The Islanders stood pat at the trade deadline, and have been playing a solid and predictably defensive style of play lately. They take on a confused Senators team, who they handled successfully in February. The Isles have given up just 5 goals in 3 games, and have shown more offense than expected, considering their 2.7 goals-for avg. this season. They are healthy (how often can one say that about a team!), and have won 4 straight games at home.

The Senators added 4 players and lost 3, so it is a good thing there are names on their jerseys. They have been playing particularly poorly of late, losing 4 of 5, and have been outscored 21 -11.

The Islanders are a large and legitimate favorite on Tuesday. Not even considering their poor play, there is a lot of trade deadline dust to settle before this Senators team will play cohesively. Missing Chabot doesn’t help either. Take the Islanders on the puck line.

The Hawks currently hold what the Knicks want; that being the last spot for the NBA’s play-in round. Fortunately for Atlanta, they have a five-game lead over New York, even after losing two of three. That should tell you what kind of a struggle it’s been for the Knicks this season. I like Atlanta here … big. 

These teams developed a bit of a “rivalry” last year with Trae Young’s antics in Madison Square Garden. The Hawks ousted the Knicks from the playoffs and wound up going to the Eastern Conference Finals. As you can tell from looking at the current standings, there’s been some severe regression for both sides.

Pointspread wise, the Knicks have been doing better than the Hawks … lately. New York is 7-2 ATS its previous nine games, Atlanta is 1-8 ATS its L9. But the Knicks have failed to cover two straight and lost three of five, straight up. 

New York is looking for a season sweep here. They’ve beaten Atlanta three times this season, including on Christmas Day when Young was out. But I’m anticipating a much different result on Tuesday with Young in the lineup. 

I look at this matchup in rather simple terms. The Hawks are better than the Knicks and this is a really short number. While they haven’t been covering much of late, Atlanta has won four of its last six games straight up. The revenge angle should work in their favor tonight. I just can’t see them losing for a fourth straight time to a Knicks team that is 11 games under .500. 

Washington finally ended its losing streak, defeating the Lakers on Saturday by a score of 127-119. They had to erase a 16-point deficit to do so, but no one is complaining in the Nation’s capital. The Wizards are still 4.5 games back of the last “play-in” spot in the Eastern Conference and desperately need more wins.

Fortunately for them, they’ll be in Houston Monday night to face a Rockets team that is 17-54 on the year and already eliminated from playoff contention. That 17-54 SU record is the worst in the entire NBA. Houston has lost its last five games, four of them by at least 13 points.

The Wizards will take this game seriously as they actually lost to the Rockets earlier in the year, at home, by a score of 114-111. The Rockets have won only six times since that victory, which was back on January 5th.

Houston has only two wins in its last 20 games. All things considered, this is a very short number to go against them.

The Rockets have given up more than 120 points in six of the last seven games. That’s a problem when you only average 108.9 PPG like they do. Washington put up 127 on the Lakers with Porzingis leading the way with 27. Back the road favorite here.

Notre Dame has already had to win twice to get here and may very well be on fumes going into this second round matchup against Texas Tech. That’s problematic as this Red Raiders team is legit, as we saw in their complete dismantling of Montana State on Friday.

I had TT in that one. They won 97-62 as a 15-point favorite. The result was never in doubt with the Red Raiders jumping out to a 18-4 lead less than five minutes in. They wound up shooting 66.7% for the game, the fourth highest percentage ever in the first round, and made 12 of 20 threes.

Notre Dame is one of the weaker teams left in the field. Let’s not forget that it took TWO overtimes to get by Rutgers in the “First Four.” Then the Irish got hot themselves against Alabama, shooting 10 of 16 from three-point land.

But Texas Tech is perhaps the top defensive team in the country. They are 1st in the defensive efficiency rankings over at KenPom. Look for them to shut down Notre Dame in this one. 

Don’t be concerned about the Red Raiders being unable to follow up an impressive offensive display. They are 4-0 ATS off the previous four games where they scored 90 or more points.

Carolina has lost 3 games straight on the road, and has averaged just 2.5 goals-for a game in their last 10. Much is expected of this team, and it is about time they turned things around offensively. Andersen won’t have been happy losing to the Leafs, so look for a better performance from him tonight. The ‘Canes are a dominant team at home, with an extra day of rest, and have the best defense in the league.

While the Rangers also rate highly on defense, much of that comes on the back of their star goalie Shesterkin, who will not start tonight. The Rangers are not as good on the road, and with Georgiev in net, and in a back to back situation, they will struggle against the Hurricanes.

The odds-makers agree with me, as the Canes are a tall favorite. Here is a dawg that will have it’s day today. Take the Hurricanes to win -1 ½.

Illinois barely survived Chattanooga in the first round, not taking the lead until the final minute. But that’s when you want to have the lead and the Illini prevailed 54-53. It was certainly not an impressive performance and I think the Fighting Illini are in trouble here against 5-seed Houston.

Houston made it to the Final Four last season. The Cougars began this year’s tourney run with a dominant 82-68 win over UAB. It’s now eight covers in the last nine games for Kelvin Sampson’s team, who is 30-5 on the year. 

Illinois was outrebounded by Chattanooga. That’s a terrible sign. So are the Illini’s offensive numbers from the L4 games, a stretch in which they’ve gone 0-4 against the spread. Three of those games have seen the team score 63 points or less and shoot worse than 40 percent from the field. They made only 3 of 17 three-point attempts against Chattanooga.

Houston averages 76 points per game while giving up an average of just 59.1. They are one of only five teams in the country to rank in the top 20 nationally in both offensive and defensive efficiency. This is a championship contender.

Illinois has failed to cover each of the last six times they’ve been off a straight up win. Lay the points.

So, after a sluggish start, Gonzaga was finally able to pull away from 16-seed Georgia State in the first round. The Zags used a 24-1 second half run to put the game away, but still ended up not covering the large 22.5-point spread. (They won 93-72). Once again, in the second round vs. Memphis, I think the spread will prove to be too large.

Memphis has been on a real roll down the stretch. They beat Boise State in the first round 64-53 and covered the three-point spread. The Tigers took control of that game pretty early and never were really threatened after that. They have now won 13 of their last 15 games.

I don’t think Gonzaga can count on the wide shooting discrepancy that they enjoyed vs. Georgia State. They shot 50.7%, which isn’t that atypical, but Georgia State shot just 32.9%. Memphis actually did a better job defensively against Boise State, holding the Broncos to 31.5%. 

The defensive improvement we’ve seen from the Tigers, since Penny Hardaway’s infamous press conference in late January, has been substantial. The most points they’ve given up in a game since February is 74. Only three times have they allowed more than 70.

The Tigers are 16-5 ATS their previous 21 tries as an underdog. Grab the points here.

These are two of the hotter teams in the league right now. Milwaukee comes in having taken eight of their previous nine games and has covered the spread in seven of them. Minnesota has been even more profitable with a 9-1 SU and ATS run. 

Wednesday night, the Bucks couldn’t miss as they shot 51.4 percent from three on their way to a 135-126 win over Sacramento. Offense has not been in short supply for the defending champs during this winning run of theirs as they have averaged 124.6 points per game this month, getting held under 110 just once.

Minnesota is probably not the team that can slow down the Bucks. While the Timberwolves’ defensive numbers are better at home, they’ve still given up an average of 113.4 points over their last five games. 

This is a revenge spot for Milwaukee as they lost at home to the T’wolves, back in October. The final score was 113-108. The Bucks were short-handed going into that game.

No such issues tonight as they look to go to 7-2 ATS their last nine games at Minnesota. Lay the short number.

The breakup of the Black Hawks has begun, as they've lost a real fan favorite and spark plug to the Lightning. We have also likely seen the last of Fleury, who has kept things close for the Hawks in net. Look for Lankinen to start today.

The Wild are still in a play-off spot, but need to gain some consistency or that could change quickly.  This is a great situational game for a much needed win against a demoralized Black Hawks team, who are poor on the road at the best of times. Talbot looks to have improved lately, and the Hawks don't have much in the way of offense anyway. The Wild have an explosive offense, and today will be the day when it expresses itself.  Look for the Wild to 'kick 'em while they are down" and win this one going away.  Take the Wild - 1 1/2 today.

Villanova should really smash Delaware here. The Blue Hens made a surprise run through the Colonial Tournament as the 5-seed. Now they are facing the Big East Tournament Champs and one of the best teams in the country. This isn’t exactly a Saturday vs. Northeastern.

‘Nova is 10-1 its last 11 games and that one loss was by two points. They are probably going to make a deep run in this Tournament. Late in the game, when it comes to covering this spread, it is nice that the Wildcats are the #1 team in the country when it comes to making free throws.

Delaware has never won an NCAA Tournament in five previous tries. They are also 0-15 all-time against Villanova. They had lost three straight games entering the CAA Tournament.

Since 2014, Jay Wright’s Wildcats have five wins by 20 or more points as a top two seed in the NCAA Tournament.

On offense, ‘Nova will overwhelm the Delaware. Defensively, the Wildcats allow just 63.1 points per game.

Look for Texas Tech to have no trouble beating Montana State on Friday. This 3 vs. 14 matchup is a total mismatch.

Texas Tech is #1 in the nation in defensive efficiency. This will serve them well. Montana State normally shoots well, but there’s a big difference in going from facing your typical team out of the Big Sky to the one the Bobcats will face here. 

Though Montana State was regular season and conference tournament champs out of the Big Sky, this is their first NCAA Tourney appearance since 1996. Texas Tech, who made the Big 12 Final against Kansas, is a regular in this event. They played for the National Championship, under Chris Beard, in 2019.

The Red Raiders beat every single Big 12 team at least once this year and had two wins over Baylor, a 1-seed.  They are also 8-1 ATS off their last nine straight up losses.

Montana State simply will not be able to shoot the three as well as they normally do here. Lay the points.

There have been only five years where a 12-seed has never beaten a 5 in the NCAA Tournament. I’d be shocked if it didn’t happen in this Tournament, so why not take the points here with New Mexico State, a team that is 26-6 on the year?

The Aggies have been to the NCAA Tournament before. They made it three straight years from 2017-19. Incredibly, they have lost 11 consecutive first round games, going back to the mid-90s. Eventually, a team is due. This team is better than most previous editions. 

UConn has not been good at covering games. They are only 3-11 ATS in their previous 14. During that time, they have only four wins by more than seven points. The Huskies have also not won a NCAA Tourney game since 2016.

New Mexico State has wins over Davidson, Washington State, Cal Irvine and UTEP. So I don’t expect them to be intimidated at all. Their record as an underdog is a perfect 4-0 against the spread.

I have to take the points here in what should be a close matchup throughout.

Providence is much maligned as a four seed as they won a lot of close games and thus probably are not as good as their overall record. But the Friars are being WAY undervalued for their first round matchup vs. 13-seed South Dakota State, a team that plays little in the way of defense.

The underdog Jackrabbits rank 223rd in the country in defensive efficiency. That is second worst among ALL tournament teams.

Not that a team needs any added motivation to win in March Madness, but the way Providence exited the Big East Tournament - an 85-58 loss to Creighton - should have them ready to go here. 

This is tied for the shortest spread ever in a 4 vs. 13 matchup. The Friars will take it as a sign of disrespect.

While South Dakota State has not lost a game since Dec 15, the conference that they play in (Summit) is weak. The Jackrabbits live and die by the three, so thankfully Providence can hang its hat on the fact they are allowing just 31.2 percent shooting from long range. Lay the short number.

After enduring a flood of goals courtesy of the Canucks, the Devils head directly into the flames (Calgary style) in a 3 games/4 nights situation.  Both Devils goal-tenders were shelled on Tuesday, getting little support from that 26th rated defense.

The Flames have given up just three goals in their last 3 games when Markstrom was in net, so don't bet on much offense from a young and tired Devils club.  Calgary is averaging just about 4 goals-for a game lately, and the majority of their considerable wins are by two or more.  Calagary is a huge favorite, and rightly so, howver the odds on the puck line are very palatable. Take the Flames -1 1/2.

I won with the Pacers, plus the points, Sunday night. They were getting double digits in Atlanta and “slid in” through the “back door,” meaning they outscored the Hawks by 10 in the fourth quarter to lose by just three points. Indiana is now 2-13 SU in games decided by three points or less this season.

Though I was happy to cash a ticket, it was not a great effort from the Pacers on Sunday, at least in the first half. They let Atlanta shoot 60% before halftime, 59.1% from three, and Trae Young scored 33 of his game-high 47 in the first half. Indiana was down by 19 at one point. Seven Hawks finished the game in double figures.

Now Indiana must contend with Memphis, who has been one of the better teams in the league this season. The Grizzlies have won their last three games and are tied for second in the West. 

Memphis has failed to cover the spread its last two times out, but continues to score lots of points. Over the last five games, the team is averaging 122.2 PPG. Dillon Brooks is now back in the lineup after missing 27 games.

The Grizzlies have won 21 of their last 28 road games and should not have much difficulty here defeating the injury-riddled Pacers, who play little defense. Three of Indiana’s last four games have seen them surrender at least 127 points. Memphis has covered nine straight Tuesday games.

Philadelphia was able to get by Orlando last night, though they needed overtime to do so. The Sixers won 116-114, obviously not covering the large spread, but all that matters to them is that they bounced back from the embarrassing home loss to Brooklyn from three nights prior.

The Sixers being in a back to back here has definitely created some value as it’s a really short number that they’re being asked to lay, at home no less. They are up against a Denver team that not only is 0-4 ATS its last four games, but was soundly beaten by the 76ers (103-89) back in November.

Since James Harden came over in the blockbuster trade, Philadelphia has lost only one time. They’ve scored 116 or more points in each of the six wins. 

The Nuggets have been giving up lots of points lately, an average of 118.8 over their last five games. They got torched for 127 by Toronto on Saturday and that was at home. 

I don’t think that the back to back matters too much for Philadelphia, even with last night’s game going to OT, as they’d been off for two days prior to that. The Sixers are 12-4 ATS off an ATS loss. 

This is a big number, considering Atlanta is only tied for ninth in the conference with a below .500 record. While they’ve been a bit better of late, going 6-4 the last 10 games, the Hawks haven’t beaten anyone by more than six points in over two weeks.

Atlanta did beat Indiana by 21 when they played last month. But the Pacers don’t get blown out all that often. They have 12 losses this year by three points or less. That’s the most in the league. They are being outscored by an average of just 2.3 points per game.

Last night was a win for the Pacers as they went to San Antonio and prevailed by a score of 119-108. The last time this team won two straight was mid-January. Oddsmakers don’t like their chances of ending that streak tonight. But I do believe Indiana will cover in this spot. They are 7-4 ATS in the second game of a back to back.

The Hawks have a game tomorrow night, so they may not be looking to go “all out.” Expect this to be a close game and take the points.

Davidson, win or lose today, is probably safe when it comes to making the NCAA Tournament. However, that doesn’t mean the A-10 regular season champs and top seed won’t be motivated to defeat Richmond on Sunday. I’m laying the points as fatigue is probably going to be a factor for the underdog here.

Richmond will be playing its fourth game in as many days. Going back to Thursday, the Spiders rallied back from a 14-point halftime deficit to get past Rhode Island. Since then, they’ve upset the #3 (VCU) and #2 (Dayton) in this tournament. It’s a big ask for them to now take out Davidson, who has been the best team in the conference this season.

Davidson has only had to win two games to get here and wasn’t really challenged in either. The Wildcats were 18-point winners over Fordham in the quarterfinal round, then 15-point winners over St. Louis in the semis. In both games, they jumped out to big leads by halftime and never looked back.

Richmond was again down at the half in yesterday’s game vs. Dayton. In fact, they were down as many as 14 in the second half, with just over 13 minutes remaining. The Spiders did not take the lead for good until less than two minutes remained.

Davidson is the better team and has had the easier path to get here. They won at Richmond, 87-84, in the only regular season matchup. I believe Richmond’s defense will crack here against a Davidson offense that is Top 10 in the country in offensive efficiency. 

Denver hasn’t lost two straight games in over a month. They’ll look to keep that streak alive tonight when they play host to Toronto, who was in action last night. The Raptors won in Phoenix last night, thanks to 42 points from Gary Trent Jr. But it will be exceedingly difficult to match that level of performance in the second night of a back to back.

The Nuggets lost to Golden State Thursday, 113-102. It was just their third loss since Feb 6. Off the previous two, Denver bounced back to not just win, but cover as well. One of those spots was against Toronto, whom they defeated 110-109 as a 4.5-point road dog back on Feb 12.

Steph Curry got hot at the right time against the Nuggets in that last game. The Warriors closed on a 13-0 run, so the final score was a tad misleading. 

This is Toronto’s fourth straight game on the road, third in four nights and second in two nights. A bad spot. They are 4-9 ATS this season after playing three straight on the road.

Furthermore, the Raptors are 7-22 ATS their last 29 meetings with the Nuggets and 0-6 ATS their last six trips into Denver.

Some of the Red Wings' scores have more resembled the NFL than the NHL lately.  They've allowed 42 goals in 7 games. Ouch!  The game against the Flames is a defensive mismatch, pitting the league's 31st defense against #2.  The Flames have a dynamic offense to go with that stellar D, and a hot goalie in Markstrom to boot.  They also have the discipline and a very outspoken coach to avoid any  thought of taking the Red Wings for granted.  Take the Flames on the puck line at -1 1/2.  A rare 2 1/2 is available, but that would be tempting fate.

Creighton turned in an incredible performance yesterday in its semifinal win over Providence. They won 85-58. It was the largest loss for a #1 seed in Big East Tournament history. Providence couldn’t make anything, going 3 of 24 from three and shooting just 30% overall.

I think it’s important to note that Providence seemed to be overrated and to remember that - with no starters back from last year’s Sweet 16 team - Creighton was picked to finish eighth in the Big East this year. Thanks to yesterday, their 9th win in the last 11 games, the Bluejays are all but assured of making the NCAA Tournament.

Thus, the motivation may not be there on Saturday against Villanova, a supremely talented team that is the best in the Big East. ‘Nova beat UConn Friday, 63-60, avenging its last loss. Speaking of avenging losses, that’s precisely what the Wildcats did against Creighton the last time the teams met. After Creighton took the first meeting, ‘Nova bounced back with a 34-point win on January 5th.

Villanova is simply the much better team at the offensive end, where it ranks 8th nationally in efficiency. 

Creighton is 0-3 all-time in Big East Tournament Finals. They can’t possibly play any better than they did yesterday nor can they count on Villanova shooting as poorly as Providence did. As for the Wildcats, they managed to still win last night despite not making a single field goal in the final five minutes. The favorite doesn’t turn it over and is one of the best free throw shooting teams in NCAA history.

The big shocker in the SEC yesterday was Texas A&M upsetting top seed Auburn, 67-62. The Aggies, as 9-point underdogs, led most of the way and were up by as many as 20! That win greatly improved their NCAA Tournament chances, though another win today may be needed.

Arkansas is in the NCAA Tournament, no matter what, but winning the SEC Championship would be nice. It was an impressive 79-67 win for the Hogs over LSU on Friday, improving their record to 15-2 SU since Jan 8. They have also gone 14-2-1 ATS in that same stretch. 

Both regular season meetings between A&M and Arkansas were closely contested. Each team won at home, A&M by five and Arkansas by three. I just don’t think A&M is capable of playing any better than it did yesterday when it made 50% from three at the same time Auburn shot just 30% overall. 

The Razorbacks are pretty clearly the better team here and A&M is playing its third game in three days. One of those games saw the Aggies go to overtime. So their tank could be close to empty by the second half today. Arkansas built itself a nice double digit lead in the second half yesterday and thus fatigue should not be a factor at all for them. Lay the points.

So there is a question whether or not LeBron James is going to suit up tonight. Regardless if he does or not, I’m on the Lakers. 

Wednesday may have been a new nadir for LA as they lost in overtime to the lowly Rockets. With or without James, the Lakers are going to come out motivated on Friday after being ripped in the media.

Facing the Wizards helps. They too are off a gutting loss, letting the Clippers score the game’s final 11 points on Wednesday, sending Washington to yet another defeat, their 20th in the last 32 games.

The Wizards are 5-16 ATS vs. the Western Conference and 0-6 vs. the Pacific Division. 

If LeBron plays, obviously I’m a lot more confident. Either way though, expect the Lakers to win and cover.

I don’t think you can undersell the importance of the rest advantage here for Wisconsin, in a tough tournament like the Big 10. Michigan State played last night and was taken down to the wire by Maryland, grinding out a 76-72 win.

It shouldn’t have ended up that close for Sparty, who had a 20-point lead over the Terps. Don’t look for MSU to shoot as well here as they did last night when they made 50% overall and 47.4% from three.

Wisconsin should be very eager to take the court tonight after they shockingly lost the home finale, to Nebraska, as 13-point favorites. The Badgers basically trailed the entire way in that game against the last place team in the Big 10. 

But at no point this season have the Badgers lost two in a row. They have won a lot of close games. But looking at the number, the possibility of a SU win/ATS loss here is very minimal.

Michigan State has lost 7 of its last 11 games.

Nicholls State is the top seed here in the Southland Tournament and received a double-bye into today’s semifinals. They face Texas A&M-CC, who defeated Houston Baptist by a score of 75-60 yesterday. Texas A&M-CC covered the 5.5-point spot in that game.

Texas A&M-CC has won five of its last six games. But the one loss did come to Nicholls, 86-75 at home. They were swept in the season series, also losing at Nicholls by three. Nicholls has now won the last four head to head meetings and six of the last seven.

Going back to January 27th, Nicholls has lost only two games, both to SE Louisiana, who they very well could end up seeing in tomorrow’s final. The Colonels come in averaging 79.6 points per game, tied for 15th in the country, and have exceeded 80 points in seven consecutive games.

In the two regular season games vs. Texas A&M-CC, Nicholls scored 83 and 86 points.

The Colonels are the best team in the Southland and I just can’t see them being upset here. Not with a rest advantage. Lay the short number.

Northern Colorado faces Eastern Washington in the 3-6 matchup of the Big Sky Tournament. Eastern Washington played yesterday, beating Northern Arizona 78-75. Northern Colorado had a bye, so they have a distinct advantage that is seemingly not being accounted for (enough) by the oddsmakers.

Eastern Washington has won its last three games, but two of those were against Northern Arizona, who finished last in the Big Sky. Last night’s first round matchup saw the need for a late 9-0 run to take the lead. I just don’t think the Eagles will have much left in the tank for tonight.

Northern Colorado has been off since Saturday’s two point loss at Montana State. A sour taste in their mouth (from losing the last regular season game) will have the Bears highly motivated coming into this one.

Each team won on the other’s court this year, so it was a split of the two regular season meetings. Northern Colorado was a two-point favorite on the road and six point favorite at home, so I feel we are getting a discount (for whatever reason) here.

Northern Colorado has not dropped back to back games in over a month, a stretch of 11 games. I’ll roll with them.

Long Beach State won the Big West this year with a 12-3 conference record. They finished 18-11 overall. Despite this, the Beach is just a short favorite for its quarterfinal game against a Cal State Bakersfield team that won just two conference games all season! What? 

CS-Bakersfield also had to win a game to get here. They advanced out of the first round by defeating Cal State Northridge on Tuesday, 58-45 as a six-point favorite. Even with the day in between games, I don’t see the Roadrunners having much of a chance today. They lost by nine at LBSU in the lone regular season matchup.

LBSU has lost only two games in the previous two months. While they are a bit of a shaky #1 seed, they are clearly better than the #9 seed in this tournament. 

Coming into the Big West Tournament, CS-Bakersfield had just one win in its last 13 games! They are 6-16 ATS in lined games this season!

Just can’t make sense of this number from the oddsmakers; the top seed is being “disrespected” and I’ll play accordingly.

Minnesota is playing its best basketball of the season right now. The Timberwolves have won five in a row, covering the spread each time, and averaged 130.6 points per game. They are winning by an average of almost 23 points during the win streak!

Now it helps to play the likes of Oklahoma City and Portland, the latter twice, but guess who the T’wolves see tonight? OKC again! It was 138-101 the last time these teams met and that was in Oklahoma City. Minnesota turned in both its highest scoring half (77 points) and quarter (45) of the season in that win. They shot 57% before halftime and for the game, made 22 of 47 three-point shots.

Oklahoma City is coming off a loss last night where it surrendered 142 points. So this game could get very ugly in a hurry. The Thunder have lost their last three games and allowed 124 or more points in five of the last seven.

The Timberwolves are 3-0 vs. the Thunder in 2021-22. The last two wins were by 30 and 37 points. Let’s not overthink this one. Minnesota has covered all eight home games this season when the total is 230 points or higher. They are 3-0 ATS as a home favorite of -12.5 or higher.

Only one NCAA Tournament berth will be handed out today and it goes to the winner of the Patriot League Final between Navy and Colgate. These are the top two seeds, but Colgate has pretty clearly been the class of the league throughout the season. On their home floor, I expect the Raiders to win comfortably and move on.

The respective paths these teams took to get to this Final illustrates the gap that exists between them. Colgate has rolled over Bucknell (96-68) and Lehigh (91-61) while Navy squeaked by American U (71-64) and needed overtime to beat Boston U (85-80). 

This game is being played in Colgate’s gym where they are 14-1 SU this season and 38-4 SU the last three seasons. So it’s a really big deal. When at home, the Raiders are outscoring their opponents by almost 17 points per game.

Colgate swept the two regular season meetings vs. Navy. At home, they won by only five. But they won the game in Annapolis by 19. 

It’s 14 straight wins for Colgate coming into tonight. Only one has been by less than seven points.

It’s going to be a “tough mountain” to climb for LaSalle and St. Joe’s, who have to play in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Tourney. Both face the prospect of having to win five times in five days just to make the NCAA Tournament. That’s not going to happen, but one team will win today and I think that’s going to be the short favorite.

Consider that St. Joe’s is playing with double revenge. Yes, they lost twice to LaSalle in the regular season. The more recent loss came exactly a week ago, on the road and by a single point. At the time, that was the Hawks’ seventh straight defeat, but five of them were by six points or less and three by two points or less.

Thankfully, the regular season ended on a positive note with St. Joe’s defeating Rhode Island 70-60. With the losing streak now over, they can concentrate on exacting some revenge.

LaSalle has won three in a row, which is very rare as it is tied for their longest win streak of the year. Two of those three wins have been by two points or less. The Explorers were just 2-13 in A-10 games. I think this is a wonderful time to fade them, especially at this price. St. Joe’s is the better team here and I find it hard to believe anybody could lose to LaSalle three times in the same season. 

The Senators have a lamentable record lately, particularly on the road, They haven’t mustered much in the way of offense against better teams, and were roughed up by the Blues in their last meeting. Forsberg has been a solid net-minder in a losing cause, but has faced 40 or more shots in three straight games.

It won’t get any easier against the Blues’ very dynamic offense. The Blues have been on the road for an extended period of time, but are finally back in St Louis tonight. They are a much more successful home team, and after losing a rare three straight away games, will be fired up against a very beatable opponent. They are a fine team on both offense and defense, but haven’t shown much in the way of scoring on this mini-slump. This will be the perfect opportunity for a big breakout.  Take the Blues to win on the puck line.

UTSA and Southern Miss face a tough path in the Conference USA Tournament. Both face the task of having to win five times this week. That’s not going to happen for either team. But I do really like UTSA to win this first round game.

The Roadrunners aren’t particularly great, but they did win their last game (82-71 over Rice) and are facing an opponent that hasn’t won in nearly two months. The last time Southern Miss did win (1/19), it was against a non-DI foe. The last time the Golden Eagles defeated a Division I opponent was Jan 6 - UTSA. It was a one-point victory, 74-73.

UTSA avenged that loss with a 19-point win at Hattiesburg one month later. They are now 4-1 SU/ATS vs. Southern Miss the previous three seasons. 

Southern Miss is very bad. They are 6-25 overall and 1-17 in conference play. The average loss came by nearly 15 PPG when facing a team from C-USA. During their current 12-game losing streak, 10 losses have come by double digits.

This is a steal having to lay so few points against Southern Miss. UTSA has already proven that they can blow this team out. They will again.

There’s been a bit of a “cooling off” with the Grizzlies, as they are just 4-4 SU the last eight games overall. But after a bad loss, 123-112 at Houston, I expect them to start strong tonight at home vs. New Orleans.

No reason to panic in Memphis. Owing mostly to the Warriors’ recent struggles, the team has moved up into second place in the Western Conference. Looking back, the Grizzlies have won 25 of 33. They are still one of the best teams in the NBA.

The Grizz probably should have beaten the Rockets considering they were up 10 at halftime. But they finished the game an uncharacteristic 5 of 28 from three-point range.

Similarly, the opponent for Tuesday blew a double digit lead on Sunday and lost. New Orleans was more egregious, letting an 11-point advantage slip away in the final 3:22 of regulation and ending up going down in overtime, 138-130 at Denver. That snapped a four-game SU/ATS win streak for the Pelicans.

The Grizzlies typically do very well off losses. Since Christmas, there’s been only one instance of them losing back to back games. Look for those threes to start falling here and the home team will cover the spread.

The bottom six take part in the first round of the ACC Tournament. Here, it’s the #11 seed Louisville taking on #14 Georgia Tech. The teams met once in the regular season. Louisville won 67-64 as a three-point favorite.

Since that win, the bottom dropped out of Louisville's season. They fired head coach Chris Mack and ended the regular season on a poor 4-13 ATS run. They won just two of those games straight up.

So I’m siding with the Yellow Jackets here. They’ve got a bit more momentum, having covered five of the last six games and beating Boston College in the regular season finale.

Playing for a lame-duck interim coach is no way to enter a conference tournament. That’s the reality for Louisville right now. 

The Cardinals shoot just 28% from three away from home and average 63.9 points. They’ve also turned the ball over 54 times in the last four games and allowed opponents to shoot a ridiculous percentage from three in the last three games. 

The Kings get to host the Knicks, who are in the second night of a back to back. Furthermore, since the Knicks won on Sunday (beat the Clippers 116-93), I think we’re getting a really good price on the home side. 

Sacramento is coming off a 2-3 road trip. It could have been better, but two of the losses were by five points or less. They lost 114-113 in Dallas on Saturday, blowing a 19-point lead. 

Before winning Sunday, the Knicks had lost seven straight and 10 of their last 11. They aren’t a good team either. This is the middle of a seven-game, 12-day trip that has Dallas, Memphis and Brooklyn still to come. I’d say the Knicks are about to fall out of playoff contention for good.

The Kings have revenge for a 20-point loss they suffered in Madison Square Garden. The Knicks shot 50 percent in that game, something they haven’t done since. 

New York has failed to cover 15 of the last 22 times it has been off an ATS win. Most of those games came with rest, something that isn’t the case here. Lay the points.

All of a sudden, Detroit has turned into a covering machine, winning its last seven in a row ATS. But let’s not sugarcoat the fact the Pistons are still a bad basketball team. They are thirty games below .500 and have the worst point differential in the Eastern Conference.

During the 7-0 ATS run, the Pistons have won straight up a total of five times. They are coming off back to back wins here, first beating the Raptors in Toronto on Thursday night, 108-106, followed by a 111-106 home win over the Pacers on Friday. The team had the weekend off. 

You can look for the win streak to end Monday against Atlanta. First off, Detroit has not won three in a row at any point in the season. They are 1-2 ATS when coming off two straight wins and the one cover came as 12.5-point underdogs.

Atlanta has been playing better recently. They too have won five of their last seven and didn’t play over the weekend. The Hawks’ most recent wins came over the Bulls and Wizards. Trae Young has averaged 34.0 points and 9.5 assists over the last four games.

The last time the Pistons won three in a row was the 2018-19 season. The last time these teams met, the Hawks won by 18. John Collins is now back for them. The home team is due to play poorly.

Despite being regular season champs in the Horizon League, Cleveland State isn’t getting much respect in this semifinal matchup with 4-seed Wright State. The quarterfinals of this tournament saw all top four seeds win in the quarterfinals after they each received a first round bye.

The top-seeded Vikings are 20-9 on the year. They ousted Robert Morris 83-67 in the quarterfinals, a game in which they had the home court advantage. Tonight’s game takes place in Indianapolis, a neutral setting. The Vikings actually haven’t played a neutral court game all season.

Thursday’s win against Robert Morris was marred by issues with the scoreboard, but CSU got 25 points from Torrey Patton, which matched a season-high. The Vikings shot well (54.2%) and defended the three-point line better than RMU. They forced 20 turnovers.

Wright State found itself down eight at the half against Oakland in its quarterfinal matchup. They too got to play at home. It was a 20-0 run that turned the tide. The Raiders are 0-3 ATS in neutral site games this year though and are unlikely to go on a run like that against a better team like Cleveland State.

Cleveland State won both regular season meetings, 85-75 at home and 71-67 away. They are the better team here and won the Horizon League Tourney last season. I see no reason why they won’t defeat Wright State again. 

The Suns are playing shorthanded, but even so this is too many points to pass up. The team with the best record in the NBA, the Suns have lost just three of their last 24 games. After beating Portland by 30 on Wednesday, they came from behind to beat the Knicks on Friday.

Milwaukee comes into this NBA Finals rematch on a three-game win streak. The last two wins, over Miami and Chicago, were both hard fought. Only one of the Bucks' last five games have been decided by more than six points. I bring this up, because they may not have enough left in the tank to run away with this one.

Brook Lopez is still out for the Bucks. As great as Giannis has been recently, that kind of production can’t continue forever. 

Not only have the Bucks failed to cash in seven of their last nine games against teams that have winning records, but they are just 13-21 ATS at home. Phoenix has an incredible road record of 23-5 SU.

As short-handed as they might be (no Paul or Booker), look for the Suns to compete here. They dominated Milwaukee (131-107) in the first meeting since last year’s NBA Finals. This is the most points they’ll get in any game all season.

This is an important game for Memphis, despite having won three in a row. The Tigers are firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble and can still earn the second seed for next week’s American Conference Tournament.

They are also looking to make it a season sweep over Houston. That would be quite the accomplishment. Back on February 12th, the Tigers ended the Cougars’ 37-game home win streak with a 69-59 victory. That was a season-low in points for Houston and they committed a season-high 19 turnovers. 

Memphis has won 9 of its last 10 overall, the one loss coming at SMU. They’ve also covered five straight times against Houston.

I really like the spot for the short home underdog here. Houston is playing its fourth game in eight days (“tough” says coach Kelvin Sampson) and is lacking depth because of injuries. Considering that the Cougars have already locked up the regular season title, they may not be treating this game all that seriously.

Memphis has covered 11 of the past 13 times it has been an underdog. Grab the points.

UNLV played New Mexico in January and won 85-56. The Runnin’ Rebels don’t need to win by even half that margin tonight in Albuquerque. I’ll lay the points.

UNLV already knows it will be 5th in the Conference Tournament. That means they avoid playing in the first round. But they will face Wyoming in the quarterfinals. They just beat the Cowboys by seven on Wednesday.

New Mexico will be the nine seed, so they are in the first round and matched up with Nevada. The Lobos have lost four of five and just fell at Fresno State earlier in the week. They did at least cover the spread as 10-point underdogs.

UNLV has won the last seven head to head meetings. I say you can make it eight after tonight.

The Rebels have lost only one game that they have been favored in all season. This number is short. Lay it.

I like the spot for Charlotte here. They just handed Cleveland a 119-98 defeat and have had two days off. Now the Hornets can turn their full attention to San Antonio, who just got beat at home by Sacramento.

That loss to Sacramento was the Spurs’ first home game following the annual “Rodeo Road Trip,” which spanned eight games and nearly three weeks. The Spurs went 4-4 on the trip. But then they came home and lost to the Kings. Now it's back on the road, to the East Coast no less. They are 13-20 in road games this season.

Charlotte beat San Antonio, at the Alamo, 131-115 back in December.

What makes this game so important to the Hornets is that they are just 1-9 their last 10 at home. Prior to that, they had a very good home record. I just can’t see San Antonio coming in here and winning. 

Bryant is the #1 seed in the NEC Tournament, having earned that distinction by defeating Wagner in the final regular season game. They won their quarterfinal game pretty handily, though not by as much as the oddsmakers expected. It was a 73-59 win over Central Connecticut State on Wednesday.

Mount St. Mary’s is the 4-seed and beat St. Francis 78-48 to get here. That was a very impressive win for last year’s NEC Tourney champs as they were only seven-point favorites. 

Still, with Bryant having homecourt advantage for this one, the line looks low. Mount St. Mary’s has a 14-15 straight up record on the year and is 0-2 against Bryant, although one of the games was decided by just a single point.

The key though is Bryant’s 12-1 home record. This is a team that has lost just one time since Jan 6th. The Bulldogs are averaging 82.4 points in conference play while giving up just 73.3. 

MSM played a great game Wednesday, but had lost five of seven before that and only averages 61.7 PPG on the road. Lay the points.

Middle Tennessee and Old Dominion wrap up their regular seasons in Norfolk this afternoon. Both know where they’ll be seeded in the Conference USA Tournament. MTSU won the East Division and thus will get a bye into the quarterfinals. ODU finished fifth in the East and will be playing UTEP in a second round matchup.

With nothing really on the line here, you may be wondering why we’re playing this matchup. Well, Middle Tennessee has quietly had a VERY good year. The Blue Raiders are not just 22-8 straight up, but 21-6 against the spread. They are clearly the top threat to West Division Champ North Texas, who is the favorite heading into the C-USA Tournament.

The Blue Raiders beat Old Dominion by 15 when they hosted in Murfreesboro last month. It wasn’t a good shooting night for them, but they played great defense and limited the Monarchs to just 48 points and two made three-pointers.

MTSU is also coming off a rare loss, which is why I’m on them here. They fell 60-56 in Charlotte on Wednesday. Before that, the Blue Raiders had won eight in a row straight up and covered seven straight games.

ODU is just 3-6 SU in its last nine games and is pretty outclassed here. Not sure why they’re favored.

Denver had its season-best six-game win streak come to an end in shocking fashion Wednesday night. They lost to the lowly Thunder, at home no less, 119-107 as a 14.5-point favorite. Now they’ll host the only team lower than the Thunder in Western Conference standings, that being Houston. I don’t see the Nuggets making the same mistakes they did two nights ago.

Houston has not won a game since February 2nd. They’ve lost 11 straight and have a legit claim to be the worst team in the league. Seven of those 11 straight losses have come by double digits. 

Making matters worse tonight for the Rockets is that they could be without several key players. Dennis Schroeder has a sprained ankle, Eric Gordon missed the last game with a groin injury and Jae’Sean Tate is also dealing with an ankle. While they were still able to take Utah to overtime on Wednesday, I can’t see a potentially short-handed, bad team being competitive two straight times. Houston is 0-4 ATS off its previous four ATS victories.

The Nuggets are 2-0 against the Rockets so far this season. While the first game came down to the final possession, it was a 13-point win in Houston on New Year’s Day. I expect this to be the biggest margin of victory to date.

Denver is 4-0-1 ATS off its previous five ATS losses. So all signs point to a bounce back here. 

The Lakers are in serious trouble. Seven games below .500 and in 9th place in the Western Conference. All they can hope for at this point is making the play-in round, which means they’d probably need to win twice to get into the playoffs proper. 

One spot ahead of the Lakers are the Clippers, but the gap in the standings is 4.5 games. The reason the Clips are lower than expected is due to injuries. They’ve been playing without their two top superstars for awhile now. Kawhi Leonard hasn’t even suited up for a single game this season.

So who is going to take this battle of underachieving teams from the City of Angels? I like the Lakers. They should have beaten Dallas on Tuesday. It’s also time for a little payback. The Lakers are 0-3 vs. the Clippers this season, but those three losses have been by a total of eight points. 

The Clippers’ four-game win streak does include a 105-102 win over the Lakers. But the other three wins were all against Houston. So it’s a bit of a “phony” win streak. 

The Lakers led the Clippers going into the fourth quarter in that recent meeting. With their backs against the wall, look for LeBron James and company to “step up” here and deliver a big win.

South Alabama is seeded fifth, but the Jaguars just might be the best team in the Sun Belt. They absolutely could make a run in this tournament. It starts on Thursday when they play a first round matchup against last place Little Rock. Expect this one to be a blowout.

Little Rock obviously did not have a good year. The Trojans finished 8-18 overall and 3-13 in conference play. They were even worse than the oddsmakers though, evident by a lousy 5-16 ATS record as an underdog. On the road, they were beaten by an average of 16.3 points per game.

The regular season ended very poorly for Little Rock. They’ve lost four in a row and 9 of 10. Eight of those nine losses were by double digits. Six were by at least 15 points.

These teams met once in the regular season. South Alabama won 77-46 as a 14.5 point favorite. Down 17 at halftime, Little Rock was never competitive. 

USA won its regular season finale, beating UT Arlington 62-52 last Friday. Look for them to make a statement in the opening game of this tourney. 

Miami is currently on the right side of the bubble, but they need a strong final week of the regular season. The Hurricanes have lost two of their last three games, both losses at home, to fall into fourth place in the ACC. 

Tonight looks like a great chance to get back on track as the Canes travel to face Boston College. Note that they have won three in a row on the road. The last road win was by 21 at Pittsburgh, a team who has a comparable record to BC. 

Miami has too much offense for their hosts today. The visitors are 19th in adjusted offensive efficiency and seventh best in turnover rate. They average 74.7 points per game. 

BC has lost six of eight and just went down by 10 to Clemson here at home on Saturday. It was the Eagles’ seventh loss by double digits since Jan 19th.

Miami has been good on the road. They are 8-2 straight up and against the spread. So lay the small number.

This is a first round matchup in the Patriot League Tournament where all games are played at campus sites (higher seed always gets to host). Both American U and Holy Cross finished with the same overall record (9-21 SU), but the latter did better in conference play, finishing 7-11 as opposed to 5-13 for the former.

Playing at home is key here for Holy Cross, even though they last won here on February 9th. It’s just a small number we have to lay and the Crusaders have double revenge. That’s right. Two of American’s five league wins came against HC.

I just can’t see the underdog sweeping the season series. Holy Cross averaged just 51.5 points per game in the two regular season losses. I expect much better from them offensively here tonight. 

American U won its final regular season game, beating Loyola MD 65-55. However, the Eagles have failed to win back to back games going all the way back to mid-December. I just think the odds are against them winning here.

For what it’s worth, Holy Cross has covered the spread in 14 of its last 17 games played on Tuesday.

Providence has already wrapped up the Big East, the first time it has EVER won the conference outright. But there is still a sense of motivation for this one as they look to avoid a season sweep against Villanova.

I think that most would agree that ‘Nova is in fact the better team here. The “analytics” don’t love Providence, mostly because of all the close wins the Friars have. But that has led to them getting a lot of points tonight. It’s too many. We’ll take a close loss! 

To be clear, Providence is 24-3 this year. They lost the first meeting with Villanova by just five points. They are not just 7-1 ATS as an underdog, but also 7-1 straight up! This is a lot of points for the #8 ranked team in the country to be getting. 

Though it’s their final home game and they haven’t played in a week, ‘Nova doesn’t have much motivation here. At least not to win by a double digit margin. They lost to UConn by two last Tuesday.

Three of the previous four meetings have been decided by five points or less. So take the points.

Two of the Eastern Conference’s bottom teams square off to start the week. I believe this is a wonderful opportunity for Orlando to make it a rare two straight wins.

The Magic won on Friday, beating the Houston Rockets here at home, 119-111. Both Chuma Okeke and Wendell Carter Jr played well. Tonight, Okeke and Carter are set to be joined by former #1 overall pick Markelle Fultz, who is set to make his season debut.

As was the case Friday, Orlando is the slight favorite in this game. Indiana, though they won yesterday, is just 4-12 over its last 16 games and basically “disassembled” its roster at the trade deadline. There has been just one time since mid-December that the Pacers have won back to back games.

The fact that the Pacers are in the second game of a back to back while the Magic had the weekend off is a big edge to the home team. 

Orlando overcame a 17-point third quarter deficit to win in Indiana at the beginning of the month. They shouldn’t fall into that kind of hole tonight. Expect them to get the ‘W’ here.

Hofstra seems locked into third place in the CAA and very well could be taking on tonight’s opponent, Charleston, in the first round of the Conference Tournament. So there’s really nothing on the line in this Monday matchup. But, in their final home game, I look for the Pride to turn in a solid effort to end the regular season.

Charleston has been competitive of late, covering the number in four straight games. But they lost Saturday, 80-79 at Drexel, to fall a game below .500 this year in conference play. Tonight will mark the Cougars’ fourth consecutive game on the road. That’s a tough way to end the regular season and the team may very well be “out of gas.”

As for Hofstra, this is their fourth straight time playing at home. They had no problem dispatching William & Mary on Saturday, winning that game 83-67. That followed a shocking 81-55 loss to Elon. The Pride have failed to cover the number three straight times, but were also double digit favorites in all those games.

This is a solid value, I believe, on Hofstra at home. They are 11-2 SU in home games this season. Also, they defeated Charleston on the road, back in late January. 

Key to this one is that Charleston is a poor defensive team that has given up an average of 82 points over its last four games. Hofstra has scored 76 or more in five of its last six. Lay the points.

Golden State’s second half of the season began with a convincing 132-95 win over Portland. Dallas blew a seven-point halftime lead in Utah and lost 114-109. That’s the setup for this Sunday night contest.

Yes, the Warriors had failed to cover six in a row going into the All Star Break. But they looked like the best team in the league Thursday, mostly because of Steph Curry, who had a season-high 14 assists to go along with 18 points.

These teams have met two times previous to this. The home team won both matchups. Curry struggled to make shots, but I’m banking on him having a big game here. Dallas didn’t have many answers defensively against Utah, allowing the Jazz to hit 54% for the game and 57% in the first half.

This is a low number on the Warriors at home. Too low.

That’s because Klay Thompson is questionable and Draymond Green is still out. But Curry should lead his team to a win and cover tonight. 

DePaul and St. John’s both find themselves in the bottom half of the Big East standings. Both are also coming off a game that was decided by three points. The difference is that St. John’s lost on Wednesday, 81-78 to Creighton, while DePaul was a 68-65 winner over Georgetown on Thursday.

The win for DePaul was their first since February 9th, also against Georgetown. In between the two wins over the Hoyas, the Blue Demons dropped four straight. But three of those losses were by three points or less, so they easily could have had a better record this month. They were up 19 in the second half against Providence and lost that game in overtime.

St. John’s blew a seven-point halftime lead to Creighton and lost for the third time in the last five games. The biggest problem facing the Red Storm is that they don’t play much defense, especially on the road where they are giving up 78.5 points/game.

The Johnnies did beat DePaul 89-84 at home last month. But they’ve been far too inconsistent to expect a season sweep. 

DePaul averages 76.5 points at home and is 3-0 ATS this season off a Big East win.

Big game on this afternoon’s NBA schedule with the Jazz taking on the Suns. The Suns are playing without Chris Paul and are off a loss. Paul being out hurts, but Phoenix is 19-2 over its last 21 games and has the best record in the league. They have not dropped consecutive games since December.

For those reasons, I’m siding with the Suns in this one. They are also at home on Sunday. Their home record is 26-6. 

The Suns are 2-0 vs. the Jazz this season. Both wins were in January. They won 115-109 here at home and 105-97 in Salt Lake City.

Utah needed to come from behind to defeat Dallas Friday night, 114-109. The Jazz did not cover the spread in the game. They trailed by seven at halftime. That was the largest halftime deficit they’ve overcome all season.

The fact that the Suns haven’t lost back to back games in over two months weighs heavily on this selection. So too does the fact they are basically a “pick ‘em” at home. You won’t get a better value on this team all season.

Blues/Blackhawks

Wins have been few and far between for the Blackhawks lately. Fleury does his best, but has the 24th ranked defense in front of him. Don’t count on a ton of goals scored by the Hawks. They are in the bottom three in the league on offense, and most of their losses are lopsided.

St Louis has won 5 of their last 6, including a decisive victory against the Black Hawks. They have a very respectable offense this year, and all of their victories have been by 2 or more goals recently. They give up well under three goals a game on average.

Every game is important for the playoff-bound Blues, while the Blackhawks are likely already longing for the links with the way this season is going. The Blues are not the best road team, but Chicago is worse at home than on the road this year. The Blues are a strong favorite, but I am ok with the extra points in this match-up. Take the Blues - 1 ½.

Illinois (19-8 overall, 12-5 Big 10) is coming off an 86-83 home loss to Ohio State on Thursday, which knocked the Fighting Illini a game back of conference leaders Wisconsin and Purdue. I like them to bounce back here on Sunday,

We know that Michigan is without coach Juwan Howard, who is suspended for five games due to the post-game fight with Wisconsin. The Wolverines did show some resolve by going out and beating Rutgers 71-62 on Wednesday, here in Ann Arbor. Michigan is now 8-4 in its last 12 games and their NCAA Tournament prospects are looking a lot better.

But I simply think that the Illini are the better team here. They won the season’s first meeting, 68-53 as a 9.5-point favorite. They are 4-0 straight up and against the spread in the last four games against Michigan.

Michigan has been far more inconsistent this year. They are 0-4 ATS in their last four games following an ATS win. They are just 15-11 straight up this year and rate lower than Illinois in both offensive and defensive efficiency. 

Illinois is 4-0 straight up and against the spread in its last four games as a road favorite of three points or less. 

Rice has a wonderful opportunity to win big in its last home game of the season. The Owls are hosting Southern Miss, who is Conference USA’s worst team. The visitors are 6-22 overall this season, 1-14 in conference play. Their last win over a Division I opponent was back on January 6th, by a single point.

Two of Southern Miss’ four wins over DI teams this year have been by a single point. So it’s been a bleak year in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles have lost 11 in a row and 10 of those losses have been by double digits.

Rice has lost four straight and five of six, but the last two games were decided by a total of six points. There should be ample motivation to give the seniors one final big win at home tonight. Back on January 29th, the Owls beat Southern Miss by 14 on the road.

Rice scored 52 points in the second half Thursday. They are averaging 77.9 points at home. Southern Miss averages just over 60 PPG on the road.

Lastly, Rice is a perfect 6-0 against the spread the last three seasons when playing at home and the total is between 145 and 149.5.

The Penguins are off an embarrassing loss to the Devils.  Jarry and the defense have not been solid since the break, with Pittsburgh losing three straight, giving up 14 goals and scoring just  5.  Is this just a blip or a sign of a more serious swoon?

The Rangers are 3-1 since the break, with Shesterkin absolutely lights-out.  He is a rare goaltender who can be a game-changer.  The Rangers have nudged the Penguins aside in the standings, and while they haven't been successful on the road against the Penguins in the past, they are a very good away team this season.  The Penguins are a considerable favorite, but I am not convinced that they will return to form against a very fast and potent Rangers offense. I'll take the underdog Rangers, but will hedge my bet on the puck line.  Rangers + 1 1/2.

Oakland has faded a bit in the Horizon League title chance, losing three straight to fall to 11-7 in conference play and 18-11 overall. That’s three games back of current leader Cleveland State, whom the Golden Grizzlies will play host to this afternoon. I like them to get the job done here. 

Going back to January 20th, Oakland is just 1-10 against the spread. They have been the favorite for all of those games, except one, a 75-64 loss at Wright State. Their three straight losses have all been here at home, which is shocking as the Golden Grizzlies had previously not lost a home game all season. 

Cleveland State is also coming off a loss, 74-67 at Detroit. This will be the Vikings’ fifth consecutive road game to end the regular season. Meanwhile, it’s the final home game (Senior Night) for Oakland.

While Cleveland State is looking to wrap up the regular season championship, Oakland is desperate to build some momentum for the upcoming Conference Tournament. They defeated Cleveland State, 70-65, as a 1-point road underdog earlier in the season.

I can’t see Oakland losing again at home as CSU should be pretty spent, having played so many road games in a row.

There are four ranked teams in the Big 12 (Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, Texas) that are the class of the conference. After that, there’s a bit of a drop. Neither Oklahoma State and Oklahoma have had much reason to celebrate lately, as the former is 3-7 its last 10 games and the latter is 2-11 its last 13 games. But someone will have to prevail in “Bedlam” on Saturday.

When these teams met on ⅖, the Cowboys prevailed 64-55 in Stillwater. But now the Sooners get the game in Norman with a shot at revenge. OU is off back to back 20+ point losses as well. So they are really desperate here.

OSU lost by two at home to Baylor on Monday. The game went to overtime. I had the Cowboys, plus the points, so at the end of the day, I was happy. But OSU has to be a bit deflated, especially with that being their fifth OT game this season.

The Cowboys are also banned from postseason play, so you’ve got to question their level of motivation down the stretch. Off an ATS win, they are 2-7 ATS this season. They last covered two straight games in November.

The revenge angle and home court advantage should propel Oklahoma to a win Saturday. They’ve lost four in a row to their rivals. They won’t lose again. Lay the short number. 

The Spurs are better than their record and I think can move up to “steal” the last play-in spot for the Western Conference Playoffs. Among teams out West, San Antonio has the eighth best point differential.

The Wizards started the season well, but have really fallen off, especially at the pay window. They are 4-15-1 ATS over the L20 games. Tonight’s spread is simply not generous enough for them to turn these woes around.

San Antonio has covered six straight times against teams with losing SU records. Washington comes in at 27-31 SU overall, 11th in the East. But like I said, the Wizards have really fallen off. It wasn’t that long ago they were in the top six.

The Spurs are still on their annual Rodeo Road Trip, which began back on Feb 9 in Cleveland. Prior to breaking for All Star Weekend, they’d won three of four. The only loss was to Eastern Conference leader Chicago and even in that game they had the lead going into the fourth quarter. 

Washington is just 5-12 ATS vs. Western Conference teams this season.

Elsewhere, I’ve got a play on the top MAAC team against the bottom MAAC team. Here, we venture to the middle of the conference standings for a game between Manhattan and Marist. I think the value resides with the dog in this one as they won the first meeting.

It was 72-66 in favor of Manhattan, back on Jan 30th, when these teams first met. The Jaspers proceeded to lose their next four games, but now have won three straight and can pass Marist for fifth place in the conference. Why is that important? Because the top five teams get first round byes in the conference tournament.

After losing five in a row, Marist has now won five in a row. Two of those wins were by just a point though and they were against Qunnipiac and Canisius, who are at the bottom of the league. In another recent win (last Friday vs. Siena), the Red Foxes were down seven at the half.

Not only is Marist just 1-8 against the spread in its last nine tries as a favorite, but the team that has been the underdog has covered four of the last five meetings in this MAAC rivalry. Take the points.

This is a mismatch, an even bigger one than what the line suggests. Iona leads the MAAC with a 14-2 conference record. They are 11-0 at home, winning by 12.5 points per game. Tonight they can wrap up the regular season title simply by defeating last place Canisius. Look for this to be a blowout.

Iona won the first meeting by eight. But the 70-62 final was a little misleading in the sense that the Gaels were up 19 at the half. It was 35-12 just 15 minutes into the game. 

Canisius hasn’t won on the road all year. They are 0-14 away from home as they are shooting just 38.2 percent from the field.

In their last game, the Golden Griffins scored just 54 points in a home loss to Niagara. That was their seventh loss in the last eight games.

Iona ran out to an 18-point victory over Fairfield their last time on the court. That was here at home on Sunday. They used a big second half to cover the 11-point spread. I just can’t see this being a close game. Lay the points.

I like Northwestern here in a battle of two of the five Big 10 teams that aren’t projected to make the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats picked up a win earlier this week, at home, 77-65 over Nebraska. Now they look to avenge a four-point home loss where they were eight-point favorites.

That first meeting was a little odd. Penn State won because they controlled the glass (40-28 edge in rebounds) and made more free throws (15) than Northwestern even attempted (nine). 

The Nittany Lions are 308th in the country in points per game, so unless they can replicate those edges in rebounding and free throw shooting, I don’t see them outscoring Northwestern tonight.

PSU lost on Monday, 67-61 at Maryland, and you may remember that I took the Terps in that game. The Nittany Lions lost even though Maryland did not make a basket over the game’s final 6:20. Bad sign. 

Northwestern has covered all four times this season when matched up against an opponent with a losing record.

No one is going to argue the point that Memphis had a great first half. They have the third best record in the NBA at 41-19 after winning 32 of 41 and 22 of their last 27. Now in the last game before the All Star Break, the Grizzlies did lose, as an 11.5-point favorite to Portland 123-119. But I am willing to chalk that up to a case of looking ahead to the break.

Minnesota also had a first half they should be happy with. While not as good as Memphis, the Timberwolves are 31-28 and seventh in the Western Conference. It would be a real shock if they didn’t at least make it out of the play-in round. But here they are overmatched.

The Grizzlies are 8-1 ATS against the Timberwolves the last three seasons. The one loss was a bad one, earlier this year in Minnesota. But that was also back in November, before the Grizzlies’ season really took off.

Ja Morant had 44 points in the loss to Portland. The Grizzlies are 28-12 vs. the rest of the Western Conference. Minnesota is only 20-18 in such games. Memphis also has a much better record against winning teams. 

The defensive edge also goes to Memphis. The Timberwolves give up 111.7 points per game, more than you’d like to see, and in the last five games they gave up an average of 121.8 points. Lay the points here. 

The race for the regular season title in the SoCon (Southern Conference) is down to two teams: Chattanooga and Furman. Chattanooga is seemingly in the driver's seat, not just with a one-game lead, but they also swept the season series against Furman.

But, after beating Furman for a second time this year, the Mocs have lost two straight: 73-70 to UNC Greensboro and 80-75 to VMI. Even more embarrassing is that both losses came at home. Tonight though, the Mocs can clinch the regular season title, simply by winning at East Tennessee State. 

When these in-state rivals met on New Year’s Eve, it was all Chattanooga in an 82-52 beatdown. East Tennessee State has not had a good season as they come into the rematch having lost seven of their last nine games. Many of those losses were close, but I just can’t see them winning here against a hungry and better opponent.

Chattanooga is a very impressive 21-5-1 ATS its last 27 games against teams that have a losing record. East Tennessee State is 14-15 overall on the year (straight up). 

This is only the second time this season that Chattanooga has lost back to back games. The first instance saw them rebound with a double digit victory. That is what I expect here. Lay the points.

Two rivals trying to break from the middle of the Mountain West pack meet Tuesday night in Reno as Nevada hosts UNLV. The home side has won three in a row, though two of those wins came against last place San Jose State. The visiting team has won three of four and five of its last seven, which includes a win over Nevada , 69-58 down in Sin City.

The Runnin’ Rebels are 4-0 ATS in the last four games and coming off wins over Fresno State and Colorado State. Beating Colorado State by 21 on Saturday was very impressive. The Rebels have gotten 10 straight games of 17+ points from leading scorer Hamilton and the only time they’ve been beaten in the last four games, it came down to the final minute in Bose.

But Nevada is out for revenge Tuesday night and should benefit from the fact they have not played a game since Thursday (when they obliterated San Jose State by 30). 

The Wolf Pack have won and covered the last three times they’ve hosted UNLV. They shot very poorly in the game at Vegas earlier this year, including 3 of 17 from three. They come into this game shooting 53.7% overall over the last five games. 

I mentioned earlier that UNLV is off a 21-point over Colorado State. Fortunately for us, the Rebels are just 1-5 ATS the previous six times they have been off a straight up win by 20 or more points. 

Heading into February, Miami was viewed as a legit contender in the ACC. But they’re just 3-3 overall this month and thus falling back to the rest of the pack. Looking at their remaining games, the Hurricanes do have a pretty “easy” schedule and still trail Duke by just two games. Winning tonight at Pittsburgh is a must and I think they get the job done.

Pitt had won three in a row, but then lost to Ga Tech 68-62 on Saturday. They were two-point favorites. Even with the recent surge, the Panthers are just 6-11 in ACC games and closer to the bottom then they are to the middle of the pack. 

Miami is 7-2 on the road this year, straight up and against the spread, so I am not worried about laying a short number here. Pittsburgh is averaging only 62.5 points per game, which is 343rd in the country. 

I think most would be looking at the Hurricanes a lot more favorably here, had they not wilted in the second half against Virginia on Saturday. The Canes were up by eight at the half in that game, but surrendered a 23-4 second half run and never really recovered. The final score was 74-71. 

The last five games Miami has allowed a shooting percentage of 50.6. I just don’t see Pitt coming anywhere close to that. 

#7 Baylor heads to Stillwater tonight to face Oklahoma State. This is Ok State’s second straight week playing on “Big Monday” (ESPN). The Cowboys certainly are hoping this week goes better than last when they lost to Kansas 76-62 as a 10.5-point dog. I believe it will!

The obvious difference between this week and last is that OSU is playing at home. They have a much better record in Stillwater (9-5 SU), which is where they just defeated Kansas State on Saturday, 82-79. Though it ended up going into overtime, the Cowboys led most of that game.

Now Baylor is clearly much better than Kansas State. But the Bears have struggled a bit on their travels recently, dropping three of their last four road games. 

You could argue that all three teams Baylor lost to on the road are better than Ok State. I won’t disagree with you on that. But Ok State also already holds a win over Baylor this year, having gone to Waco and come out ahead 61-54 as 14-point road underdogs. They held the Bears to 31% shooting for the game. It was Baylor’s second straight loss at the time.

Baylor is just 2-5 ATS its last seven games overall. They are playing short-handed right now with a couple of players injured. A lack of depth will catch up with them on the road. Take the points.

Loyola MD has lost four straight and six of seven. But most of those losses have been close. Three of them were by four points or less. So the recent record could be alot better for the Greyhounds. I like them today, at home, as they look to sweep the season series from Lehigh. 

A win today would pull Loyola even with Lehigh for fourth place in the Patriot League. Obviously, based on head to head results, they’d have the tiebreak. A loss would drop the Greyhounds and have them in danger of having to play a first round game in the Conference Tournament. They obviously want to avoid that.

Lehigh is off a win, 86-77 over Bucknell, but before that had lost four of five. The road has been unkind this year to the Mountain Hawks as they are 3-10 SU away. The last road win for them was just over a month ago.

Loyola won the first meeting 69-57 and was a two-point favorite. Looking at the line here and comparing it to the first meeting, it seems like we’re getting a pretty great value.

This is a huge game for the home team. I really like them in this spot.

I’ve been burned by the Kraken a few times, but I’m on the Calgary bandwagon at the moment, and had great success. The Flames are the hottest team in the NHL at the moment, scoring at a 5+ pace over their last 8 games, and winning by multiple goals 8 of 10 times. In addition to a powerful and balanced attack, they also have the best defense in the league, and a very good goaltender in Jacob Markstrom.

This hasn’t been the worst stretch that the Kraken has played , with 4 victories in 10 games, but it is hard to see them slowing that Calgary chuckwagon down. Grubauer has not played well since the break, and the offense will need more than their usual 2+ goals a game to have any success vs. the Flames. My biggest concern would be the Flames underestimating the Kraken, but with Darryl Sutter cracking the whip, that is unlikely to happen. Take the Flames to win on the puck line.

This is the ultimate buy low spot on Oregon, who just suffered a terrible loss at Arizona State on Thursday. Despite being favored by five points, the Ducks ended up losing the game 81-57. It was their worst loss of the season and a costly one for their NCAA Tournament prospects.

Few will give Oregon a shot tonight playing at Arizona. It’s not just the bad loss on Thursday. Arizona is ranked #3 in the country.

But, like I said, it’s time to buy low on Oregon. Expect them to come out with a flurry. Last Saturday, Arizona found itself down 14 early to Washington before being able to come back. It was another slow start in Thursday’s win over Oregon State. The Wildcats, talented as they are, can’t just keep starting slow and blowing teams out in the second half. It’s unsustainable.

Oregon was the #13 team in the country in the preseason poll and has beaten Arizona seven consecutive times. This is the first time they’ve been a double digit dog this season. The most points they’ve gotten previously, in any game, was +9.5 at UCLA. The Ducks ended up winning that game 84-81. 

This is a great time to take the points.

I’ve been VERY impressed with what Murray State is doing. The Racers have gotten themselves into the Top 25 by winning 15 in a row and can now probably count on being an at-large team in the NCAA Tournament if they fail to win the Ohio Valley Tournament next month.

Only two other teams in America, besides Murray State, don’t have a conference loss. They are Gonzaga and South Dakota State.

In their last game, the Racers blew past Austin Peay for a 91-56 win and cover. From the opening tip, there was little doubt they’d cover the 18.5-point spread. I expect a similar win here today against Tenn-Martin.

This is a tough one for Tenn-Martin, who just hosted Morehead State, who is another of the Ohio Valley’s better teams. The Skyhawks did cover that game, as nine-point dogs, but barely - they lost 68-60 and that was despite having the halftime lead. Tenn-Martin has now dropped four straight games.

The first meeting between these teams was actually rather close. Murray State won by only eight, despite being 22 point favorites at home. But that was early enough in the season that Tenn-Martin still had hope. At this point, they know they cannot compete with a nationally ranked team and I expect that to show Saturday afternoon.

#2 Auburn is back in action Saturday, looking to continue its outstanding form in the SEC this season. The Tigers are 12-1 in conference play so far and winning by an average of 10.4 points per game. Very impressive.

After double digit wins at home over Texas A&M and Vanderbilt, the Tigers will now head to Gainesville to face Florida. The Gators are not in peak form right now. Not only have they failed to cover the spread in five straight games, they’ve lost the last two on the scoreboard as well.

Those losses were both on the road, one by a single point (to Texas A&M) and the other to Kentucky. But if you’re expecting this team to step up as a home dog, better think again. Florida is 0-6 ATS the past six times it has been a home underdog of 3.5 to 6 points.

The Gators also have just one “Quad 1” win on the year. They lost the first meeting, at Auburn, by a score of 85-73. They didn’t cover as 7.5 point underdogs.

The bottom line is that I just don’t think the home team is good enough to “hang around” the #2 ranked team in the country for 40 minutes. Lay the points

It is very clear that Syracuse is an entirely different team when playing at the Carrier Dome. 

The Orange are 9-3 here and averaging 86.3 points. That scoring average is up from their overall average of 77.3 for the season. They are shooting 51.4% from the field in home games, which includes an incredible 42.5% from three.

So I have zero hesitation in laying the points here against BC, who is 1-10 away from home. The Eagles have won just four ACC games this season and come into today on a four-game losing streak.

One of those four losses came at home to Syracuse, 73-64. Given the ‘Cuse shot just 39.3% that day and how they shoot at home, this figures to be a long afternoon for Boston College at the defensive end. 

I like the way the schedule breaks for Syracuse as well. They’d won four in a row before running into Va Tech last Saturday. The Orange have had a week to recover from their 71-59 loss in Blacksburg. Meanwhile, BC just played at Notre Dame on Wednesday and lost in overtime. Lay the points

It’s been a disappointing season for Maryland (they were once ranked!), but the Terps ought to be favored by more against the worst team in the Big 10. 

The Big 10 is obviously a tough league as it could be putting nine teams in the NCAA Tournament. Of the five unlikely Big Dance participants, four (Penn State, N’western, Maryland, Minnesota) are pretty evenly matched. But then there’s a huge drop with Nebraska.

The Cornhuskers are dead last with a 1-13 Big 10 record. The one win came last week at home vs. Minnesota. But then they got smashed by Iowa on Super Bowl Sunday. That was the fifth time this season that the team suffered a loss by more than 20 points against a conference foe.

Also on Sunday, Maryland had a 12 point lead at Purdue in the second half with 11 minutes left in the game. Unfortunately, they blew all of it and lost 62-61. That was the Terrapins’ second one-possession loss to a ranked team in the last four games. 

I just think the Terps are simply the better team, even if Eric Ayala is out again. They are 16-3 ATS when on a losing streak of three or more games.

Harvard has lost three straight games and finds itself in the bottom half of the Ivy League standings. But tonight is a get well game against Columbia, who as you can tell (from the line) is not good at all.

Columbia is in fact last in the Ivy with a 1-9 conference record. They are 4-18 overall on the year. The Lions’ lone conference win was by four points (over Penn!), all the way back on January 8th. In the last game, they got destroyed, losing to Yale by 25 at home.

The Lions’ current eight-game losing streak actually began with a 91-82 setback at Harvard. The spread for that game was 10 points so Columbia covered. But they also shot a season-high 55% overall from the floor and 48% from three. Those numbers won’t be repeated tonight.

Three of Harvard’s last four defeats have been by four points or less and two were to conference leader Yale. It was an eight-point loss at second place Penn last Saturday. So the Crimson have been facing the Ivy League’s elite recently and coming up short. This drop in class should guarantee a favorable result.

I mentioned earlier that Columbia scored just 59 points in its last game. Well, the last nine times after a game where they scored 60 or less, they are 1-8 ATS. Lay the points.

Were Dallas to win here, that would make it six wins in the last seven games, going into the All Star Break. The only loss was by two to the Clippers, who they had just beaten the previous game. Tonight the Mavs are in the Big Easy to face the Pelicans and I like their chances of getting another win.

Dallas is pretty solidly a top six team in the Western Conference right now. That didn’t stop them from making some moves at the trade deadline and the two new additions have already been a big help. Davis Bertans and Spencer Dinwiddie were instrumental in the Mavs’ bench outscoring the Heat’s 38-25 in a 107-99 upset on Tuesday. 

That was a solid win for the Mavs, on the road, and the fact they did it with Luka Doncic going just 5 of 19 from the field speaks volumes. Doncic didn’t even have any fourth quarter points in the win over Miami. He had previously averaged 43 points over the previous three games.

New Orleans has lost three of four, all the games coming at home. All three losses have been by double digits. They did not shoot well from three in a 121-109 loss to Memphis on Tuesday.

I just see the Mavs solidly as the better team and have no problem laying a short number in this one. They are 7-3 ATS the last 10 meetings.

With a win here, MIami would go into the All Star Break tied (with Chicago) for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. But Charlotte will not roll over on Thursday as they are rather desperate for a win to close out the first half.

Tuesday brought a particularly painful loss for the Hornets, in Minnesota, where they led most of the way only to fall in overtime. It was their eighth loss in nine games, the one win being against Detroit. Still 9th in the East, it’s getting a little “too close to comfort” when it comes to the cut line for the play-in round.

Shockingly, Charlotte has lost its last six home games. This is a team that averages 113.9 points per game, most in the NBA, but during the six game home losing streak they have scored more than 101 just two times.

I’m expecting more points from the home team tonight. They are 0-2 so far against the Heat this season, scoring just 86 and 99 points in those losses. Again, that’s atypical from a team that leads the league in scoring. 

Miami only scored 99 in a home loss to the Mavericks on Tuesday. It’s hard to win big on the road and with this being the final game before the All Star Break, I can see the Heat being flat. Two thirds of their losses have come on the road. More motivated and at home, Charlotte covers the spread here.

Probably the most interesting question surrounding the Canadiens these days is “when will we see the return of the Hamburglar in net?” Likely not tonight, NHL trivia fans. The Habs, now minus Tyler Toffoli, and with a significant injury list, are in a sad state. It is very rare for a team to be last in the league in both offense and defense.

The Blues are another matter. 5th and 7th in offense and defense respectively, they are in the mix for a playoff spot and cannot pass up an opportunity for a win here. Husso will likely start; a step up from Binnington these days. The Blues roughed up a couple of NHL bottom-dwellers in their last two meetings. Look for a third and similar outcome today. Take the Blues to win on the puck line.

Look for the Suns to rock and roll tonight. Yes, this is the second game of a back to back for them, they are laying double digits and it’s their last game before the All Star Break. But the opponent is Houston, the worst team in the conference.

Phoenix has been the NBA’s best team in the first half of the season. Since January 10th, they’ve lost only once and that was almost two weeks ago, at Atlanta. Last night saw them record a sixth straight victory, beating the Clippers 103-96.

Two prior meetings this year vs. the Rockets have gone well. The Suns won those games by a combined 38 points.

Houston has won just once in its last ten games. Last time out, they lost by 34 to the Jazz. It was the third time in the past five games where the Rockets surrendered more than 130 points. They are 2-8 ATS this season after giving up 130+ points in the previous game.

The Suns have every conceivable edge in this matchup. Unless, for some reason, they choose “not to care,” they will win big. Lay the points.

The Spurs ought to have a better record. They have scored roughly the same number of points that they have allowed this season. They have a positive efficiency rating, which means they also score more than they allow on a per possession basis. Several teams ahead of them in the West - such as the Clippers and Lakers - cannot say any of the above.

Yet the Spurs are somehow buried 14 games under .500 and in 12th place in the conference. Statistically, they are probably the eighth best team. Does this mean they are likely to make a run in the second half? I’m not sure about that. But I am confident they can wax Oklahoma City tonight.

The Thunder are one of two hopeless teams in the West. If not for the Rockets, they’d be in last place. They did win last time out, as a 10-point dog, beating New York 126-124. I’ll concede the fact that the Thunder have been more competitive than you think. They are 37-19 ATS for the season.

But tonight marks the first time in six games where Oklahoma City is NOT a double digit underdog. The last time this happened, they lost by 10 to a bad Sacramento team. The last time the Thunder and Spurs met, the latter won by 22.

OKC still doesn’t have its leading scorer back (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander). The Spurs had won three of four before letting one slip away in Chicago Monday night (led by 6 going into the fourth quarter). They have some new reserves coming in that were acquired at the deadline. Lay the points here.

Chicago State is one of the very worst teams in the country and I don’t think SF Austin will have any problem handling them in this Wednesday night WAC matchup. 

Look no further than what happened last week, in SF Austin’s last game. They crushed Chicago State, on the road, 81-61 as a 12-point favorite. That was the Lumberjacks’ fourth consecutive win and cover.

Chicago State has lost six in a row and they’ve played another game since the 20-point loss to SF Austin. It was a 13-point loss, also at home, to Sam Houston State. The Cougars are now 2-10 in conference play this season. Even worse, they are 2-12 overall on the road. 

SF Austin is two games off the lead in the WAC, so there’s no reason to expect there to be any kind of “letdown” tonight. If anything, it should be a focused effort as the team looks to make its move up the WAC standings. The remaining schedule looks advantageous.

Meanwhile, Chicago State has had less time to get ready for this rematch and they know anything short of a miracle run in the WAC Tournament means their season is over. For all intents and purposes, it already is over. The Cougars are averaging less than 60 points/game on the road. Lay the points.

Columbus held the Habs to a single goal, but other than that, their goals against average has been ugly.  Calgary has won 8 of 9, with three shutouts in that period.  The Flames are back to playing disciplined & balanced hockey and pummeled the Blue Jackets in Columbus 6-0 last time they met.  Columbus can put the puck in the net, but will struggle to do so against the 8th rated and improving Flames defense.  Calgary goalie Markstrom has been very hot and can be a game-changer .  Columbus is a very poor road team this year.  The Flames are a serious favorite and the odds reflect that.  Take the Flames to win on the puck line  -1 1/2.

Wyoming has won six straight and now finds itself ranked in the Top 25 for the first time in seven seasons. With them laying points on the road tonight, it just feels like the right opportunity to fade the Cowboys.

New Mexico is 8-2 ATS and averaging 78.6 points at home this year. “The Pit” is not an easy place to win at. The Lobos should be well prepared for this game. Over the last 10 days, they’ve only played once and it was a blowout over a non-Division I opponent. (They won 78-46). 

Wyoming’s six-game win streak has featured three two-point victories as well as two others by seven or less. Two of the wins went to overtime. The one blowout came on Saturday, at San Jose State, who is the worst team in the Mountain West.

The Cowboys actually have FIVE two-point victories since January 15th. One of them came against New Mexico on 1/22. That game in Laramie ended up being a 93-91 final. New Mexico never trailed by more than 10 points in that game and shot 53.7% from the field.

Wyoming shot 58% in that first meeting, a number they will not match tonight. With so many close wins recently and a national ranking next to their name, I can see the Cowboys being a little overconfident here. I can see an upset taking place. Grab the points.

Minnesota has been on a bit of a roll of late. Charlotte has not. This has led to a spread that is much larger than what it should be for tonight’s matchup, at least in my opinion.

The Timberwolves have been favored in less than half their games this season. The percentage was even more skewed before the last couple weeks when they faced the likes of the Pistons (twice) and the Kings (twice). Those are some of the weakest teams in the league. While Charlotte is struggling right now, they are a lot closer to average over the course of the season.

The Hornets have faced some of the league’s top teams during this losing streak that has seen them drop seven of eight. They lost to Boston (who is red hot) by six, to Cleveland by one and also faced Memphis, Miami and Toronto. Minnesota is a step below all of those teams.

Back in November, Charlotte beat Minnesota 133-115.  They are 4-0 ATS their last four meetings with the Timberwolves.

Also, the Hornets are 6-1 ATS in their last seven road games and 4-0 ATS in their last four games as a road underdog. Take the points.

Back on January 11th, Texas picked up its largest win over Oklahoma in over a decade. They were 66-52 winners in Austin. I think they’re more than capable of simply winning again here in Norman.

It was just last Monday when the Longhorns upset Kansas 79-76. That was also in Austin. Unfortunately, things didn’t go UT’s way on Saturday when they visited Baylor (lost 80-63). But that was a tough spot, facing a second top 10 opponent in less than a week.

Oklahoma has had a similar last seven days. They picked up a big win at home (over Texas Tech) then lost on the road (at Kansas). Their road loss was by just two points, so it was a better showing than what Texas had. But seriously doubt anyone thinks the Sooners are the better team here. 

In fact, OU has lost eight of its last ten games. 

Texas has the #2 scoring defense in the country, holding teams to just 56.8 points per game. I already mentioned how they held Oklahoma to 52 in the first meeting. Since that game, the Sooners have failed to score 60 three other times. I don’t expect many points from the home team tonight. Go with the road team to win and complete the season sweep. 

The Bulls are back on a winning run, having captured each of the last three games. They did not cover Saturday against Oklahoma City, but that was a large number. The previous two wins were both by 12 points.

The Spurs are in the midst of their annual “Rodeo Road Trip.” Things didn’t get off to a great start with a loss at Cleveland on Feb 9, but the Spurs have since pulled back to back upsets, beating Atlanta and New Orleans. A third straight upset seems unlikely though.

I say that based on the fact the Spurs are still 13 games below .500. Their last three game win streak was around Christmas time. 

Chicago has DeMar DeRozan, who has scored 30 or more points in six consecutive games, the longest stretch by anyone in a Bulls uniform since Michael Jordan. Nikola Vucevic had 31 points and 15 rebounds against Oklahoma City. 

With a 21-8 record at the United Center, the Bulls are a very strong home team. They are also 23-14 ATS when favored this year. Lay the points

Let’s check in on the Patriot League where Colgate is in first place with a 10-2 record. The Raiders are just 14-11 overall, but have won six straight and are looking like the class of this conference right now. They are 8-1 at home this season and host Lafayette on Monday. 

Lafayette is off a rare win on Saturday as they went to Lehigh and pulled a 73-69 upset as four-point underdogs. The Leopards are still just 8-15 overall and 5-7 in conference games, however. They already lost to Colgate once this year, 72-61 as 8.5 point home underdogs. 

Colgate has covered the spread in each of the last four games, three times as a double digit favorite. At home, they are putting up an average of 77.1 points per game while allowing just 59.9. 

So this should be a pretty easy game for the favorite.

Rams/Bengals

Burrow and Stafford are a given; two dominant passers peaking at the right time, both with superlative targets. Lets look at the defenses, which is where this game will be decided. There are many recent positive improvements for the Rams defense; yards against and 3rd down conversions against are down, and they have been dominant in controlling time of possession. They have been tough on quarterbacks, but they are still only 21st in passing yards allowed. Burrow has been remarkably effective in spite of horrible O-line performance this season. I think the Rams defense will cramp his style but no one has been able to shut him down lately. Stafford may have his hands full as well. The Bengals defense is tough against the run but has been doing the job against the pass as well. They had 4 sacks against Mahomes last week, and pretty well shut down the Chiefs’ fierce pass attack in the second half last time out. They have only given up an average of 19 points a game in their last three against tough competition. The Rams are favored but the Bengals have been defying odds all season. This game will be close likely decided by a single field goal. Take the Bengals to surprise and cover once again.

UTEP saw its six game win streak snapped on Monday. They lost 66-58 to North Texas, who is the best team in Conference USA this year. At least the Miners left with the cash, covering as 10-point underdogs. It was early in the second half when things fell apart.

The Miners should have no concerns today as they are taking on a Marshall team that has been a disaster to bet on all season. The Thundering Herd are, get this, 4-18 against the spread. 

They are 1-10 ATS in conference play, 2-8 ATS as an underdog and 1-9 ATS on the road. 

It’s the first meeting in almost two years for these two schools. UTEP, already the better team, has a nice edge as they’ve been off for the last five days while Marshall was just in action on Thursday, losing by one at home to FIU, a game they were expected to win by six points.

UTEP only gives up 62.4 points per game at home. Marshall is allowing 80.4 on the road. Lay the points in this one.

The Flames really are on fire, winning 6 straight, averaging more than 4 goals scored a game in February, and with 3 shutouts in their last 7 games.   Meanwhile the Islanders will play their 3rd game in 4 days on the road, and while a good defensive team, generally struggle to put the puck in the net.  The Isles have a very hard time against good teams this year.  Calgary is a force right now, has had good success vs. the Isles this season, and are making a run for 1st in the Pacific division.  The Flames are a large favorite, but a very good bet at -1 1/2.  Take the Flames on the puck line.

This is the second meeting in three days for the Clippers and the Mavericks. The latter took Thursday’s game, which was also here in Dallas, 112-105. Hours after saying goodbye to teammate Kristaps Porzingis (traded to Washington), Luka Doncic ran wild with a 51-point game. 

The Clippers have failed to cover their last five games. Blame the defense. During the 0-5 ATS skid, they are giving up an average of 123.2 points per contest. That is bad. 

Dallas has won four straight, all at home. They now have a 20-10 home record for the season. They are simply better than the Clippers, who are still without Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. 

So can the Mavericks cover the spread again? I think so. They’re playing good defense this year: #3 in points allowed for the season, allowing 101.4 points per game at home and 100.6 the last five games. 

Before losing to Dallas on Thursday, LA was blown out in two straight games. They lost by 24 to Milwaukee and 26 to Memphis. Lay the points here.

Providence brings a 20-2 record and #11 ranking into Saturday’s game vs. DePaul. But I get the sense that the Friars are a little overrated. They did end up blowing out Georgetown on Sunday, 71-52, but were trailing at the half. Before that, it was three straight wins by four points or less.

DePaul is near the bottom of the Big East, only ahead of Georgetown, but the Blue Demons are on a win streak. They’ve won two in a row. One was against G’town, but the other was a win at Xavier where they 13.5 point underdogs.

The season’s first meeting between DePaul and Providence was played on New Year’s Day. Providence won 70-53 as DePaul shot just below 30 percent for the game. Interestingly, the Blue Demons were small favorites to win that day.

I like the underdog’s chance at revenge today, or at least covering the spread. Providence is only 7-7 ATS when favored and 0-1 as a home favorite of 9.5 to 12 points. 

I simply believe that Providence is “living on borrowed time.” As a favorite of this size, which is rare for them, they should be faded.

Auburn suffered just its second loss of the season on Tuesday. It was at Arkansas on Tuesday, 80-76. The top-ranked Tigers were only 1.5 point favorites for the game, so it can be argued that the oddsmakers “saw that coming.”

Prior to the setback, two of Auburn’s last four wins were by two points or fewer. Since January 11th, they have five single digit victories. I know that a return home (where the team is 12-0 this year) has most on “The Plains” thinking about a bounce back, but this is a pretty big number the Tigers are laying. 

Texas A&M will be both desperate and motivated. The Aggies’ last win was all the way back on January 15th. But of the seven consecutive games that they have lost, the final margin has never been larger than 11 points. Four have been by six points or fewer. So they’ve remained competitive, despite adversity.

Surprisingly, A&M has won five of the previous six matchups in the series! They were also 4-0 in SEC play before this seven-game skid. One of the four wins came against the Arkansas team that just beat Auburn.

The Aggies are 4-0 ATS in their last four games as a road underdog. Take the points here. 

Utah State looks to bounce back from a tough two-point defeat at Wyoming. They are hosting Nevada, who is in real trouble now after taking a sixth straight loss on Tuesday. I think it’s fair to say that - in the Mountain West - there’s a pretty severe dropoff after the top six teams. Nevada is not in that top six. Utah State is.

Now the Aggies are technically in seventh in the standings, behind UNLV. But not only do I think they are better than the Rebels, USU is better than several teams ahead of them. The KenPom ratings have them as the second best team in the conference, literally right behind Boise State. The Aggies are 31st in those KenPom ratings. So this is a good team.

They’d won five straight, all by double digits, before losing at Wyoming on Tuesday. That game went to overtime, by the way. What’s most interesting about Utah State’s 6-6 conference record is that - like I said - five of the wins have come by double digits. Four of the losses have been decided by three points or less.

Five of Nevada’s six straight losses have come by 10 or more. One of those was to Utah State, 78-49, and that was at home! In Logan, it’s hard to imagine the Wolf Pack playing well. Lay the points.

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Well, this game is not likely to be close. Oklahoma City has lost three in a row and 10 of its last 13. They are 17-37 on the season. The last three losses have all been by double digits.

Meanwhile, you’ve got Philadelphia coming off a loss. So they should be plenty motivated. Plus, they just traded for James Harden, so there will be a renewed sense of optimism here. The last 10 times Philly has been off an ATS loss, they are 9-1 ATS. 

Harden likely won’t play on Friday, but the 76ers won’t need him. Joel Embiid has scored 25 or more points in 21 straight games. He had 34 points and 12 rebounds Tuesday against Phoenix. 

While the Sixers are just 1-3 in February, they closed January with a five-game win streak. They are fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 32-22 record. Back in October they defeated the Thunder by 12 points and that was in Oklahoma City. They are now 17-5 ATS L22 games vs. teams with a winning percentage below .400.

OKC lost its leading scorer awhile ago and it shows. Already the league’s lowest scoring team, the Thunder have failed to hit 100 in four of the last six games. Lay the points in this one.

Let’s go with one more on tonight’s College Hoops card. Long Beach State (aka “The Beach”) has to leave the mainland for this game at Hawaii. The Beach is on a nine-game winning streak - straight up and against the spread. But Honolulu is a hard place to win.

Hawaii is back home after losing two in a row on the road. Those losses were by five (at UC Riverside) and three points (UC Davis). Prior to that, the Warriors had won seven in a row while covering the spread all but once. That one ATS failure came as a 13-point favorite. 

At home, Hawaii is 4-0 straight up in conference play. Also, earlier in the year they went to Long Beach and won 72-65 as a one-point underdog. That was the Big West opener for both teams.

LBSU hasn’t lost since, so it feels like this is a “collision course” for the two teams here. CS Fullerton is also 7-2 in Big West play, but a Hawaii win here would have them feeling VERY good about capturing the regular season conference crown.

The Beach were down five to CS Fullerton, at halftime, in their last game. They have not had the halftime lead in any game since 1/27 vs. UC Riverside. I just can’t see them covering such a short number at arguably the toughest place to play in the entire Big West.

UCSB, to me, is much better than its 9-9 SU record. The Gauchos’ problem has been a 1-7 record (SU and ATS) on the road where nearly every loss has been close. Their last time on the road, they lost 65-62 to Hawaii, a game where third leading scorer Ajare Sanni left in the second half with an ankle injury.

Sanni hasn’t played since, but I don’t see him listed on the injury report for tonight. His potential would be a big boon for a team that actually leads the Big West in scoring margin. UCSB did win big in its last game, beating UC San Diego by a score of 84-48. 

While just 2-5 SU in its last seven games, three of those losses for the Gauchos have been by three points or less. This team has been somewhat unlucky so far. But remember they are the reigning Big West Champs and were projected to finish first again, back in November. 

I think that we’re getting a great number here as Cal State Bakersfield has dropped five in a row. 

UCSB shoots the ball well, right at 48.5% for the season. That’s 18th in Division I! The Gauchos have had a double digit lead in three of their four conference losses and the other one was a one-point loss. Lay the short number with the road team.