakers are playing great basketball right now - 10-1 SU and 7-4 ATS in their last 11 games - and they're starting to get a look in the polls. Take Purdue.
ARMVIN SPORTS
CBB
NC STATE -2.5
BUFFALO 1
UAB 1
BUTLER -3
NHL
FLORIDA 128
PHOENIX at CALGARY Over 5
Black Magic Sports Picks
NCAA Basketball:
5 Unit Black Magic ACC GAME OF THE YEAR on NC State -2
NC State catches the Virginia Tech Hokies in the perfect spot Tuesday. VA Tech is coming off an emotional overtime win against their biggest rival in the Virginia Cavaliers at home on Saturday. Now they are in for a serious emotional letdown when NC State gets ahold of ‘em tonight. NC State is 9-2 in home games, giving up less than 60 points per game. VA Tech is just 4-7 in road games this season. NC State clearly has the edge in experience with 4 starters back from last season. NC State has won 5 out of their last 6 meetings with VA Tech as well, owning this head-to-head series with a 5-1 ATS mark as well. NC State beat Virginia Tech by 25 points in their last home meeting with the Hokies. Virginia Tech is 1-13 ATS in road games when the line is +3 to -3 since 1997. This 93% trend simply cannot be ignored. Cash in with NC State as the favorite.
3 Unit Sharp Play on Iowa State +7.5
The Iowa State Cyclones continue to surpass expectations this season. ISU nearly beat Texas A&M last season at home in an overtime thriller. That Texas A&M team was much better than the one you will be seeing Tuesday. They made it to the Elite-8 with A.C. Law and company. Now the Aggies have lost their great coach in Billy Gillespie and they are reeling right now. The Aggies have lost 2 out of their last 3 road games with blowout losses by 15 points to Texas Tech and by 19 points to Kansas State. The Cyclones of ISU will easily stay within the number Tuesday, perhaps pulling off the upset this time around. Iowa State is 11-2 at home with the key to victory being their 55.8 points per game allowed defensively. Another low scoring affair here clearly favors the Cyclones. Texas A&M is 8-22 ATS after a game giving up 5 or less offensive rebounds since 1997. Cash in with Iowa State as the underdog.
3 Unit Sharp Play on Southern Miss -1
Southern Miss looks just like your average team with their 11-10 record, but they are a completely different ball club at home. The Golden Eagles own an 8-2 home record, scoring 78 points per game while giving up just over 59 points. Their home games really haven’t even been close this season for the most part. If you like blowout winners than this is the play for you. UAB narrowly escaped the Golden Eagles at home earlier this season, so we fully expect Southern Miss to play with revenge on their minds. Southern Miss is 9-1 ATS at home when the line is +3 to -3 over the last 3 seasons. Cash in with Southern Miss as the favorite.
NBA:
3 Unit Sharp Play on Wizards/76ers UNDER 190.5
The 76ers just played the Atlanta Hawks last night and their lack of an offense will be on full display Tuesday night as they play with tired legs. The last meeting between the Wizards and 76ers back in November resulted in an 85-84 Philly win, a combined score of just 169 points. There is no way these teams will make up for this 22-point difference tonight. Philly is giving up just 89.6 points per game over their last 5 games. Washington is 10-1 UNDER in road games off a home loss by 10 points or more over the last 2 seasons. Washington is 20-6 UNDER in road games off a home loss over the last 2 seasons. This is a great spot to take the UNDER. Bet the UNDER 190.5 points Tuesday.
Kelso
Chairmans Club 15 units DePaul +7 @ Providence
Best Bets
10 Units Florida +9 @ Tennessee
4 units N Iowa +7 @ Creighton
3 units Iowa St +6 v. Tx A&M
ATS LOCK
4* N Iowa +7
3* So Miss -1 1/2
ATS FINANCIAL
3* Boston +3 1/2
3* San Ant -5
Black Magic Sports
1 Unit on Butler -3
You will rarely find the Butler Bulldogs as a small favorite, but since we have been given the chance Tuesday we are clearly taking advantage of it as our free play. Butler is 19-2 on the season with one of those wins coming against this same Valparaiso team by 8 points earlier in the year. Valpo has failed to cover the spread in 4 consecutive games now, including a terrible home loss to Loyola-Chicago in their last game as a 12-point favorite. Butler has now won 3 straight meetings with Valparaiso. Butler is 21-7 ATS after allowing 30 points or less in the first half in 2 straight games over the last 2 seasons. Not only can Butler light up the scoreboard, the Bulldogs are also playing tremendous defense this season. Cash in with Butler as the favorite.
Black Widow Sports
1* on Ohio State -14
Ohio State is 5-0 SU and ATS in their last 5 meetings with the Wolverines. Michigan would usually be in a revenge spot here, but they have clearly given up on head coach John Beilein this season. Michigan is just 5-16 on the season and have only won 1 out of their last 10 games overall, a victory over the only team worse than the Wolverines in the Big Ten this season. That win came against Northwestern. Ohio State is coming off a heartbreaking loss at Iowa, so you can figure the Buckeyes’ will come in more determined to crush the Wolverines at home Tuesday. Ohio State is 11-1 in home games, winning by an average margin of 16 points per. Michigan is 7-19 ATS as an underdog over the last 2 seasons. Take Ohio State and lay the points.
Wunderdog
Game: Vancouver at Dallas
Pick: Vancouver +125
Vancouver is in need of a win to snap out of their recent skid. The only team they have been able to beat since the middle of the month was St. Louis. We think Dallas might take this team a bit lightly tonight. Dallas is off two straight road wins and they are just 5-12 the past two seasons in that situation. The Canucks haven't lost a road game the past three seasons when playing with 3+ days of rest. They are also 14-9 on the road revenging a home loss the past two seasons. We'll back Vancouver here.
WANYE ALLEN ROOT
Chairman - NJ Nets
Millionaire - Florida
Money Maker - Valpo
No Limit - Illinois St
Seabass
10* NJ Nets
10* Texas A&M
10* New Mex
20* Ill St
20* Depaul
20* Fla
10* Minn Wild
Insiders 0-1 current 10 game.....11-10 total
100* Purdue
Wolkosky Milan
10* CLEVELAND ML -155
10* LAL/NJN UNDER 209
10* MIL/MEM UNDER 194
ASA
ASA's CBB Unbelievable Underdog - Depaul
ASA's NBA Road Warrior Winner- LA Lakers
Paul Leiner
10* Purdue -11
10* DePaul +7
10* Over 190 Phi/Wash
Cash & Profit Experts
NBA
Boston/cleveland Under 185
CBB
Illinois St. -4
Philly-Connection
Tenn-9
BIG AL
At 8 pm, our Missouri Valley Conference Game of the Month is on the Illinois State Redbirds minus the points over Drake. The Bulldogs come into Tuesday's game with an unblemished Conference record (11-0), but Illinois State also hold an unblemished HOME record this season (also 11-0). Obviously, something has to give tonight, and I think it will be Drake's perfect Conference record. Illinois State seeks revenge from a 79-73 road loss to Drake back on January 19th, and is coming into tonight's game off a 1-point upset win over Missouri State on Saturday. Illinois State has won of its previous 40 home games, and fall into a system of mine that is 67-28 ATS since 1993. What we want to do is play on home teams, off a SU/ATS win, with a strong home court (winners of 29+ out of their last 40 home games), if they are NOT favored by 5 or more points, and have same season revenge vs. a .765 (or better) foe off back-to-back wins. And if our home team is off an upset win, then our 67-28 stat moves to 26-7 ATS. Take Illinois State.
At 9 pm, our selection is on Bruce Pearl's Tennessee Volunteers, who return home to Thompson-Boling Arena after a successful road trek which saw them win at Alabama and Mississippi State. Although tonight's opponent is the defending National Champion Florida Gators, Tennessee won't be threatened here at home. Dating back to 2006, the Vols have won 27 consecutive home games and Tennessee has also won three of their previous four games vs. Florida, and the Gators were a much better team in 2006 and 2007 than they are this season. Florida has managed just two road wins this season, and both came against teams with losing SEC records (Alabama (2-5) and South Carolina (3-4)). Take Tennessee.