Atlantic 10 Game of the Year - Rickenbach CBB Game #572 Saturday 10* Top Play St Bonaventure Bonnies (-) vs Massachusetts Minutemen @ 4 ET - Seeding can play an important role in how far a team can go in the A-10 Tourney. With that said, the Bonnies are fully focused on not only getting a big W on Senior Day but also locking up the #5 seed for the upcoming tournament. They can accomplish both objectives Saturday and they're facing the right team to get a blowout win. Massachusetts is 4-13 ATS in conference action this season. Also, the past 3 seasons combined, UMass has gone 1-7 ATS in March games. The Minutemen defense has particularly struggled over the last 8 games. During this stretch, Massachusetts has given up 80 points per game and their 6 losses during this 2-6 stretch have come by an average margin of 13 points per defeat. Only 1 of the 6 losses was by less than 8 points. The Bonnies are off of a loss coming into this one and that carries a lot of significance in terms of this play because St Bonaventure has not lost back to back games since mid-November! The Bonnies are 9-0 SU the last 9 times they've been off of a loss. In terms of covering the spread, it is noteworthy that St Bonaventure is 7-2 ATS in those 9 games and the only 2 ATS losses were both wins by double digit SU margins! In other words, the Bonnies would have covered a single digit spread in each case! After opening up at a 10 yesterday this line has moved down to an 8 and this has led to even more value here with St Bonaventure. Look for the Bonnies to improve to 7-2 ATS their last 9 games played in March. 10* ST BONAVENTURE  

Daytime Dominator - Rickenbach CBB Game #543 Saturday 8* Georgia Bulldogs (+) @ Arkansas Razorbacks @ 2 ET - Georgia, still playing without big man Yante Maten, showed a lot of heart in their comeback win versus Auburn earlier in the week. However, after getting a late 6 point lead that would have given them the cover, the Bulldogs allowed the Tigers to score the final 5 points of the game in the non-covering win. I like backing Georgia in their preferred role Saturday as they are an underdog in this one. The Bulldogs have gone 10-2 ATS as an underdog this season and they still have some hope for making the NCAA Tourney so they will be going "all out" at Arkansas this afternoon. The Razorbacks are off of a loss at Florida and are now 4-7 ATS in March games the past 3 seasons combined. The Hogs allowed the Gators to shoot better than 50% from the field and Arky has now allowed at least 50% from the field in 6 of their last 12 games! While the Razorbacks are allowing 44% from the field in SEC action, the Bulldogs are allowing only 41% and I'll grab the defensive-minded underdog that is very well-coached under Mark Fox. Only 3 of the Bulldogs last 9 losses have come by more than 7 points and the Dogs have gone 13-9 SU during this stretch. In other words, last 22 games have resulted in only 3 losses by more than 7 points. The hungry Bulldogs will have plenty of fight in them again today as the last time they faced Arkansas away from home it was a double digit loss in the 2015 SEC tourney. 8* GEORGIA

ESPN ATS Blowout - Rickenbach NBA Game #828 Friday 8* Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Cleveland Cavaliers @ 7:05 ET - Guys will be looking at Cleveland here since they're off of a loss and also lost at home to Atlanta earlier this season. However, the Hawks plus the points should prove to be the play. The Cavs are without Kevin Love of course and new acquisition Andrew Bogut is not yet available. Also, even though Cleveland does have the aforementioned home revenge angle in effect here, the Cavaliers have gone 12-20 ATS when playing with home loss revenge the past 3 seasons. In other words, the markets tend to over-adjust in a spot like this and I feel that is the case here. This is especially true because Atlanta has their own home loss revenge in mind here. The last time the Hawks hosted the Cavs was certainly a big game. It was on May 8th and Atlanta lost by a single point in a game that ended up completing a 4-game sweep for the Cavaliers and knocking the Hawks out of the playoffs. In other words, expect Atlanta to be rocking tonight and expect the Hawks to be flying all over the floor in this opportunity to take down LeBron James and company. Hosting the defending world champs is always a big deal and the Hawks are 9-2 ATS against Central Division opponents this season and and they catch the Cavs stumbling a bit on a 3-game ATS losing streak. Overall the Hawks are 11-6 ATS season and 10 of the 11 wins have been outright upsets. They relish this role and I expect another upset tonight but will certainly grab all the points I can get. 8* ATLANTA HAWKS

Big 12 Game of the Month - Rickenbach CBB Game #762 Friday 10* Top Play West Virginia Mountaineers (-) vs Iowa State Cyclones @ 7 ET - Many will look to back Iowa State in this spot since the Cyclones have won 6 straight games and are seeking revenge here. However, West Virginia should prove to be the play here. The Mountaineers are off of a loss at Baylor and they shot poorly in both games of that 2-game road swing as they didn't shoot well against the Bears and they weren't much better against the Horned Frogs at TCU. The key here is that West Virginia certainly doesn't want to head into tourney time on a losing streak and they've shown the ability to bounce back all season long. When at home and off of a loss, the Mountaineers have gone 4-0 and won those games by an average margin of 18.5 points per victory. Included in those 4 wins was a 16-point win over Kansas so the teams that West Virginia faced in these situations certainly weren't all cupcakes. Even though Iowa State has been winning, the Cyclones aren't known for their defense and they've allowed 47% from the field in Big 12 action this season. The Mountaineers have held opponents to just 42.6% in home games this season. Also, Iowa State has allowed 45.5% or more from the field in 4 of its last 5 games. West Virginia, before the loss to Baylor, had held 6 of its last 8 opponents to 44.9% or less from the field and 4 of those 6 were held under 39.8% from the field. The Mountaineers are 15-2 SU at home this season. Also, in all games with posted totals in the 150s the Mountaineers are a long-term 28-12 (70%) ATS. Iowa State is only 1-3 ATS and SU the past 3 seasons when playing with home loss revenge and their long-term SU mark in that role is 15-49. Cylones are set up to get rolled in this one as the Mountaineers show why they've earned their nickname of "Press Virginia" with a big win tonight. 10* WEST VIRGINIA 

March Madness Day Game - Rickenbach CBB Game #866 Friday 8* Southern Illinois Salukis (+) vs Loyola-Chicago Ramblers @ 3:30 ET - With the Salukis winning both games against the Ramblers in February, many will likely be looking to back Loyola-Chicago here. However, the Ramblers have lost 6 of their last 8 games even though 4 of those were at home. In terms of games away from home, Loyola-Chicago really doesn't have any significant wins to point to. The Ramblers defensive play away from home has been particularly poor. Now they take on a Salukis team that did win at places like Missouri State and Evansville in addition to winning at Loyola. Missouri State, Evansville, and the Ramblers are a combined 37-13 at home this season. Salukis won at all 3 locations while Loyola's biggest road win in MVC action was at Bradley and the Braves only finished 8-7 at home this season. With this game being at a neutral site and with the Salukis having proven more capable of stepping up their game when away from home, I like the value being offered here to underdog Southern Illinois. The Salukis are 3-0 ATS in the MVC Tourney the past 2 seasons. The Ramblers are 5-15 SU when playing with road loss revenge the past 3 seasons combined so the "revenge factor" here cerrtainly doesn't hold a lot of value with this team. 8* SOUTHERN ILLINOIS

TNT ATS Blowout - Rickenbach NBA Game #702 Thursday 10* Top Play Chicago Bulls (+) vs Golden State Warriors @ 8 ET - Yesterday afternoon when lines first popped up on this game the Warriors were available as low as a -5. Now, as of very early gameday morning, lines as high as a -7.5 are now posted on Golden State. I completely understand the affection the markets have for the top team in the league, especially when considering that the Warriors are off of a loss. However, this is going to prove to be a tough spot for Golden State and I'll gladly grab the value being offered with the big home dog. The Warriors just lost Kevin Durant to a knee injury and will be playing their 3rd game in 4 nights. As for the Bulls, they will be playing for just the 2nd time in 5 nights and they'll certainly be motivated for this game. Teams almost always get "up" for facing the top teams in the league and Chicago also has the added revenge factor here. The Bulls got annihilated by 31 points last month at Golden State and they also got ripped by 31 points the last time they hosted the Warriors which was last January. Before Chicago's home loss to Denver Tuesday (Nuggets shot "lights out" in that one), the Bulls had won and covered 4 straight games. They've been playing very well and can resume the hot streak here. The Warriors, conversely, are on an 0-4 ATS run and they'll have their hands full as, without Durant, they take on a hungry Chicago team in this one. The Bulls are 15-9 ATS this season in their games against teams with a winning record. Golden State is allowing 116.5 points per game in their last 4 road games. 10* Top Play CHICAGO BULLS plus the big points 

March Madness - Rickenbach CBB Game #750 Thursday 8* Evansville Purple Aces (-) vs Indiana State Sycamores @ 7 ET - The popular choice here will likely be Indiana State as the Sycamores seek revenge for a 68-42 thrashing that the Purple Aces handed them last March in this tourney. However, in typical contrarian fashion, I am grabbing Evansville in this one but not without plenty of support. First off, these teams just met last week and the Purple Aces got the win despite shooting just 58% from the line. Note that Evansville is hitting 72% from the free throw line on the season so that result was highly unexpected and it was why the Purple Aces ended up with a non-covering win. The fact is that Evansville is a better rebounding team and they've won the battle of the boards in each of their last three meetings with they Sycamores. The Aces are also the better shooting team as Indiana State is knocking down just 42% of their shots this season while Evansville has hit 45.5% from the field on the season and is also hitting 37% of their threes. The Purple Aces allow only 33.7% threes while the Sycamores give up 37.3% threes. Evansville does a good job of getting to the free throw line while not relying very much on the three ball while Indiana State tosses up a lot of threes. That is significant here because the Sycamores are an ugly 12 of 61 (19.7%) from three point land the last 3 times they've faced the Aces away from home. Indiana State is 4-8 ATS when off of a loss to a conference rival while Evansville was on a 5-0 ATS run before failing to cover their final 3 games of the regular season. That is significant here as the Purple Aces are 6-0 SU (and 4-1 ATS) when on an ATS losing streak of 3 games or more. The Aces finished the regular season shooting the ball very well and come into this match-up with plenty of confidence based on recent success against the rival Sycamores. Look for that to translate to another victory Thursday in Missouri Valley Conference tourney action. 8* EVANSVILLE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #711 Thursday 10* Top Play Houston Cougars (+) @ Cincinnati Bearcats @ 7 ET - With Cincinnati having such a long home winning streak they are getting plenty of respect from the oddsmakers as well as the betting markets. The Bearcats strong SU record at home is overshadowing the fact that Cincy is currently on a 1-5 ATS run and that Houston is playing their best basketball of the season. The Cougars have won 7 of their last 8 games and their defense has been fantastic of late. That is going to make i tough for Cincinnati to get any sizable margin in this game. The Cougars struggled some on the defensive end in a 1 point win at Memphis Sunday but, prior to that, Houston held 6 of their last 7 opponents under 42% from the field. The Bearcats have been held to 60 points or less in 4 of their last 8 games. Now I fully realize this is a big home game and senior night for Cincy and that after this game the arena will be shut down for a year for remodeling. However, the Bearcats will have their hands full with a Houston team seeking revenge for a 9 point home loss in January where Cincy shot well from three point land and the Cougars uncharacteristically struggled to knock down 3 points. Houston is 4-0 SU this season when playing with home loss revenge. Also, the past 3 seasons combined, the Cougars are 9-3 ATS when they are seeking to avenge a home loss. The Bearcats are 8-2 ATS against teams that don't have a winning record this season but now face a 21-8 Houston team and Cincinnati is 4-11 ATS against teams with a winning record this season including failing to cover 7 of its last 8! Big dog value as Cincy is putting extra pressure on themselves about winning this game since the arena will be shutdown for a year after this for renovations. 10* HOUSTON COUGARS plus the big points early Thursday evening

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #515 Wednesday - 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (+) @ San Antonio Spurs @ 8:35 ET - This is simply too many points for the Spurs to be giving up to a quality Pacers team. Once again, San Antonio played very well on their annual "Rodeo Road Trip" where they're forced out of their venue for a period of a few weeks due to the rodeo taking over their venue. However, the first game back home (especially with the trip wrapping up on the West Coast) is often a tough one after all the travel. I expect the Spurs will find a way to get the win here but look for the game to be decided by single digits. The Pacers are off of a confidence-boosting win at Houston Monday where Indiana rallied from a deficit and knocked off another quality Western Conference team. After tonight's game, the Pacers don't play again until Sunday at Atlanta so, with 3 days off coming up, Indiana is going to go hard in this one. Also, the Pacers are seeking revenge for a tight home loss to the Spurs two weeks ago. Indiana has been shooting quite well and they got their offense flowing against the Rockets Monday. When the Pacers are off of a game where they scored 115 points or more, they've gone 8-5 ATS this season and 16-9 SU the past 3 seasons combined. Look for the Spurs to drop to 3-7 ATS on the season when they are playing a game with 2 days of rest between games. 10* Top Play INDIANA plus the big points Wednesday night

March Madness - Rickenbach CBB Game #574 Wednesday 8* Southeast Missouri State Redhawks (+) vs Tennessee State Tigers @ 7:30 ET - This is a tourney game in the Ohio Valley Conference as March Madness has officially arrived. Great line value being offered here to the underdog Redhawks. Southeast Missouri State, prior to the loss in the regular season finale, had won 7 of their last 10 games. The Redhawks had been shooting the ball very well (including red hot from three point land) and they're not being given the respect they deserve here. Prior to the loss to Austin Peay, Southeast Missouri State was on a 9-6 ATS run in their last 15 and they only lost to the Tigers by 3 points earlier this season and that game was at Tennessee State. Now this OVC Tourney match-up is on a neutral floor and the Tigers have last 7 of their last 12 games. Of the 5 wins, 4 victories came against teams with a record that is subpar to the Redhawks. The point is that Tennessee State has not been playing well for quite some time and I see Southeast Missouri State having a great shot at the upset here on a neutral floor. Also note that 2 of the Tigers last 4 wins have come by a margin of 4 points or less. Tennessee State is 4-8 ATS this season against teams with a losing record while the Redhawks are 7-4 ATS in their games against teams with a winning record this season. Also, the Tigers are 2-4 ATS when off of a loss against a conference rival while Southeast Missouri State is 6-3 SU (and the Redhawks are 4-2 ATS) when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. 8* SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE plus the points Wednesday

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #524 Wednesday 8* Georgia Bulldogs (-) vs Auburn Tigers @ 6:30 ET - The Bulldogs are off of a tight, non-covering win versus LSU on Saturday. It wasn't a complete shock that Georgia was unable to get the blowout win there because the Bulldogs were off of a key revenging win at Alabama two days prior. That was a game the Dawgs had wanted badly and they got it so then they didn't have a lot left in the tank for the Tigers of LSU. However, they'll have plenty left in the tank for the Tigers of Auburn tonight! Georgia is well rested and this is "Senior Night" and the Bulldogs also know they need to stay hot to have any hopes of getting to the Big Dance. Georgia has won 4 of its last 5 and they're playing with a lot of confidence right now. Auburn has lost 4 of its last 5 with its only win over a dismal LSU team. Even though the Tigers have home loss revenge for this game, Auburn is 0-6 ATS this season when playing with home loss revenge. Also, even though the Tigers average plenty of points they also have been very poor on defense. That is significant here because Georgia is on a long-term 27-5 SU run against teams that allow an average of 77 points or more per game. The Bulldogs are on a 13-6 ATS run this season (and 42-23 ATS the L3 seasons combined) when they are facing a team with a winning record. They'll get the job done again tonight as this is a classic case of "hot versus not" and I'll grab the line value here with a move down to -5 on a line that was a high as a -7 yesterday. 8* GEORGIA BULLDOGS minus the points Wednesday

Divisional Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Game #710 Tuesday 10* Top Play Oklahoma City Thunder (-) vs Utah Jazz @ 8:05 ET - The Jazz dominated the glass against the Wizards Sunday and that helped them overcome a turnover-filled game (24 turnovers for Utah) as they got the road win at Washington. They won't be able to use rebounding to overcome another sloppy game here because the Thunder are one of the top rebounding teams in the league. Couple that with the fact that Oklahoma City is chasing the Jazz for the top spot in the division, this one is set up nicely for home dominance. The Thunder are 22-8 SU (and 20-9-1 ATS) in home games this season. OKC is also 6-3 ATS in divisional games this season whereas Utah has only covered 4 of 10 in divisional action this season. Oklahoma City has won 5 of its last 6 meetings with Utah including each of the last 4 times they've hosted the Jazz. The Thunder have been shooting the ball very well and are one of the highest scoring teams in the league. At home, Oklahoma City is averaging 110 points per game this season. The Jazz are known for struggling to keep up with fast-paced opposition as they are now 15-31 SU the L3 seasons combined in games against teams averaging 106 points or more per game. That includes covering just 9 of 24 games this season that fit those parameters. The Thunder will either pull to within 2 games of Utah in the division or they'll fall to 4 games back depending on tonight's result. As you can see, it's a huge game for OKC and I expect their home floor, rebounding edge, Utah's turnover struggles, and the extra motivation for the Thunder to all be difference makers in this one. 10* OKLAHOMA CITY for a top play selection Tuesday night

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #702 Tuesday 8* Washington Wizards (+) vs Golden State Warriors @ 7:05 ET - The Wizards are off of a home loss to Utah Sunday despite forcing 24 turnovers in that game. Washington hasn't lost 3 straight games since mid-November and the Wizards are fired up about taking on the team with the NBA's best record. In other words, it's the perfect time for Washington (24-8 at home this season) to respond in a big way. The Wizards are 13-5 ATS this season when off of a non-conference game. After losing to the Jazz Sunday, they'll make the most of this opportunity against the league-best Warriors who are in a tough back to back spot. Golden State was at Philadelphia last night and they got the win but their key players did play significant minutes and the Warriors will face an even tougher challenge tonight. The Warriors are only 4-7 ATS in the 2nd game of back to backs this season. Overall, with last night's non-covering win over the Sixers, Golden State is just 7-12 ATS in their last 19 road games. The Wizards, before Sunday's home loss, were 16-4 ATS in their last 20 home games. Grab the big home dog value in this one! 8* WASHINGTON plus the points early Tuesday evening.

Early ATS Blowout - Rickenbach CBB Game #723 Tuesday 10* Top Play St Bonaventure Bonnies (+) @ Davidson Wildcats @ 7 ET - St Bonaventure is having another strong season in the Atlantic 10 as they gear up for the conference tournament. Speaking of the A-10 Tourney, that was the last time the Bonnies met up with Davidson and it was a tough loss for St Bonaventure in the A-10 quarterfinals as they got into foul trouble and that was a catalyst for blowing a sizable lead in the eventual 4 point loss. Needless to say, this game has been circled on the Bonnies calendars ever since the schedule was released and St Bonaventure wants to build some momentum for the upcoming A-10 Tourney plus they want revenge for what happened in last year's conference tourney. In other words, this is a best of both worlds opportunity for St Bonaventure and they enter this game with confidence off of back to back wins. If you look at the Bonnies results in A-10 action this season they've taken care of business against the teams they're supposed to. The losses that St Bonaventure has in A-10 action came against top tier teams like Dayton, VCU, Richmond, and Rhode Island. Not a single A-10 defeat came against a team that currently has a winning record in conference action. That said, note that Davidson is only 7-9 in Atlantic 10 action and the Wildcats only have 1 win against an A-10 team that currently has a winning record in conference action. That said, should Davidson (only 7-5 at home this season) really be favored here? I don't think so and I feel we're getting exceptional line value given the revenge angle as well. The Bonnies are 4-1 (SU and ATS) as a road dog of 3 points or less and the Wildcats are 2-6 SU and ATS in their last 8 games against teams with a winning record. More struggles for the Cats here against a solid foe. 10* ST BONAVENTURE plus the points early Tuesday evening

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #735 Tuesday 8* Buffalo Bulls (+) @ Ohio University Bobcats @ 6 ET - The Bulls control their own destiny as they hold tie-breaking edges over the other MAC teams that are at 9-7 in conference action. That is significant because teams that finish in the top 4 in the conference get a bye to start the MAC Tourney. Certainly that is the goal of Buffalo and I like the Bulls motivational edges in this match-up as they also have revenge against Ohio University. The Bobcats defeated them on a late bucket in Buffalo last month. Ohio U had their leading scorer, star forward Antonio Campbell, in that game but he is now out for the season. Also, the Bulls are off of back to back losses but they faced Kent and Akron. The Zips beat the Bulls 89-83 and Buffalo has gone a PERFECT 7-0 ATS this season when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Also, the Bulls are 7-2 ATS this season when off of a game where Buffalo managed to score 80 points or more. When playing with home loss revenge, the Bulls are a combined 7-3 ATS the past 3 seasons. As for the Bobcats, they are off of a loss to Kent State as they continue to struggle against teams with strong offensive production. Buffalo is averaging 78 points per game this season and Ohio U is 6-14 SU the last 3 seasons combined when they are facing a team that averages 77 points or more per game on the season. Look for the revenge-minded Bulls to get the upset but, should they fall short, the points being offered here should be enough for the cover. Highly motivated Bulls are off of back to back losses and only once this entire season have they lost 3 straight. 8* BUFFALO plus the points early Tuesday evening

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #516 Monday 8* Virginia Cavaliers (+) vs North Carolina Tar Heels @ 7 ET - The Cavaliers have been knocked out of the ACC Tourney by the Tar Heels each of the past two seasons and there was more fuel added to the fire when UNC destroyed the Cavs at North Carolina a little over a week ago by a 65-41 final. Virginia did defeat the Heels the last time they hosted them (exactly a year ago to the day) and I expect them to get another home win here. The fact the line has moved strongly toward the Tar Heels adds to the line value available here as of early Monday morning. Note that Virginia finally got their offense back on track with knocking down 69% of their threes at NC State Saturday! However, what was arguably most impressive about that game for the Cavs was the fact that they held down a quality Wolfpack offense (averaging nearly 80 points per game this season) to just 55 points and the game was at NC State. Look for the Cavs D to be the difference maker here today as well as I know that UNC has been playing better on defense but the revenge-minded Cavaliers still have the top defense. The Cavaliers are an incredible 17-6 (SU and ATS!) in home games with a posted total in the 130 to 134.5 range. Also, the Cavs are 40-5 SU in home games the past 3 seasons combined. The Tar Heels have won and covered their past two road games but, prior to that, North Carolina was 2-7 ATS in road games on the season. That said, I'll gladly grab the big value being offered here with the hungry home dog Cavs in this one. 8* VIRGINIA

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #518 Monday 10* Top Play Baylor Bears (+) vs West Virginia Mountaineers @ 7 ET - Big revenge spot for Baylor and a tough scheduling spot for West Virginia. The Mountaineers are off of a hard fought victory by a single point at TCU. That marked the 3rd straight road game in which West Virginia struggled with their shooting. Over their last 3 road games combined, the Mountaineers have only connected on 39% of their shots from the field. The only other time that West Virginia had a scheduling situation comparable to this one this season was when they had back to back road games at Oklahoma State and Texas Tech right around the New Year. However, they had more time off in between those games and Baylor is much stronger than the Red Raiders. That said, with only one day off between games, the fact that the Mountaineers did lose that game in Lubbock, and the fact that Bears fans will be going crazy for revenge in Waco tonight, this is going to be a tough atmosphere for the Mountaineers to get a win. Yes, I am aware of the ankle injury involving Baylor's point guard, but I am also aware that the Mountaineers destroyed the Bears in Huntington earlier this season when Baylor was undefeated and that burst the Bears bubble and knocked them off their #1 perch. Rest assured, they haven't forgotten this! Baylor has lost 3 straight games against WV since they knocked them out of the Big 12 tourney 2 years ago. However, 2 of those 3 defeats came at West Virginia. The Bears are 8-0 SU in home games with a posted total in the 135 to 139.5 range the past 3 seasons. The Mountaineers are 2-4 SU and ATS in road games with a total in that same range. Overall, West Virginia is only 4-6 ATS when off of a win against a conference rival and the Bears are 15-3 SU at home this season. 10* BAYLOR

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Game #806 Sunday 8* Washington Wizards (-) vs Utah Jazz @ 5:05 ET - The Jazz are off of a big win at Milwaukee but they have a huge gave with the division rival Thunder on deck for Tuesday in Oklahoma City. That sets this one up well as the Wizards are at home laying a small number and are fully focused. Washington lost at Philadelphia on Friday as their defense decided to take off the 2nd and 3rd quarters. That proved to be the difference in the game and they know they screwed up by underestimating the Sixers. Needless to say, they won't underestimate the solid Jazz team that is paying them a visit Sunday. Washington is 24-7 SU (and 20-11 ATS) in home games this season. The Wizards are also 5-1 SU (and 4-2 ATS) this season when off of an upset loss as a favorite. After allowing 115 points or more in a game, Washington has responded by going 4-1 (SU and ATS) this season. The Wizards will take advantage of a Jazz team in a clear lookahead spot here. Also, Utah is an ugly 2-12 SU (and 3-11 ATS) as an underdog this season. The Jazz also are an unimpressive 9-15 (SU and ATS) when playing against teams with a winning record this season. 8* WASHINGTON

CBS Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #859 Sunday 8* Wisconsin Badgers (-) @ Michigan State Spartans @ 4 ET - The Badgers are off of a loss at Ohio State on Thursday where their defense really let them down as they allowed the hot-shooting Buckeyes to score 83 points. That sets this one up well as a bounce back spot for Wisconsin and they have plenty of motivation considering they lost their most recent game in Lansing last February. Look for the veteran leadership of the Badgers to play a key role in making sure Wiscy brings an intense effort for this game. As for the Spartans, they have played without upperclassmen Ben Carter and Gavin Schilling all season but the recent loss of senior guard Eron Harris will prove to be too much. Yes, everyone stepped up their game for Michigan State in their first game without Harris and the Spartans knocked off Nebraska. However, Wisconsin (especially angry off of a loss) is going to prove to be a much tougher test than the Cornhuskers were. The Badgers are a long-term 15-5 SU when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Also, the past 3 seasons combined, Wiscy is 8-1 SU in road games where the posted total is in the 130 to 134.5 range. The Spartans are just 2-8 SU (and 3-7 ATS) as an underdog this season. Michigan State had lost 6 of its last 11 before the win over the Huskers and the Badgers, when off of a loss by a double digit margin this season, have won their very next game by an average margin of 28.7 points per game! They're fired up and they get the big road win here. 8* WISCONSIN

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #803 Sunday 8* Phoenix Suns (+) @ Milwaukee Bucks @ 3:35 ET - Three weeks ago in Phoenix, the Bucks completely embarrassed the Suns in a 137-112 victory. Milwaukee simply couldn't miss that night as they knocked down a ridiculous 63.4% of their shots! Even though Phoenix is certainly going nowhere this season (18-40 record) professional pride still exists and the Suns will be looking for payback here. Meanwhile Milwaukee will be looking at something else here...a big game at Cleveland on deck for Monday. The Bucks are known for overlooking weaker foes. Yes, Milwaukee won big at Phoenix at 3 weeks ago but the Bucks are 10-20 ATS on the season in their games against teams with a losing record. Also, Milwaukee is 1-4 ATS in Sunday games this season. The Suns, despite that big loss to the Bucks in Phoenix 3 weeks ago, are 13-6 ATS in non-conference games this season. Look for the Suns to again get the cover against an Eastern Conference foe that simply finds it too easy to overlook them. 8* PHOENIX

Bulldog's Best - Rickenbach CBB Game #670 Saturday 10* Top Play Arizona Wildcats (-) vs UCLA Bruins @ 8:15 ET - Many will be looking at UCLA here because this is a revenge game. However, this is under-estimating the value of the home floor for Arizona. The Wildcats have won 70 of their last 71 home games and there is another big edge here in terms of key personnel. When these teams met earlier this season, it was Allonzo Trier's first action of the season for the Wildcats after sitting out the first two months of the season. He'll be even stronger in this game as he has knocked down 8 of 11 threes in his last two games and averaged 23 points per game in those two games. This is in stark contrast to the UCLA situation. I know that Lonzo Ball was only wearing a walking boot for protective measures after the win at Arizona State. However, Ball definitely tweaked his ankle and is not 100% for this game. Against the Sun Devils he scored just 4 points in 33 minutes of action. That is very concerning for UCLA here as Ball had scored 24 points on 10 of 15 shooting in the first match-up with Arizona a month ago and yet the Bruins still lost the game by double digits! You can see where I am going with this! If Trier is likely to play better and Ball could struggle and plus now this match-up is on the Wildcats home floor, how can the Cats not win again by at least the same margin as they did in the first game? Exactly! My money is on the home team that was as high as a 3 point favorite yesterday and now has come down to a -1. Excellent line value with the small home fave. Even though UCLA is playing this game with home loss revenge, that is a situation that has seen the Bruins go just 1-5 ATS the last 3 seasons combined. Also, in road games with a posted total in the 160s, UCLA is also 1-5 ATS. Look for the Wildcats home dominance to continue in a key game Saturday night. 10* ARIZONA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #502 Saturday 10* Top Play Sacramento Kings (+) vs Charlotte Hornets @ 5:05 ET - The Hornets are in a horrible slump and have lost 12 of their last 13 games. The Kings are rejuvenated after the DeMarcus Cousins trade (won by double digits in first game after the All Star Break) and also have won and covered 4 straight home games. Sacramento should hold a big edge on the boards in this game as they have outrebounded 3 of their last 4 opponents by a solid margin while Charlotte has been outrebounded by a ridiculous 15 boards a game in their last 4 games. The Hornets are 0-4 ATS against Pacific Division foes this season and also 0-7 ATS in their last 7 games against teams with a losing record! In other words, Charlotte doesn't take care of business when they should and that is also why they are an ugly 8-17 ATS when playing with revenge this season. The Kings are 15-10 SU and ATS this season when playing against teams with a losing record so they have proven they do take care of business when they should. With that said, there is tremendous line value here with the home dog. 10* SACRAMENTO

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #522 Saturday 8* TCU Horned Frogs (+) vs West Virginia Mountaineers @ 2 ET - The Mountaineers have had the Horned Frogs number as evidenced by a 10-0 SU mark! Included in those 10 wins was West Virginia knocking TCU out of the Big 12 tourney last March and then also beating them again in Huntington last month. Needless to say, the Horned Frogs have plenty of motivation here and they could be catching the Mountaineers at the right time and in the right place to spring the upset. West Virginia is off of a big win versus Texas (the same game where coach Bob Huggins fell to his knees with some heart trouble) and they have a big game on deck at Baylor. The Mountaineers haven't been overly impressive on the road this season with a 3-3 mark in their last 6 Big 12 road games and one of those road wins came by just a single bucket. With TCU having gone 13-4 at home, including losing to Kansas by just 6 and Oklahoma State by only 3, don't be surprised if the Horned Frogs are in this one all the way and they just might spring the outright upset. Certainly there is value in grabbing the points here. West Virginia is a long-term 7-14 ATS as a road favorite in a range of 3.5 to 6 points. Also, the Mountaineers are only 2-7 ATS in Saturday games this season. The Horned Frogs are 5-2 (SU and ATS) when playing with road loss revenge this season. 8* TCU

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #855 Friday 10* Top Play Dallas Mavericks (+) @ Minnesota Timberwolves @ 8:05 ET - You have to be careful looking at full season numbers with teams. Dallas was garbage for much of this season but they were ravaged by injuries. They were playing better ball leading into the All Star break. As for Minnesota, they won 8 of their last 11 games in January but February turned into a disaster when they lost Zach LaVine early in the month to a season-ending injury. Losing your starting point guard is always tough and the Timberwolves were 2-6 in February before winning their final game before the All Star break, at Denver. The T-wolves defense has been struggling badly. They've allowed 49.4% from the field in their last 6 games. By comparison, the Mavericks (who won 11 of 16 before dropping their last 2 games before the break) have held 7 of their last 13 opponents to 45.9% or less from the field. With the #8 seed well within reach for both of these teams don't be surprised if there is great intensity for tonight's game and I like the Mavericks (healthier and playing the better overall basketball) to get the W tonight on the road. Dallas has won 8 of its last 9 meetings with Minnesota. Also, the Mavs come into this game on a 6-2 ATS run in their last 8 games against teams with a losing record this season. The Timberwolves are 9-18 ATS as a favorite this season and on an 11-28 ATS run when off of a divisional game. Also, when Minny is off of a win by 10 points or more (beat Denver by 13) they have gone 2-9 ATS this season and an ugly 5-18 ATS (2-21 SU!) the past 3 seasons combined. Road rout looks probable here. 10* DALLAS MAVERICKS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #843 Friday 8* Washington Wizards (-) @ Philadelphia 76'ers @ 7:05 ET - The 76'ers now are likely to go into "tank mode" on the season and the Wizards do have motivation here. Washington lost at Philadelphia in November and, though they got some measure of revenge by then beating the Sixers in DC last month, the Wizards still want to "return the favor" on Philly's home floor. That said, the 76'ers are in trouble here as Washington has won 18 of their last 21 games. Philadelphia has lost 8 of their last 12. The Sixers last 10 losses have come by an average margin of 14.1 points per defeat. Each of the 76'ers last 7 losses have come by at least 8 points. The Wizards are 9-4 SU and ATS when playing with 3 or more days of rest while the Sixers have gone 3-8 ATS and an awful 1-10 SU when playing with 3 or more days of rest and the big issue here is Philly's playing rotation has been effected by some recent moves. They'll be a little "off" in terms of their execution and the added time off because of the All Star break just compounds the issue for the 76'ers. The Wizards are 8-0 SU and 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games against teams who are allowing an average of 106 points or more per game on the season. I spoke earlier about the tanking and the numbers support that with Philly as, in the 2nd half of a season, the Sixers are now 3-39 SU when facing a team with a winning record. Another ugly loss beckons here and we get line value since the Wizards are on the road. 8* WASHINGTON

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #867 Friday 10* Top Play Pennsylvania Quakers (-) @ Cornell Big Red @ 7 ET - Quakers guard Ryan Betley just earned co-Big Five player of the week and co-Ivy League rookie of the week after he poured in a season-high 28 points in a win over Brown last week and also had a solid 12 point performance with three assists in the victory over Yale. The reason I mention him here is because he led Penn with 22 points in their win over Cornell earlier this season. Considering that Betley is only a freshman, he is improving dramatically as he gets more experience. The point is that he will be even tougher for the Big Red to stop the 2nd time around and should help lead the red-hot Quakers to another win. Penn comes into this game having won and covered 4 straight games while Cornell has been at the other end of the spectrum as they have lost 5 of their last 6. The only win the Big Red got during this stretch came against a bad Dartmouth team and the 5 Cornell losses came by an average margin of 11.6 points per defeat. Every single Big Red loss came by at least 7 points and that's why I have no qualms about laying this shorter number with Penn on the road in this one. Pennsylvania is hot and they've also gone 8-4 ATS the past 3 seasons when they are off of a game where they allowed 60 points or less. They're both shooting well and defending well and the same can certainly not be said for the Big Red. Also, Cornell is 4-11 ATS the past 3 seasons when playing with road loss revenge and they are also 0-4 SU this season when seeking revenge from a road defeat. This is simply not a very good Big Red team this season and I look for the Quakers to continue their dominance in this series. 10* PENNSYLVANIA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #890 Friday 8* Toledo Rockets (-) vs Central Michigan Chippewas @ 6 ET - Toledo is off of a home loss in OT versus Western Michigan Tuesday. Prior to that defeat the Rockets had won 3 of their last 4 games including posting a 2-0 mark at home with the victories coming by an average margin of 18 points per win. This is an important game in the MAC West standings and I expect Toledo to finally get revenge on Central Michigan. The Chippewas beat the Rockets on January 13th for their 6th straight win in the series. Included in this stretch was a win two years ago in March whereby Central Michigan knocked Toledo out of the conference tourney. The Rockets certainly have "had enough" to say the least! They want this game badly and the set-up is perfect as they are catching the Chips at the right time to exact revenge. Central Michigan comes into this game having lost 4 straight (both SU and ATS). The Chippewas have not been shooting the ball well nor have they defended well and making the situation even more concerning for the Chips is that each of their last 3 games were at home. Now they're on the road and that is unlikely to cure their shooting woes and that is very likely to lead to a blowout loss for Central Michigan here. The Chippewas are 6-11 ATS this season when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Toledo is 11-6 ATS this season in their games against teams with a winning record. Also, the Rockets are 5-2 ATS this season when off of a loss in conference action. Lay the points in this one Thursday! 8* TOLEDO

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #506 Thursday 10* Top Play New Orleans Pelicans (+) vs Houston Rockets @ 8:05 ET - Houston is 40-18 on the season and New Orleans is 23-34 on the season. Something looked "funny" with the opening number on this game, didn't it? Of course now, as expected, the markets have already done some early "pounding" on the Rockets side and have driven this line up. In typical contrarian fashion (hence the title - Contrarian Crusher) I am stepping in on the other side of this one. Of course the big story in New Orleans is the DeMarcus Cousins acquisition. But there is much more than "just that" to like about the Pelicans in this match-up. They went 3-1 on their 4-game road trip right before the All Star break and this is one of just 3 home games they have scheduled in the entire month of February! That said, they certainly want to make it "count" and they did lose their most recent home game. Another key here is that the Pelicans have not lost back to back home games since prior to the mid-way point of December! New Orleans had gone 9-5 in their 14 home games since December 15th but then lost to Utah two weeks ago. That adds "fuel to the fire" for the Pelicans tonight and the Rockets are only 2-5 ATS in their last 7 road games. Also, New Orleans is seeking revenge for a 22-point beating at Houston when these teams met in December. Prior to that, the last 4 games between these teams had been decided by a total of just 15 points. With Cousins now in the mix, the Pelicans are going to be tough for the Rockets to put away in this one. Look for the outright upset and if New Orleans does fall short it certainly should be by just a single possession. The Pelicans are 27-16 ATS the past 3 seasons against teams that average 106 points or more per game. Everyone will be lining up for the Rockets in this one and, from experience, I know what that usually results in...an upset! 10* NEW ORLEANS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #519 Thursday 8* Georgia Bulldogs (+) @ Alabama Crimson Tide @ 7 ET - Mark Fox is a great coach and this is not to take anything away from Avery Johnson, Alabama's coach, but Fox and the Bulldogs come into this one with a big chip on their shoulders about this match-up. Georgia lost by 20 points AT HOME versus the Crimson Tide last month. That game was a 4 point game late in the 1st half when coach Fox was issued a double technical and ejected from the game. The tide was turned and literally it was "roll tide roll" from that point on. The Bulldogs and coach Fox haven't forgotten that game (not in the least) and they'll get some revenge here. We get extra line value here because Georgia must avenge that defeat on the road and Alabama (as a rather short home fave) is getting plenty of love from the markets here as you would expect. This is giving us even better line value and yes I am well aware of the Yante Maten injury for the Bulldogs but so too are the odds makers. That said, let's also not forget that Maten was lost ultra early in the game against Kentucky Saturday and yet the Bulldogs still only lost that game by 5 points and that was against the mighty Wildcats. Georgia is 9-2 ATS as an underdog this season and 8-2 ATS as a road dog of 3.5 to 6 points the past 3 seasons combined. Overall, the Bulldogs are 8-2 ATS on the road this season. Georgia is also 3-0 ATS when playing with home loss revenge this season. The Crimson Tide are 3-9 ATS in home games with a posted total between 130 and 134.5 points the past 3 seasons combined. Also, Alabama is an ugly 2-6 ATS this season and 8-17 ATS the past 3 seasons when they are off of a win against a conference rival. The Crimson Tide have gone 4-10 ATS when off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Look for Fox and the Bulldogs to get payback here as the set-up is perfect. 8* GEORGIA BULLDOGS

Big Ten Game of the Year - Rickenbach CBB Game #732 Wednesday 10* Top Play Maryland Terrapins (-) vs Minnesota Golden Gophers @ 8:30 ET - Even though this is a revenge game for Minnesota, the Golden Gophers have gone 7-21 ATS in road games the past 3 seasons combined. Also, Minny is off of a fortunate OT win over Michigan Sunday. That victory was at home and even though the Gophers have a pair of road wins during their current 5-game winning streak, those victories came at Illinois and Rutgers! Prior to those two road wins, the Golden Gophers had lost 3 straight games away from home and had suffered 5 straight defeats overall. Now Minnesota has to face an angry Maryland team that will be fired up from the opening tip in this one. The Terrapins actually led the Badgers by 6 in Madison on Sunday but then allowed Wisconsin to go on a huge 2nd half run. This ended up leading to, not only a SU loss, an ATS loss for the Terps. Maryland is 12-3 at home this season and their only two Big Ten home losses came by a total of just 3 points. Maryland and Minnesota both play solid defense but the Terrapins are the better shooting team and the Terps have played a slightly tougher schedule thusfar. Also, Maryland is 10-3 ATS in Big Ten action this season and had covered 9 STRAIGHT games against teams with a winning record before Sunday's shocking loss. As a road dog of 3.5 to 6 points, the Golden Gophers are 1-5 SU and ATS! Minny is shooting just 40% in road games this season while Maryland has knocked down 44% of it shots at home on the season. Look for the Terrapins, who have lost back to back games only once this entire season, to get right back into the win column here. 10* MARYLAND

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #726 Wednesday 8* Temple Owls (-) vs UCF Golden Knights @ 7 ET - The Owls final two games of the regular season are against Tulane and South Florida. Those two teams are a combined 12-40 on the season. That said, the Owls are certainly fully focused on Central Florida here. This is the last "big game" of the regular season for Temple and they are fired up for this game for more reasons than one. Not only the Owls off of a disappointing "end game performance" where they let one get away versus Connecticut Sunday, Temple also hasn't forgotten what happened down in Central Florida early in conference action. Back on December 31st the Golden Knights held the Owls to 11 points in the 1st half! It was simply an abysmal performance that a team does not forget. Look for Temple to make the most of this revenge opportunity Wednesday. The Owls are catching UCF at a good time as the Golden Knights are off of a rare road win in conference action. Central Florida got a non-covering win at East Carolina Saturday. Prior to this victory, UCF had lost 5 straight road games in AAC action with their lone win away from home coming back before that home win over Temple. Way back on December 28th, the Golden Knights won at Tulane (the worst team in the conference). As you can see from their track record this season (as well as the situational factors here), back to back road wins for UCF is highly unlikely. The Owls are a long-term 18-6 SU and ATS as a home favorite of 3 points or less. The past 3 seasons combined, the Golden Knights are 0-5 SU (and 1-4 ATS) as a road dog of 3 points or less. Lay the short number in this one! 8* TEMPLE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #703 Wednesday 8* Vanderbilt Commodores (+) @ Tennessee Volunteers @ 6:30 ET - Big time revenge spot for Vandy. Not only did the Commodores suffer a home loss to the Vols last month, Vanderbilt has been knocked out of the SEC Tourney by Tennessee each of the past two seasons! In terms of regular season action, before the loss last month, the Commodores had actually won 3 straight meetings against the Volunteers. Vandy has won each of its last two visits to Tennessee and this is a nice set up here. The Vols are off of a big home win versus a bad Missouri team but previously had lost 3 of their last 4. The Commodores come into this game having won back to back games and 6 of their last 9. However, Vanderbilt did lose its most recent road game - after having won 3 straight away from home - so they're fired up about bouncing back from a horrible shooting performance in their most recent road game. Coincidentally, that game was at Missouri - the same team that the Volunteers just trounced in Tennessee. The Vols are only 12-28 ATS as a favorite the past 3 seasons combined and also just 5-16 ATS when off of a win against a conference foe. Vandy is 9-5 ATS as an underdog this season and also 3-1 ATS when playing with home loss revenge! Look for the avenging Commodores to get the upset win Wednesday but I'll gladly grab the points in this one. 8* VANDERBILT

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #507 Tuesday 10* Top Play Clemson Tigers (+) @ Virginia Tech Hokies @ 7 ET - I am calling this one an ESPN Smash Pass since it is on ESPNU Tuesday but it just as easily could have been called a Contrarian Crusher because I certainly am "going against the grain" here. When one looks at this game one can help but notice that Virginia Tech is 18-8 on the season and a respectable 7-7 in ACC action while Clemson is only 4-10 in conference action. Not only that, the Hokies are a fantastic 13-1 in home games and the Tigers are an ugly 3-6 in true road games this season. That said, how in the world did Virginia Tech open up as only a 2 point favorite here? Precisely! Give me Clemson! I love to fade the masses in games like this and I fully expect many will load up on the Hokies given the parameters I just outlined above. Why are the Tigers the play? For one thing Virginia Tech is off of a grueling 94-90 loss at Louisville Saturday where they lost despite shooting 59% from the field and 65% from three point land. To shoot that well and still lose says a lot about the Hokies! Another factor is the absence of Chris Clarke who recently was lost for the season. He led the team in rebounding and steals and was also one of the top players for assists and scoring! Among the starters, Clarke also led the team in FG %. His absence is a big one and Clemson could easily be coming into this game on a 7-1 run. In fact the Tigers are only 3-5 their last 8 games but 3 losses came by just 1 or 2 points and even the loss at Miami Saturday (by 6 points) was not decided until the final minute. Clemson is flying a bit "under the radar" right now as a result and I see them getting revenge for a 1 point home loss to Virginia Tech a month ago. In comparing these two teams the Tigers have played the tougher schedule this season. Additionally, the Hokies are 1-4 ATS this season when they are off of a game where they allowed 79 points or more. Virginia Tech is also an ugly 1-3 ATS when they are off of a game where they scored 89 or more points this season. The Hokies just won't have enough left in the tank after that loss to the Cardinals and the avenging Tigers are the play here. 10* CLEMSON

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #501 Tuesday 8* Rhode Island Rams (-) @ LaSalle Explorers @ 6 ET - Perfect set-up here. The Rams didn't just lose to LaSalle in Rhode Island last month, they got thoroughly embarrassed. Rhode Island was a 12 point favorite that lost the game by a dozen and was down 21 points at halftime! In a very unusual discrepancy, the road team Explorers had 41 free throw attempts in that game compared to just 19 for the Rams. Now Rhode Island catches LaSalle off of a huge win as the Explorers just knocked off Philadelphia Big Five rival St Joseph's Saturday. Prior to that win LaSalle was only 2-6 in their last 8 games and all 3 wins in their last 9 games have come against teams that are currently below .500 on the season. Now the Explorers host a revenge-seeking 17-9 Rhode Island team. The Rams are off of a win at George Mason Saturday and have won all 3 of their road games the past 4 weeks. Overall it has been a 7-3 run for Rhode Island since that ugly home loss to LaSalle and the stronger team catches a weaker foe off a huge win. That sets this one up beautifully for a road rout. The Rams are 6-3 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when they enter a game on an ATS losing streak of 3 games or more. Rhode Island is also 4-1 SU and ATS this season in Tuesday games. The Explorers are 4-10 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Also, LaSalle is 1-6 SU (and 2-5 ATS) as an underdog this season. That lone SU win came against the Rams as noted above. Payback time! 8* RHODE ISLAND

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #713 Monday 8* Texas Longhorns (+) @ West Virginia Mountaineers @ 9 ET - Even though the Longhorns have gone winless away from home this season, they are actually 6-3 ATS in true road games and they are undervalued here. West Virginia is off of a 9 point win versus Texas Tech but that final score is deceiving as it was a multiple overtime game. The fact is that the Mountaineers are only 9-5 in their last 14 games with just 2 wins by more than 16 points. That said, there is a lot of line value here being offered to a UT team that has only one loss by more than 15 points this season and that was back in November in their first loss of the season. Texas has been shooting the ball well in recent games and is 21-9 ATS on the road the past 3 seasons combined. Also, over the past three seasons the Horns are 4-1 SU and ATS when they enter a game on a 3-game ATS losing streak. As a road dog of 12.5 points or more, the Longhorns are 3-0 ATS the past 3 seasons. West Virginia is an ugly 2-7 ATS this season in games with a posted total in the 140s. Each of the last 4 meetings between these teams have been decided by 7 points or less and the Mountaineers (after the multiple OT game) will have trouble getting a huge margin in this game. It will be a home win but I expect it to come by single digits. 8* TEXAS plus the big points

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #861 Sunday 10* Top Play Michigan Wolverines (+) @ Minnesota Golden Gophers @ 7 ET - Michigan is 3-6 on the road this season while Minnesota is 14-3 at home this season which explains why this is another contrarian play for me. As long-time followers know, I like to go "against the grain" more often than not and this is another one of those ideal situations to do it. Even though Minnesota has won 4 in a row, the wins came against teams that are a combined 18-39 in Big Ten action this season! Prior to that the Golden Gophers had lost 5 straight games. Minny has proven time and time again that they struggle to close out games against quality competition. The Golden Gophers comes into this game as one of the worst shooting teams in the Big Ten while the Wolverines are one of the top shooting teams in the conference. Michigan is off of a big win versus Wisconsin Thursday but I certainly don't expect a letdown here. Keep in mind the Wolverines recently got a win over in-state rival Michigan State and then there was no letdown as they won on the road at Indiana. Also, on deck for Michigan is a road game at Big Ten worst Rutgers so there is certainly no lookahead either. The Wolverines are shooting 48% from the field in Big Ten action and, on the season, Michigan has knocked down 38.4% of their three pointers. Defense has been the weakness of the Wolverines but, in this late season push, they've made a conscious effort to improve on that end of the floor and they've held 2 of their last 4 opponents under 40.5% from the field. Also, they've held 3 of their last 4 opponents to 21.1% or less from the field. Michigan is on a 6-2 ATS run and they've held the upper hand in recent meetings with the Golden Gophers. The Wolverines are 4-2 ATS this season when off of a Big 10 win. Minnesota is still just 16-36 SU in conference games the past 3 seasons combined. Look for their struggles in crunch time to continue again today as they do battle with a team they are knotted up with in the standings. The Golden Gophers have not handled pressure situations well this season. 10* MICHIGAN

CBS Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #843 Sunday 8* Maryland Terrapins (+) @ Wisconsin Badgers @ 1 ET - The Terrapins are an insane 10-1 SU and 10-0 ATS as an underdog this season. Even if the Terps don't get the outright upset win here I do expect them to get the cash. Maryland is catching the Badgers at the right time as Wisconsin has been held under 40.8% from the field in 6 straight games! Not surprisingly, given those numbers, the Badgers are on a 1-5 ATS run their last 6 games. Also, Wiscy's most important player (Bronson Koenig) missed the game at Michigan Thursday with a calf injury. Koenig may return for this game Sunday but I don't expect him to be 100% effective. This further limits a Badgers offense that was already struggling. As for Maryland, they have been an ATS covering machine and are coming off of back to back games versus Ohio State and at Northwestern where they shot the ball very well both from inside the arc and from three point land. The Terrapins also have revenge from a 13 point home loss to the Badgers last February and the Terps did win in their most recent visit to Madison. Maryland has shown time and time again that they can "rise to the occasion" and they have been relishing the underdog role all season long. The Badgers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games against teams with a winning record. Look for Wisconsin to struggle just to win this game let alone cover it! 8* MARYLAND

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #601 Saturday 10* Top Play Wyoming Cowboys (+) @ Boise State Broncos @ 6 ET - This line has already moved from a +7.5 to a +8.5 and I understand the move as Boise State is off of a loss so many are expecting a bounce back here. However, the Broncos are now taking on a team they already beat this season and that was their 3rd straight victory over Wyoming. Coming off of a disappointing loss to a New Mexico team that is very close to them in the standings AND with a big game on deck at Nevada (another team close to Broncos in standings), Boise State is in a "sandwich spot" here. Off of a big game and with another big game on deck, the Broncos are likely to struggle to put away the Cowboys here. Boise State has been held under 42% from the field in 6 of its last 9 games. Their D has allowed 48% or more in each of their past two games. As for Wyoming, they've held 6 of their last 7 opponents under 42.5% from the field. Also, even on the road, the Cowboys have shot the ball well of late and have averaged 74.4 points per game in MWC road games! Wyoming simply doesn't give up and they'll battle hard here in hopes of getting revenge for a home loss to the Broncos last month. The Cowboys are 3-1 ATS as a road dog of 6.5 to 9 points. Wyoming is also 9-5 ATS against teams with a winning record this season. The Broncos are 0-3 ATS as a home fave of 6.5 to 9 points this season. Also, Boise State is 0-3 ATS this month and 0-5 ATS the L3 seasons combined when they are at home with a game total posted in a range of 150 o 154.5 points. That's a combined 0-11 ATS mark which I'll gladly test here as the Cowboys will prove to be the hungrier, more focused team in this match-up and they're catching a lot of points here. Only 3 times this entire season have the Cowboys lost a game by more than 10 points. They'll battle hard again here and I expect this one to be decided by only a single possession or two when the final horn has sounded. 10* WYOMING COWBOYS

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #540 Saturday 8* Mississippi State Bulldogs (+) vs Florida Gators @ 2 ET - The Gators just lost 6'11 center John Egbunu to a season-ending knee injury. He was their leading rebounder, a top shot blocker, and their 5th leading scorer. Though the Gators are off of a blowout win at Auburn, they shot 56% from the field including a ridiculous 58% from three point land. Both those numbers are highly unlikely to be repeated here and I see great line value with the big home dog Bulldogs in this one. Keep in mind, Florida is in a lookahead spot here as they have South Carolina and Kentucky as their next two games on deck. It's simply impossible for the Gators to not get caught looking ahead to those match-ups. The Gamecocks present a revenge opportunity for Florida and, of course, a trip to Kentucky is always big. That makes Mississippi State a very dangerous big dog in this spot and the Bulldogs have gone a perfect 3-0 ATS as a home dog in a range of 9.5 to 12 points. Also, MSU is on a 7-2 ATS run (and 17-7 ATS long-term) in home games with a posted total in a range of 145 to 149.5 points. Mississippi State is off of a loss and the Bulldogs have gone 5-2 ATS this season (and 20-9 ATS the last 3 seasons combined) when off of a loss in conference action. Florida had not shot the ball well in their two games prior to scoring a ridiculous 114 points at Auburn. Look for the Gators to struggle to put away the Bulldogs here in this definite lookahead spot for Florida. 8* MISSISSIPPI STATE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #503 Saturday 8* Clemson Tigers (+) @ Miami Hurricanes @ Noon ET - Miami has allowed 4 of its last 5 opponents to hit 48% or better from the field and 39% ore better from three point land. Clemson comes into this game having shot the three ball very well in recent games as the Tigers have knocked down 38% or better from beyond the arc in 4 of their last 6 games. Clemson will take advantage of the Hurricanes being without Ja'Quan Newton who is in the middle of a 3-game suspension. He leads the team in assists and is their 2nd leading scorer. The Canes were already thin in terms of backcourt depth so this is definitely a tough blow for Miami that the Tigers should be able to exploit here. The Hurricanes did get a win (but non-cover) versus Georgia Tech Wednesday in their first game without Newton but they shot a ridiculous 55% in that game. Not only is that unlikely to be repeated but a lot of times other players step up in the first game without a key player. The 2nd game is often when the absence becomes much more of a detriment to the team. Look for Miami to drop to 4-15 ATS as a favorite this season! 8* CLEMSON

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #730 Thursday 10* Top Play Rice Owls (-) vs UTSA Roadrunners @ 8 ET - This line has been dropping early this morning and it has opened up additional line value on Rice. The reason for the move is because the big points certainly caught the attention of the marketplace considering that UTSA has won 2 of their last 3 games and is on a 3-0-1 ATS run. However, the markets often have a short-term memory and UTSA was on a 4-game homestand that led to that run. This Roadrunners team is still 1-12 SU away from home this season and their 4 CUSA road losses have come by an average margin of 18.5 points per game. Every single CUSA road defeat for UTSA came by at least 15 points and the line on Rice has dropped from up near 15 down to near a 12 and this is simply great line value considering the fact that the Owls are rolling right now! Rice has won and covered 4 straight games and the last 3 have all been on the road! The Owls have held 5 of their last 6 opponents to 40% or less from the field and UTSA is not known for shooting the ball well. In fact, the Roadrunners have been held under 40% from the field in 7 of their last 8 games. UTSA has averaged just 59 points per game in those 7 games and they now face an Owls team that has averaged 84 points per game (that does factor in removing OT from the equation) during their 4 game winning streak. The Owls are happy to be back home for a 4-game homestand that follows their perfect 3-game road trip and they only have UTEP on deck. That said, UTSA has their full attention and the Roadrunners just don't have the offensive skills to keep up with an Owls team that is averaging 82 points per game on the season. UTSA is 2-6 ATS their last 8 games against teams averaging 77 points or more per game. Also, this season, the Roadrunners are 3-7 ATS on the road. The Owls are 3-0 SU and ATS when they enter a game having played each of their three prior games on the road. Rice also has taken care of business against lesser foes this season as the Owls are 11-0 SU and 5-1 ATS against teams with a losing record! 10* RICE OWLS

Eastern Conference Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Game #702 Thursday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (+) vs Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - Most likely, no one will want Indiana here. The Pacers are in a back to back while the Wizards have had two days off heading into this one. Indiana is on a 5-game losing streak while Washington has been one of the hottest teams in the league for many weeks now. Of course you know what usually happens when everyone is going one way...it usually doesn't pan out too well. In typical contrarian fashion I am going with the Pacers here. However, it is certainly not without reason. For one thing, the Pacers got very bad shooting nights from George and Teague last night at Cleveland. Even with that, Indiana was in that game for 3 quarters before having a horrible 4th quarter. Also, the hunger of the Pacers is a key here as the last thing they want to do is go into the All Star break having lost 6 straight! Conversely, though they would say otherwise, the Wizards can't help but already be looking ahead to the break. They are very comfortable with where they're at now and likely are already "halfway in" to All Star break mode coming into this one because this will be just the 2nd game for Washington in 6 days. In fact it was last Friday that the Wizards knocked off the Pacers in Washington. Look for some revenge to be served in Indiana tonight. The Pacers will prove to be the hungrier team tonight and, keep in mind, they are 20-9 at home this season while the Wizards are 9-14 on the road this season. 10* INDIANA PACERS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #715 Thursday 8* UAB Blazers (+) @ Marshall Thundering Herd @ 7 ET - UAB has knocked off the Thundering Herd in 8 straight meetings overall and the Blazers haven't lost at Marshall since 2008 - a streak of 7 straight victories at Huntington. I like the set-up here for UAB to keep that run going. The Blazers are off of a home loss to Old Dominion where they allowed the Monarchs to hit an unheard of 66% from the field. UAB will respond after that horrific effort on the defensive end. In fact, the Blazers are a powerful 9-1 (90%) SU this season when they are off of a loss. Simply put, this UAB team has been able to avoid losing streaks. They face a Thundering Herd team that is off of a big road win at Western Kentucky. Not only is Marshall off of a big win, they also have a huge game on deck as they'll be hosting the top team in the conference, Middle Tennessee State, Saturday. The Thundering Herd had lost 5 of their 7 prior games before knocking off the Hilltoppers last Saturday. Marshall is one of the worst teams in the country defensively and are allowing an average of 84.7 points per game. The Blazers are certainly not defensive stalwarts but they are superior to the Thundering Herd and UAB had been playing quite well on the defensive end in recent weeks before the loss versus Old Dominion. The Blazers are 5-0 ATS this season after allowing 80 points or more and also 5-0 ATS the last 3 seasons combined when they are a road dog of 3 points or less. 8* UAB BLAZERS

TV Game of the Week - Rickenbach CBB Game #563 Wednesday 10* Top Play St John's Red Storm (+) @ Butler Bulldogs @ 8:30 ET - This is a big revenge game for Butler but not only have they lost 3 of their last 4 (both SU and ATS), the Bulldogs simply are not a powerhouse. Yes, I am well aware of the fact that this was a team that was 18-3 on the season before this tough stretch creeped up on them, but just look at their point differentials. Butler's last 7 wins have come by an average margin of just 5.9 points per game. Only 3 of the Bulldogs 15 wins (dates all the way back to Thanksgiving) have come by a margin of more than 10 points. That said, the Red Storm are a formidable opponent that is continuing to get stronger as this season has gone on as they do rely on some key freshmen scoring power. LoVett and Ponds are both freshman and are the leading scorers for St John's and combine to average 35 points per game! As you would expect, these young stars have grown their game as the season has gone on and this makes the Red Storm and even more "upset ready" team than they were earlier in the season. St John's comes into this game having covered 5 straight games. They have 4 SU wins in their last 7 games and this is even though tonight's game will mark their 7th straight game as a dog. With each win, the confidence of this young team is growing and head coach Chris Mullins has this team buying into playing better team defense. Their last 3 games have included a pair where the Red Storm allowed 40% or less from the field even though those match-ups were against the solid offenses of Seton Hall and Marquette. Butler has been held to 41.1% or less from the field in 4 of their last 6 games and that included a home game versus Creighton and the Bluejays are not nearly the same without their star point guard. That said, the Bulldogs will be battling hard just to win this game let alone cover the inflated spread. Butler is 0-3 ATS against teams with a losing record this season while the Red Storm are a solid 11-5 ATS against teams with a winning record this season. 10* ST JOHN'S RED STORM

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #508 Wednesday 10* Top Play Brooklyn Nets (+) vs Milwaukee Bucks @ 7:35 ET - Classic case of an ugly dog here. Yes, the Nets have a long losing streak going, both overall and at home, but Brooklyn should take care of business here. 11 of the 13 losses in their current losing streak have come by single digits. The Nets have been on the cusp of getting over the hump and, going "all out" in their final game before the All Star break is a given here. Brooklyn wants to put an end to the "nonsense" and they are catching the right team at the right time to do it! The Bucks come into this game off of a divisional win over Detroit. Surprisingly, Milwaukee held the Pistons to only 89 points but that was the first time since January 2nd that the Bucks have held a team under 100 points. Also, you have to go all the way back to December 16th to find a game where Milwaukee gave up less than 94 points. As you can see, Monday's win over Detroit was a rare gem for the Bucks and this is a team that is 1-10 ATS against Atlantic Division opponents this season. Also, Milwaukee is an ugly 4-8 SU (and 3-9 ATS!) in road games where the posted total is 210 points or more. The Nets are undoubtedly one of the worst teams in the NBA and I won't try to convince you otherwise. But the fact remains that Brooklyn has been going very hard for weeks now and just hasn't been able to get into the win column. After so many close calls, they catch a Bucks team that is overconfident off of back to back divisional wins (big win at Indiana before knocking off Detroit) and that sets this up as a "dangerous game" for Milwaukee. The Bucks had lost 7 straight road games before notching wins at Phoenix and Indiana. Look for the upset here with a gritty, determined effort from the home dog here but grab the available points. 10* BROOKLYN NETS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #501 Wednesday 8* Indiana Pacers (+) @ Cleveland Cavaliers @ 7:05 ET - I successfully used the Cavaliers last night but the Cavs did struggle to put the Timberwolves away in Minnesota. Cleveland had to give their key guys more minutes than they would have liked to in last night's game and now they'll have their hands full in a tough back to back. In fact, this one does has the makings of an upset as Cleveland is only 3-7 SU (and 2-8 ATS) in the 2nd game of a back to back on the season. While the Cavaliers were battling with the T-wolves last night at Minny, the Pacers were off and were able to fully prepare physically and mentally for this divisional battle. Even though Indiana has lost four straight games, this was preceded by a 7 game winning streak. Also, 2 of the 4 defeats have come by 5 points or less and the Pacers have faced some tough competition during this streak. In fact the 4-game losing streak started with an ugly home loss to the Cavs 132-117 last Wednesday. The Pacers will be seeking payback tonight and Indiana has gone 27-15 ATS versus divisional opponents the past 3 seasons. Also, Indiana is 3-1 ATS this season when they enter a game on a losing streak of 3 games or more. The Cavaliers are an ugly 18-33 ATS versus divisional opponents the past 3 seasons. Even though the Pacers are still without Thaddeus Young, the Cavs are missing Kevin Love and the big man is particularly missed in a back to back situation like this where a divisional road dog is coming in very hungry and plus has the rest edge. 8* INDIANA PACERS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #530 Wednesday 8* Providence Friars (-) vs Xavier Musketeers @ 6:30 ET - The Musketeers absolutely crushed the Friars at Xavier in late December. That said, surely it may seem a surprise to see Providence now laying points in the rematch. However, the situation here is absolutely ideal for the Friars to get their revenge. Xavier's leading scorer in the 82-56 win in late December was Trevon Bluiett and he's dealing with an ankle sprain that absolutely could keep him out of tonight's game or, at the very least, severely impact his effectiveness. The Musketeers second leading scorer that night was Edmond Sumner and he was lost for the season with a knee injury in January. That said, Xavier only has 3 guys that average more than 7.7 points per game this season and two of them are Sumner and Bluiett! This is a tough part of the schedule for the Musketeers as they have road games at Marquette and Seton Hall on deck plus a home date with 19-6 Butler after that. With that said, look for Xavier to be very careful with Bluiett in this one. The Musketeers are only 2-6 ATS on the road this season while the Friars are a fantastic 5-1 ATS this season (and 14-2 ATS the last 3 seasons combined) when playing with road loss revenge! Providence comes into this game having covered 7 of its last 8 games against teams with a winning record and I look for the Friars to definitely "step up" again here as they don't play again for a week after this game. Off the win over Butler, look for the avenging home team to stay hot here and make it 8 out of 9 covers! 8* PROVIDENCE FRIARS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #703 Tuesday 8* Cleveland Cavaliers (-) @ Minnesota Timberwolves @ 8:05 ET - The Cavs come into this game with 2 days of rest as they last played on Saturday when they knocked off the Nuggets at home. Even though this is the 1st game of a back to back (Cavaliers host Indiana tomorrow), there is no doubt the Cavs will go all out here. That's because the All Star break looms and Cleveland knows they'll have plenty of time to rest up then. Certainly Minnesota will be up for this game as they host the world champs but the Timberwolves have been swept by the Cavaliers each of the prior two seasons and the T-wolves already lost at Cleveland earlier this month. The Cavs, just as they are tonight, played without Kevin Love but they still won by 28. Cleveland may again be catching the Timberwolves at the right time for another big win as Minnesota is off of a blowout win over Chicago Sunday. Minny beat the Bulls 117-89 but the Timberwolves are 2-8 ATS this season (and 5-17 ATS the last 3 seasons combined) when they are off of a win by a double digit margin! Even though Minnesota has now won 2 of its last 3, the three games were against a struggling Toronto team, the 21-34 Pelicans, and an injury-depleted Bulls team. That is significant here because, prior to winning 2 of 3, the Timberwolves had lost 4 straight games SU and were on a 1-8 ATS run. In other words, don't be surprised if the T-wolves get drilled again as they take a big step up in level of opponent for this one. Cleveland has won 7 of its last 9 SU and is also on a 6-2 ATS run its last 8. The Cavaliers are 10-2 SU (and 8-4 ATS) when playing with 2 days of rest this season and, with rested legs, the Cavs roll in this one as the absence of point guard Zach LaVine (out for season now with torn ACL) is significant in a match-up like this. 8* CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #729 Tuesday 10* Top Play Tennessee Volunteers (+) @ Kentucky Wildcats @ 7 ET - This is a big revenge game for the Wildcats but they are over-priced here. This is especially true when you consider how Kentucky has been playing and the fact that Tennessee has won 2 of the last 3 meetings and none of the 3 games were decided by more than 10 points. Kentucky is only 3-3 in their last 6 games and none of the 3 Wildcat wins were by more than 9 points. Kentucky has had trouble with holding big leads and, that said, even if the Cats are fortunate enough to get up big in this game they are unlikely to be able to maintain the lead. The Volunteers have also had trouble with holding big leads in recent games but of course they are a double digit dog here so that is less of a concern as is simply being competitive. That said, after Tennessee blew a big lead and lost to Georgia by a single point Saturday, there is no doubt about the hunger they will bring to this game. A key for the Vols in terms of the big points here is the fact that they have not lost a game by more than 13 points this entire season! Head coach Rick Barnes is really getting the best out of his players and this is not a team that is going to lay down for anyone. In other words, look for the Vols to be fighting hard throughout this game no matter what the score is. That certainly makes for a dangerous double digit dog. The Volunteers had covered 5 of their last 6 before the loss to the Bulldogs. The Wildcats, even with a rare cover in their win at Alabama Saturday, are on an ugly 2-8 ATS run. Even though Kentucky is playing this game with road loss revenge for the loss at Tennessee last month, the fact is that the Wildcats are 0-4 ATS this season when looking to avenge a road defeat. The Vols are a solid 8-3 ATS as an underdog this season and I look for another solid cover here. 10* Top Play TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #708 Tuesday 8* Virginia Commonwealth Rams (-) vs St Josephs Hawks @ 6 ET - Long-time followers know I don't often play big favorites but this is one of those unusual cases where an extreme slaughter should take place. St Josephs has had the misfortune of losing both of their point guards for the season as Shavar Newkirk and Lamarr Kimble are now both on the shelf. This is horrible news for the Hawks in and of itself but, in terms of this particular match-up, it should lead to an absolute rout. One of the last place a team ever wants to travel to without a point guard (let alone TWO!) is Virginia Commonwealth. The Rams are known for creating turnovers and putting a lot of pressure on opponents backcourts. St Joe's is extremely limited now in their backcourt. Not only were Newkirk and Kimble playmakers, they were their top two scorers. This severely limits a St Josephs team that was already struggling badly. It's been a disappointing season for the Hawks and now has gotten even worse. St Joe's has lost 4 straight and 8 of its last 10. Now, the final (and perhaps) most important key when laying big points (at least in my opinion) is motivation. That said, VCU is NOT going to take their foot off the gas in this game. That's because last spring the Rams were bounced from the Atlantic Ten tourney by these Hawks. Virginia Commonwealth lost by double digits even though they were a 4-point fave. This is their first meeting since that game and it will be payback. VCU has won 6 straight games and is 20-5 on the season. The Rams are 6-0 at home in A-10 action and the average margin of victory has been 18.5 points per game. Keep in mind this included wins over quality opponents like Dayton and Richmond too. That said, the Hawks really don't stand a chance here. 8* VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #539 Monday 10* Top Play West Virginia Mountaineers (+) @ Kansas Jayhawks @ 9 ET - First lines that came out on this game yesterday had it at a -2.5 and sure enough the markets got "baited" and jumped all over the revenge-seeking Jayhawks at home and drove the line all the way up to a -5. I'll gladly take advantage of the value on the other side. Even though Kansas is at home and playing with revenge they certainly have some "issues" right now. First off the Jayhawks just aren't playing all that well as, even though they are 4-2 in their last 6 games, the 4 wins have come by an average margin of only 3.75 points while the losses included a 16-point blowout defeat at West Virginia. Perhaps the even bigger issue for Kansas here is the fact that, even though each team is in the same scheduling situation (one day of rest) the short amount of time off is likely to be more impacting to the Jayhawks. Their star player, Frank Mason is dealing with an illness and that was evident on Saturday as he struggled in the game and eventually fouled out. Against the relentless pressure defense of the Mountaineers, Kansas will find knocking off West Virginia much tougher than the Red Raiders. The Jayhawks only beat Texas Tech by a single point and have now failed to cover 12 of their last 17. Kansas has a great SU record at home but note that they are just 2-8 ATS at home this season! The Mountaineers only have 5 losses on the season and 4 of the 5 came by 4 points or less. This is likely to be war because even though the Jayhawks have revenge, the Mountaineers also are sick of looking up in the standings at Kansas and West Virginia also was knocked out of the Big 12 conference tourney by the Jayhawks last spring. Look for the Mountaineers pressure defense and the fact that Mason is not 100% to be the two key factors for a potential upset here. If West Virginia does fall short of the upset, I expect it to only be by a single bucket. A lot of points expected here and the Mountaineers are an incredible 27-12 ATS long-term in games with a posted total in the 150s. 10* Top Play WEST VIRGINIA

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Game #511 Monday 10* Top Play Detroit Pistons (+) @ Milwaukee Bucks @ 8:05 ET - Many will likely be looking to Milwaukee today after the Pistons rallied late and got the upset win at Toronto yesterday. However, this is not a "normal" in-season situation here. The All Star break begins later this week and so players aren't "holding anything back" and, right now, Detroit has been playing much better ball than Milwaukee. Not only that, the Pistons suffered one of their worst home defeats of the season in late December when the Bucks defeated them by 25 points. The Pistons haven't forgotten that game as, of course, Milwaukee is a division rival. Now Detroit gets their shot at revenge and, even though it is a back to back, only one guy played more than 32 minutes for the Pistons yesterday. Also, Milwaukee is off of a big upset win too as they won at Indiana on Saturday. One of the key differences though is the Bucks recent wins have been "fortunate" ones where they simply shot the ball extremely well. Milwaukee's win over the Pacers saw them knock down 54.8% of their three pointers and that was just the 3rd win for the Bucks in their last 15 games. Conversely, Detroit was held to 43% from the field and 26% from three point land and yet still won at Toronto yesterday. The Pistons are winning the "hustle points" and are playing much better team basketball than the Bucks right now. Detroit is on a 6-2 ATS run and are 5-2 SU and ATS in their last 7 games against teams with a losing record. Conversely, Milwaukee is an ugly 1-5 ATS and SU in their last 6 games against teams with a losing record. This is a classic case of "hot versus not" and "hungry versus complacent" and, even though it is a back to back for Detroit, they did play early yesterday and each of these teams are playing their 3rd game in 4 days. Advantage to the road dog Pistons and I expect them to get their revenge here against the struggling Bucks. Talking about the "stronger level of play" angle above. The Bucks have been outshot by 40 shots over their last 8 games. The Pistons have outshot their opponents by 44 shots in their last 4 games. The road team is clearly getting more scoring opportunities while also allowing less. More of the same here. 10* DETROIT PISTONS

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Game #838 Sunday 10* Top Play Sacramento Kings (-) vs New Orleans Pelicans @ 9:05 ET - The Pelicans have the full attention of the Kings because New Orleans has given them trouble in recent meetings. Sacramento finally ended a Pelicans "run" in this series with a home win over New Orleans in their most recent meeting in November. The Kings won that game by 8 and, with this being Sacramento's last home game until after the All Star break, I fully expect huge effort from them here. Though both teams have played rather well their last couple games, I like the fact that the Kings have averaged 10 more field goal attempts per game than their opponent in their last 2 games. The Pelicans have been at the other end of the spectrum on that stat as they have given up an average of 9 more field goal attempts per game than what they've taken. Of course limiting the number of opportunities for your opponent while also maximizing your own is a key to success and the Kings come in strong and have won 3 of their last 4 games. Not only does Sacramento have the back to back wins, they also have had a win over Golden State in this four game stretch. The Pelicans, prior to their road win at Minnesota, had lost 5 straight road games. Overall, New Orleans had failed to cover 4 straight games before the win over the Timberwolves. Sacramento is 20-8 ATS long-term in their home games against New Orleans and the Kings have shot at least 47.5% from the field in 7 of their last 9 games. The Pelicans, before erupting at Minnesota, had been held under 46% from the field in 5 of their last 6 games. 10* Top Play SACRAMENTO KINGS minus the short number Sunday night

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #856 Sunday 10* Top Play Wisconsin Badgers (-) vs Northwestern Wildcats @ 6:30 ET - At first glance this line may appear a little high considering the fact that the Badgers have not been shooting well recently, the Wildcats are 18-6 on the season, and Wisconsin is laying double digits here. However, there are some key factors that are pointing to an absolute rout here. First off, Northwestern's leading scorer Scottie Lindsey is out for this game (mononucleosis) and this will be the 3rd straight game he's missed. Not only did the Wildcats lose their first two games without him, the results weren't even closed. They lost by 21 at Purdue as a 9.5 point dog and they lost to Illinois by 7 as a 6 point favorite. More struggles for the Cats can be expected today as the Badgers are happy to finally be back home. This is just their 2nd home game since January 24th so, over a span of 3 weeks Wisconsin has been away from home for nearly every game. They'll be fired up to make the most of this game at home and, keep in mind, much of their recent shooting woes can be attributed to being away from Madison. At home this season the Badgers are averaging 79 points per game this season and shooting 48% from the field including 38% from beyond the arc!  Northwestern has struggled on both ends of the floor in these last two games without Lindsey and a trip to Madison isn't going to help matters for the Wildcats. The Badgers are 7-3 ATS at home this season and the Wildcats run at the betting windows is likely over. They were on a 15-3 ATS run before Lindsey went down. Look for them to now drop to 0-3 ATS without him. 10* WISCONSIN BADGERS minus the points Sunday evening

Daytime Dominator - Rickenbach NHL Game #53 Sunday 8* Detroit Red Wings Puck Line +1.5 goals (-) @ Minnesota Wild @ 3:05 ET - The Red Wings are desperate for points and they'll go all out in this game. A lot turmoil around Detroit lately but, even though they have lost 3 straight and 8 of their last 13 only 2 of the 13 games has resulted in the Red Wings losing a game by more than a goal. Considering those odds (11 of 13) and knowing that we only have to lay about -135 to get Detroit +1.5 goals, there is great line value here with the Red Wings on the puck line. I also like the added edge here of Red Wings assistant coach John Torchetti making his first trip back to Minnesota since the Wild let him go to hire Bruce Boudreau as their head coach. Torchetti actually did a great job with the Wild as an interim coach and likely would have gotten an offer to become the permanent head coach had Boudreau not been fired by the Ducks. The point is that the Red Wings players (and coaching staff) have some extra fire burning in their bellies as it relates to this game. Look for a huge effort from Detroit who, because of injuries and other factors, has their backs against the wall right now. The Wild are off of a home win but surprisingly had won only 4 of their 8 prior home games before knocking off the Lightning 2-1 in the shootout Friday. The Red Wings are actually 4-3, +3.6 net units when playing the 2nd game of a back to back this season and here are getting them at +1.5 goals at a great price. The Wild have lost 15 of 27 home games and -10.6 net units in match-ups with a posted total of 5.5 goals. This situation definitely has the makings of an upset but, should the Red Wings fall short, I expect it to only be by a single goal. 8* DETROIT RED WINGS puck line +1.5 goals Sunday afternoon.  

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #843 Sunday 8* Temple Owls (+) @ Memphis Tigers @ 2 ET - The Owls are known for giving the Tigers a lot of match-up problems. Temple has gone 5-0 ATS (and 4-1 SU) in the last 5 meetings between the teams but this line has already climbed from 5.5 to 6.5 on this game. Of course with Memphis having revenge on their minds (lost at Temple in January) and now on their home floor, it makes sense that they are a popular choice here due to the smallish number posted on this game. Don't be fooled by the line though. The reason it is smaller than many would expect is because the Owls go into Memphis with plenty of confidence as they have enjoyed success here and the most recent loss here came by only two points. The Tigers are off of a home win and cover versus Tulsa but previously had covered just once in their 8 games prior to knocking off the Golden Hurricane. The Owls are off of a rare ugly performance as they were simply awful versus SMU Thursday and will be hungry to bounce back here. When Temple enters a game having failed to cover the spread in 3 or more consecutive games, they've gone 7-1 SU! The Tigers are 9-17 ATS when off of a win against a conference rival. The set up here is perfect for the Owls to be in this one all the way! 8* TEMPLE OWLS plus the points early Sunday afternoon

Contrarian Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Game #503 Saturday 10* Top Play Milwaukee Bucks (+) @ Indiana Pacers @ 7:05 ET - This is a contrarian pick all the way. The fact is that the Bucks have been struggling badly and Jabari Parker was just lost for the season and, even though Khris Middleton finally played in last night's game, he did not travel with the team to Indiana. All that said, this line opened up at "only" a 6 and that is a strange line considering the Pacers have the much better record and also are at home. Considering the home/road dichotomy of the way these two teams play home versus away you can see why the betting markets already pushed this to the 7 in early action. Nothing is ever as "easy" as it seems and my expectation is that this game tonight is absolutely going to turn into a divisional dogfight. Milwaukee simply got done in last night by the Lakers hitting a ridiculous 15 of 30 three pointers. The Bucks got down early and then rallied late but they'll be ready to bounce back after being outscored by 21 points from three point land (Lakers hit 7 more threes than Milwaukee) last night. Even though this is a back to back for the Bucks, it is also a back to back for the Pacers and they are the ones laying 7 points here even though they are 3-7 SU (and 2-8 ATS) this season in the 2nd game of a back to back! Even though this is part of 3 games in 4 days for the Bucks they previously had 3 full off days. As for the Pacers, they are playing their 6th game in 9 nights. Look for the Pacers to be a little weary in this one and they're missing Thaddeus Young (wrist) and have been playing a little soft in the middle. The Bucks are 6-3 SU and ATS in divisional games this season and they'll push Indiana to the limit in this one. The Pacers are only 2-2 in the last 4 meetings between these clubs and the two Indiana victories each came by only 5 points. 10* Top Play MILWAUKEE BUCKS plus the points Saturday evening

No Doubt Blowout Rout - Rickenbach CBB Game #634 Saturday 10* Top Play Wright State Raiders (-) vs Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix @ 7 ET - Wright State is at home where they are 10-3 on the season and they are hosting a Wisconsin-Green Bay team that is only 6-8 away from home this season. The Raiders come into this game off having shot the ball very well in 6 of their last 7 games. Wright State averaged 84.5 points per game in those 6 games and they now face a Phoenix team that rallied for a road cover at Northern Kentucky Thursday. The fact that UWGB got in the backdoor for the cover there is helping to keep this line lower than it should be. Don't be surprised if 3 point shooting plays a role in this one. UWGB has only made 30% of their threes on the road this season while Wright State shoots a hot 40% at home from beyond the arc. The biggest key of all to this play is the revenge factor. Not only did the Raiders lose at Green Bay in January, they also were knocked out of the Horizon League tourney by the Phoenix last March. UWGB shot surprisingly well from three point land in their home win over the Raiders in January and in the Horizon League tourney last March. However, in their last two visits to Wright State UWGB has been held to 25% or less from three point land in each game. Green Bay lost their most recent visit to Wright State and the Raiders have payback on their minds in a big way here. The Raiders are 7-3 SU and ATS in games with a posted total in the 150s this season. They are also 2-0 SU this season when playing with road loss revenge. UWGB has suffered the SU loss in 21 of their last 32 games as an underdog. That said, and with this spread only around a 3, I like the odds of the Raiders getting a solid, revenging home cover in this one. 10* Top Play WRIGHT STATE minus the short number Saturday evening

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #501 Saturday 8* Los Angeles Clippers (+) @ Charlotte Hornets @ 5:05 ET - The Clippers are a small road dog here. Of course the only reason they're a dog is that Chris Paul is injured. These are the types of situations that lead to phenomenal line value as the Hornets are struggling badly but they are laying points against a solid Clippers team that, even though without Paul, has seen Blake Griffin really step up his game of late. Though LA still has only 2 wins in its last 5 games the 3 losses did come against solid playoff-level foes. When the Clippers have faced weaker foes (like Phoenix and New York), they have taken care of business. Just like the dysfunctional Knicks that they defeated Wednesday, this Charlotte team is having all sorts of issues. Kemba Walker is struggling badly with his shot and he had 6 of the Hornets 22 turnovers in the loss to the Rockets Thursday. The Hornets have only 1 win in their last 9 games and they've been held to 44.4% or less from the field in 8 of those 9 games. Conversely, the Clippers have shot 46.5% or better in 7 of their 10 games since Chris Paul got hurt! With the Hornets slumping and the Clippers looking poised to take advantage of another "lesser" opponent, this game is offering solid line value. Charlotte is 5-13 SU (and 3-14-1 ATS) in games with posted total of 210 points or more this season. You can see, with the big total posted on this game, that plenty of points are expected here and you can also see (from the info I noted above) that it is the Clips who have had the better offensive execution (even without Paul) and that has me backing the road dog in a big way here. The Clips are 5-1 SU this season (and 20-6 SU the L3 seasons!) in their games against Southeast Division opponents. 8* LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS plus the points in Saturday's earliest game in NBA action.

CUSA Game of the Year - Rickenbach CBB Game #585 Saturday 10* Top Play Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (-) @ UTSA Roadrunners @ 4 ET - This one is set up perfectly. This is a huge revenge game for the Bulldogs as they suffered a rare home loss to UTSA last month. In that game they blew a huge lead. Louisiana Tech also comes into this one off of a game where they blew a big lead in a tight one-point win at UTEP Thursday. The Roadrunners are at the other end of the spectrum as they rallied from a 2nd half deficit to get a 6-point win versus Southern Mississippi Thursday. The Golden Eagles are one of the worst teams in CUSA but, the point is, even they "had them on the ropes" before ultimately falling short on Thursday. The other point is that there is some extra line value here as a result of those recent games. The fact is that, even on the road, the Bulldogs could have easily been installed as a double digit favorite and yet the line opened up at 8.5 and then dropped to 7.5 which is something I'll gladly take advantage of here. Louisiana Tech is fired up and they are hungry for revenge and the Bulldogs defense will bring it's "A game" for this one. That's bad news for a Roadrunners team that generally does not execute well on offense and that was evident again Thursday in UTSA's ugly tight win over Southern Miss. Louisiana Tech is 11-1 SU (and 4-2 ATS) in their games against teams with a losing record and each of their 4 prior wins over UTSA had come by a double digit margin. The Bulldogs are knocking down 46.7% of their field goal attempts this season. UTSA is shooting only 38.2% and averaging just 63 points per game in conference action. The Roadrunners have been held to 39.3% or less from the field in 6 of their last 7 games. Though they got a tight, low-scoring win Thursday, they are 2-11 SU and 2-8 ATS when off of a game where they allowed 60 points or less. That includes 0-4 ATS this season and this one turns into a road rout for the revenge-minded Bulldogs. 10* Top Play LOUISIANA TECH minus the points Saturday afternoon

Daytime Dominator - Rickenbach CBB Game #539 Saturday 8* Clemson Tigers (+) @ Duke Blue Devils @ 1 ET Saturday - The Tigers are catching the Blue Devils at the perfect time to keep this game much closer than many are expecting. Duke is off of their huge win over rival North Carolina and that game was just played on Thursday. Not only that but the Blue Devils have a tough match-up with Virginia on deck. That said, it is hard for Duke's full attention to be on the Tigers here and I feel this line is definitely inflated. Looking at the Blue Devils last 9 games, they do not have a single win that came by a margin great than a dozen points. In fact, since mid-December, Duke has played 13 games and only 1 resulted in a victory by more than 12 points. As for Clemson, they started their season 9-2 with both the losses by just a half-dozen points. Since then there has been quite a bit of losing for the Tigers but note that 7 of their 10 losses on the season have come by a margin of 6 points or less. Clemson is also the more rested team for this match-up as they have been off since Tuesday. That was a tight 82-81 loss for Clemson but the Tigers are 9-3 SU and 6-4 ATS when off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Duke is only 7-12 ATS in their games against teams with a winning record this season but the Blue Devils continue to be over-rated by the marketplace. That means more line value for us! 8* CLEMSON TIGERS plus the big points early Saturday

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #855 Friday 10* Top Play Denver Nuggets (+) @ New York Knicks @ 7:35 ET - Denver is 9-17 SU on the road this season and yet the Knicks are a very small home favorite here. Looks easy to play New York, right? Exactly! That is why I am on the Nuggets here in typical contrarian fashion. The key here is that the Knicks are just a huge mess right now. The Charles Oakley situation (in the stands) just adds even more fuel to the fire and the fact is that the Knicks truly would be better off on the road right now than playing again at home where turmoil has gripped this team. New York comes into this one having lost 3 straight games and they are now 6-19 dating back to Christmas Day! Even though the Nuggets are off of a loss they had previously won 9 of their last 14 games and gone 10-4 ATS at the betting window during this solid stretch. Though their road record looks poor they have been playing quite well on the road. The trouble has been that recent games have included a pair of trips to San Antonio and a trip to Atlanta. Only 3-5 SU in their last 8 games played away from Denver but note that the 3 of the 5 losses came by 6 points or less and the Nuggets will take advantage of facing a struggling Knicks team in this one. Denver has won each of its last 3 meetings with the Knicks and that includes their last visit to New York. Also, the Nuggets are 7-3 SU and ATS (including 3-1 SU and ATS this season) when they are a road dog of 3 points or less. The Knicks are 3-0 to the over in their L3 games because their defense has given up 117 points per game! We're not playing the over here as you can but the significance in that is that New York is 5-12 SU and ATS the L3 seasons when they enter a game on an "over streak" of 3 games or more. The lackluster play on that end of the floor will again cause the demise of the Knicks tonight and I expect the road dog to get the upset win. 10* DENVER NUGGETS plus the points Friday

Big Ten Network Smash - Rickenbach CBB Game #746 Thursday 10* Top Play Nebraska Cornhuskers (+) vs Wisconsin Badgers @ 9 ET - Looking at the rest of their regular season schedule, this is clearly the Cornhuskers "game of the year" and they've been known to rise up against quality competition. With this line moving all the way up to an 8.5 as of mid-morning on gameday we are capturing excellent line value here with a dangerous home dog. Nebraska is 6-1 ATS the last 7 times they have been a dog of 7 points or more. The last 5 times they were a dog of 7 points or more they have recorded the outright win 3 times! The Cornhuskers remaining home games don't include a single Big Ten team that currently has a wining record in conference action. In other words, this is indeed "the game" for Nebraska and they could be catching Wisconsin at the ideal time for an upset. The Badgers are off of a big home win versus Indiana and they have a tough home game with Northwestern on deck. This one game road "trip" is truly a dangerous spot in their schedule and the Badgers last 3 games featured two teams (Indiana and Illinois) certainly not known for their defense and another team (Rutgers) that is just a bad basketball team. With that said, the fact that Wiscy was held under 40.8% from the field in all 3 games and also shot horribly from three point land during this three-game stretch is a legitimate cause for concern. The way I see it, Wiscy is going to have to scratch and claw for a hard-fought victory here and they may not even escape with that. In a situation that has "upset" written all over it (keep in mind Huskers already upset Purdue, Maryland, and upset Hoosiers at Indiana) there is tremendous line value with the big points here. Look for the Cornhuskers to improve to 7-1 ATS the last 8 times they've been a dog of 7 points or more. 10* NEBRASKA plus the points Thursday night

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #708 Thursday 10* Top Play Dallas Mavericks (+) vs Utah Jazz @ 8:35 ET - The Jazz are off of a huge win last night at New Orleans. That makes this a tough back to back spot for Utah and the Jazz are on a 1-6 ATS run in the 2nd night of back to backs. They face a Dallas team that has been playing much better of late and was off last night. The scheduling and situational edge is big here for the Mavericks who are on an 11-3 ATS run. The Mavs are playing this game with home loss revenge and Dallas has gone a fantastic 8-2 ATS when playing with home loss revenge this season. Look for the Mavericks to tighten things up defensively after allowing 114 to the Trail Blazers in a one point loss Tuesday. The Mavs are 12-6 ATS this season when off of a game where they allowed 105 points or more. After this game against a Western Conference foe, the Mavericks won't face another team from their conference for two weeks. Couple that with the home loss revenge factor as well as the back to back spot for Utah and you have the perfect situational advantages that dictate playing on the Mavericks in this one. They are off of back to back losses and haven't lost three straight since early January. Look for the Mavs to get back on track with a W here. 10* DALLAS MAVERICKS plus the points Thursday night

Hidden Gem - Rickenbach CBB Game #739 Thursday 8* Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (+) @ UTSA Roadrunners @ 8 ET - Make no mistake about it the Golden Eagles are not a very good basketball team. However, UTSA truly isn't much better and, from a situational standpoint, the Roadrunners are due for a major letdown here. The Runners just played one of their best games of the season in a home win over UAB on Saturday. It was an aberration. UTSA shot lights out after having been held to an average of about 35% from the field in their five prior games. This team just doesn't have much offense and, after a fluke game, look for them to quickly come back down to earth. In fact, the Roadrunners straight-up record is 1-14 the past three seasons when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Prior to the win over the Blazers the Runners last 6 wins had featured 5 victories by 6 points or less. In other words, the fact that UTSA is laying about a half dozen points here is certainly not insignificant. The Golden Eagles already crushed the Roadrunners at Southern Miss in early January by 18 points. UTSA is 3-8 ATS as a favorite the past 3 seasons. The Golden Eagles certainly have some ugly SU records in recent seasons but they are 20-11 ATS when off of a loss in CUSA action. That said, I love grabbing the big points here with the Eagles off of a home loss and the Roadrunners off of a big upset win. 8* SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI GOLDEN EAGLES plus the points Thursday evening

Big Ten Network Smash - Rickenbach CBB Game #562 Wednesday 10* Top Play Minnesota Golden Gophers (-) vs Iowa Hawkeyes @ 9 ET - Good spot for Minnesota here. The Golden Gophers have gone through a tough stretch but 4 of their 6 games were on the road. They did get back on track with a solid road win at Illinois Saturday and that was a big confidence booster for Minnesota. They had suffered a number of tight recent losses with their last 4 defeats coming by an average of 4 points per game. Now they are off of a win, back at home, and hosting an Iowa team that just isn't what it use to be and yet the Golden Gophers are currently looking up in the standings at the Hawkeyes. Minnesota's defense got back on track against the Illini and they'll be fired up about turning up the pressure on their home court to make up for a tight loss to Maryland in their most recent home game. Keep in mind the Golden Gophers two most recent home games were against a ranked Terrapins team and a ranked Wisconsin team. Prior to losing those 2 home games Minnesota was 12-1 at home with their only loss coming in overtime versus Michigan State. The Gophers will now take advantage of facing a lesser foe (in comparison with Badgers and Terps) and I look for them to get a big home win here. Iowa is off of a home win against Nebraska but the Hawkeyes are 2-7 away from home this season. Though they did win their most recent road game that was against a bad Rutgers team. The Hawkeyes lost each of their four prior road games in Big Ten action and the defeats came by an average margin of 18 points per loss! Before the win over a bad Scarlet Knights team, Iowa was winless both SU and ATS in true road games this season! The Golden Gophers last 8 wins have featured 7 victories by 7 points or more and this one is well within being a manageable number to lay with the hungry home team seeking revenge for a tight road loss at Iowa last season. 10* MINNESOTA

Conference Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #515 Wednesday 8* Utah Jazz (-) @ New Orleans Pelicans @ 8:05 ET - Utah has won 10 of its last 13 games including 3 straight. Most impressive about the current 3-game run is the fact that the Jazz have won the games by an average margin of 16 points per game. Utah is one of the top defensive teams in the league and they'll now take advantage of facing a team that has definitely been heading the wrong direction when it comes to level of play on the defensive end. The Pelicans have allowed an average of 114 points per game in their last 9 games. New Orleans is hosting a Jazz team that is allowing only 95.4 points per game on the season! Utah also has a great rest edge here as they are playing only their 4th game in the last 11 days! Conversely, the Pelicans are playing their 6th game in the past 11 days. New Orleans is 2-5 SU and ATS against Northwest Division foes this season. The Jazz are 24-5 SU against teams with a losing record this season. That said, with this line only a couple buckets, I'll gladly take the "risk" of laying the short number here because the Jazz are also 10-1 SU (and 7-4 ATS) as a road favorite of 3.5 to 6 points the past 3 seasons combined. 8* UTAH JAZZ

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #518 Wednesday 10* Top Play Minnesota Timberwolves (+) vs Toronto Raptors @ 8:05 ET - This is the classic case of the ugly home dog. Few will want Minnesota here as they recently lost PG Zach LaVine to season-ending injury and the Timberwolves come into this game having lost 4 straight. However, Minny is fired up for responding here after their defense let them down in their most recent game, a tight home loss to a red hot Miami team. The T-wolves caught an earful from their head coach about playing well on BOTH ends of the floor just one and Minnesota will be ready to go here. Keep in mind, the Timberwolves had held 3 of their 4 prior opponents under 45% from the field. Even though Toronto enters this game off of back to back wins, they faced a Clippers team struggling without Chris Paul and they faced the Nets (one of the worst teams in the league). Prior to those wins the Raptors had lost 8 of its last 10 and they're still trying to "work out the kinks" as they welcome back players who had missed some time due to injury. The home team has won each of the last 3 meetings between these teams and Toronto is playing their 3rd game in 4 nights and each game has been in a different city. Against teams with a losing record the Raptors have failed to cover 4 of its last 6. The Timberwolves, seeking revenge for a loss at Toronto in December, are 7-4 SU and ATS in home games with a posted total of 210 or more. Also, when Minny enters a game off of 3 or more consecutive losses, they are 7-2 ATS this season. Being a contrarian generally pays off well and I love fading the line move in this particular situation that favors the home dog! 10* MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #528 Wednesday 8* Tennessee Volunteers (-) vs Ole Miss Rebels @ 6:30 ET - This line has gone from a -7 to a -5 and is offering exceptional line value on Tennessee at home. The Volunteers are off of a road loss at Mississippi State but they had previously won and covered 4 straight games. Even in the loss to the Bulldogs the Vols played great defense and they have held 4 straight opponents to 41.7% or less from the field. The set up is nice as the Volunteers are catching the Rebels off of a road win at Vanderbilt. Though that makes it back to back wins for Ole Miss, lets not forget that they have not managed to win three straight games since prior to Christmas. It is unlikely that the Rebels change that here as they'll face a fired up Tennessee team off of a loss and Ole Miss had lost 6 of 9 before winning their past two games. The fact that one of those 3 Rebels wins came over the Vols just adds to the revenge factor here for Tennessee as the Volunteers also suffered an embarrassing home loss to Ole Miss last season. That doesn't happen often and that 23 point home loss in early March last season is the type of defeat any team would be hungry to avenge. The Vols, with the way they had been playing prior to the loss at Mississippi State Saturday, are in the perfect spot for a big bounce back here. I am looking for the Volunteers to improve to 5-0 ATS the last 5 times they are off of a game where they scored 69 points or less. They've covered 4 straight in that situation dating back to the latter half of November. At the same time, look for Ole Miss to drop to 0-4 SU and ATS this season in Wednesday games. 8* TENNESSEE

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #725 Tuesday 10* Top Play Western Michigan Broncos (-) @ Miami-Ohio Redhawks @ 7 ET - I lost with the Broncos on Friday and had my eyes on this match-up as the perfect spot to get some payback with Western Michigan. Keep in mind the Broncos played very well at Central Michigan Friday but then gave up a huge game-ending run to the Chippewas and lost the game by 4 as a 3.5 point dog. This was certainly a tough beat for the Broncos (and for me) but they've now had 3 full days since then to get fired up for a shot at redemption. Keep in mind this is a Western Michigan team that is still winless (0-9 SU) on the road this season! That said, one need not be concerned that there is anything wrong with this line. The Broncos are favored for a number of reasons. They are fired up after the way they lost at Central Michigan. They are ready to exact revenge against a Miami-Ohio team that beat them last year at Western Michigan in an ugly 45-44 game. The Broncos did defeat the Redhawks by a double digit margin in their most recent visit here. Miami-Ohio has faced a weaker schedule in comparison with the Broncos and yet the Redhawks are on an ugly 1-8 SU run. In home games the Redhawks have been held under 38% in each of their past two games and they averaged just 59.5 points in those two games and these were at home! The Broncos come in having shot 50% or better in 3 of their last 4 road games. Western Michigan's last two road games this season are at Toledo and Northern Illinois and, though they certainly are not looking ahead you can bet they are fully aware that this game at Miami-Ohio represents their best shot at notching a road victory. No team wants to go 0-fer on the road for an entire season and the Broncos last 5 road losses have seen 4 come by a margin of 7 points or less. As they proved at Central Michigan, Western Michigan is on the cusp of getting that elusive road win and this is the perfect spot to do just that. I'll gladly lay the small number with a hungry road team that is ready to blast a struggling opponent. 10* WESTERN MICHIGAN minus the short number early Tuesday evening 

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CBB Game #533 Monday 8* Kansas Jayhawks (-) @ Kansas State Wildcats @ 9 ET - Off of a home loss in OT versus Iowa State, look for Kansas to respond in a huge way. Home losses are particularly rare for the Jayhawks under head coach Bill Self and Kansas has a history of responding when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. In fact, the past three seasons combined the Jayhawks have gone 10-0 SU (and 8-2 ATS) when off of a game where they gave up 80 points or more. Long-term Kansas is 71-13 SU (and 52-25 ATS) after allowing 80+ points. The Jayhawks are also 7-0 SU this season in games with a posted total in the 140s and, with this line all the way down to a -3, any SU win for Kansas is quite likely to be an ATS win as well. I love the line value here backing a 20-3 Jayhawks team off of a rare loss. Yes, this is a rivalry game and Kansas State is likely to bring a strong effort tonight but the Wildcats are 4-15 SU (and 5-14 ATS) in their last 19 home games with Kansas! They just have proven to be no match for their rivals even when they have the home court edge. Also, in this season's match-up it has to be concern for Kansas State that they have been held to 68 points or less in 7 of their last 12 games. The Wildcats have gone 5-6 ATS during this stretch and they just don't have the firepower on offense to keep up with a Jayhawks team that is averaging 84 points per game on the season. By the way, Kansas State is off of an upset win at Baylor and the Wildcats have gone 7-11 ATS (and 5-13 SU) when off of a win over a conference foe. 8* KANSAS JAYHAWKS minus the short number Monday night

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #505 Monday 8* Oklahoma City Thunder (+) @ Indiana Pacers @ 7:05 ET - Even though Oklahoma City burned me yesterday with their tight win over Portland I am actually playing on the Thunder in this spot. While it may seem like a good spot to fade OKC off of a win and now traveling for a back to back, there is plenty of good reason as to why this line is on a downward move from as high as 5 down to as low as 3.5 at some books. Even though this is a back to back spot for the Thunder, they will be playing their 3rd game in 4 nights just like the Pacers are. Even though Indiana was off yesterday they had played games back to back the 2 prior days and a big key here is they are in a lookahead spot. This is a non-conference match-up for the the Pacers and they are much more concerned with their big game Wednesday (hosting the division rival and defending champ Cavaliers) than they are with this game. As for OKC, this is their only road game in the 1st 12 days of this month so this one has their full focus and attention. Also, the road team has taken each of the last 3 meetings between these clubs and that includes the Pacers winning at Oklahoma City earlier this season. The Thunder have payback on their minds here and they have absolutely been dominating the boards in recent games. Conversely, Indiana has been out-rebounded in 3 of its last 5 games. The Thunder are 4-1 ATS this season when playing with home loss revenge, 3-0 ATS when a road dog in a range of 3.5 to 6 points, and 7-1 ATS when off of a divisional game! The Pacers are 11-17 ATS in games with a posted total of 210 points or more. 8* OKLAHOMA CITY plus the points early Monday evening.

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #525 Monday 8* Louisville Cardinals (+) vs Virginia Cavaliers @ 7 ET - The Cavaliers were as a low as a 3 point favorite when lines first came out yesterday on this game. Of course that doesn't make sense when you consider that Virginia is at home for this game, off of a loss, Louisville is down two guards, and the Cavaliers have dominated this series. The line has now jumped to as high as a 6 and, in typical contrarian fashion, I am going against the move. Even though a number of the Cards recent opponents have been of the "lesser" variety, winning breeds confidence and Louisville has now averaged 93.7 points per game in going a perfect 3-0 in their last 3 games. The Cardinals are knocking down shots and coach Rick Pitino will make adjustments after Louisville made some critical "scheme errors" in the home loss to the Cavaliers earlier this season. Make no mistake about it, Virginia is a quality team that plays fantastic defense but I expect the Cardinals to get their revenge here. The Cavs loss at Syracuse drops them to just 6-4 in their 10 games since winning at Louisville earlier this season. Both teams are on short rest here but the Cavs are 5-10 ATS when playing on short rest. Also, with a low total posted on this game don't be surprised when Virginia finds it tough to create any type of separation in this game. In home games with a posted total in the 120s the Cavaliers are on a 4-8 ATS run. The Louisville offense is hot and they won't shoot 14% from three point land like they did in the first match-up. In fact, the Cardinals are 7-1 (SU and ATS!) this season when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. 8* LOUISVILLE CARDINALS plus the points early Monday evening

Rickenbach NFL 10* Top Play Atlanta Falcons (+) vs New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI @ 6:30 ET Sunday - The Patriots have only gained 155 yards on 54 carries in this post-season. The Falcons have not only gained 200 yards on 59 carries in the post-season, their rushing attack was stronger at the end of the regular season too. Atlanta has averaged 148.4 yards per game on the ground over their last 5 games. The reason I am talking so much about the ground game here is because I do feel it could be a key in this game. Both teams are led by tremendous quarterbacks with Tom Brady for the Patriots and Matt Ryan for the Falcons and each head coach knows the key to winning this game is keeping those guys off of the field. That said, a heavy dose of ground game is likely to be key from both sides here and I expect Atlanta to enjoy more success on the ground which could be the key here. Another angle I like is certainly the underdog mentality (hunger) of the Falcons here and the fact that QB Ryan has faced the Pats just twice in his career (2009 and 2013) and Atlanta lost both match-ups. Not only is it double revenge in that regard but Falcons coach Dan Quinn was the defensive coordinator with Seattle when the Seahawks faced the Patriots two years ago in the Super Bowl. Keep in mind Seattle was up 24-14 through 3 quarters in that game before the Pats rallied for the win in the 4th quarter. That experience will help Quinn here and the Falcons are "only" a 3 point dog here with good reason. This is an excellent football team and the Patriots strength of schedule this year has not been as strong as Atlanta's schedule. Also, for all that is made of how "dominant" the Patriots are (and certainly their amazing seasons and overall playoff performances are noteworthy) they are only 4-4 in their 8 Super Bowl appearances and the 4 wins have ALL come by 4 points or less. The aforementioned win over Seattle was the only 4 point win and the other 3 all came by just 3 points. Of course the Patriots are the "popular choice" here due to the public loving to back the "been there, done that" mentality but I really like the Quinn angle here against the Pats and the fact that New England is without Gronkowski and the fact that Atlanta will play up the underdog "us against the world" mentality for this game. QB Ryan has had a phenomenal season and, with all due respect to Brady, the Falcons weapons at the skill positions (guys like Julio Jones just to name one) are likely to be the ones that make the big plays necessary to win this game. I'll grab the points because in 8 Super Bowls the Patriots have only one win by more than 3 points so certainly there is value in having the field goal on our side BUT certainly I am playing this expecting the outright win for the underdog. 10* ATLANTA FALCONS plus the points

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #865 Sunday 10* Top Play Colorado Buffaloes (+) @ California Golden Bears @ 4:30 ET - There is a lot of value with the points here. Colorado is off of 3 straight wins. After a 10-3 start to the season the Buffaloes then lost 7 straight but they've responded by rattling off 3 wins. It was evident the Buffs might be about to turn the corner as 4 of their past 6 defeats had come by 3 points or less. Of course what that means is that the Buffaloes, if priced at the point spread range they are in today, would be 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games. Ultra competitive Colorado has indeed turned the corner and they now take on a Cal team that, although winning, continues to be gauged incorrectly by the markets. California has won 6 of its last 7 games but they enter this Sunday match-up on a 1-5 ATS run. The Golden Bears were held to 40.3% in their tight non-covering win over Utah on Thursday. That marked the 7th time in their last 11 games that Cal was held under 40.4% from the field. Not surprisingly they've gone 4-7 ATS during this stretch and they now take on a Colorado team that is averaging 78 points per game (and shooting 45.8% in conference action). Compare this to California who is averaging just 69 points (and shooting 42.5% in PAC-12 action). The Golden Bears are just 5-12 ATS as a favorite this season. Also, over the past 3 seasons combined, Cal is 15-24 ATS in games with a posted total in the 130s. The Bears will struggle to create much separation on the scoreboard in this one as Colorado is a dangerous dog. The Buffaloes have a 25-11 SU record the past 3 seasons combined when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. The Buffs roll into Cal with plenty of confidence and this one should go down to the wire with an outright win for the underdog (surging with confidence) certainly not out of the question. 10* Top Play COLORADO BUFFALOES plus the points Sunday afternoon

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Game #855 Sunday 10* Top Play Portland Trail Blazers (+) @ Oklahoma City Thunder @ 3:05 ET - This series has been dominated by the home team in recent match-ups but there are number of indicators pointing to an upset in this one. Portland comes into this one having gone 4-2 SU and ATS in their last 6 games. One key for the Trail Blazers, in comparison with the Thunder, has been turnovers. In their last 5 games, the Blazers have turned the ball over only 9.6 times per game. Conversely, Oklahoma City has turned the ball over an average of 16.2 times per game in their last 6 games.  In 2 of their last 3 games the Thunder have turned it over 20 times. OKC enters this game having gone 1-3 SU and ATS in their last 4 games. The Thunder have been held to 38% or less from the field in 3 of their last 4 games. The Trail Blazers have been consistently at the other end of the spectrum of late. Portland is averaging 47% from the field over their last 6 games and has not been held below 45% in any of those games. This is also a tough scheduling spot for the Thunder as it's the 4th game of a stretch of 5 games in 7 days which is never easy on a team. As for the Blazers, this is one of only two games they have in the first 6 days of this month. Oklahoma City was a small home dog versus Memphis and the Thunder are an ugly 7-11 ATS when off of an upset win as an underdog. The Trail Blazers have excelled in divisional games with a 27-11 SU mark the past 3 seasons combined and they are 4-2 ATS in divisional games this season. 10* PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS plus the points Sunday

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #863 Sunday 8* Nebraska Cornhuskers (+) @ Iowa Hawkeyes @ 2 ET - Peter Jok, Iowa's leading scorer, is likely to return for today's game and that is actually even more reason to back Nebraska here! Why? No disrespect intended to Jok as the 6'6 senior is a great player overall but, the fact remains, he has been struggling and I don't expect him to return from these back issues and immediately be shooting "lights out". In fact, he could actually hurt his team if he's still playing the way he was before missing the last two games. Jok's final three games (all losses) saw him make just 9 of 30 shots and average only 9.3 points per game! The Hawkeyes have now won their past two games without him but now he returns and Iowa goes from facing a bad Rutgers team to facing a respectable Cornhuskers team. Although Nebraska is off of a loss and has been on the wrong end of some tight games lately, note that the Huskers are 5-6 in their last 11 games with 4 of the 6 losses by single digits including two of them by just a single point. Teams have been knocking down a lot of threes on Nebraska but Iowa had been held to 31% or less from beyond the arc in 5 of their last 6 games before they finally game up big in these last two games and, again, Jok missed both of those games. In conference games, Nebraska has the better numbers on defense in comparison with Iowa. Also, the Cornhuskers are 5-2 ATS on the road this season. The Hawkeyes are 0-4 ATS in the short-term and 11-20 ATS in the long-term when they are a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points. The Cornhuskers have played a slightly tougher strength of schedule this season too and, even though this is a revenge spot for the Hawkeyes, I look for it to be another very close game like the first one was and there is great value with the points here as the Huskers could very well get the upset here. 8* NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS plus the points early Sunday

Game of the Week - Rickenbach CBB Game #675 Saturday - 10* Top Play St John's Red Storm (+) @ Villanova @ 8 ET - The Red Storm are much improved this season and yet they are still flying under the radar which is why we're able to get exceptional line value in a spot like this. Villanova has failed to cover 4 straight games and has appeared shaky of late with an upset loss at Marquette, a fortunate win versus Virginia, and then having to rally to hold off Providence. The Wildcats just aren't "in the zone" like the way earlier this season in terms of playing their best basketball. With that said, this is a tough spot for the Cats to be expected to cover a large spread because St John's is playing their best basketball of the season and the confidence is enough to make them a legitimate threat to hang around in this game. While the Red Storm have been much better offensively than in year's past the key indicator that makes St John's dangerous here is a "buy in" into playing better on defense. After a win at Providence that was a shootout and then a tight home loss to Xavier, the Red Storm finally realized they must play better defense if they want to win the big games and they looked sharp in their win over Marquette as they held the dangerous shooting of the Golden Eagles to just 37.1% from the field. The Red Storm have now covered three straight games and with St John's on ATS winning streak and the Wildcats slumping at the betting window, this is the perfect spot to grab the value with the big dog before the betting markets catch up. Keep in mind, Villanova is 1-4 ATS in recent seasons (and 20-40 ATS long-term) when they enter a game on an ATS losing streak of 3 games or more. The point is that the Wildcats are well-known for being a streaky team and they just are not playing "crisp" basketball right now like they were at times earlier in the season. As for the Red Storm, they are 9-5 ATS against teams with a winning record and they are 3-1 ATS (and SU!) when playing with home loss revenge this season. Now I certainly don't foresee them getting the outright upset here but I do expect the surging Red Storm to keep this game much closer than many are expecting. 10* Top Play ST JOHN'S plus the big points Saturday evening.

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #505 Saturday 10* Top Play New Orleans Pelicans (+) @ Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - This is one of my typical contrarian plays as certainly the line had to look a little "funny" to most when the hot Wizards opened up as only an 8 point choice even though they are at home against a slumping Pelicans team. Of course, whenever line look a little "off" it merits additional investigation and, in this case, I certainly like what I found. The Wizards are off of their non-covering win over the Lakers and have a huge game on deck with the Cavaliers. This is clearly a tough scheduling spot for Washington. Look for the Wizards to look right past a 19-31 New Orleans team that they've dominated in recent meetings. That makes the Pelicans a very dangerous dog in this spot. New Orleans is off of an ugly effort at Detroit and that was their 3rd straight SU loss. However, the Pelicans had gone 11-6 ATS prior to that non-cover against the Pistons and, after losing by 20, I look for N.O. to come out with plenty of fire in this one. New Orleans is 15-9 ATS in non-conference games this season and has played a tougher overall schedule than Washington this season. Look for the old West vs East disparity to play a factor in this one as well as, generally, the Western Conference teams face tougher competition than the East. The Wizards get caught looking ahead to the Cavs. 10* NEW ORLEANS plus the big points Saturday evening

Afternoon Annihilation - Rickenbach CBB Game #682 Saturday 8* Cincinnati Bearcats (-) vs Connecticut Huskies @ 4 ET - Even though the points look big here, it is absolutely a justified line. The Huskies are in a "down season". Yes, UConn has rattled off 3 straight wins but those came against the 3 worst teams in the AAC - East Carolina, South Florida, and Tulane. Now the Huskies have to deal with a Cincinnati team that has revenge on its mind in this one. Connecticut is known for giving the Bearcats trouble and Cincy was clearly looking ahead to this game when they barely got by Tulsa earlier this week. The Cats have been knocked out of tourney action in March by the Huskies each of the past two years and last season's was a crazy multiple-overtime marathon finish. Cincy will simply not allow the Huskies to hang around in this game Saturday and, because of the revenge angle, the Bearcats also won't take their foot off of the gas once they are up big. In other words, though we're laying around a dozen points in this one, I don't expect that to be an issue at all. The Bearcats have tremendous depth this season while the thin Huskies are dealing with a number of injury issues. UConn has already lost to SMU and Houston by an average of 18 points per game and a road trip to Cincy where the Cats have won 21 straight games, will prove to be just as tough as those games if not tougher! Connecticut is 1-4 ATS in games against teams averaging 77 points or more this season and simply won't be able to keep up here. The Bearcats are on a 22-3 SU run (and 14-8 ATS) when off of a game where they were held to 60 points or less. After barely getting by Tulsa in an ugly game Wednesday, Cincy comes out firing on all cylinders on both ends of the floor for this one. 8* CINCINNATI

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #521 Saturday 8* Seton Hall Pirates (+) @ Georgetown Hoyas @ Noon ET - This is a must win for the Pirates as they are coming off of back to back losses and have simply lost too many close games in Big East action so far this season. The two defeats came at the hands of two quality teams - Butler and Xavier - and Seton Hall now takes a step down in terms of level of opposition to battle Georgetown. Although the Hoyas are off of three straight wins, the victories came against a Creighton team without their star point guard and then a tight win at Butler and a win over Big East cellar dweller DePaul. Georgtown had lost 6 of 8 before this 3-game winning streak and the Hoyas defense has allowed 73 points or more in 4 of last 5 games. The Pirates recent tough schedule caught up with them but they've still allowed just 69.4 points per game in their last 5 games and that included a battle with Villanova when they were still the #1 team in the country. Seton Hall can leapfrog the Hoyas in the standings with a victory today and, off of back to back losses, the Pirates are going to bring their "A game" for this one. They won both games against Georgetown last season and are on a 17-7 SU (and 17-6 ATS) run in Saturday games. The Hoyas are on an 8-16 ATS run when off of a win in conference action. 8* SETON HALL

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Game #855 Friday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (-) @ Brooklyn Nets @ 7:35 ET - This is a classic case of two teams heading in opposite directions so the only concern in laying the points would have to be motivation. But you can also "check the box" on that factor as well - for multiple reasons - and that is why I am laying the points with the Pacers in this one. Even though Indiana has a home game with Detroit on deck there is no way they'll look past the Nets here. That's because the Pacers have lost their last two visits to Brooklyn including their lone match-up there this season. That was Indiana's road opener and started a stretch of 5 straight road losses to begin the season. The other key factor is that the Pacers have been getting tremendous production of late from Paul George but he was held to a season-low 8 points at Orlando Wednesday and Indiana still won the game by double digits. That tells us two things as it relates to tonight's game: the Pacers supporting cast is fully capable of stepping up on an off night for George AND look for one of the NBA's best players to absolutely "go off" tonight with a huge game against one of the worst teams in the league. The Nets come into this game having gone 1-18 SU in their last 19 games. Brooklyn is also 4-14 ATS in their last 18 games. This is in stark contrast to a Pacers club that has won 11 of its last 15 games SU and has gone 4-0 ATS in its last 4 games. When Indiana enters a game on a winning streak of 3 games or more they've gone 3-1 ATS this season. When Brooklyn enters a game on a losing streak of 3 games or more, they've gone 6-16 ATS this season. The Pacers have beaten the Nets by a combined 33 points in their last two home meetings but they've lost their last two road meetings by a combined 19 points and it is time for some road revenge here. 10* INDIANA PACERS minus the points

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #883 Friday 8* Western Michigan Broncos (+) @ Central Michigan Chippewas @ 6:30 ET - As long-time followers know, I love to be a contrarian and this is one of those spots that is just daring bettors to invest in Western Michigan which is precisely why I am grabbing the Broncos in this spot. Note that Western Michigan is 0-12 away from home this season and Central Michigan is 9-1 at home. Overall on the season the Chippewas are 14-8 so far and the Broncos are 7-14. When you consider these factors and the fact that the Chips are at home for this game then you wonder how in the world can the Chippewas only have opened as a 4 point favorite here. Of course, as the saying goes, "the devil is in the details" and that is the key here. The Broncos have played a much tougher schedule than have the Chips this season. Also, Western Michigan is the better shooting team and Central Michigan has been held to 40.5% or less from the field in 3 of its last 5 games. The Chippewas also have a negative rebound differential while the Broncos have a positive edge in caroms off the glass on the season. Western Michigan is off of a win but gave up big points and they are 13-7 ATS when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. The Broncos are also 5-1 ATS in Friday games, 9-3 ATS in games against teams with a winning record, and 8-1 ATS this season in their games against teams averaging 77 points or more. Western Michigan needs a W here to draw even with the Chippewas in the MAC West so there is no shortage of motivation here. Also, the Broncos are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 against the Chips and also have 3 straight SU wins over Central Michigan. The Chippewas are 4-7 ATS this season when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more and they are a long-term 6-14 ATS in Friday games. 8* WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS plus the points

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #701 Thursday 10* Top Play Los Angeles Lakers (+) @ Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The Wizards have won 15 straight home games which is the longest current home winning streak in the NBA. The Lakers have won only 5 road games this season which is fewer than any other team in the Western Conference. The combination of these two factors is likely going to have many jumping all over Washington in this one but this situation favors Los Angeles and I'll gladly grab the big points here. While the Lakers will be playing just their 2nd game in the past 7 days, the Wizards will be playing their 4th game in 7 days. Also it is easy for Washington to overlook a 17-34 team like the Lakers. I wouldn't be surprised to see a slow start for the Wizards in this one and though they should pull out the win in the end it is likely going to be by single digits as the Lakers are going to given them a tough game. Los Angeles welcomed back D'Angelo Russell in their most recent game and got the win over Denver Tuesday. Also, the Lakers could have Julius Randle back tonight. Whether Randle is back or not, I like the fact that LA has some momentum coming in off of their win over the Nuggets and I also like the fact that 4 of the Lakers last 5 defeats have come by 8 points or less. The Lakers last road trip started horribly with a bad loss at Dallas but that is the only game in their last 7 games that has resulted in a loss by more than 8 points. Lakers are playing better and are fully focused as they want to get this 5-game road trip started on the right foot. The fresher legs will prove to help as well as they had 4 days off before that victory over Denver. It is going to be difficult for a superior Eastern Conference foe to maintain their intensity against a Pacific Division opponent. In fact, the Lakers have gone 5-2 ATS this season (and 17-9 ATS the past 3 seasons) in games against Southeast Division foes. They "sneak up" on the Wizards here and end their 10-0 ATS run! 10* LOS ANGELES LAKERS

NBC Sports Network Rout - Rickenbach NHL Game #2 Wednesday 8* Washington Capitals Puck Line -1.5 goals +180 vs Boston Bruins @ 8:05 ET - This is a great spot for the Caps but as long-time followers know I am not fond of laying big juice. Simply too much risk involved in the long run so I avoid, almost without exception, ever laying big money lines in MLB and NHL. That said, in certain situations the run line in MLB or puck line in NHL can make for a great value line to get involved in a game that should be a blowout. In this case, the Capitals are off of a loss but saved their All-Star goalie, Braden Holtby, for tonight's game while the Bruins are off of a win but they used their #1 netminder Tuukka Rask in last night's victory. Holtby has been fantastic against the Bruins with a 10-2 mark and a 1.69 GAA and .948 save percentage versus Boston. Washington had won 13 of 15 games before last night's loss and the Capitals last 8 wins have featured 7 victories by a margin of 3 goals or more. That said, I'll gladly lay the 1.5 goals here to have a shot at a +180 payback on my dollar. The Bruins are in a bad goal-tending spot with having to either start Rask on a rare, back-to-back or to go with a back-up netminder. This gives the Caps a huge edge in goal for tonight's match-up and, keep in mind, Washington has scored an average of 4.5 goals per game in their last 16 games! Boston has scored better of late but Holtby is tough between the pipes and the Bruins, before this 3-game winning streak had last four straight games and had been held to 1 goal or less in 3 of the 4 games. The Bruins have lost 7 of 8 back to backs this season and there is reason to believe this one will be a blowout defeat as the Capitals are fired up off of a loss. 8* WASHINGTON CAPITALS Puck Line

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #503 Wednesday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (-) @ Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - The Pacers are a much better home team than road team. There is no doubt about that. However, Indiana has won 10 of its last 14 games overall, including 3 in a row, and Paul George has been red hot and certainly seems to be rounding into top form again. The Pacers have won 3 of their last 5 road games and Orlando is only 8-15 at home this season. Even though the Magic just recently got Evan Fournier back, he'll take some time to round back into top form and the backcourt depth has been hurt with the absence of CJ Wilcox and Jodie Meeks. Indiana is 8-1 (SU and ATS!) in its last 9 meetings with the Magic and this is an Orlando team that enters this game having lost 13 of its last 17 games. All 13 losses for the Magic during this rough stretch have come by at least 6 points so the small point spread here certainly should not prove to be an obstacle. The Magic are 7-15-1 ATS in home games this season and have field to cover 2 of 7 as a home dog of 3 points or less. The Pacers are on a 4-1 ATS run when off of a game where they allowed 104 points or less. Orlando has been held to 98 points or less in regulation in 10 of its last 14 games. This is in stark contrast to a high-powered Indiana offense that has scored at least 100 points in 17 of its last 20 games. Lay the small number with the small road fave in this one. 10* INDIANA PACERS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #526 Wednesday 10* Top Play Indiana Hoosiers (-) vs Penn State Nittany Lions @ 6:30 ET - The Hoosiers are without James Blackmon Jr. and he is their leading scorer. However, after back to back road losses (including one without Blackmon at Northwestern Saturday), Indiana will respond at home. Certainly it helps the Hoosiers that they are back home but what also helps is that they played a game without him at Northwestern Saturday. Indiana played respectable defense in that game but they shot very poorly. The Hoosiers will get back on track at home as they still have a number of solid players that can "fill it up" as guys like Robert Johnson, Thomas Bryant, Josh Newkirk, and Juwan Morgan are all capable of getting double digits in points. Also, freshman Devonte Green is likely to shoot much better at home after the guard had a tough road game against the Wildcats in his first game with extended minutes due to the Blackmon injury. Penn State is off of a home win versus Illinois but they lost their past two road games by a combined 52 points! Before a rare strong shooting night versus the Illini, the Nittany Lions had been held under 38.9% in four straight games! Look for the Lions shooting struggles to resume on the road tonight. The Hoosiers, off of back to back losses, will bring the intensity on defense for this one and this is an Indiana team that has averaged 87.3 points per game at home this season. Even without Blackmon, the Hoosiers will be able to score plenty and knock off a Penn State team that does not travel well. Even though the Nittany Lions are playing this game with home loss revenge from a month ago, PSU is an ugly 2-11 SU and 4-9 ATS in their last 13 games played with home loss revenge! That includes 0-2 SU and ATS so far this season. Indiana is on a 44-6 SU run in home games and they've gone 8-4 ATS in home games this season. Of course we're getting supreme line value here on the Hoosiers because of the Blackmon injury. A line that first opened up at 9 is all the way down to a 6 and I'll gladly fade the move and grab the great line value with the home fave that is ready to step up tonight. Lay it! 10* INDIANA HOOSIERS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #703 Tuesday 8* New Orleans Pelicans (+) @ Toronto Raptors @ 7:05 ET - Toronto may be a popular choice here since they are off of a loss but I'll explain why, from a situational standpoint, the Raptors are actually in quite a tough spot here. First off though I just want to say that the Pelicans are the type of scrappy underdog I like to have a in a spot like this. New Orleans is coming off of a bad home loss to Washington but the Pelicans were off of a big win versus the Spurs in their prior game so losing to the Wizards was not a big surprise. Prior to knocking off San Antonio, the Pelicans lost to Oklahoma City by single digits and that game followed a New Orleans upset of Cleveland so they truly have been a tough "out" of late and they catch the Raptors at a good time to spring the upset. Toronto has a game on deck at Boston tomorrow night. Of course the Raptors are currently neck and neck with the Celtics at the top of the Atlantic Division so it's hard for Toronto to not get caught looking ahead here. That said, the Raptors weren't necessarily a lock to win this game even if they didn't have a lookahead. Toronto has lost 6 of its last 7 games and they now host a New Orleans team off of a loss and looking for revenge after getting swept by the Raptors last season - lost each game by at least 19 points! The Pelicans had shot 46% or better from the field in 6 of their last 10 games before the loss to the Wizards. By comparison, the struggling Raptors haven't shot better than 45.6% in ANY of their last SEVEN games! The revenge seeking dog, off of a loss, facing a struggling home fave in a lookhead spot, is absolutely the play here. 8* NEW ORLEANS

Early Blowout - Rickenbach CBB Game #726 Tuesday 10* Top Play Bowling Green Falcons (-) vs Miami-Ohio Redhawks @ 7 ET - Ugly records here overall for both teams but that doesn't diminish the importance of this game to either school as this is a big rivalry match-up. From a situational perspective, this one sets up perfectly for the Falcons. Bowling Green is off of an embarrassing home loss but the key was that 4 players were suspended before that game. Two were starters including the Falcons leading scorer. How diminished was the BG roster? They actually suited up two football players just so that they could have 9 players available and one of those was a walk-on. The point is that the 96-72 home loss was not a surprise given the circumstances but the key is how that impacts this game. It probably kept this line a little lower than it should be and I expect Bowling Green to come out with a ton of fire and emotion after what happened Saturday. The Falcons are hosting a Redhawks team that is 0-8 on the road this season. Also, Miami-Ohio comes into this game having lost 6 of its last 7 overall. 6 of their 8 road losses this season have come by 7 points or more! The Falcons have won 7 of their last 10 home games and 5 of the last 6 home wins have come by double digit margins and none of the 6 victories came by less than 5 points. Look for the Redhawks to drop to 7-12 ATS when they are off of a game where they were held to 60 points or less while the Falcons improve to 4-0 ATS when this season when they are off of a game where they allowed 83 points or more. 10* BOWLING GREEN

ESPN Early Blowout - Rickenbach CBB Game #511 Monday 8* Duke Blue Devils (+) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish @ 7 ET - You would have to look long and hard to find many recent situations where Duke is playing with triple revenge but that is the case here. The Fighting Irish have knocked the Blue Devils out of the ACC Tourney each of the past two seasons and, in their only regular season match-up in between Notre Dame also won and that game was at Duke! That said, the Blue Devils would love nothing more than to return the favor by knocking off the Irish on their home floor tonight. There is certainly no shortage of motivation as, in addition to the triple revenge factor, the Blue Devils are currently looking up at Notre Dame in the ACC standings! Indeed it has been some trying times for Duke with Coach K missing time, etc. However, this is still - of course! - a high quality team that is loaded with talent and they're getting about as healthy as they have been all season long. Though they are off of a non-covering win, the victory at Wake Forest Saturday was still a big one for Duke as they'll now be seeking their 3rd win in 4 games tonight and it is important for the confidence of the young Blue Devils that they showed a lot of grit and determination in rising up to knock off the Demon Deacons on the road in a close game. The Fighting Irish had been rolling in close games but Notre Dame has now lost three of its last four games including 2 by 3 points or less. They're starting to question themselves internally and that makes this a bad time to be hosting one of the most talented teams in the country that also is motivated by being in the underdog role and playing with revenge. Duke is knocking down 48% of their shots in conference action while Notre Dame has been held to 44.6% in ACC action and has particularly struggled (under 42%) in each of their last two games. The Blue Devils are 8-2 SU this season when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. The Fighting Irish are 0-3 ATS this season when they are off of a game where they scored 66 points or less. Also, Notre Dame is 6-13 ATS long-term in home games with a posted total in a range of 150 to 154.5 points. A lot of points expected here and the Blue Devils are the hotter shooting team while the Irish are slumping. 8* DUKE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #546 Monday 8* Philadelphia 76'ers (+) vs Sacramento Kings @ 7:35 ET - Many are fading the Sixers because this is a back to back spot and Joel Embiid, even though he didn't play yesterday, is listed as questionable for tonight due to knee soreness. However, the 76'ers have been playing well, even when Embiid has missed, and although this is a back to back spot for Philly the Kings scheduling situation is arguably worse. This game was rescheduled from November 30th when the court was unplayable due to too much moisture. The result is that this game is now near the tail-end of a lengthy Sacramento road trip. The Kings have a game at Houston tomorrow night that wraps up a stretch of 8 games in 12 days and all have been on the road! As for the Sixers, even though they are playing their 7th game in 11 days at least they are at home and they don't have a game tomorrow. Look for Philly to go "all out" in this game tonight. Yesterday the Sixers were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time as the Bulls were desperate for a win and had been "called out" by their coach, it was their first game that followed starters not starting, etc. Now the Sixers catch a road-weary Kings team that is off of a win and Philadelphia has revenge on its mind after falling just short against the Kings in Sacramento 5 weeks ago. Philly, even with yesterday's non-cover, is still a red-hot 12-3 ATS in its last 15 games. The Kings are a short road favorite here and let's not forget they were 4-11 SU in their last 15 games before eking out a win at Charlotte Saturday. The resurgent Sixers have been particularly tough at home where they have covered 7 in a row. Look for that 7-0 ATS run to add another W Monday. 8* PHILADELPHIA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #869 Sunday 10* Top Play South Florida Bulls (+) @ Cincinnati Bearcats @ 4 ET - The Bulls definitely fit the bill as an "ugly dog" as they are still winless in conference action while Cincinnati is undefeated in American Athletic Conference action. However, the set-up here is perfect for a South Florida team (playing a little better since coach change) to keep this one well within the inflated spread range. For the Bulls, this is an opportunity to go hard against a ranked conference foe. For the Bearcats, they just want to win and move on. The Cats are off of a huge win over Xavier in their city rivalry game that just took place Thursday. Not only was that a big win for the Bearcats, Cincinnati has a road game up next with Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane only have 2 losses in conference action and will present a formidable challenge for the Cats. With that said, this is a true "sandwich spot" as Cincy is off of a tight, emotional win over a city rival and has a big road conference game on deck. Even if the Bearcats do get up big in this game there is simply no reason to "pour it on" and I see this game being decided by no more than 18 points. Cincy blew out the Bulls in their most recent match-up but the two prior games were Bearcats wins by an average margin of just 4 points a game. South Florida is on a 12-4 ATS run as a road dog of 12.5 points or more. The Bulls have shot the ball a little better and averaged 63 points per game in their last 6 games and if they hit that average the Bearcats would have to get to nearly 90 points to cover in this one. That has only happened once in Cincinnati's last 8 games. Grab the big points in this one. 10* SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #850 Sunday 10* Top Play Villanova Wildcats (-) vs Virginia Cavaliers @ 1 ET - The Cavaliers are known for their defense but they've actually allowed opponents to connect in the mid-forties from the field over their last 8 games - basically since conference action got underway. The Wildcats aren't quite as heralded for their defense but yet, prior to the upset loss at Marquette, they had allowed only about 40% from the field over their last 10 games. Villanova is fired up to respond after a very rare poor shooting night resulted in a loss to the Golden Eagles. The Wildcats shot a ridiculous 17.6% from three point land. The Cavaliers, again even though known for defending well, had struggled against the three ball in their last 6 games prior to a dominating win at Notre Dame. With the Cavs off of that big win and the Cats off of an upset loss, this one sets up nice. We get some extra line value as a result of those most recent games and, keep in mind, the Wildcats are at home and are seeking revenge for a loss at Virginia last season. The Cats show the ball very well in five straight games before the loss in Milwaukee and they'll get right back on track here. Nova is 6-0 SU (and 5-1 ATS) when off of a loss to a conference foe. Also, the Cavs are 10-30 SU (and 15-25 ATS) as a road dog of 3.5 to 6 points. The Cavaliers are also on a long-term 7-17 ATS run against Big East opponents. Payback is on order here and I look for the Wildcats to get it as this team is strong off of a loss! 10* VILLANOVA 

THE Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Game #505 Saturday 10* Top Play Boston Celtics (+) @ Milwaukee Bucks @ 8:05 ET - Both teams are in a back to back. The Celtics won in a blowout and the Bucks lost in a blowout. That will likely have many backing Milwaukee since they are at home for this one. However, neither team had to go extended minutes on any of their players last night and the Celtics are the better team and playing the much better basketball. More on that shortly. First off, lets also note the following stats in the 2nd day of back to backs: The Bucks are 2-7 ATS this season and 17-33 SU the past 3 seasons combined! The Celtics are a phenomenal 7-3 SU this season and 31-15 ATS the past 3 seasons combined! You can see that back to back spots have clearly favored Boston over Milwaukee. Also, the Bucks come into this game slumping and their defense has been atrocious of late. This has played a large role in Milwaukee going 1-7 (both SU and ATS) in their last 8 games. As for the Celtics, they are expected to have Al Horford back for this game and certainly they've adjusted well since Avery Bradley got hurt. Long-term the Celtics are on a 15-6 SU run and, on the road, Boston has gone 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games. This line has been flip-flopping this morning but, no matter what, it is still noteworthy that in road games where the Celtics line is between a pick'em and -3 Boston has gone 7-0 SU and ATS this season! The Bucks are a horrible 1-9 ATS against Atlantic Division opponents this season. The Celtics have averaged just 12.7 turnovers per game in their last 7 games. The Bucks have turned the ball over 19 times in each of their last 3 games. Boston has held 10 of its last 12 opponents to 47.1% or less from the field. Milwaukee has allowed 3 of its last 4 foes to knock down better than 50.5% of their shots from the field. This one has the makings of a road rout. 10* BOSTON

THE GAME KU/UK - Rickenbach CBB Game #703 Saturday 10* Top Play Play Kansas Jayhawks (+) @ Kentucky Wildcats @ 6:15 ET - With all the distractions going on the best possible thing for the Jayhawks is to simply "play basketball" and that is why I love Kansas in this spot. With the suspension of Carlton Bragg and then the investigation into a dorm incident (unrelated to the Bragg suspension) there has been a lot of "noise" around the KU basketball program right now. Of course coach Bill Self just wants to get his team back on the floor and "see how they respond" Saturday but I have very little doubt about how they'll respond. The Jayhawks are off of an embarrassing loss by a double digit margin at West Virginia Tuesday and they're fired up and ready to go for this opportunity to atone for that loss on the biggest possible stage. This shot at the Wildcats truly could not have come at a better time for a Jayhawk program that needs to make some positive headlines after all that has transpired just recently. Keep in mind Kansas had won 18 in a row before the loss to the Mountaineers and the Jayhawks have knocked down 40% or better from beyond the arc in 6 of their last 7 games. The Wildcats have been held to 26.3% or worse from 3-point land in three of their last six games. Kentucky's defense, including perimeter D, has truly struggled over these 6 games as well. The Jayhawks have played a slightly tougher schedule this season and I like the fact that KU is undervalued by the betting markets right now because of what just happened at Huntington and the fact that Kansas is only 6-12 ATS on the season. The Jayhawks are 9-0 SU when off of a loss to a conference rival and also 9-0 SU (and 7-2 ATS) when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Kentucky may eke out a win here but, this one should go to the wire and be decided only by a possession (or two at the most) and that means value with the big points. Look for the Wildcats to drop to 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as their slump continues. 10* KANSAS JAYHAWKS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #537 Saturday 8* Maryland Terrapins (+) @ Minnesota Golden Gophers @ 2 ET - The line makes sense here, from the standpoint that the Golden Gophers are at home and getting the "shading" of home court edge plus have played a slightly tougher schedule than the Terrapins have this season. However, I am not convinced about where Minnesota is at "mentally" for this game as they have now lost 4 straight games. Granted the last 3 defeats have all been close but now the Gophers are laying a couple buckets against a Terps team that is playing well and comes into this game seeking revenge for a loss here as a double digit favorite last season. Maryland has won and covered 5 straight games entering this match-up. The Terrapins are also 7-0 ATS (and SU!) as an underdog this season. Simply put, they have thrived in the underdog role this season and they'll use that as extra motivation here - not that they needed it considering they lost here last year. Minnesota's loss at Penn State two weeks ago said a lot about this Golden Gophers team. They had no business losing that game as they were off of a loss to Michigan State and catching the Nittany Lions off of a huge emotional win over those same Spartans in a "special game" played in Philly. When Minny blew that game you knew troubles were coming and their losing streak has now reached 4 straight games as they have since allowed 50% shooting in back to back games. In comparing these two teams the Terrapins have been playing the much better defense of late and, in fact, on the season the Terps have only allowed better than 46.3% one single time! 8* MARYLAND

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Game #857 Friday 10* Top Play Brooklyn Nets (+) @ Cleveland Cavaliers @ 7:35 ET - The Cavaliers are struggling and, as a result, many will likely be looking to back them here after a home loss. However, there are a number of issues with that. Historically, playing teams off of an overtime loss is often a dicey play as OT losses are toughest on a team's psyche and, the fact is the Cavs were already fragile before losing at home to the Kings on Wednesday. Another factor going against Cleveland here is simply the large spread. The Cavaliers are not only trying to get back on track here but they're being asked to cover a 15 point spread. This seems to be far too much considering Brooklyn has been playing a little bit better. The Nets actually led the Heat by 18 points in what was an eventual 3 point loss at Miami Wednesday. That means that 3 of Brooklyn's last 4 losses were decided by an average of 6.7 points per game. By the way, the one win in their there was a Nets "explosion" on offense as they erupted for 143 points at New Orleans last Friday. Certainly the Brooklyn D is not a strength but their offense has averaged 110.6 points per game in their last 7 games and it is that type of offensive production that makes a team dangerous in terms of a backdoor cover as well. The point is that even if the Cavs are fortunate enough to get up by 20 points in this game, when they start emptying the bench and looking ahead to a weekend showdown with OKC, the Nets can very easily get this one back to a 10 or 12 point game. The fact is I feel this one will be decided by single digits as the Cavs are just looking to get back into the win column after losing 3 straight and 6 of their last 8. Cleveland's ATS numbers are even worse as they've covered only 3 times in their last 15 games - a 20% ATS clip! Other than a blowout loss versus San Antonio (one of the hottest teams in the league) the Nets have looked much better over the past week and a half and everyone gets up for facing the Cavs. In other words, look for another strong effort from the hungry road dog in this one as Cleveland's issues continue. The Cavaliers are an ugly 6-14 ATS in their games against teams with a losing record this season. The Nets are 8-4 ATS when playing with home loss revenge and they lost to the Cavs by 8 points in Brooklyn three weeks ago. I wouldn't be surprised to see another 8 point loss for the Nets here and that means plenty of line value with the big points here. 10* BROOKLYN NETS

Earliest Cash Top Play - Rickenbach CBB Game #874 Friday 10* Top Play Columbia Lions (-) vs Dartmouth Big Green @ 7 ET - Columbia entered Saturday's match-up versus the Big Red having won 3 straight games and covered 3 straight games. This included Friday's outright upset win at Cornell. After three straight victories, the Lions did not get the job done on their home floor Saturday and that sets this one up perfectly. Columbia is at home, off of a home loss, they are well rested, and they are facing a bad Dartmouth team. Coming into the season the Big Green knew that their biggest need was a playmaking guard. That hasn't materialized for coach David McLaughlin as his team has 15 turnovers compared to just 11 assists per game and their leading assist man is only averaged 2 assists per game. Columbia, though they lost a lot of talent from last season's team, are in a much better spot for success this season. Their new coach, Jim Engles, was an assistant with the Lions from 2003 to 2008 and then went on to have a successful run as a head coach at NJIT. He's now back with Columbia but, thanks to his familiarity with the program, there wasn't much of a transition period. As a result, the Lions may surprise some teams in conference action this season and certainly they should have no trouble with a Big Green team they annihilated by an average of 18 points per game in last season's two meetings. In lined games this season, Dartmouth is 0-7 SU (and only 1-6 ATS). As a road dog of 6.5 to 9 points in recent seasons, the Big Green have gone 0-5 SU (and 1-4 ATS). The Lions have a long-term mark of 23-6 SU (and 18-11 ATS) in games where they are a home favorite in a range of 6.5 to 9 points. Columbia is at home and the Lions defend better, shoot better, have more playmaking ability, take better care of the basketball, and are motivated off of a loss that snapped a 3-game winning streak. Look for a blowout home win here. 10* COLUMBIA LIONS

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Game #702 Thursday 8* Minnesota Timberwolves (-) vs Indiana Pacers @ 8:05 ET - The Timberwolves have won 3 straight games and 6 of their last 8. As a young team, momentum and confidence are very important and Minnesota certainly has all that on their side after Wiggins nailed a jumper at the buzzer for a win at Phoenix Tuesday. Indeed the Wolves come rolling into this game with confidence and are happy to be back home where they have won 4 straight and 7 of their last 10. Minnesota is seeking revenge in this one as the Pacers got the win in both match-ups last season. Indiana comes into this game heading the opposite direction with 3 straight losses and would love to get back on track but the road has not been kind to them. The Pacers are 6-15 (both SU and ATS) in road games this season and they also are 7-17 ATS in all games with a posted total of 210 or more this season. The Timberwolves are 6-2 ATS in home games with a posted total of 210 or more and they are playing their best basketball of the season right now. Look for them to stay red hot here as Indiana's lineup change (CJ Miles starting instead of Glenn Robinson) certainly did not go well as he made only 4 of 14 in Monday's home loss to New York. Simpy put, the Pacers are trying to "find it" right now while the Timberwolves have already "found it" in terms of team chemistry and player rotations. 8* MINNESOTA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #710 Thursday 8* Cincinnati Bearcats (-) vs Xavier Musketeers @ 7 ET - The Bearcats are fired up even more than usual for this year's Crosstown Shootout as the big battle for bragging rights in Cincy takes place Thursday. Xavier has won three straight meetings and Cincinnati's senior class certainly doesn't want to go down in history as the first Bearcats class ever to not defeat the Musketeers in their 4-year careers! This is a quality Cats team this season with a 17-2 record (including 11-0 at home) and, even though Xavier has held the upper hand in this series in recent years, this is Cincy coach Mick Cronin's best team in his 11 years here. The Musketeers are off of a win but had previously lost three straight and that included a home loss to Creighton in the game where the Bluejays lost their star guard in the first half. We are now seeing just how bad Creighton has been without Maurice Watson and that makes that Xavier home loss even more "inexcusable". The fact is the Musketeers just aren't as strong this season as they've been in prior years and, as their schedule has toughened up, the losses have mounted. I expect another on here. Xavier is an ugly 1-4 (both SU and ATS) in road games this season. The Musketeers also 0-3 SU and ATS as an underdog this season. Statistically, Cincinnati is allowing a field goal percentage of only 36.8% while the Musketeers allow 43.6%. Also, the Bearcats are shooting a solid 48% from the field compared to 45% for Xavier. Indeed Cincy has "shooters" this season and they've also gotten bigger inside. They're going to be tough in a setting where it is a home game they view as a "must win". 8* CINCINNATI