STRIKE POINT SPORTS
2-Unit Play. #725 Take Akron +1 over Western Michigan
A very big game in the MAC, both teams come in at 6-2 in conference play, however it will be the Zips that emerge out of this game as the winner. Akron has won and covered the last four meetings, as well as going 6-2 ATS in its last eight road games. The Zips are also 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games vs. the MAC. They get it done in Michigan.
2-Unit Play. #729 Take Connecticut +3.5 over Syracuse
UConn is the east coast's hottest program. They have won five in a row, including victories over ranked teams Indiana and Marquette, as well over rising Louisville. Syracuse hasn't showwn much defensively this year, and they are extremely thin, going no more than seven deep. With the Huskies' bigs, Connecticut should again win the rebounding and free throw edge, and getting 'Cuse in foul trouble will be a big advantage in this one. UConn keeps its winning streak going in the Carrier Dome.
3-Unit Play. #767 Take Notre Dame -1 over Seton Hall
Two Big East schools square off, both capable of putting a lot of points up. However, Notre Dame's size and physical nature down low with Luke Harongody and Rob Kurz, not to mention an thriving point guard in Kyle McAlarney will be the difference. This Irish team has really come together this season, and here they'll come through on the road to keep pace with first place Georgetown.
3-Unit Play. #769 Take Vanderbilt +4 over Georgia
The 'Dores have hopefully turned a corner in SEC play, taking care of business at home against Auburn. Vandy struggled on the road, but to teams that are arguably better or as good as them. Here facing Georgia, Vanderbilt is the stronger team, and they take this one outright. San Foster has really stepped up his game as a senior, and he'll bring a strong effort to lead the Commodores to the victory in Athens.
3-Unit Play. #788 Take Utah -3 over UNLV
A pretty strong team at home, the Utes get the check mark in this Mountain West clash. I don't think UNLV has been challenged much away from Vegas, and Utah could surely use this win to get back to .500 in league play and make a push towards the top of the league, or at least gain some momentum for the conference tournament. Utah covers as the small favorite.
Jeff Alexander
1 Unit on Washington +6.5
The Spurs have won 2 in a row on the road, but after playing last night in Indiana, it's going to be very difficult for them to get back up for another one tonight. Washington has struggled its last several games, but watch how a date with the defending world champs ignites its competitive spirit tonight. The Wizards are 15-10 SU and ATS at home this season. The Spurs are 10-11 SU and 8-13 ATS on the road. Here's the key trend: the Spurs are only 1-8 ATS when playing on back-to-back days this season. Washington is also 9-0 ATS in home games versus poor pressure defensive teams forcing 14 or less turnovers/game this season. Take the Wizards at home.
Kelso
Chairmans Club 10 units NC Charlotte +5.5 @ Dayton
Best Bets
5 units NC -4 v. Duke
4 units Rutgers -2 v. St Johns
3 units Ky -3 @ Alabama
Wolkosky Milan
10* CHICAGO +6
10* MIA/DET UNDER 187
10* MIL/DAL OVER 187
RAS
*Two side plays Wednesday:
St Josephs at Duquesne (-1) - 4:00pm Pacific - Game #723-724
The Dukes are having a breakthrough type season under well liked head coach Everhart. Tonight they have a great opportunity for an elusive signature win. Duquesne suffered a disappointing home loss two games back vs UMass and that may have carried over to their bad loss at St Bonnie over the weekend, as they shot near season lows in both games. The Dukes will definitely be sky high for this game as they host the A-10's first place team, look to rebound from an embarrassing loss, and look to avenge a ridiculous 48 point loss to the Hawks last season. St Josephs is 2-1 in their last three conference road games but the two wins came by just 1 at Temple, and by just 2 at George Washington. The Hawks are coming off a big win over city rival Villanova on Monday and will be playing their fourth game in an eight day span tonight. St Josephs is not a deep team, they primarily use a seven man rotation, but tonight will be without top minute getter Ahmad Nivins due to an ankle injury suffered in last game. Nivins is second on the team in scoring and rebounding. Little used reserve center Moody unexpectedly left the team before last game as well. Duquesne's platoon substitutions and uptempo style of play is designed to wear down opponents which makes SJU's fatigue and depth a major concern tonight. Take the home team.
Play: Duquesne -1 1/2 UNIT
UNLV at Utah (-3) - 5:30pm Pacific - Game #787-788
Big home game for Utah tonight as they look for a breakthrough win and seek revenge for five straight losses to the Rebels. The Utes showed class in non-conference play winning at Cal and losing by just 2 at Gonzaga. They have been snakebitten by a 3 point loss to BYU and two overtime road losses at SDSU and New Mexico in conference play. They are coming off a businesslike win at Colorado State last Saturday and should be primed for a top effort tonight. In conference games, Utah leads the MWC in both FG% shooting and FG% defense. UNLV meanwhile ranks just 5th and 6th respectively. Even last years more talented sweet 16 team only went 4-4 in MWC road games. They are off to a 3-1 start this year but struggled with lowly Colorado State, lost at Air Force by 12, won at SDSU by just 3 with some luck, and beat TCU by 12 after the Frogs lost their leading scorer to injury early in the game. This will be UNLV's toughest conference road test yet and the first against a team with a legitimate big man. UNLV's lack of size has been an issue all season as they have a -5.4 rebounding margin in conference play entering this game. Utah boasts an 87-11 record in conference home games over the past 13 seasons. Give the points.
Play: Utah -3 1/2 UNIT
Brian Marshall
Game: Ball State vs. Kent State
Plays On: Kent State -16
Game Analyses: Kent State (record: 17-5) should be able to get an easy win tonight against Ball State (record: 3-17).
Kent State has the much more talented offense and defense. This means Kent State will find many easy ways to score, while Ball State finds it hard to score. This is the perfect recipe for a Kent State blowout win!
Kent State has been a great at home team. In fact, Kent State is 28-11 ATS in their last 39 home games. The home team is also 7-2 ATS in the last 9 meetings between these teams.
Take Kent State -16
Michael Cannon
20 Dime –
GEORGIA STATE
Take the points with Georgia State tonight as the home dog against Vcu.
Do not be misled by the Panthers record. This team has been extremely competitive this year, with no fewer than six games being decided by one or two points. Georgia State’s average game has been decided by 5.5 points, so you can see how close this team is to breaking out.
They just don’t know how to get over the hump yet.
It’s ok though, because coach Rod Barnes has shown the ability to control the tempo of games and he is also an effective schemer. He has an emerging star in 6-5 junior guard Leonard Mendez, who is averaging 18.5 points per game.
Georgia State won’t be intimidated tonight on its home court, not after coming within two points of Rams in Richmond on January 10.
Take the points with Georgia State as they stay within the number once again.
5 Dime –
WIZARDS
Take the points with the Wizards tonight when they host the Spurs.
At first glance this would appear to be a blowout…for San Antonio. Caron Butler is questionable for Washington, who has lost four straight and is being outscored by an average of 16 points during that span.
But San Antonio hasn’t been especially good in the second of back-to-backs this season, failing to cover seven of its last eight.
The Spurs will also be without Tony Parker tonight, who is nursing a left heel injury.
This will be San Antonio’s fifth game of a season-high nine-game road trip.
Take the points with the Wizards as they break out of their slump and keep it within the number at home.
MISSISSIPPI STATE
Take Mississippi State as the home chalk tonight over Alabama.
The Bulldogs had been on fire, winning nine in a row before losing their last two, at Arkansas and a five-point home loss to Tennessee.
Alabama is too erratic to stay within this number tonight and Mississippi State has the advantage in the paint and in the backcourt.
The Bulldogs are 22-8 ATS in their last 30 Wednesday games and 23-11 ATS in their last 34 home games.
Take Mississippi State as the home chalk tonight over Alabama.
Drew Gordon
1. 400,000* Bradley
2. 50,000* St. Joseph's
3. 50,000* Wake Forest
4. 50,000* Hornets
1. Bradley- Great spot for Bradley, which finds itself in the perfect position to get some real revenge on a Missouri State team that's struggling right now. When I say "revenge" I mean it, as the Bears have won (and covered) against the Braves in 4 straight meetings, including once already this season & an 8-point win in Peoria last season. Tonight its payback time, and the way these two teams are playing right now, the timing couldn't better...
Missouri State has lost 4 of its last 5 games SU and all 5 ATS, including getting destroyed at Evansville 84-65 as 6-point favorites! They're playing garbage ball right now, scoring 61 ppg on just 37% shooting over that span. Not only that, but they've letup bigtime on defense, allowing 70 ppg on a ridiculous 49% shooting. They allow those kind of numbers here tonight, and they'll get blown out of the gym, plain and simple.
Bradley meanwhile is surging, winners of 5 straight (4-1 ATS), and playing like it. Remember the Bears blowout loss at Evansville mentioned above? Well, the Braves are coming off a 72-59 win and cover at Evansville Saturday, for those of you who like to compare opponents in-common. Also, while Bradley may be only 7-5 SU in Peoria this season, they're 39-19-3 ATS over their last 61 home games, not to mention the home team is 7-1 ATS over their last 8 meetings in this series!
Also, consider the match ups are right for Bradley, as Missouri State is a frontcourt-heavy team that doesn't rebound the ball particularly well. The Braves didn't have their second-leading scorer last time these two met, G Daniel Ruffin, who's 19 points 6 asissts and 6 rebounds against Evansville propelled the Braves to victory. When Bradley has their 4-guard attack firing on all cylinders, especially at home, they're extremely tough to beat.
Finally, its hard to ignore the fact that Missouri State is 1-10 ATS over their last 11 road games & 7-19 ATS over their last 26 games overall. With all the factors mentioned above, from revenge, to home court, to their recent play, to the trends... How could you possibly side with anyone but Bradley in this match up?! Look for the Braves to protect their house and grab the cash tonight in Peoria!
Take Bradley comfortably over Missouri State as your top-rated play of the day.
2. St. Joseph's- While I like what Duquesne has done this season, they're in the midst of a slump, losers of 4 of their last 6 SUATS. I myself wondered how effective coach Everhart's "1040" pressure system would work over the course of a season. His quick substitutions keep his players fresh, but never allow for anyone to get into an offensive rythmn. It appears as though it may be starting to back-fire, as the Dukes looked pathetic at St. Bonaventure, a team they should've crushed as 11-point favorites, but lost handily 74-59.
More of the same tonight, as it appears even the players may be starting to lose faith in coach Everhart's system. St. Joseph's is a rock-solid, fundamentally sound match up nightmare for this Duquesne squad... Exactly the type of team they don't want to see after a devastating St. Bonaventure loss.
Why are they match up nightmare? Because coach Martelli's bigmen are playing well, and while Shawn James is a shot-blocking machine, he'll have his work cut out for him against a deep and talented Hawks frontline of Pat Calathes, Ahmad Nivins, and Rob Ferguson. Coach Everhart has to make a choice, either get overpowered with only James on the court, or go against his system and start two forwards... Either way this Dukes team is in trouble.
Finally, the one edge the Dukes might have had was with Kojo Mensah, their transfer guard, but not so much anymore. He got benched for a time against St. Bonaventure for lack of intensity, and coach Everhart may be dealing with some disgruntled players who want more than just 22+ minutes per game in his quick-substitution system. This game has all the makings of a serious collapse for the Dukes, and the Hawks are more than happy to do it.
Take St. Joseph's plus the points over Duquesne in this A-10 match up.
3. Wake Forest- While the Deacons have been up-and-down this season, one thing you cannot deny is their play at the Lawrence Joel Coliseum, where they're 12-0 SU and 5-1-1 ATS this season. They're coming off impressive ACC home wins and covers against Miami-Florida and Florida State, two teams that already beat Georgia Tech SUATS this season. More of the same tonight and here's why:
The fact that the Yellow Jackets have been a terrible bet on the road for some time now cannot be ignored, going 6-13 ATS over their last 19 away, including 4-6 ATS this season. True, they've won two straight road games, at Virginia and at NC State, but I'm still not convinced. Their defense is far to porous to consider them in this contest, allowing 80 ppg on 45% shooting on the highway this season.
Match ups are close, but we'll give the nod to the Deacons, who've seen guards Teague and Smith step up big in the absence of L.D. Williams. In the frontcourt, you've got to love Wake's freshman F James Johnson, who should do real well against a smallish Yellow Jackets frontline. 7-footer Chas McFarland is still a work in progress, but G-Tech has no one even close in size, which should open up the paint for Johnson to goto work, as the Yellow Jackets struggle to match up.
Bottom line, until Wake Forest gives me a reason not to side with them at the Lawrence Joel Coliseum, I'll keep riding the gravy train! Guys, this Wake team is terrible on the road (1-7 SU), but from one reason or another, they go 110% at home and its showed in the win column and in their backers' bankrolls! Wake rolls in this one!
Take Wake Forest over Georgia Tech in this ACC showdown.
4. Hornets- Good spot to hop on the Hornets, as everyone is seemingly fading them because they've lost 3 straight games, but that's exactly the reason why I'm siding with them in this one. What better way to get right back in the Western Conference conversation than to beat the Suns at home... I'm not saying they'll win outright, I'm saying they give a "max-effort" tonight in an attempt to prove all their sudden doubters wrong tonight.
Guys, let's make one thing clear, New Orleans has beaten the Suns already twice this season, including a 118-113 outright win in Phoenix January 5th. They've also covered 4 straight against them, and come into this game looking to bounce back, and still scoring more than enough points to stick with Nash and company.
The problem the Hornets have been having is on defense, but we all know defense goes out the window when these two teams meet up. This is exactly the kind of game the Hornets need to get back on their feet, because as good as the Suns are at home, they're still only 9-12-1 ATS there this season. Note the Hornets have been money on the road, going an outstanding 22-7-1 ATS over their last 30 away games!
Finally, we all know this game features the two of the best point guards in the NBA, but there's some trouble brewing in Phoenix. The pending departure of Shawn Marion, and the subsequent addition of one of the biggest egos in the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal, has to be a distraction. Basically, Suns management is saying: "We can't do it with this team, " and that has to hurt what was one of more united teams in the West.
In the end, the Hornets are more than capable of beating the Suns outright here, but we'll take the points, and watch New Orleans rebound against a distracted Suns team, that's waiting around for their 35-year old broken-down saviour (good luck with that)!
Take the Hornets plus the points over the Suns in this NBA match up.
ATS LOCK
5 Utah -3 1/2 CBB
4 Miami Fl -4 1/2
4 Iowa +7 1/2
3 UConn +3
ATS FINANCIAL
4 UTEP -6 1/2
3 N Carol -3 1/2
3 Miss St. -8 1/2
Black magic Sports
NBA
5 Unit Black Magic Spurs/Wizards BEST BET on Washington +7
The Washington Wizards will take advantage of big injuries to a couple of key players for San Antonio. The Spurs can only go so far without their floor general in Tony Parker. An injury to a key role player in Brent Barry has taken away the Spurs’ efficiency from 3-point range when teams double-team Tim Duncan. The Wizards will be able to double-team Duncan all night while not paying the price by leaving below-average 3-point shooters open from the outside. The Spurs own a losing road record this season while Washington is 15-10 ATS in their 25 home games. The old spurs will have tired legs tonight. San Antonio is 1-8 ATS when playing on back-to-back days this season. Cash in with Washington as the underdog.
NCAA Basketball
3 Unit Sharp Play on Syracuse -3.5
The Syracuse Orangemen are finally playing team basketball after a rough start to the year with many talented freshman. These young guys have grown up in a hurry and an impressive road win over Villanova by 14 points their last time out proves it. Syracuse has won 3 straight games now and playing this one at home against Uconn will make the difference. Syracuse owns 12 home wins already this season. They own back-to-back wins over Uconn by 13 and 10 points respectively. Uconn is 2-11 ATS as an underdog over the last 2 seasons. Uconn is 0-9 ATS in road games after allowing 60 points or less over the last 2 seasons. Cash in with Syracuse as the favorite.
3 Unit Sharp Play on Minnesota -5.5
The Minnesota Golden Gophers get the luxury of playing the worst team in the Big Ten conference tonight. With 5 starters back this season, Minnesota will not be having a letdown against Northwestern Wednesday. Northwestern has only covered the spread once this season when playing at home. They lost by 19 points at Minnesota already this season. Northwestern is 0-8 in Big Ten play. Tubby Smith has the Gophers headed in the right direction with a 13-7 record on the season. Cash in with Minnesota as the favorite.
3 Unit Sharp Play on Rice +10.5
The Rice Owls may be one of the worst teams in Conference USA, but they aren’t that far behind East Carolina. East Carolina is just 7-12 on the season and have lost 4 straight games SU and ATS. Rice may be riding a big losing streak, but the Owls have been very competitive in going 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. Rice is 8-3 ATS in their last 11 lined games as well. Rice is 15-3 ATS on Wednesday games over the last 3 seasons. East Carolina is 1-9 ATS as a favorite over the last 3 seasons. Cash in with Rice as the underdog.
STRIKE POINT SPORTS
2-Unit Play. #725 Take Akron +1 over Western Michigan
2-Unit Play. #729 Take Connecticut +3.5 over Syracuse
3-Unit Play. #767 Take Notre Dame -1 over Seton Hall
3-Unit Play. #769 Take Vanderbilt +4 over Georgia
3-Unit Play. #788 Take Utah -3 over UNLV
Stu Feiner
Wednesday Night Hoops
2000 DIME ONE AND ONLY DOUBLE DIGIT BLOWOUT OF THE MONTH #2
Kansas State -10 over Nebraska
10 and a half? Are you serious? They should be atleast a 15 point favorite tonight. Just because the Huskers beat a Missouri team with four of their five top scorers suspended and a bad ISU team their last two does NOT mean they can go into Manhattan and be competitive. The Wildcats are 5-1 SU and ATS in their six overall and are 22-8 ATS in their last 30 conference games. They are 29-11 ATS in their last 40 home games against a team with a losing road record. Michael Beasley is probably the favorite along with Kevin Love for freshman of the year, averaging 24.8 and 12.2. He'll have at least that tonight as the 'Cats roll by 30.
also
1000 Dime - Orlando -11 over New Jersey
I don't care if this line is 20 today. The Nets plain stink. They lost by double digits last night at home to the Lakers, and now have to play a Magic team that is a contender in the East. The Nets are 17-38-2 ATS in their last 57 games following a SU loss of more than 10 points, and are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games playing on no rest. They are 3-10 ATS in their last 13 games overall and are 1-6 ATS in their last seven games as an underdog of 5.0-10.5. The Magic, meanwhile, are 7-2 SU and 5-3-1 ATS their last nine. Time for major changes in New Jersey. They'll roll over the Nets tonight at home by 25 or more.
1000 Dime - UNLV + 3.5 over Utah
The Rebels are 17-4 on the year SU, 5-2 on the road as they head to Utah to take on the Utes tonight. They have covered four of their last five conference games, and are 20-7-1 ATS in their last 28 games overall. They are 5-2 ATS in those seven road games this year, including wins over TCU and San Diego St away from home. Wink Adams, the guard from Houston, is averaging 15.9 ppg for the Rebels. He is the glue of the team and is the fuel for what makes UNLV go. As for Utah, they lost 80-54 - by 26 - to UNLV the last time they played. UNLV wins outright on the road tonight, not by 26, but by half that number tonight.
AKMENS
CBB
UL Lafayette (Under 130.5)
Miami (-4.5)
NHL
Edmonton (-125)
Col/San Jose (Over 5.5)
RAS Totals
734 James Mad UNDER 140... 1/2
789 UL Monroe OVER 146'.... 1
805 N Mex St. OVER 142'... 1
Mike Rose
New Orleans Hornets @ Phoenix Suns u214.5 (-110)
Division leaders square off in the desert tonight as the (32-15) New Orleans Hornets take on the (34-14) Phoenix Suns. New Orleans is currently tied atop the standings with the Dallas Mavericks in the Southwest Division, while the Suns hold a 2.5-game lead over the LA Lakers in the Pacific Division. In 23 road games this season, the Hornets have snagged 16 SU victories and covered the spread 15 times. Phoenix has won 17 of 22 games in the US Airways Center but have cost their backers some hard earned cash by only managing a 9-12-1 ATS mark.
The Hornets have fallen upon rough times of late after tearing the NBA apart for most of December and January. They come into tonight’s game losers of three in a row, which includes losses in the first two legs of their current 3-game road swing against Utah and Sacramento. It was the second time this season that the Hornets got rolled up in Salt Lake City, but they managed a win their following game so Chris Paul and the Hornets should provide a better semblance of themselves tonight.
Phoenix bounced back nicely from their loss at home against San Antonio their last time out by demolishing the Charlotte Bobcats to the tune of a 118-104 beatdown. They pushed the game spread (-14), but the combined score of 222 points surpassed the game ‘Total’ of 218. The Suns come into tonight’s game winners in 8 of their L/10 overall games.
New Orleans has taken the first two meetings with the Suns this season. They beat them at home back in mid December 101-98 as 6.5-point home underdogs, and then beat them at Phoenix by a 118-113 final count as 8-point underdogs in early January. The ‘Totals’ for each game closed at 208.5 leaving us with an Over and an Under. The wins are the Hornets only two against the Suns in their L/10 meetings.
Phoenix opened as 6.5-point home favorites with the ‘Total’ set at 215.5. Overnight bettors like the fact that New Orleans has owned Phoenix this year and bought the game spread down to 5 and 4.5, while the ‘Total’ has stayed put. The Hornets are 4-0 ATS the L/4 meetings with the Suns, and their 8-2-1 ATS their L/11 confrontations in the desert. This has been a lower scoring rivalry as well with the Under cashing in 9 of the L/10 meetings, and in 6 of the L/7 battles in the desert.