1-18-14

[Can'tPickAWinner]

[Can'tPickAWinner]

WINNING POINTS

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

LaSalle* over Temple by 8

Virginia* over Florida State by 1
If Virginia is laying vs. their own level, we’re not. If Florida State is taking vs. their own
level, it seems like a better deal.
VIRGNIA, 61-60.

Georgetown* over Seton Hall by 13
Statuses of Georgetown’s academically troubled 7’0” center Josh Smith, and broken
jaw troubled 6’5” guard Jabril Trawick, are in limbo.
GEORGETOWN, 69-56.

North Carolina* over Boston College by 15

Indiana* over Northwestern by 18

Delaware over Northeastern* by 1
Bill Coen’s Northeastern roster isn’t nearly as athletic as it’s been in recent seasons.
Their 6’8”, 219 low-post scorer Etherton doesn’t scare many opponents. Delaware will
look to stick 6’9”, 260 Carl Baptiste in his way, cut off the head of the home team’s
offense, then see if the body dies.
DELAWARE, 68-67.

Kentucky* over Tennessee by 5
Barring foul trouble, Tennessee is built to hang around with Kentucky with their
upperclassmen guards, only 10 turnovers per game, and productive big guys Maymon
and Stokes.
KENTUCKY, 70-65.

***BEST BET
Tulsa over Marshall by 12
Marshall’s only two wins since December 17 have been against Alice Lloyd and
Presbyterian. Alice was on her game that night, but Lloyd forgot to show. Leading
scorer Elijah Pittman has been unsighted for a while now, and let’s not forget that
DeAndre Kane, last season’s second-leading scorer, now wears an Iowa State uniform.
Tulsa recently lost forward Rashad Smith for who knows how long but they scored 91
points in their first game without him, so what’s the big deal?
TULSA, 80-68.

Central Florida* over SMU by 1

Rhode Island* over George Mason by 2

Texas A&M over Mississippi State* by 3

Northern Iowa* over Missouri State by 13

Kansas State* over West Virginia by 4

Arkansas over Georgia* by 4
As a home dog against an opponent that almost always looks more impressive home
than on the road, Georgia will probably attract more money than it should.
ARKANSAS, 69-65.

Colorado* over USC by 15

Missouri* over Alabama by 6

Drexel over NC Wilmington* by 7

Butler* over Marquette by 3
Our Executive Club has been having a grand old time of it going against Marquette
when they play any NCAA Tournament-like opponent. Butler fits that part of the profile, but they aren’t as physically imposing as most of the other teams that have been having their way with Marquette.
BUTLER, 74-71.

Ball State* over Miami-OH by 2

Akron* over Toledo by 1

Evansville* over Loyola-Chicago by 9

Yale* over Brown by 7

Valparaiso* over Wisconsin-Milwaukee by 4

Miami-FL over Georgia Tech* by 3

***BEST BET
Baylor* over Oklahoma by 20
The Sooners have been putting the ball in the hoop nicely, but Baylor will play a zone
that will challenge their ability to function in half-court sets. Oklahoma’s defense is
highly suspect. Giving 79 ppg and heading out on the road to play a Top 10 foe with
balanced scoring should raise the red flag on the Sooners.
BAYLOR, 85-65.

Duke* over North Carolina State by 18
During the scouting session, Duke players will ask to miss this game because they’re
afraid of 7’1” Jordan Vandenberg, and 6’8”, 245 Lennard Freeman. The Duke coaches
will have to assure them that those kids only combine for 10 points and 11 rebounds per game, and that NC State hits only 30% of its treys, and that it’s safe to come out and play.
DUKE, 79-61.

Saint Louis* over Fordham by 21

Buffalo* over Kent State by 4

Georgia State* over Arkansas-LR by 14

Dayton* over Richmond by 8

VCU* over Duquesne by 23

Clemson* over Wake Forest by 7
Clemson to selves: ‘We beat Duke here by a lot! We can beat anyone because Duke is
awesome, baby!’ In reality, Duke rebounds like girls, but that’s often how Wake Forest
plays on the road, where they have specialized in losing by double digits for a while.
CLEMSON, 60-53.

***BEST BET
Texas* over Iowa State by 10
Longhorns to The Mayor: ‘You’re out of your jurisdiction!’ Iowa State doesn’t play the
greatest defense in the world. Their road loss at Oklahoma, following a 16-0 start to
the season, should be the first in a series of Big 12 road defeats as they encounter
defensive resistance from familiar conference foes, which they didn’t really get at
Oklahoma yet still lost. If 6’4” senior guard DeAndre Kane (16.5 ppg), injured (ankle)
in that game, is still out, it’ll be an added bonus for Texas backers.
TEXAS, 80-70.

Kansas* over Oklahoma State by 4
Big 12 battle of behemoths! Free throws will probably decide it late.
KANSAS, 83-79.

Gonzaga over Loyola Marymount* by 7

Syracuse* over Pittsburgh by 5

Florida over Auburn* by 10

California* over Washington State by 16
Taking a flyer on Washington State in a road game is like taking a small dose of poison.
CALIFORNIA, 73-57.

Utah* over UCLA by 5
True roadies were not Bruins’ first-season head coach Steve Alford’s cup of tea when
he was at New Mexico. The Utah team that once was in the Mountain West with him
looks a lot different now than it did then.
UTAH, 80-75.

**PREFERRED
Wichita State* over Indiana State by 22
The Missouri Valley gets some love from ESPN2. Wichita State is the veteran top dog,
on home floor, with a few recent unimpressive wins, the kind that are necessary to get
through a season when you’ll definitely be an At-Large and yeah, you’d like to win
your CT, too. Indiana State looks to be second-best in the conference and we’ll see
how much of a gap there is between #1 and #2. Visiting ISU is probably not athletic
enough to hang around for 40 minutes on the road.
WICHITA STATE, 70-48.

Villanova* over Depaul by 24
Visiting head coach Purnell puts on the clown suit early, tries to play Villanova’s brand
of ball in Villanova’s gym, and the rout is on.
VILLANOVA, 89-65.

William & Mary* over James Madison by 6

Wyoming* over San Jose State by 15

South Carolina* over Mississippi by 3

Cincinnati over South Florida* by 9

***BEST BET
Wisconsin* over Michigan by 20
Seems like Michigan has little margin for error here. Their rebounding was never great
and it’ll be worse without McGarry. Their perimeter defense lacks length and quickness.
Their inside scoring game is very spotty. When Wisconsin only has to defend a
one-dimensional offense and can control the glass, what’s left for Michigan as an edge
that the Badgers need to overcome?
WISCONSIN, 74-54.

East Carolina over Florida International* by 6

Texas State* over Texas Arlington by 1

Middle Tennessee* over Texas San Antonio by 25

San Diego State* over UNLV by 15

Colorado State* over Air Force by 11

St. John’s* over Dartmouth by 18

TCU* over Texas Tech by 7

St. Bonaventure* over George Washington by 3

St. Joseph’s over Penn* by 6

Columbia* over Cornell by 17

Youngstown State* over Detroit by 1

Purdue* over Penn State by 8

Florida Atlantic* over Old Dominion by 3

New Mexico over Fresno State* by 7

Eastern Michigan over Central Michigan* by 2

Charlotte* over North Texas by 14

Pepperdine* over Portland by 2

Tulane* over Rice by 4

UAB* over UTEP by 4

Western Kentucky* over Arkansas State by 7

Ohio over Northern Illinois* by 11

Providence* over Xavier by 1
Injury to Creighton’s point guard Grant Gibbs is a yellow caution flag out on the Blue
Jays as they make trips to play strangers in strange lands.
PROVIDENCE, 62-61.

Drake* over Illinois State by 5

Saint Mary’s* over Pacific by 12

Illinois* over Michigan State by 1
Don’t back down, and make your free throws.
ILLINOIS, 68-67.

South Alabama* over UL-Monroe by 9

Connecticut* over Louisville by 1

Boise State* over Utah State by 7

LSU* over Vanderbilt by 2
Johnny Jones, LSU coach, recently: ‘I was surprised we lost by 20 points.’ Really? You
should be used to it. That’s what you did a lot at North Texas.
LSU, 62-60.

Cal Poly-SLO* over Long Beach State by 5

Cal Davis* over CS Fullerton by 1

San Francisco* over San Diego by 7

BYU over Santa Clara* by 5

Cal Santa Barbara over CS Northridge* by 5

Stanford* over Washington by 6

Hawaii* over Cal Riverside by 16

[Can'tPickAWinner]

POINTWISE

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

KEY RELEASES
WISCONSIN over Michigan (Sat) RATING: 1
CALIFORNIA over Washington St (Sat) RATING: 2
WASHINGTON over Stanford (Sat) RATING: 4

(12:00) LASALLE 66 - Temple 65 (The Palestra) (ESPN2) _____ _____

(12:00) VIRGINIA 70 - Florida State 63 _____ _____

(12:00) GEORGETOWN 77 - Seton Hall 61 (FOX 1) _____ _____

(12:00) NORTH CAROLINA 83 - Boston College 53 (ESPN) _____ _____

(12:00) INDIANA 89 - Northwestern 59 (BIG10) _____ _____

(12:00) Delaware 66 - NORTHEASTERN 61 _____ _____

(12:00) KENTUCKY 74 - Kentucky 70 (CBS) _____ _____

(12:00) MARSHALL 81 - Tulsa 79 (CBSC) _____ _____

(12:00) Smu 72 - CENTRAL FLORIDA 63 (ESPNN) _____ _____

(12:30) RHODE ISLAND 64 - George Mason 56 (NBCS) _____ _____

(12:30) Texas A&M 66 - MISSISSIPPI STATE 65 _____ _____

(1:00) NORTHERN IOWA 57 - Missouri State 50 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(1:45) KANSAS STATE 78 - West Virginia 65 _____ _____

(1:45) GEORGIA 70 - Arkansas 62 _____ _____

(2:00) COLORADO 84 - Southern California 64 (FOX 1) _____ _____

(2:00) MISSOURI 79 - Alabama 61 (ESPN) _____ _____

(2:00) Drexel 63 - UNC-WILMINGTON 57 _____ _____

(2:00) BUTLER 75 - Marquette 64 (CBSC) _____ _____

(2:00) Miami-Ohio 69 - BALL STATE 68 _____ _____

(2:00) AKRON 77 - Toledo 74 _____ _____

(2:00) EVANSVILLE 72 - Loyola-Chicago 59 _____ _____

(2:00) YALE 66 - Brown 62 _____ _____

(2:00) VALPARAISO 71 - Wisc-Milwaukee 56 _____ _____

(2:00) GEORGIA TECH 67 - Miami-Florida 60 _____ _____

(2:00) BAYLOR 87 - Oklahoma 72 (ESPN) _____ _____

(2:00) DUKE 92 - North Carolina State 63 (CBS) _____ _____

(2:30) SAINT LOUIS 84 - Fordham 65 (NBCS) _____ _____

(2:30) BUFFALO 76 - Kent State 68 _____ _____

(2:30) GEORGIA STATE 70 - Arkansas-Little Rock 59 _____ _____

(3:00) RICHMOND 79 - Dayton 73 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(4:00) VA COMMONWEALTH 81 - Duquesne 61 (CBSC) _____ _____

(4:00) CLEMSON 65 - Wake Forest 56 _____ _____

(4:00) Iowa State 78 - TEXAS 77 _____ _____

(4:00) KANSAS 84 - Oklahoma State 72 (CBS) _____ _____

(4:00) Gonzaga 81 - LOYOLA-MARYMOUNT 74 _____ _____

(4:00) SYRACUSE 73 - Pittsburgh 71 (ESPN2) _____ _____

(4:00) Florida 77 - AUBURN 57 _____ _____

(4:00) CALIFORNIA 72 - Washington State 53 _____ _____

(4:00) UTAH 65 - Ucla 62 (FOX 1) _____ _____

(4:00) WICHITA STATE 76 - Indiana State 58 (ESPN2) _____ _____

(4:00) VILLANOVA 89 - DePaul 64 (FSN) _____ _____

(4:00) WILLIAM & MARY 72 - James Madison 60 _____ _____

(4:00) WYOMING 75 - San Jose State 59 _____ _____

(4:30) SOUTH CAROLINA 70 - Mississippi 61 (FSN) _____ _____

(5:00) Cincinnati 67 - SOUTH FLORIDA 53 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(5:00) WISCONSIN 68 - Michigan 54 (ESPN) _____ _____

(5:00) East Carolina 64 - FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL 62 _____ _____

(5:30) TEXAS STATE 83 - Texas-Arlington 80 _____ _____

(6:00) MIDDLE TENNESSEE ST 95 - Tex-San Antonio 65 _____ _____

(6:00) SAN DIEGO STATE 88 - Unlv 84 (CBSC) _____ _____

(6:00) COLORADO STATE 72 - Air Force 61 _____ _____

(6:00) ST JOHNS 75 - Dartmouth 67 (FOX 1) _____ _____

(6:00) TCU 64 - Texas Tech 63 _____ _____

(7:00) ST BONAVENTURE 69 - George Washington 68 _____ _____

(7:00) St Josephs 71 - PENNSYLVANIA 60 _____ _____

(7:00) COLUMBIA 62 - Cornell 59 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(7:00) YOUNGSTOWN STATE 80 - Detroit 74 _____ _____

(7:00) PURDUE 66 - Penn State 65 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(7:00) FLORIDA ATLANTIC 72 - Old Dominion 71 _____ _____

(7:00) New Mexico 63 - FRESNO STATE 49 _____ _____

(7:00) CENTRAL FLORIDA 67 - Eastern Michigan 66 _____ _____

(7:00) CHARLOTTE 73 - North Texas 62 _____ _____

(8:00) PEPPERDINE 70 - Portland 60 _____ _____

(8:00) Rice 69 - TULANE 65 _____ _____

(8:00) UAB 76 - Utep 71 _____ _____

(8:00) WESTERN KENTUCKY 64 - Arkansas State 52 _____ _____

(8:00) Ohio U 69 - NORTHERN ILLINOIS 68 _____ _____

(8:00) Creighton 73 - PROVIDENCE 63 _____ _____

(8:00) DRAKE 85 - Illinois State 84 _____ _____

(8:00) SAINT MARYS 76 - Pacific 69 _____ _____

(8:00) ILLINOIS 74 - Michigan State 71 (BIG10) _____ _____

(8:30) SOUTH ALABAMA 68 - La-Monroe 62 _____ _____

(8:30) TROY 67 - La-Lafayette 56 _____ _____

(9:00) Louisville 77 - CONNECTICUT 66 (ESPN) _____ _____

(9:00) BOISE STATE 86 - Utah State 79 _____ _____

(9:00) LSU 59 - Vanderbilt 58 (ESPNU) _____ _____

(10:00) CAL-POLY SLO 75 - Long Beach State 71 _____ _____

(10:00) Cal-Fullerton 93 - CAL-DAVIS 84 _____ _____

(10:00) SAN FRANCISCO 79 - San Diego 69 _____ _____

(10:00) Byu 80 - SANTA CLARA 68 _____ _____

(10:30) Cal-Santa Barbara 80 - CAL-NORTHRIDGE 67 _____ _____

(11:00) STANFORD 67 - Washington 66 _____ _____

(12:00) HAWAII 79 - Cal-Riverside 58 _____ _____

(7:00) Massachusetts 84 - ELON 70 _____ _____

BEST BETS
INDIANA
GEORGIA
BUTLER
BROWN
BAYLOR
BUFFALO
PITTSBURGH
CALIFORNIA (2)
CINCINNATI
WISCONSIN (1)
DARTMOUTH
PENN STATE
TROY
VANDERBILT
WASHINGTON (4)

[Can'tPickAWinner]

WINNING POINTS

PRO BASKETBALL

*Washington over Detroit by 5
Despite adding Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings, the Pistons remain disappointing.
Detroit is 5-12-1 ATS through this past Thursday. The Pistons were swept in homeand-
away late December matchups against the Wizards losing by a combined 31points.
WASHINGTON 106-101.

***BEST BET
*Indiana over Los Angeles Clippers by 17
The Clippers are playing without Chris Paul. The Pacers handled the Clippers in LA at the start of last month, 105-100, and that was with Paul scoring 17 points and dishing off 11 assists. The Pacers know Paul's point guard replacement, Darren Collison, well as Collison played for Indiana from 2010-2012.
INDIANA 103-86.

***BEST BET
*Charlotte over Miami by 3
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra has been known to rest Dwayne Wade in the second of
back-to-back games. The Bobcats have a winning spread record as a home underdog.
They nearly upset Miami in their last meeting on Dec. 1 losing 99-98 blowing a 14-
point fourth quarter lead.
CHARLOTTE 98-95.

*Chicago over Philadelphia by 6
Rookie guard Michael Carter-Williams is healthy again and putting up eye-opening
numbers, but no team surrenders more points per game than the 76ers. The Bulls'
depth is being tested with Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler relied on more. Chicago had
a losing spread record in the second of consecutive games.
CHICAGO 102-96.

*Houston over Milwaukee by 11
The Bucks don't have the offense to keep up with James Harden averaging fewer than
93 points a game and none of their big men can handle Dwight Howard, who could
be getting plenty of practice from the free throw line where he was converting less than 55 percent.
HOUSTON 109-98.

*New Orleans over Golden State by 2
It's hard for the Pelicans to replace the scoring of injured Ryan Anderson and point
guard Jrue Holiday, but they are respectable at home where they own victories against
Memphis, Denver and Portland in three of their last six home contests through last
Sunday.
NEW ORLEANS 106-104.

*Minnesota over Utah by 5
The Timberwolves were just 4-6 ATS in their last 10 games at Target Center through
this past Tuesday. The teams will meet again Tuesday in Salt Lake City.
MINNESOTA 109-104.

*Dallas over Portland by 4
The Trail Blazers obviously were playing above their ends during the first quarter of
the season. They have failed to cover in 10 of their last 13 through this past Tuesday
with losses already this month to bottom feeders Philadelphia and Sacramento.
DALLAS 106-102

[Can'tPickAWinner]

POINTWISE

NBA
BASKETBALL

(7:05) WASHINGTON 105 - Detroit Pistons 98 _____ _____

(7:05) INDIANA PACERS 109 - LA Clippers 98 (NBA) _____ _____

(7:35) Miami Heat 116 - CHARLOTTE BOBCATS 103 _____ _____

(8:05) Philadelphia 76ers 98 - CHICAGO 96 (WGN) _____ _____

(8:05) HOUSTON ROCKETS 114 - Milwaukee Bucks 97 _____ _____

(8:05) NEW ORLEANS PELICANS 97 - Golden State 96 _____ _____

(8:05) MINNESOTA T'WOLVES 115 - Utah Jazz 103 _____ _____

(8:35) Portland Trailblazers 98 - DALLAS MAVS 94 _____ _____

BEST BETS
INDIANA (2)
HOUSTON (4)
MINNESOTA

[Can'tPickAWinner]

North Carolina State at Duke What bettors need to know

North Carolina State Wolfpack at Duke Blue Devils

Duke restored some of its luster with a win on Monday but is still only .500 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The 20th-ranked Blue Devils will try to move past the even point when they host North Carolina State on Saturday. Duke squandered an 11-point lead against Virginia on Monday but came through down the stretch thanks to 21 points from Rasheed Sulaimon, who picked up some of the slack from freshman Jabari Parker.

Parker averaged 21.4 points in non-conference play but is putting up 10.5 against ACC foes, including eight on 3-of-11 shooting in the 69-65 win over Virginia. The forward will have his hands full at the defensive end on Saturday as part of the group assigned to Wolfpack forward T.J. Warren, who leads the ACC in scoring at 22.2 points. Warren put up 22 points at Wake Forest on Wednesday but fouled out with under three minutes left and had to watch as his team suffered a 70-69 loss.

TV: 2 p.m. ET, CBS

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA STATE (11-6, 1-3 ACC): The Wolfpack did what Duke couldn’t by winning at Notre Dame on Jan. 7, but have since dropped two straight. NC State led Wake Forest by eight at the half but fell behind when Warren picked up his fourth foul midway through the second and could not stop a layup in the final seconds. Part of the problem for the Wolfpack is the lack of scoring options behind Warren, as only Anthony Barber (11.5) and Desmond Lee (10.2) join him in double figures.

ABOUT DUKE (13-4, 2-2): The Blue Devils changed things up on the defensive end against Virginia and went to a pressure system for 40 minutes, using 10 players in a five-for-five substitution pattern. “It was strange but it worked out well,” Sulaimon told reporters. “I knew (coach Mike Krzyzewski) was going to do something like that because he wanted us to pressure the ball for the entire 40 minutes, so he wanted us to have fresh legs.” Sulaimon, who was a healthy scratch against Michigan last month after a string of sub-par efforts, has scored in double figures in two of the last three games.

TRENDS:
* Over is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings in Duke.
* Wolfpack are 3-12-1 ATS in their last 16 Saturday games.
* Over is 4-1 in Blue Devils last five vs. Atlantic Coast.
* Blue Devils are 1-4 ATS in their last five vs. Atlantic Coast.

TIP-INS:
1. Duke has won 26 straight at home.

2. The Wolfpack rank last in the ACC in 3-point percentage at 29.2 while Duke shoots a league-leading 41.1 percent from beyond the arc.

3. Blue Devils F Amile Jefferson recorded a career-high 15 rebounds on Monday and has recorded double-digit rebounds in four of the last eight contests.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Saturday's Top 25 NCAAB cheat sheet Early Games

Here's a quick look at the marquee early games on Saturday's NCAA basketball schedule:

Tennessee Volunteers at Kentucky Wildcats (-9.5)
Jordan McRae has emerged as one of the SEC’s top scorers, leading Tennessee at 18.4 points per game and ranking tied for sixth in the league. Another strength for the Volunteers has been on the glass, where they rank behind only Kentucky in the SEC in rebounding margin. Saturday’s game pits the top two rebounders in the SEC against each other – with Tennessee’s Jarnell Stokes (9.6 per game) up against Kentucky phenom Julius Randle (11.1).

On the strength of its front line, the Wildcats have dominated the paint for much of their season. It starts with Randle (16.9 points), but Willie Cauley-Stein has also taken major steps forward in his second year in Lexington. The 7-0 Olathe, Kan. native has racked up 7.6 rebounds per game, and has cracked double-figure scoring in three of Kentucky’s last five games.

TRENDS:
* Volunteers are 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games vs. the SEC.
* Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last five home games.
* Under is 8-2 in Tennessee's last 10 games vs. teams with winning records.
* Home team is 8-2 ATS in the last 10 meetings.

Oklahoma Sooners at Baylor Bears (-6.5)
Cameron Clark leads the Sooners with 17.3 points and Buddy Hield adds 16.5 points, although he's averaging 18.5 in league games. Spangler, who leads the Big 12 with 9.5 rebounds, has shot 50 percent from the floor or better in all 17 games. Jordan Woodard (11.4 points) and Isaiah Cousins (10.6) also average double figures, and the Sooners starters have combined for 95 of the team's 123 steals.

Jefferson has six double-doubles and leads the Bears with 13.2 points and 8.4 rebounds. Kenny Chery adds 11.6 points and a 2.7 assist-to-turnover ratio while Austin gives the Bears, who are 9-0 at home, 10.3 points and a league-best 46 blocks. Taurean Prince has scored in double figures in four of his last five games and leads the Bears during that five-game stretch with 15.2 points on 60.5 percent shooting.

TRENDS:
* Sooners are 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 Saturday games.
* Bears are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 home games.
* Over is 20-6 in Oklahoma's last 26 games.
* Over is 13-5 in the last 18 meetings.

North Carolina State Wolfpack at Duke Blue Devils (-14)
The Wolfpack did what Duke couldn’t by winning at Notre Dame on Jan. 7, but have since dropped two straight. NC State led Wake Forest by eight at the half but fell behind when Warren picked up his fourth foul midway through the second and could not stop a layup in the final seconds. Part of the problem for the Wolfpack is the lack of scoring options behind Warren, as only Anthony Barber (11.5) and Desmond Lee (10.2) join him in double figures.

Blue Devils star forward Jabari Parker averaged 21.4 points in non-conference play but is putting up 10.5 against ACC foes, including eight on 3-of-11 shooting in the 69-65 win over Virginia. The forward will have his hands full at the defensive end on Saturday as part of the group assigned to Wolfpack forward T.J. Warren, who leads the ACC in scoring at 22.2 points.

TRENDS:
* Wolfpack are 3-12-1 ATS in their last 16 Saturday games.
* Blue Devils are 9-4 ATS in their last 13 home games.
* Under is 9-3 in NC State's last 12 games against ACC foes.
* Over is 15-5-1 in the last 21 meetings.

USC Trojans at Colorado Buffaloes (-11)
USC's Strahinja Gavrilovic played more than nine minutes just twice in the first 16 games and had not scored more than four points, but the 6-8 forward from Serbia gained attention by scoring 10 points in 19 minutes against top-ranked Arizona on Sunday. He was rewarded with 20 minutes against Utah and came back with nine points on an efficient 4-for-6 shooting.

Josh Scott should be prepared for a good test against 7-2 center Omar Oraby of USC. Scott, a 6-10 sophomore, was the best big man in the UCLA game, finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, but the Bruins don’t have a true center like Oraby. Dustin Thomas is the best frontcourt player off the bench for the Buffaloes and the 6-7 freshman forward is another player who needs to step up in Dinwiddie’s absence.

TRENDS:
* Trojans are 7-19-2 ATS in their last 28 road games.
* Buffaloes are 6-15 ATS in their last 21 Saturday games.
* Over is 4-0 in USC's last four road games.
* Under is 14-4 in Colorado's last 18 games following a loss.

Le Moyne-Owen Magicians at Memphis Tigers (OFF)
The Magicians, who play in the Division II Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, will need a miracle to keep up with the powerhouse Tigers. LeMoyne-Owen is coming off an 85-75 loss to Fort Valley State, dropping to 1-5 in conference play and 3-10 overall. The Magicians were led by Daequan Mitchell-Fie, who had 20 points; Marcel Hawkins added 18 points while Jerry Hampton added 15 in defeat.

Tigers star Shaq Goodwin put up 15 points and eight rebounds in a 73-67 win at Louisville and was even stronger in Saturday’s 79-69 triumph at Temple, collecting 23 points and 11 boards. The display earned the sophomore forward his second AAC Player of the Week award this season and propelled Memphis higher up the national rankings. Connecticut limited him to 10 points in the Tigers' last outing, an 83-73 Huskies victory.

TRENDS:
* Tigers are 0-5 ATS in their last five road games.
* Under is 9-4 in Memphis' last 13 games.

Fordham Rams at Saint Louis Billikens (-18.5)
Bronx-based Fordham is off to a dismal start, having gone 0-3 versus Atlantic 10 opponents and losing five straight overall. The Rams are coming off an 80-68 defeat at the hands of Dayton on Wednesday, their third consecutive home defeat. Jon Severe and Brenden Frazier form a potent 1-2 scoring punch in the Fordham lineup; they combined to score 33 points against the Flyers but shot just 7-for-27 from the field.

Saint Louis has entered the national picture thanks to a 10-game winning streak that includes four wins away from Chaifetz Arena. Billikens leading scorer Dwayne Evans poured in 18 points and Rob Loe added 11 rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots in Saint Louis' previous win, a 66-60 triumph over the St. Bonaventure Bonnies. The Billikens' only two losses - against No. 10 Wisconsin and No. 12 Wichita State - came by a combined 11 points.

TRENDS:
* Rams are 17-8-1 ATS in their last 26 games following a loss.
* Billikens are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 Saturday games.
* Over is 4-0 in Fordham's last four Saturday games.
* Favorite is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings.

Pittsburgh Panthers at Syracuse Orange (-5.5)
The Panthers have won six in a row, including an 81-74 victory at Georgia Tech on Tuesday in which Talib Zanna posted 22 points and nine rebounds. Playing without sixth man Durand Johnson (ACL tear), Pittsburgh received 70 of its 81 points from the starters and absolutely dominated the glass. "The rebounding was something we came in and had to do, and had to win that on the road," said Dixon, whose team outrebounded the Yellow Jackets, 38-18.

Coach Jim Boeheim spoke critically after Monday's 69-59 win at Boston College, even though his team put up respectable numbers from the field (45.3 percent), the 3-point line (4-of-10) and foul line (17-of-21). Sophomore guard Trevor Cooney bailed out the team with 21 points while freshman backcourt mate Tyler Ennis had 12 points, six steals and five assists. Ennis has 13 games with at least five assists.

TRENDS:
* Panthers are 6-2 ATS in their last eight against the ACC.
* Orange are 6-1 ATS in their last seven home games.
* Over is 9-2 in Pittsburgh's last 11 games.
* Under is 5-2 in the last seven meetings in Syracuse.

Indiana State Sycamores at Wichita State Shockers (-11.5)
No. 5 Wichita State could face its biggest hurdle to an undefeated regular season Saturday when it hosts Indiana State in a battle of the only unbeaten teams in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Shockers enter the showdown tied with No. 1 Arizona for the most wins in Division I and could be the fresher team after going deep into its bench in Tuesday's lopsided victory over Bradley.

The Sycamores trailed for under two minutes in Wednesday's victory over Missouri State, the same team that had Wichita State down 18 points before the Shockers rallied to victory. Greg Lansing's team is 5-0 in league play for the first time since the Larry Bird-led Sycamores went 16-0 during the 1978-79 season, which ended with a loss in the national championship game.

TRENDS:
* Sycamores are 5-2 ATS in their last seven road games.
* Shockers are 12-3-2 ATS in their last 17 games following an ATS win.
* Over is 5-1 in Indiana State's last six road games.
* Under is 5-2 in the last seven meetings.

DePaul Blue Demons at Villanova Wildcats (-17.5)
The Blue Demons' last three wins have come by a combined eights points, including a 99-94 double-overtime victory at Butler. That's a sign of budding maturity for a team that leans heavily on freshmen Billy Garrett Jr. (11.6 points) and Tommy Hamilton IV (9.5 points, 5.3 rebounds). The two have emerged to complement the senior duo of Cleveland Melvin (16.6 points, 6.6 rebounds) and Brandon Young (14.6 points, 4.2 assists).

The Wildcats struggled on offense in their 74-67 win at St. John's, belying their typical efficiency at that end of the floor. Pinkston (16.1 points, 5.4 rebounds) leads a trio of double-digit scorers and has been even more effective in conference play, and Darrun Hilliard (13.9 points) and James Bell (13.8) also can put up big numbers. Villanova freshman Josh Hart (9.9), has been named Big East Rookie of the Week three times in the past four weeks.

TRENDS:
* Blue Demons are 5-1 ATS in their last six games.
* Wildcats are 8-1 ATS in their last nine games following an ATS win.
* Under is 7-1 in DePaul's last eight road games.
* Over is 4-0 in the last four meetings.

Florida Gators at Auburn Tigers (+7.5)
Gators leading scorer Casey Prather, who has missed the past two games due to a bone bruise in his right knee, was cleared for contact Friday but coach Billy Donovan said it's doubtful he'll play significant minutes. That won't be the case for sophomore guard Michael Frazier II, who scored a career-high 21 points in Tuesday's win. Frazier is the conference leader in 3-point field goal percentage at 47.3.

The strength of the Tigers is in the backcourt, which features the conference's leading scorer in senior Chris Denson (19.4) and third-leading scorer in junior KT Harrell (19.0). Denson's 272 points through 14 games are the highest by an Auburn player since the 1993-94 season while Harrell is the first Tiger to score in double figures in the first 14 games since 2002-03. Each guard has scored at least 20 points on six occasions this season.

TRENDS:
* Gators are 2-5 ATS in their last seven road games.
* Tigers are 2-12 ATS in their last 14 games following a loss.
* Under is 19-7-1 in Florida's last 26 games.
* Under is 4-1 in Auburn's last five home games.

Oklahoma State Cowboys at Kansas Jayhawks (-4)
The Cowboys dominated TCU 82-50 at home on Wednesday but have struggled a bit on the road with the loss at Kansas State and a narrow 73-72 decision over West Virginia last weekend. Markel Brown scored 28 points and Smart had 25 when the Cowboys stunned then-No. 2 Kansas 85-80 at Allen Fieldhouse last season. Oklahoma State G Phil Forte leads the Big 12 in 3-point shooting at 47.9 percent.

Most of the Jayhawks’ core was not around for that home loss to Oklahoma State last season, and the trio of Wiggins, Embiid and Selden Jr. is getting stronger as the season moves along. Wiggins’ 19 boards on Monday were one shy of Kansas’ freshman record and Embiid is 12-for-15 from the field in the last two games while coming up one rebound shy of a double-double in each.

TRENDS:
* Cowboys are 8-19 ATS in their last 27 games vs. teams with winning records.
* Jayhawks are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 games vs. the Big 12.
* Over is 11-4 in Oklahoma State's last 15 Saturday games.
* Road team is 5-0 ATS in the last five meetings.

UCLA Bruins at Utah Utes (+2.5)
Norman Powell finally put up good numbers against a quality opponent Thursday, and if the Bruins can squeeze 19 points out of him every game they’d have a lot better chance of staying on Arizona’s heels. Powell is shooting 15-for-25 in the last three games and Anderson is wise enough to know who has the hot hand when it's time to pass the ball.

The Bruins aren’t a strong rebounding team in their frontcourt so Jordan Loveridge can do some damage if he works hard enough. He won’t have a size advantage at 6-6, but knows how to leverage his body and work the angles to average a team-high 8.2 rebounds. Dallin Bachynski, a 7-foot reserve center, could do significant damage in a half-court setting as UCLA doesn’t have anyone that can match up with him one-on-one.

TRENDS:
* Bruins are 6-2 ATS in their last eight games vs. Pacific 12 opponents.
* Utes are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 Saturday games.
* Under is 5-0 in UCLA's last five road games.
* Under is 6-2 in Utah's last eight games.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Saturday's Top 25 NCAAB cheat sheet Late Games

Here's a quick look at the marquee late games on Saturday's NCAA basketball schedule:

Michigan Wolverines at Wisconsin Badgers (-8.5)
Nik Stauskas leads the Wolverines and is third in the Big Ten in scoring (17.7) while shooting almost 50 percent – 45.1 from 3-point range. Others have stepped up since the loss of center Mitch McGary to back surgery, led by Glenn Robinson III (13.9 points), while 6-8 Jordan Morgan scored 31 combined the last three games with increased playing time. Guard Caris LeVert is third on the team at 11.5 points per game.

Guard Traevon Jackson poured in a career-high 21 points against Indiana, making nine of his 11 shots, and is one of four players averaging at least 11 points. Sam Dekker scores 14 points per contest and 7-0 Frank Kaminsky is next at 13.5 while making 56.2 percent from the field and 21-of-44 from 3-point range. Brust (13.1) is third on the team in scoring and has made 42.3 percent from behind the arc.

TRENDS:
* Wolverines are 4-1-1 ATS in their last six Saturday games.
* Badgers are 4-1 ATS in their last five home games.
* Over is 15-6-1 in Michigan's last 22 road games.
* Under is 9-3 in the last 12 meetings.

Michigan State Spartans at Illinois Fighting Illini (+5)
The Spartans’ 54-40 win over Northwestern on Wednesday marked their lowest offensive and defensive totals of the season. Senior forward Adreian Payne, who averages 16.2 points and 7.7 rebounds, didn't play for the second game in a row due to a foot injury and is considered questionable Saturday. Sophomore guard Gary Harris leads the team in scoring (17.2) but is 1-for-14 from 3-point range over the last two games.

Leading scorer Rayvonte Rice (17.7 points, 5.9 rebounds) strained his abductor muscle in last weekend’s loss to Northwestern and he’s scored a total of 19 points on 5-of-20 shooting the past two games. Coach John Groce was furious with his team’s effort in the loss to Purdue, saying his team got tossed around like “rag dolls.” The Illini’s slump comes at the worst possible time, as the team enters a stretch of four ranked opponents in five games.

TRENDS:
* Spartans are 7-1 ATS in their last eight games following a victory.
* Illini are 11-27-1 ATS in their last 39 games vs. Big Ten foes.
* Under is 8-1 in Michigan State's last nine road games.
* Under is 18-8 in Illinois' last 26 games.

UNLV Runnin' Rebels at San Diego State Aztecs (-9)
Bryce Dejean-Jones missed his only two attempts from beyond the arc versus New Mexico but his teammates combined to go 7-for-11 from long distance. That represents a vast improvement from an early issue in conference play, as the Runnin' Rebels had made just 10-of-52 3-pointers in their first three Mountain West games. Leading sharpshooter Kevin Olekaibe was 4-for-5 on Wednesday after being held without a 3-pointer the previous game.

The Aztecs are 9-1 overall in games decided by 10 points or fewer, the lone blemish being a nine-point defeat at the hands of top-ranked Arizona more than two months ago. The ability to close out games bodes well for the long-term aspirations of head coach Steve Fisher's squad, which might avoid some of those tight finishes if it can improve upon its foul shooting.

TRENDS:
* Runnin' Rebels are 10-2-1 ATS in their last 13 games.
* Aztecs are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games vs. the Mountain West.
* Over is 7-1 in UNLV's last eight games.
* Underdog is 4-0 ATS in the last four games.

Massachusetts Minutemen at Elon Phoenix (+4.5)
Point guard Chaz Williams spent much of this week in a walking boot, but his left ankle appeared to be fine as he racked up 26 points and eight assists on Wednesday against George Mason. Williams is sixth in the league in scoring at 16.1 points per game and ranks second nationally with 7.6 assists per game. The Phoenix did take the Minutemen to overtime last season in Springfield, Mass.

Forward Lucas Troutman has been a huge part of Elon’s latest three-game win streak, averaging 20 points per game including a season-high 28-point outburst against Davidson. Troutman’s biggest improvement from last season has been at the free-throw line, where he is up to 73 percent on nearly five trips per game.
Saturday is the first time Elon has hosted a ranked team at Alumni Gym.

TRENDS:
* Minutemen are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 road games.
* Phoenix are 6-19-1 ATS in their last 26 Saturday games.
* Under is 5-1 in Massachusetts' last six games.
* Over is 9-2 in Elon's last 11 home games vs. teams with winning road records.

Louisville Cardinals at Connecticut Huskies (+1)
The Cardinals haven't had much success against ranked teams - going 0-3 in those matchups - but remains perfect against everyone else. That includes a 4-1 mark in American Athletic Conference play, including consecutive victories over Southern Methodist and Houston. Russ Smith paces the Louisville offense with 18.1 points per game, while Montrezl Harrell averages 11.7 points (on 62.2 percent from the field) and a team-best 8.2 rebounds.

The Huskies began conference play with consecutive losses to Houston and SMU, but bounced back nicely with a win over Central Florida and a stunning defeat of nationally-ranked Memphis. Shabazz Napier remains one of the most versatile players in Division I, leading Connecticut in points (16.1), rebounds (6.2), assists (6.2) and steals (2.1) while shooting 86.6 percent from the line and 42.9 percent from 3-point range.

TRENDS:
* Cardinals are 1-6 ATS in their last seven games following an ATS win.
* Huskies are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 Saturday games.
* Over is 17-4 in Louisville's last 21 games following a victory.
* Under is 7-1 in Connecticut's last eight home games.

Cincinnati Bearcats at South Florida Bulls (+8)
The Bearcats are off to their best conference start since 2002-03 when they opened 6-0 in Conference USA play. In addition to Kilpatrick, Forward Justin Jackson is scoring in double digits, averaging 11.7 points and a team-high 7.7 rebounds for Cincinnati, which has the stingiest defense in the AAC, allowing opponents an average of 56.3 points a game. The Bearcats have gone 25 straight games in holding opponents under 70 points.

Coming off of its first road loss of the season, the Bulls return home where they are 6-4. South Florida is led by forward Victor Rudd (15.5) and guard Corey Allen Jr. (11.8) with Rudd also topping the Bulls in rebounding at seven per game. Rudd topped 1,000 career points in the loss to SMU, which held the senior to a season-low five points, but the Arizona transfer still needs 34 points to reach the milestone at South Florida.

TRENDS:
* Bearcats are 4-0 ATS in their last four Saturday games.
* Bulls are 2-6 ATS in their last eight games.
* Under is 44-12 in Cincinnati's last 56 games.
* Under is 10-1 in South Florida's last 11 Saturday games.

Creighton Bluejays at Providence Friars (+4.5)
The 19th-ranked Bluejays have won their two league road tests by an average of 16 points, paced by the nation’s second-leading scorer in Doug McDermott, and boast the most 3-pointers in the country with 191. McDermott averages 25.2 points and a team-high 7.2 rebounds, making 49.5 percent of his shots, as Creighton leads the league at 82.6 points a contest. Ethan Wragge is the only other Bluejay averaging in double figures scoring at 11.9.

Bryce Cotton averages 20.2 points and a league-best 5.8 assists while being forced to take over the point guard duties after Kris Dunn was lost for the season with an injury. Three other players average in double figures scoring the Friars, who have only six active players averaging more than 7 1/2 minutes of playing time. Tyler Harris scores 13.4 points per game, Kadeem Batts chips in with 12.8 and LaDontae Henton averages a team-best 7.4 rebounds.

TRENDS:
* Bluejays are 8-1 ATS in their last nine games following an ATS win.
* Friars are 1-4 ATS in their last five home games.
* Under is 16-5-1 in Creighton's last 22 road games.
* Under is 9-2 in Providence's last 11 games following a victory.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

No. 9 Oklahoma State visits No. 15 Kansas Saturday
by Mark Kern

Allen Fieldhouse - Lawrence, KS
Tip-off: Saturday, 4:00 p.m. ET
Line: TBD

No. 15 Kansas has things rolling in the Big 12, and has a chance to create some separation at the top of the conference when it hosts No. 9 Oklahoma State on Saturday.

This rivalry heated up last season, as both teams were able to go on the road and steal a victory. Cowboys PG Marcus Smart (17.7 PPG, 5.5 RPG. 4.2 APG) had a huge game in Lawrence last season, scoring 25 points with nine rebounds and five steals in the 85-80 victory that snapped KU's 33-game home win streak. Smart was especially dominating at the end of the game, grabbing many key rebounds for second-chance points. But the Jayhawks got their revenge 18 days later with a 68-67, double-overtime win in Stillwater. Add the fact that there was some off-court talk this season from Smart about Kansas star SF Andrew Wiggins (15.8 PPG, 6.3 RPG) and emotions are going to be very high on Saturday afternoon. The Cowboys (7-6 ATS) have had their struggles on the road (2-6 ATS away from home), especially during conference play, as they lost at Kansas State and had to hang on at 5.5-point underdog West Virginia for the one-point victory. The Cowboys offense has been the key to success this season, ranking 12th in the nation with 84.8 PPG, while shooting 49.0% FG (17th in Div. I). However, they will be going up against a Jayhawks team that has crushed its three Big 12 opponents by an average score of 84 to 71. More impressively, Kansas has shot 50% or better from the field in six of nine games since December began. The Jayhawks are 13-5 SU (9-9 ATS) in the past 18 matchups with Oklahoma State, and are 10-1 SU (7-4 ATS) in the past 11 home meetings with OSU.

Oklahoma State is as talented in the backcourt as anybody in the country, and it's just not the Marcus Smart show. The team holds an excellent 1.4 Ast/TO ratio with 14.4 APG and just 10.4 TOPG (23rd-fewest in nation). SG Markel Brown (16.6 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 2.9 APG) is one of the most athletic guards in the country, and has had some monster games against Kansas teams in his career. He averaged 24.0 PPG and 4.0 APG in the two games last season, including a 28-point outburst in Lawrence. He hit an impressive 7-of-10 three-pointers at Allen Fieldhouse, and was the reason why the Cowboys got off to a big lead. Brown and Smart are going to get their points, but another key player is swingman Le’Bryan Nash (13.5 PPG on 52% FG, 5.9 RPG). Nash is a supreme talent, but has too many games where he tends to disappear, including two lackluster games against the Jayhawks last season (7.5 PPG on 5-of-17 FG with 2.0 RPG). In the conference opener against Texas, Nash scored only two points, but has 15.5 PPG and 7.0 RPG in his past two contests. With his size and athleticism, he is going to be matched up against Andrew Wiggins a lot, and must have a big game. However, the biggest weakness of the Cowboys is their lack of frontcourt depth, and that will play a huge factor against a KU frontcourt that is playing as well as anybody in the country. The Cowboys have been outrebounded in six of their past nine games and lost C Michael Cobbins, who he was their best shot blocker (1.5 BPG) and only true post presence, to a season-ending Achilles injury. Sophomore C Kamari Murphy (5.9 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.4 BPG) will have to have a career game, as he will be matched up against freshman phenom Joel Embiid.

Andrew Wiggins got a lot of the talk as the top freshman in the nation, but he might not even be the best first-year player on his own team. PF Joel Embiid (10.9 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.6 BPG) has been absolutely dominant in conference play. In the Jayhawks' huge victory over Iowa State on Monday, Embiid took over in the second half to help KU pull away. He was a force on both ends of the court, finishing the game with 16 points, nine rebounds and five blocks. The only negatives were that fouled out and had seven turnovers, and he will have to fix that because the Cowboys can be lethal in the transition. Embiid also must control his emotions in this game. He has now received a flagrant foul in two consecutive games, which will prompt opposing teams to rattle the freshman. Another key contributor in the game against the Cyclones was PG Naadir Tharpe (9.0 PPG, 40% threes, 5.3 APG). While he is not the most talented Jayhawks player, the junior point guard is the lone veteran on the team, and he showed it with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists on Monday in Ames. When he is under control and making the right decisions (2.6 Ast/TO ratio), Kansas is nearly unbeatable. The Jayhawks have not been a juggernaut on offense all season, as they rank 43rd in the nation in scoring (78.9 PPG), but have turned it on as of late with six 75-point games in the past seven contests, averaging 81.3 PPG during that stretch. Sophomore PF Perry Ellis (13.3 PPG on 56% FG, 6.7 RPG) and freshman SG Wayne Selden Jr. (10.1 PPG, 40% threes) give Kansas two more scorers that are capable of having big games. Ellis is a talented post player that can score all over the court, while Selden has stepped up his offense in Big 12 play, averaging 17.0 PPG on 53% FG in the three conference victories. Selden will be huge in this matchup as he will see a lot of time against Smart, and unlike most guards in the Big 12, Selden has the size and strength to compete with Smart. This one-on-one matchup could end up being a huge key in determining the outcome of this game. For the Jayhawks, they are the only undefeated team in Big 12 play. A win against the Cowboys, and KU could start to create some separation from its conference foes.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Jackpot Sports

Florida State
Pitt
Texas
Georgia

[Can'tPickAWinner]

jeff carson sports

30* pod saturday nba

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Brenton Ayton

Soccer
Den Bosch (Netherlands Eerste Divisie) 1.73
Salisbury (England Conference Premier) 1.73

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Jeffrey James (YouWinNow)

#608 Wisconsin Badgers -8.0 (6:00 est) ESPN

Michigan is in a bad spot here having to take on a Wisconsin team off of their first SU loss of the season. That will have them in a very bad mood here. Wisconsin has covered 8 of their last 11 games while Michigan has only covered 5 of their last 16 Big 10 games. Michigan only has 2 covers all season long on the road and the Badgers have covered 4 of the last 6 against the Wolverines. Take the Badgers here.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Anthony Michael (YouWinNow)

#548 Missouri Tigers -4.5 (2:00 est) ESPN2

The Tigers played the Tide last season at home and hammered them by 16 points and this season they are laying only 4.5? That is easy money since both of these teams don't look much different from last season. Missouri will be very motivated since they are off of a SU loss and their last home game was an OT loss. They need a conference win and 'Bama is ripe for the picking as they have only covered 2 of their last 9.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Sports Nostradamus

CBB
Georgetown
North Carolina
Missouri
Duke
Syracuse