Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #517 Friday 8* Michigan Wolverines (+) vs Purdue Boilermakers @ Noon ET - Everyone jumping on Purdue early here as the line has already moved from a 2 to a 3.5 as of early gameday morning. However, the Wolverines showed just how resilient they are (and simply how well this team is playing right now) with their win over Illinois yesterday after some significant travel troubles just to get to DC yesterday. Now, with the Wolverines in a back to back spot and with Purdue playing with revenge from a loss at Michigan just 2 weeks ago, the ranked (#13) Boilermakers opened up as only a 2 point choice over the Wolverines on a neutral floor. Of course the odds makers know what they're doing and the reason this line opened so small has a lot to do with how well Michigan has been playing as well as the fact that Purdue has only played 1 game in the month of March and could be a little rusty here. Last, but certainly not least, the Wolverines do have revenge on their minds here as they were knocked out of the Big Ten tourney convincingly in a 17-point loss to the Boilermakers last March. Time for a little payback here and Michigan, after yesterday's easy win over the Illini, is now 10-4 ATS in all tournament games the last 3 seasons combined. Purdue, like the Wolverines, relies heavily on the 3-ball and they have been held to 33.3% or less from three point land in 5 of their last 7 games so the Boilermakers shooting has tailed off. Having played only once in the first 9 days of March isn't doing Purdue any favors here in terms of getting their gameday stroke back either. The Wolverines are shooting the ball very well in recent games and playing with a ton of confidence. Look for that to carry into this game as well. 8* MICHIGAN

Situational Shocker - Rickenbach CBB Game #801 Thursday 10* Top Play Tulane Green Wave (+) vs Tulsa Golden Hurricane @ 6 ET - If you operate under the theory that the sports books make huge mistakes and give away money it doesn't take long to get crushed in this business. That said, there are certainly no "sure things" in this industry but, at the same time, when something looks too good to be true I will definitely look to fade it. That is certainly the case here when you look at the American Athletic Conference Tourney action for Thursday. UConn (added benefit of home edge and 9-9 in AAC this season) is favored by 14 over SFla (1-9 in AAC this season). Makes sense based on records and home court. Temple, slightly better than East Carolina, is a small favorite of about 5 points. Another one that makes sense looking at records. Then, you have this game where Tulsa (seeking 'right back' revenge for a home loss just days ago), was only a -4.5 point favorite when lines came out yesterday even though Tulane was 2-15 in AAC action and had only 5 wins on the entire season before the Green Wave upset the Golden Hurricane Sunday. Keep in mind Tulsa is nearly a .500 team on the season and Tulane is regarded as one of the worst teams in CBB. So, did the sports books decide to give away money here with Tulsa? Why are they favored in the same price range as Temple even though they're facing the cellar dweller of the AAC and also playing with home loss revenge? I'll gladly play my often-used role of contrarian in this match-up as I look for an upset. Keep in mind, Tulsa really faded down the stretch with 8 losses in 10 games and I would not be surprised to see them still come out flat here because they simply "don't have it" this season. Frustrating season for them after starting 12-8 before the poor ending. The only Golden Hurricane wins since January came against East Carolina and South Florida (two of the worst teams in the AAC). That doesn't give Tulsa a big boost of confidence here considering they're facing a team that has proven it has some match-up edges over them. Over their last 9 games combined Tulsa is allowing a very high shooting percentage as their defense has seemingly quit as the season has gone one and become very disappointing. As for the Green Wave, they are rejuvenated after the win over Tulsa Sunday and will come in relaxed and confident as nothing is expected of them and that often makes for the most dangerous of underdogs! The Green Wave are 5-3 ATS this season against teams with a losing record while the Golden Hurricane are on a horrific 1-10 ATS run in March games. Fade the masses in this one! 10* TULANE

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #785 Thursday 8* New Mexico Lobos (+) vs Fresno State Bulldogs @ 5:30 ET - This is similar to my play on Air Force yesterday. The line really made no sense on the Falcons and Cowboys yesterday and so I faded what looked like a "sure thing" by playing against Wyoming. This one is a similar situation because the Lobos come into the tourney off of a win but had previously lost three in a row while the Bulldogs come into the tourney red hot as they are winners of five straight games. Couple that with the fact that New Mexico is 2-9 ATS in all tournament games the last 3 seasons combined and Fresno State is 13-4 ATS against teams with a winning record this season and today's line truly doesn't make sense. So how can we back the Lobos here? For one thing they did have a tougher strength of schedule than did the Bulldogs on the season. Also, the Lobos are playing this game with road loss revenge and that is a situation that has seen them go 3-1 (both SU and ATS) this season. New Mexico is the stronger team at the free throw line and that can be a key in tourney action where there is more emphasis on earning buckets inside and drawing fouls in the paint. Also, the Bulldogs are just 2-5 SU in their last 7 neutral court games and they did not play at UNLV this season while the Lobos did play at the Thomas & Mack Center earlier this season and they did shoot well in that game. Some interesting edges here for the underdog in this one and that will prove to be the difference with another contrarian play. 8* NEW MEXICO

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #720 Thursday 8* Michigan Wolverines (-) vs Illinois Illini @ Noon ET - Michigan has dropped down from an opener of -6.5 to a -4.5 as of very early gameday morning. I like the value with, in my opinion, the far superior team that is also battle tested. The Wolverines are 9-4 ATS in tournament games the past 3 seasons including 2-0 SU and ATS in a regular season tourney early in the season. The Illini have a losing record (both SU and ATS) in tournament games the past 3 seasons and that includes an 0-2 mark straight-up and against the spread in an regular season tournament early this season. Illinois had been playing well late this season but lose all momentum with an inexcusable effort at Rutgers in their regular season finale. The Wolverines come into this one flying high with wins in 6 of their last 8 games and Michigan has been shooting "lights out" in recent games. Of course, this is nothing new as the Wolverines are averaging 48% on the season including 39% from three point land and, while Michigan's numbers hardly drop off on the road, note that Illinois is only hitting 42% from the field and 33% from beyond the arc in road games this season. As an underdog the past three seasons combined, the Illini have gone 16-30 ATS and 11-35 SU. The Wolverines have gone 41-13 the past 3 seasons when they are favored and are laying a very manageable number. Even though Illinois plays this game with road loss revenge, the Illini are an ugly 2-6 (SU and ATS) when in that situation this season. More of the same expected very early Thursday. 8* MICHIGAN

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #549 Wednesday 8* Air Force Falcons (+) vs Wyoming Cowboys @ 4:30 ET - The opening number on this game was only 4.5 and this this is despite the Cowboys finishing with a much better overall record and conference record than the Falcons. Also, Wyoming did defeat Air Force in both regular season meetings. That said, it's no surprise that the action of the betting markets has already moved this to a 6.5 as of early gameday morning. In typical contrarian fashion, I am on the other side of this line move. The original line may have looked a little "off" but the fact is that the Falcons can win this game. Though Air Force lost the two regular season match-ups with the Cowboys, they did attempt 9 more shots from the field in each game. Simply put, Wyoming shot better than the Falcons did in the two meetings but I expect that to change here. This game is being played at Las Vegas in the home arena of UNLV and it is at this location that Wyoming lost to the Rebels and shot just 19% from three point land. The Falcons also lost at UNLV but only by a 2 point margin and Air Force shot 36% from beyond the arc in that game. With the Falcons not winning a single road game this season, no one will want them here and that is just how I like it as we are getting solid line value with a team that matches up quite well with Wyoming. The Cowboys, other than the win at Air Force, only went 1-7 SU in their other 8 MWC road games. Wyoming is 10-18 ATS when off of a win in conference action, 6-16 ATS against teams with a losing record, and a long-term 3-12 ATS in first round tournament games. Air Force is 5-2 ATS this season after 3 or more consecutive losses and the Falcons are 6-2 ATS this season when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. 8* AIR FORCE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #553 Wednesday 8* Stanford Cardinal (-) vs Arizona State Sun Devils @ 3 ET - With the Cardinal having lost both regular season match-ups with the Sun Devils the set-up here is already quite nice but when you dig deeper into what happened in those two games you have to like the odds of Stanford avoiding a 3-0 sweep even more! Arizona State outscored the Cardinal by a total of 42 points from the 3 point line in the 2 games and yet the Sun Devils only won each game by a margin of 6 points or less. Come tourney time (and in this case playing in an unfamiliar arena), the 3 point shot often doesn't fall as well and that could significantly hurt ASU because they rely so heavily on it. Another key match-up note here is that Stanford completely dominated the boards (49-27) in the 2nd meeting between these teams this season and that game was at Arizona State! The Cardinal, in comparison with the Sun Devils, are definitely the far superior team when it comes to rebounding. Arizona State is an ugly 1-9 ATS the L3 seasons combined in games played on a neutral court and that includes 0-5 ATS this season. The Cardinal are 10-5 straight-up in all tournament games the last 3 seasons combined. Stanford does come into this game having lost 3 straight games but that is a situation that has seen the Cardinal go 3-0 ATS this season and, though below ASU in the standings, Stanford is favored here by the odds makers with plenty of good reasoning! Look for the Cardinal roll big and get their revenge. 8* STANFORD

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #836 Sunday 10* Top Play Wisconsin Badgers (-) vs Minnesota Golden Gophers @ 6 ET - This is another classic contrarian situation for me. In a game that certainly means a lot to both teams, many will be grabbing what appears to be generous points with the team that certainly has been the hotter team. Minnesota has won 8 straight games and has gone 7-1 ATS during this red hot run and yet the Golden Gophers are as much as a 7.5 point dog in this one as of early gameday morning? This is even though the Badgers have lost 5 of their last 6 and are on a 1-7 ATS run! It is 'head-scratchers' like these that tend to most bettors up and I fully believe the sharp money here will prove to be on the Badgers. Already we're seeing some early line movement toward Wiscy even though most of the bets are coming in on Minny. Of course that tells you where the big money is flowing and I like the fact this game means a ton for Wisconsin in addition to being Senior Day in their regular season finale. The Gophers haven't won here in Madison in nearly a decade and I don't see that changing today. As far as the Badgers covering the spread here, they actually led Iowa by 9 very late in their most recent game before an unusual late-game implosion led to them losing outright to the Hawkeyes. Prior to this defeat, Wiscy was 14-1 at home this season and they'll be ready to get back on track Sunday evening. The Badgers are allowing just 56 points per game at home this season. The Golden Gophers, by comparison, have allowed 71 points or more in 9 of their last 11 games! Even with their win and cover versus Nebraska Thursday, Minnesota is still just 2-6 SU and ATS in their last 8 March games. By comparison, the Badgers had won 13 of their last 16 March games before the ridiculous loss to the Hawkeyes. Look for a huge response from the home team here as the Badgers add to a perfect 6-0 mark (SU) and 5-1 ATS record this season in home games with a posted total in the 130 to 134.5 point range. 10* WISCONSIN BADGERS minus the points Sunday evening.

March Madness - Rickenbach CBB Game #857 Sunday 8* Illinois-Chicago Flames (+) @ Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix @ 5 ET - The Phoenix have beaten the Flames both times this season, both times last season, and 3 times the prior season when they also knocked them out of the Horizon League tourney. Now these teams are matched up again in the conference tourney and, even though Wisconsin-Green Bay has won 14 of its last 20 and Illinois-Chicago has lost 9 of its last 12, the Phoenix were favored by as little as 5 points in the first lines that were out yesterday. Something looks 'suspicious' doesn't it? The fact is that the Flames have a great shot at the upset here. UIC is off of a horrible shooting performance at Wright State in their final regular season game and scored just 49 points. This season, when the Flames are off of a game where they been held under 70 points, they have gone 6-1 ATS in their next game. Illinois-Chicago is 23-10 ATS long-term in conference tournament games. The Phoenix are only 15-18 ATS in their last 33 conference tourney games. After getting embarrassed by 38 points last Sunday at Wright State (and being 7-3 ATS when they enter a game off of 5 or 6 days of rest between games), the Flames bounce back strong here today. UIC has the revenge angle working strongly in their favor and, in each of the last 5 meetings between these teams the Flames have never trailed by more than 2 points at halftime. They've had some 2nd half collapses but with the backcourt depth of UWGB hurt by the absence of Trevor Anderson (4-5 ATS in L9 games without him), look for the Flames to finally get over the hump in this match-up. If they do fall short look for it to be only by a bucket or two. 8* ILLINOIS-CHICAGO FLAMES plus the points Sunday

March Madness - Rickenbach CBB Game #664 Saturday 10* Top Play Santa Clara Broncos (+) vs San Francisco Dons @ 6:30 ET - At first glance this line looks a little off. The Dons have 20 wins on the seasons and the Broncos are only a game over .500 on the season! However, the reason the line is so low (and likely to encourage "action" on San Francisco here) is because both these teams are 10-8 in their conference games this season. The "tipping point" for me in terms of backing the Broncos in this match-up is more than just the 3 point loss at San Francisco last month resulting in a "revenge factor" here. The fact is that the Broncos have been very hot with their shooting touch of late while the Dons have truly been ice cold in many of their recent games. Couple that with the fact that this game is played at a neutral site (Orleans Arena in Las Vegas) and you have the makings of a strong edge toward the Broncos here. Retaining shooting touch is tough for teams to do when away from home and that will exasperate an already tenuous situation for San Francisco in this one. The Dons shot a more "reasonable" 43% from the field in their final regular season game but that was against league-worst Pepperdine. In their previous 4 games, San Francisco was held between 24.7% and 37.5% from the field in all 4 games. The Don't haven't truly shot the ball well in the past 4 weeks as their last hot shooting game was all the way back on February 4th. As for the Broncos, they have shot between 46.5% and 63.9% in 4 of their last 5 games. Santa Clara had won 3 of its last 4 games before running into St Mary's (one of the top teams in the conference) and I look for them to get rolling again after that loss to the Gaels. The Broncos won the first match-up between these teams by 14 points this season. Then, despite being down by 20 points at half-time at San Francisco, the Broncos came all the way back in the eventual 3-point loss to the Dons. It is evident they match up well with SF. More of the same here. 10* SANTA CLARA

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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 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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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 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

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

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.

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

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 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

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

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 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

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 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

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #724 Thursday - 10* Top Play Marshall Thundering Herd (-) vs UTSA Roadrunners @ 7 ET - The Thundering Herd have been getting off to slow starts in their games and so they aim to come out strong from the opening tip in the middle game of a 3-game homestand. Marshall also has revenge against UTSA as the Roadrunners handed the Thundering Herd a loss in Huntington in their only trip here. I see this spot as a great spot for Marshall to not only get revenge but to get it in blowout fashion. They are motivated to start out strong, as noted above, and their #1 C-USA ranked offense is simply going to be too much for the Runners to keep up with. Marshall is averaging 92 points per home game while UTSA is averaging only 61 points per road game this season. As you can see that is a 31-point differential but, what is keeping this line in check is the fact that the Roadrunners have some solid defensive numbers on the season. However, that has been helped by facing a weak schedule thus far (including the C-USA opponents that UTSA has faced). In other words, the Runners defense, although improved, is simply over-rated right now and their offense is too anemic to keep up with the high-powered Herd in this one. The Roadrunners are 2-10 SU (and 2-7 ATS) when off of a game where they allowed 60 points or less. Also, the Runners are 2-8 SU (and 2-5 ATS) in their games against teams averaging 77 points or more per game. The Thundering Herd are on a long-term 24-9 ATS run as a favorite and Marshall is on a long-term 26-12 ATS run when they are off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Look for the Thundering Herd to stay hot and add to their fantastic mark of 10-0 SU (and 7-0 ATS) in home games this season! 10* MARSHALL

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #522 Wednesday 8* Temple Owls (-) vs Memphis Tigers @ 6 ET - Temple has had a full week off after losing at #20 Cincinnati (a game which the Owls led at halftime). A week off can be problematic but not only did Temple need it (due to their tough start in conference action), they also have thrived in recent seasons when playing with extra rest. When the Owls enter a game with 5 or 6 days of rest between games they have gone 6-1 ATS. The 6 days off since playing last Wednesday allowed Temple to focus on its most glaring weakness, defense, and they'll be ready to put forth a strong defensive effort here. The key guys in the Owls rotation include two guys who are at least 6'10 and three guys who are at least 6'7 and this size and length on defense will slow down a Memphis team that has been playing well. The problem for the Tigers is a match-up issue and Temple has covered 4 straight in this series. The Owls are fired up after letting the game against the Bearcats slip away and Temple is 5-1 ATS when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Also, the Owls have a long-term mark of 17-5 (both SU and ATS!) when they are at home with a line ranging from pick'em to a -3. That said, the line on today's game is certainly in their sweet spot. Memphis is 8-21 SU (and 10-19 ATS) when they are an underdog and, as usual, the odds makers don't give away free money. Many will look at this game with the Tigers hot and the Owls not and they'll jump all over the road team. I look for the rejuvenated, refreshed, and refocused Owls to get the job done on their home floor. 8* TEMPLE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #713 Tuesday 8* Auburn Tigers (+) @ South Carolina Gamecocks @ 6:30 ET - Auburn is making great strides in their 3rd year under head coach Bruce Pearl. Often it is the 3rd season where things start to click under a new coach and the veteran Pearl has this team playing quite well even though they rely heavily on freshmen. One of those is Danjel Purifoy who should be even stronger in his 2nd game back after returning from an ankle injury. Speaking of injuries, even though I do expect South Carolina's PJ Dozier to return for this one, he is unlikely to be 100% as he is recovering from back spasms that have hindered him. That means the Gamecocks will rely too heavily on Sindarius Thornwell. Even though he is off of a huge 34 point performance against Kentucky, South Carolina still lost by 16 points. The Gamecocks beat the Tigers by a dozen points at Auburn last season so this is a revenge game. The Tigers certainly have a good recent history here as Auburn has won 8 of the last 9 meetings (both SU and ATS) in South Carolina! Auburn is 3-2 SU (and 4-1 ATS) on the road this season. Also, the Tigers are 5-2 ATS as an underdog and 5-2 ATS after scoring 80 points or more this season. Off of back to back home wins (and having won 3 of their last 4 games overall), Auburn is a young team is quickly growing with confidence and is well-coach. Add those factors together and you have a revenge-seeking Tigers team that is going to give the Gamecocks all they can handle in this one. Grab the big points. 8* AUBURN

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #865 Sunday 10* Top Play Arizona State Sun Devils (+) @ USC Trojans @ 8:30 ET - While this looks like a bounce back spot for Southern Cal, keep in mind two key factors. One is that USC has now lost 4 of 6 games after starting the season 14-0. In other words, reality is setting in that the Trojans were a little over-hyped. The second factor is that Southern Cal has a huge game on deck as they are hosting UCLA on Wednesday. That makes this spot a lookahead spot for USC. Though the Trojans played very well in non-conference action, the concern from them in Pac-12 action is they've been held under 42.2% in 6 of their 7 games. In 5 of those 6 the percentage was under 39.5%. Their home loss to Arizona Thursday was the 4th time in their last 7 games that they've been held under 37.4% from the field. USC is known for their defense but, in Pac-12 action, looking at their last 6 games they've allowed 45.5% or better in 4 of the 6 games. The Sun Devils have a dangerous offense that, prior to their Thursday loss at UCLA, had shot at least 45.7% from the field in 6 of their last 7 games. Arizona State is going to challenge USC here because this is a classic case of two teams heading in opposite directions when it comes to scoring capabilities. The Sun Devils are averaging 80 points per game in conference games while the Trojans are averaging 68 points per game in Pac-12 action. Again, USC does have the better defense but the ASU offense is going to test them early and often and the Trojans will be in a dogfight just to try to win this game let alone cover the big spread. The Sun Devils are a long-term 26-13 ATS as a road dog of 6.5 to 9 points. The Trojans are on an overall 2-9 ATS run their last 11 games. 10* ARIZONA STATE

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #840 Sunday 8* Seton Hall Pirates (-) vs St John's Red Storm @ Noon ET - Nice set-up here as St John's is off of a rare win (followed 4 straight losses) and Seton Hall is off of 3 straight road losses (all against quality competition) and happy to be back home where they are a perfect 7-0 this season. Both teams are well rested as they haven't played since Monday and the Pirates are 7-1 ATS the past three seasons when they enter a game off of 5 or 6 days of rest between games. Seton Hall is also 3-0 ATS the past three seasons when they are a home favorite of 6.5 to 9 points. The Red Storm are just 1-3 ATS so far this month and are now 6-13 ATS in January games the past three seasons combined. The Pirates are outscoring teams by 18 points per game at home this season and playing well on both ends of the floor - knocking down 51.4% of their shots and holding opponents to 39.1%. In a spot where Seton Hall is desperate for a complete game with strong play on both ends of the floor, the Pirates should take this one by double digits. 8* SETON HALL

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CBB Game #659 Saturday - 10* Top Play Wyoming Cowboys (+) @ New Mexico Lobos @ 8 ET - The road team has gotten the cash in 6 of the Lobos last 7 games so certainly home court has meant very little. New Mexico is off of back to back road wins but they shot the ball extremely well in those games (including from three point land) and they can't maintain that type of clip long-term. The Lobos now face a team that plays much better defense than they do. The Cowboys are allowing just 39.5% from the field and 29.8% from beyond the arc while New Mexico is allowing 43.5% and 38.2%, respectively. Wyoming also heads into this game with confidence off of a big road win and their match-ups with the Lobos have been tight as the Cowboys are known for giving them tough games. Overall, the last 3 match-ups between these teams have been decided by a TOTAL of only 6 points so that's an average of just 2 points per game and yet this line currently sits at an 8. Also, New Mexico is only 1-5 ATS at home this season and also only 1-5 ATS in games with a posted total in the 150s. Conversely, the Cowboys have thrived in games projected to be high-scoring as they are 6-3 ATS this season in games where the posted total is in the 150s. Wyoming is also 6-3 ATS in their games against teams with a winning record this season. The Cowboys have been better on the boards this season than the Lobos with a 39-34 edge in rebounding. Look for another close game between these rivals and that means excellent line value with the big points. 10* WYOMING plus the big points Saturday evening

Afternoon Annihilation - Rickenbach CBB Game #572 Saturday 8* Creighton Bluejays (-) vs Marquette Golden Eagles @ 2:30 ET - The big news for Creighton was, of course, the tragic loss of star guard Maurice Watson to a season-ending injury in their win over Xavier earlier this week. However, I fully expect the Bluejays to respond in a big way today just like they did in the 2nd half of the game against Musketeers knowing that Watson was not available. So often, in the first game after a team loses a star player, that team becomes a "play on" team. That's because everyone else "ups their game" to try and make up for the absence and I expect that to be the case again here with Creighton and the Watson situation. The Bluejays really showed a lot in the way they "hung tough" against Xavier after Watson got hurt. Keep in mind that game was on the road too. Now Creighton is at home and their hosting a Golden Eagles team that is only 2-5 away from home this season. The Bluejays are still an 18-1 team and I feel this is a very reasonable number to lay with Creighton on their home floor. Marquette has allowed teams to hit 51% against them in road games this season and, keep in mind, the Bluejays are shooting 53% in home games this season! The Creighton defense is also much better at defending the 3-ball than the Golden Eagles are and this one could get ugly in a hurry. The Bluejays, when knocking down shots at home, really get a huge crowd edge going and teams just collapse against a Creighton team just lighting up the scoreboard. That is the type of game I expect here as the Bluejays rally after the Watson injury. Marquette is 3-7 ATS against teams with a winning record this season and the Golden Eagles are 6-14 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. The Bluejays are 11-3 ATS this season in their games against teams with a winning record and they owe the Eagles some payback after a home loss to Marquette last season. 8* CREIGHTON minus the points Saturday afternoon

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #533 Saturday - 8* Georgia Bulldogs (+) @ Texas A & M Aggies @ Noon ET - This line has gone from an opener as low as -1.5 on the Aggies to now having Texas A & M favored by 4.5 points as of 9:30 AM ET. I'll take the value! A & M has gone 1-5 SU and ATS in conference action. Also, the Aggies are 3-8 SU (and 2-8 ATS) in their games against teams with a winning record this season. The Bulldogs are on a 6-2 ATS run as a road dog of 3.5 to 6 points and also are 36-20 ATS against teams with a winning record. Georgia will be looking to avenge an ugly home loss last season (lost by 34 to the Aggies) and I expect them to come out fired up and ready to demoralize an Aggies team that has scored 68 points or less in 5 of its last 6 games. This A & M team is fragile right now while the Bulldogs have covered 3 straight games and have scored 69 points or more in 6 of their last 7 games. 8* GEORGIA plus the points early Saturday

CBS Sports Network Smash - Rickenbach CBB Game #885 Friday 10* Eastern Michigan Eagles (+) @ Akron Zips @ 6:30 ET - Akron has a long home winning streak going with 26 straight wins at Rhodes Arena. Not surprisingly, after opening up at a -5, this line has jumped up to a -6 on the Zips and certainly could move higher. This is offering tremendous line value to a revenge-seeking Eastern Michigan team. The Eagles were knocked out of the MAC Tourney by Akron last spring and the perfect revenge would be to put an end to the Zips 26-game home winning streak. This is a veteran Eastern Michigan team that also has a solid backcourt. With strong guard play and, the fact that the Eagles play better defense than the Zips, an upset here would certainly not be a complete surprise. Eastern Michigan is holding opponents to 40.9% from the field and 32.8% from three point land. Akron has allowed 44.0% and 35.6%, respectively, in those same categories. The Eagles are averaging 82 points per game compared to 79 points per game for the Zips. Talk around Akron is already about where the Zips would fit into the Big Dance seedings, etc. I am not saying it is too early for that but I am saying that Eastern Michigan is likely to prove to be the hungrier team here after being knocked out of the conference tourney in March by these Zips. Also, Akron comes into this one a little over-confident because of their lengthy home winning streak. Note that the Zips are an ugly 2-6 ATS this season when off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Eastern Michigan is on a solid 5-2 ATS run when off of a game where they scored 80 points or more. Also, the Eagles are a perfect 4-0 (SU and ATS) in their games against teams averaging 77 points or more per game this season. I am looking for an upset but certainly grabbing all the points I can get here. 10* Top Play EASTERN MICHIGAN plus the points very early Friday evening

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #715 Thursday - 10* Top Play Maryland Terrapins (+) @ Iowa Hawkeyes @ 7 ET - The very first lines to come out on this game had the Terps as a 1.5 point favorite. From that point forward the line has now moved a full 4 points as the Terrapins are now a 2.5 point underdog in this match-up. I love to fade moves like this where the game swings strongly and I see great line value here with a solid 16-2 Maryland team. The only two losses the Terps have this season came against Pittsburgh and a 2-point defeat versus Nebraska. The point is that at +2.5 in all game this season the Terrapins would have a 16-1 ATS record. Couple that with the fact that the Hawkeyes are being a bit over-rated here, and you have fantastic line value. Iowa has managed to 'rise up' on a couple of occasions and get big home wins over Iowa State and Purdue. However, this Hawkeyes team is, overall, certainly not at the level of prior Iowa teams. The Hawkeyes are coming off of an 89-54 demolishing defeat at Northwestern. Though many will look for the bounce back here, the fact is that it was the 5th time in the last 6 games that Iowa has allowed 78 points or more! This is in stark contrast with a Maryland team that has only allowed more than 75 points a single time in 18 games this season! The Terrapins are allowing just 65 points per game this season while the Hawkeyes are giving up 78 points per game this season. Maryland is a perfect 6-0 away from home this season. The Terrapins are also a perfect 6-0 SU and ATS in their games as an underdog this season. The Hawkeyes are 3-9 ATS when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more and Iowa is also an ugly 1-5 ATS when off of a game where they scored 60 points or less. I'll gladly challenge this over-rated team to try and bounce back here because they've proven unable to do just that time and time again in recent seasons as you can see from those ATS numbers. 10* MARYLAND plus the points Thursday

Texas Insider - Rickenbach CBB Game #540 Wednesday 8* Texas Tech Red Raiders (-) vs TCU Horned Frogs @ 7:30 ET - It is very hard to beat a team 3 times in one season and the Red Raiders found that out the hard way last season and now it's time for some payback. Texas Tech won both regular season meetings with Texas Christian University last season but then got knocked out of the Big 12 conference tourney in March when the Horned Frogs prevailed in their 3rd (and, of course, most important) meeting of the season. The Red Raiders had 63 shots from the field compared to just 47 for the Horned Frogs but TCU hit a ridiculous 10 of 21 from three point land and that was the difference in the victory which came by a margin of only 5 points. A repeat here is unlikely as TCU has not shot the ball particularly well from beyond the arc in its last 4 games. What strengthens this situation though is the fact that the Horned Frogs are off of back to back wins but one was at home and one was at downtrodden Texas. The Red Raiders will prove to be the hungrier team here as they are off of a loss (albeit on the road) and they haven't forgotten what happened in their meeting with TCU last March. Before the Red Raiders loss at Oklahoma Saturday, Texas Tech had won 13 of 16 games this season. The Red Raiders are 38-9 at home the past three seasons including a perfect 11-0 this season. The Horned Frogs are only 2-2 on the road this season and have lost 20 of 25 road games the past three seasons combined. As a road dog of 3.5 to 6 points, TCU has gone 1-3 ATS while, as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points, Texas Tech has gone 5-1 ATS. The Red Raiders are averaging 82.5 points per game at home this season while the Horned Frogs are averaging only 69.8 points per game on the road so far this season. Home court makes a big difference in this particular match-up and, from a situational perspective, it doesn't get much better than this! 8* TEXAS TECH

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #729 Tuesday - 8* Arkansas Razorbacks (+) @ Texas A & M Aggies @ 7 ET - The Aggies most recent home game was a ridiculous result. They blew out LSU by 30 points as everything they threw up seemed to go in while the Tigers couldn't seem to hit the broad side of a barn in that game. That did bring Texas A & M to 7-2 at home this season. However, if you look closely at the Aggies, they have lost almost every single game where more of a challenge is presented and tonight they are hosting a 13-4 Arkansas team. Note that A & M's wins this season have, all but one, come when they were a big favorite or facing an opponent that was so overmatched it wasn't even a lined game. The Aggies have 9 wins this season. 4 of them were non-lined games, 4 were when they were favored by 12 points or more. Only "impressive" win was a 3-point win over Virginia Tech as a 2 point favorite. With the Hokies game included that makes the Aggies 1-7 straight-up in games where they are either a dog or a favorite of less than 12 points! Now you can see why I like the Razorbacks here. Every time but one this season, when the Aggies take a step up in level of competition, they lose. They are off of a loss at Mississippi State Saturday and now host an Arkansas team that is off of a big win over Missouri Saturday and that has gone 3-1 SU and ATS in their last 4 games where the line was single digits. The Aggies simply lost too much from last season's team but with this line already moving up from a -3 on A & M to now a -4.5 as of gameday morning, it is evident that the betting markets still like this Texas A & M team. I don't and I look for them to drop to 2-8 ATS this season against teams with a winning record. 8* ARKANSAS

Early ATS Blowout - Rickenbach CBB Game #726 Tuesday 10* Top Play Toledo Rockets (-) vs Bowling Green Falcons @ 7 ET - Oftentimes in rivalry games I like to side with the dogs but this one sets up much differently than most and, as a result, I expect the favorite to win this one in an absolute blowout. The I-75 rivalry in Northeast Ohio between Toledo and Bowling Green resumes tonight and both the Rockets and Falcons are off of back to back losses. However, that is where the similarities between these teams end! The Falcons were at home for both of their games and yet they got completely obliterated by a combined 45 points in those games. The Bowling Green coach is trying to blame it on poor defense because they emphasized offense too much but the fact is their offense only averaged 52.5 points per game so I think he's a little out of touch with his own team here. The problem for BG is they are 1-6 on the road this season and now take on a Toledo team that is 7-1 at home on the season and whose back to back losses entering this match-up both came on the road. Unlike the Falcons, the Rockets did score well in their two defeats (81 points per game!) but they were done in by some hot shooting from their opponents. Look for Toledo (averaging 82.6 points per game on the season) to bounce back in a big way here at home. It is much easier to play at home coming off B2B road losses than to be on the road after B2B home losses. The place will be rocking in Toledo tonight and the Rockets haven't lost here against Bowling Green in 5 years! The Falcons are 9-19 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when, past the midway point of the season, they are facing a team with a winning record. The Rockets are 21-5 SU and 12-9 ATS against teams with a losing record the past 3 seasons combined and everyone is talking about how important this home game is in this rivalry series. 10* Top Play TOLEDO

Primetime TV Top Game - Rickenbach CBB Game #543 Monday - 10* Top Play Providence Friars (+) @ Georgetown Hoyas @ 9 ET - Georgetown has won two straight games but it certainly is nothing to be too excited about as Hoyas fans know all too well. These two wins came against St John's (one of the worst teams in their conference) and then against UConn (a non-conference win). Georgetown was not impressive in their win by a slim margin over the Huskies and now they certainly face a much tougher challenge today and yet many have backed the Hoyas here. The line jumped from an opener of -5 up to a -6.5 and I'll gladly grab the added value here on the underdog in a game where I don't even expect I'll need the points. Keep in mind, Georgetown is only 1-4 in Big East action this season and Providence has won 5 straight games in this series. The Friars recorded the 2-0 sweep each of the past two seasons over the Hoyas and then already beat them in Providence early this month to get this year's season series started off on the right foot. The Friars are 8-4 ATS against teams with a winning record this season while Georgetown is the polar opposite at 4-8 ATS this season against teams with a winning record. The Hoyas are 0-3 ATS in games with a posted total in the 130s this season and also are 0-4 ATS when playing with road loss revenge. With their poor performance at the betting window against winning teams, I don't see any reason for things to change here as the Friars come into this one fired up about losing their last road game by a single point. That hunger will show on the floor here as they seek  back to back wins in Big East action which they know is critical to moving back up the standings. 10* PROVIDENCE

Daytime Dominator FS-1 - Rickenbach CBB Game #521 Monday - 8* Creighton Bluejays (+) @ Xavier Musketeers @ 2 ET - The Bluejays are 17-1 this season.  Xavier is now 13-4 this season and off of back to back losses. Those two defeats came as they had to "step up" in terms of level of competition and, on Monday afternoon they are certainly doing that again as the Musketeers take on a "stacked" Creighton team with revenge on its mind. Even though the Bluejays have covered 4 straight meetings with the Musketeers, they have suffered a straight-up loss in 2 of their last 3 meetings. Xavier's Edmond Sumner is expected to play here but his shoulder is not 100% and that could be a factor here. The Musketeers are hosting a Bluejays team that is hitting a ridiculous 53.5% of their shots this season including 41% from three point land. A ton of points expected in this one (as you can tell from the big total posted on this game) and Creighton is 7-2 ATS this season (and 20-7 ATS the past 3 seasons combined) in games with a posted total in the 150s! Xavier's defense has not been impressive of late as they've allowed their last 4 opponents to average about 50% from the field and the Musketeers are off of a 2nd straight loss (83-78 at Butler). Xaviers is 5-11 ATS when off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Everyone is lining up on the home team here and I'll gladly take the contrarian side with this 17-1 team Monday afternoon. 8* CREIGHTON

#1 Top Play - Rickenbach CBB Game #607 Saturday 10* Top Play Baylor Bears (+) @ Kansas State Wildcats @ 4:30 ET - The Bears got thoroughly embarrassed in their ugly loss at West Virginia Tuesday. After allowing 63 points or less in 14 of their 15 games on the way to a 15-0 start this season, the Bears allowed 89 to the Mountaineers. We don't have to tell you that Baylor may be in "response mode" here as the ATS stats back that fact up. The past two seasons the Bears have gone 7-0 SU and 6-0 ATS when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more! Baylor has won three straight games against the Wildcats and their last loss came by just 2 points at Kansas State. That said, with the line move here to a +2.5, we are getting even more line value with the Bears in this one. Baylor has played a tougher schedule than the Wildcats so far this season and, when Kansas State has stepped up (in terms of level of competition) they have failed this season. All the Cats straight-up wins have come in either non-lined games or games where their line was at least -6. The Wildcats have been a dog OR fave of 3 points or less 3 times and they went 0-3 SU in those games. Here Kansas State is catching Baylor at quite possibly the worst time as you know the Bears are going to bring their "A game" after what just happened in Morgantown earlier this week. The past two seasons Kansas State went 3-8 ATS when facing a team with a winning record in a game that was past the midway point (15 game mark) of the season. The Cats get exposed again here. 10* BAYLOR

Afternoon Blowout - Rickenbach CBB Game #559 Saturday 8* Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+) @ Virginia Tech Hokies @ 2 ET - The Fighting Irish are rolling and one of the most amazing aspects of their streak has been their play in the clutch. This Notre Dame team, no matter the score, never seems out of game. Of course being able to win games like this is huge and it is particularly important in conference play where so many games tend to be close. ND is a fantastic 15-2 on the season and their only two losses were to solid Purdue and Villanova teams. They catch Virginia Tech at the right time as the Hokies are off of a big double digit win over Syracuse but had lost each of their two prior games. In those previous games Virginia Tech allowed 98.5 points per game as teams shot about 57% against them from the field. Notre Dame is the much better team on the defensive end of the floor and we are getting line value because of the Hokies 10-0 record at home so far this season. Grab the line value with the road dog here as the Fighting Irish are 4-0 ATS in road games with a posted total between 155 and 159.5 points and Virginia Tech is 0-3 ATS in home games with that same range of points as the posted total. As you can see, a lot of points expect here and in a shootout I'll take the team that is more likely to raise there level of play on the defensive end in crunch time. The Irish are allowing just 39.6% from the field while the Hokies are allowing 42.8% from the field this season. 8* NOTRE DAME

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB #525 Saturday 8* Minnesota Golden Gophers (+) @ Penn State Nittany Lions @ Noon ET - Flat spot for the Nittany Lions. They have been sitting around for a week waiting to play again and this is after a huge victory at a "neutral site" game played in Philly versus Michigan State last Saturday. That was a massive win for Penn State in a historic venue in Philadelphia and the Nittany Lions are likely to get caught feeling a little too good about themselves as they head into this match-up with the Golden Gophers. Minnesota drew the misfortune of facing an angry Spartans team Wednesday and Sparty took out their frustrations from the PSU loss on the unsuspecting Gophers. Prior to that ugly loss to Michigan State, Minny had won 15 of their first 17 games this season and they'll be ready to respond in a big way here early on Saturday. Minnesota has lost three straight to Penn State so a little payback is on order here as well. The Golden Gophers are 3-1 ATS on the road this season and the Nittany Lions are 2-5 SU (and 2-4 ATS) when playing with 5 or 6 days of rest between games. Penn State will be rusty here after the layoff. 8* MINNESOTA

Rickenbach CBB Game #553 Thursday 10* Top Play SMU Mustangs (+) @ Cincinnati Bearcats @ 9 ET - Great line value here with the underdog. The Mustangs have revenge from losing to the Bearcats when these teams last met in March. Both teams have been strong early this season but SMU is 6-2 ATS in their games against teams with a winning record while Cincinnati has gone only 3-4 ATS in their games against teams with a winning record. Also, as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points, the Bearcats have an ugly long-term mark of 10-22 ATS! The last 4 games between these teams have been decided by an average of 5.8 points per game. This game is projected to be a hard-fought low-scoring battle and Cincy is an ugly 18-29 ATS in home games with a posted total in the 120s. The Mustangs are a solid 30-18 ATS in road games with a posted total in the 120s. Overall, in all games with a total posted between 120 and 129.5 points the last 3 seasons, SMU has gone an incredible 19-1 SU and 14-6 ATS! The Bearcats are ranked and they are at home so they are they popular choice here but the Mustangs have a great shot at the upset here and I'll gladly grab the generous points being offered. SMU has won 10 straight games and allowed only 54.8 points per game in those 10 games. 10* SMU

Rickenbach CBB Game #544 Thursday 8* UTSA Roadrunners (-) vs Florida Atlantic Owls @ 8 ET - Triple revenge spot for UTSA and the Roadrunners are surging with confidence right now. Not only are they off of a much-needed road win at Louisiana Tech - as a double digit dog no less - UTSA is a perfect 6-0 in home games this season. That said, I'll gladly lay the small number here with the Runners on their home floor as they also seek revenge for losing all 3 match-ups with the Owls last season. Florida Atlantic took both regular season meetings with the Roadrunners and then also knocked them out of the Conference USA tournament on March 8th by an ugly 82-58 final. UTSA shot horribly in that game so, despite 61 field goal attempts (compared to just 53 for FAU), the Roadrunners lost by two dozen points. That ended a tough season for UTSA and was also the final game for coach Brooks Thompson who was fired two days later. Tragically, he passed away only three months later at the age of only 45. The team hasn't forgotten Thompson nor the way their season ended against this same Owls team in what ended up being Thompson's last game. They will play extremely hard tonight there is no doubt and I look for them to improve to 7-0 at home this season. Florida Atlantic is 2-6 ATS when off of a win in conference action and also 7-14 ATS in their games against teams with a losing record. The Roadrunners have won just as many games in the past 5 weeks as they won all of last season and they are playing like a new team under coach Steven Henson. The markets just haven't caught up to them yet and that means line value here against a 5-9 Owls team. 8* UTSA 

Rickenbach CBB Game #517 Thursday 8* Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+) @ Miami Hurricanes @ 7 ET - This line opened up at a -2 on Miami and is now up to a -4 as of very early gameday morning. I am grabbing the value on the other side of the move. Many are likely backing the Hurricanes expecting them to bounce back at home after their ugly 70-55 road loss at Syracuse. However, Miami is actually a very ugly 2-10 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when they are off of a game where they were held to 60 points or less. Also, Notre Dame is playing this game with double revenge as they lost both games versus the Canes last season. Miami is just 2-5 ATS at home this season and the Fighting Irish have gone 13-7 SU in their last 20 road games and I'll back the revenging road dog getting the extra line value here. 8* NOTRE DAME

SEC Game of the Month - Rickenbach CBB Game #751 Wednesday - 10* Top Play LSU Tigers (+) @ Texas A & M Aggies @ 8:30 PM ET - Not only is this a revenge game for LSU, it certainly is anything but "normal" revenge. The Tigers lost to Texas A & M in the SEC Tourney by a final score of 71 to 38 last spring. The Aggies, in that game, held LSU to a season-low in points and also  a season-low in field goals made (13). Not only that but it also marked the fewest points scored by a team in any major conference for the entire season. You can bet that LSU got caught looking ahead to this revenge game in their poor effort at home against Mississippi State Saturday. The Tigers are only 9-5 this season but they will bring a much stronger effort on defense here after what happened against the Bulldogs Saturday and also after the way they played against the Aggies in the SEC Tourney. Keep in mind that the Tigers did beat A & M when they faced them at LSU last season and now it's time for a little "road payback". Of course a big key here is that the Aggies certainly aren't the level of team they were last season. Texas A & M is winless so far in the SEC and all 3 losses have come by double digits. Now they're being asked to win by double digits against a hungry, revenge-minded underdog and I just don't see that happening here. The Aggies are only 2-6 SU (and 1-6 ATS) in their games against teams with a winning record this season. Also, the Tigers are 12-4 SU (and 10-5 ATS) the past 3 seasons combined when they are off of a loss in SEC action. LSU is also 4-1 SU and ATS this season when they are off of a game where they allowed 80 points or more. Look for the Tigers to get back on track in a big way here and, if they do fall short, it will be single digits. They are highly motivated for this one. 10* Top Play LSU

Big Ten Network Smash - Rickenbach CBB Game #727 Wednesday 8* Minnesota Golden Gophers (+) @ Michigan State Spartans @ 7 ET - This line opened up at -2.5 on Sparty and quickly jumped up to -4.5 and I am not surprised since they have the home court edge here. However, what this has done has set up some nice line value on the other side as Minnesota, in comparison with Michigan State, has been playing the better basketball this season. The Golden Gophers one exception to being superior to the Spartans is that they suffered a tough, 1 point home loss to Michigan State in overtime two weeks ago. The only other loss that Minnesota has this season came at Florida State. Minny is holding opponents to just 28.6% from three point land. The Spartans are allowing 34.2% from beyond the arc. The Golden Gophers are 3-0 ATS on the road this season and 3-0 ATS as an underdog. Minnesota was up 39-26 at halftime in their home loss to Michigan State earlier this season and they have now lost back to back games to the Spartans but they did win in their last visit to East Lansing and I expect another "upset" in this one as well. Grab the generous points here. 8* MINNESOTA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CBB Game #517 Sunday 8* Richmond Spiders (+) @ George Washington Colonials @ Noon ET - The Colonials lost a ton of talent from last year's team that won the NIT Championship and certainly it has shown. George Washington is only 6-6 in their last 12 games and 4 of the 6 wins have come by 4 points or less. That makes the points very attractive here as does the fact that the road team has covered 3 of the last 4 meetings between these teams. The Spiders did win in overtime here last season but they also enter this game with revenge because the Colonials returned the favor at Richmond in their final match-up of the season. The Spiders and George Washington are both allowing just 42.2% from the field this season but the Colonials are allowing 37% from three point land. Also, on the season, George Washington is only shooting 40.6% from the field while Richmond is shooting 45.7% from the field. The Colonials are only 15-27 ATS in conference games the past 3 seasons and have gone just 1-6 ATS as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points. This season, in games with a posted total in the 140s, George Washington is 1-4 ATS. The Spiders are a long-term 9-5 ATS in road games with a posted total between 140 and 144.5 points. The Colonials are off of a win versus Davidson where, seemingly, everything was falling. After hitting 61% from three point land (uncharacteristic!) and still only winning the game by 4 points, look for things to return to normal for George Washington here. The Spiders could pull the upset but certainly I'll grab the points here. 8* RICHMOND very early Sunday

Big East Game of the Month - Rickenbach CBB Game #763 Saturday 10* Top Play St John's Red Storm (+) @ Xavier Musketeers @ 2:30 ET - The Red Storm are coming off of an awful season and, as a result, we're still getting line value with them early this season. They've added some size and length inside which certainly has improved the interior defense. In fact, on the season, the Johnnies are allowing the same field goal percentage (42%) as the Musketeers so this shows how far they've come. Xavier lost some of their "length" from last year's team and this has impacted their defense. Don't get me wrong, the Musketeers are certainly still the superior team in comparison with St John's but, what we're seeing here is that the gap between these teams has truly narrowed. That said, the Red Storm also have toughened up thanks to some tough early season road games and tournament battles with teams like Michigan State and Virginia Commonwealth. The Red Storm already have an impressive win over Syracuse and upset win over Butler on their resume this season. The fact that St John's just lost their most recent game (hosting Creighton) by 13 points is helping lead to additional line value here. Even as bad as the Johnnies were last year they lost their two games with Xavier by 8 points or less. The prior year St John's actually won both games with the Musketeers. They are undervalued here and Xavier is on a 1-5 ATS run as a home fave in a range of 12.5 to 15 points. The Red Storm have gone 4-0 ATS on the road this season and are a long term 16-6 ATS in road games where the total is between 145 and 149.5 points. More of the same Saturday. 10* ST JOHN'S plus the big points

Earliest Cash Saturday - Rickenbach CBB Game #723 Saturday 8* DePaul Blue Demons (+) @ Seton Hall Pirates @ Noon ET - Too many points here. Sure, the Pirates are 11-3 on the season and the Blue Demons are 7-8 on the season thus far. However, DePaul has only lost 1 game (out of 15 games this season) by more than 14 points. Also, 5 of the Blue Demons 8 losses have come by a single digit margin. DePaul also has revenge on their minds here as they lost by 14 at home versus the Pirates last season. The Blue Demons only lost by 4 points in the game at Seton Hall last season and, the prior year, DePaul actually won both games with Seton Hall to earn the 2-0 season sweep. Certainly the Pirates are the better team this season but this line is inflated and, as most of the Big East coaches have been openly discussing, it's going to be a "black and blue" season where no wins are coming easy. The talent level is that closely matched across all programs. That is why right now, in the Big East standings - even though so few games have been played - there is only one undefeated team and only two winless teams out of all 10 teams. It's going to be a "dogfight" season in the Big East and thanks to the scoring punch of Eli Cain, Billy Garrett, and TreDarius McCallum the Blue Demons can hang tough in this one all the way. Look at Seton Hall's last 12 games, they only have 1 win by more than a 13 points margin. The Pirates are 2-6 ATS as a favorite this season. The Blue Demons are 6-2 ATS the past 3 seasons combined when they are a road dog of 12.5 points or more. 8* DE PAUL plus the big points very early Saturday

CUSA Game of the Month - Rickenbach CBB Game #741 Thursday - 10* Top Play UTSA Roadrunners (-) @ Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles @ 8 ET - Most will look at this game and just say it's plain ugly and want to stay away. However, I see great opportunity here with a low number on an improving team that is building up in confidence under a new coach with a new system. Steven Henson, a Lon Kruger protege, has done a great job already with the Roadrunners and his team is now going to be playing their 15th game of the season and they are at the point where they have bought into his systems and defense has improved as a result. UTSA has won 3 straight games and 4 of its last 5. Winning, especially notching victory in their conference opener against UTEP, has done wonders for the confidence of this Roadrunners team and they are ready to go and get an elusive road win. I am well aware of the fact that UTSA hasn't won on the road yet this season but they are facing a Southern Mississippi program that is still trying to find its footing after the scandal that has left them on probation until 2020. This team has only won 3 games this season and those were all non-lined games (which shows you how weak the opposition was). The Golden Eagles are 0-9 SU in lined games this season and here we have a very small line on this game so the SU winner is likely to get the cash and I look for UTSA to get the big road win they are so hungry for. Coach Henson has won this team over and they head to Hattiesburg, Miss. with plenty of confidence in tow. The Runners have held their last 3 opponents to 38.4% from the field and just 63.3 points per game. The Golden Eagles have averaged just 56.6 points per game in their last 12 games and they come into this game having lost 9 straight. UTSA's Gino Littles has combined with Giovanni De Nicolao to give the Roadrunners a solid 1-2 punch at point guard because both players have proved very capable of running the offense with precision. I am well aware of the fact that the Runners 2nd leading scorer, Nick Billingsley, did not make this road trip (academics) but senior guard JR Harris is about to return from a leg injury. Harris could be back as soon as tonight and just the fact that UTSA's leading returning scorer from last year is almost back and the team has won three straight has got the Roadrunners believing they can go and take down this road win. The Golden Eagles were projected by most to finish dead last in CUSA this season and Southern Miss is certainly the perfect spot for the Runners to notch that highly sought-after road win. Look for the Eagles to drop to 0-4 SU and ATS in home lined games this season. 10* UTSA Roadrunners Thursday

Wednesday Winner - Rickenbach CBB Game #563 - 8* Virginia Cavaliers (-) @ Pittsburgh Panthers @ 9 ET - Both teams are off of losses so each team is looking to bounce back. Look for the Cavaliers stellar defense to be the difference in this one. Virginia is allowing an average of only 48.6 points per game this season while holding opponents to 35.2% from the field. Contrast this with the Panthers who allow 75.8 points per game! Pittsburgh gets a lot of hype for their home court but the result of the "too much hype" has been a 14-25 ATS mark the past three seasons. The Panthers have a solid frontcourt but are not that strong defensively or at the point. That's why their top leaders in assists are actually their top tandem of forwards - Michael Young and Jamel Artis. The Panthers will be looking to respond off of their loss but are only 9-12 ATS when off of a loss in conference action. Conversely, the Cavaliers are a rock solid 8-1 SU (and 6-3 ATS) when off of a loss in ACC action. Also, the Panthers are just 1-6 ATS as a home dog in a range of 3.5 to 6 points. Versus strong defensive teams (allowing 64 points or less per game), Pittsburgh is on a 3-17 ATS run. The Panthers have lost 4 straight games to the Cavs and each of the last two defeats have come by at least a dozen points. Combining the top trends above (6-3 on Cavs, 6-1 against Pitt and 17-3 against Pitt) this is a 29-7 (81%) spot favoring the Cavaliers. The Cavs have are a perfect 6-0 the last 6 times they have lost a game and most of the victories have been blowouts and only one win came by less than 7 points. Look for another road rout here! 8* VIRGINIA Wednesday