I don’t love the board today after we had relatively good luck yesterday, but that’s not going to deter me from gambling my face off, responsibly. As the face of mid-major sports, it’s critical to give these teams the notoriety they deserve, even if Winthrop is going to beat you by a million (High Point). Let’s take a look at the tremendous opportunities ahead. Fade these:
Too Long, Didn’t Read
Game of the night: Moorehead (lol) State@Belmont(-4.5) (139.5)
Picks:
Longwood vs North Carolina A&T Under 137
Winthrop -6.5
Buffalo +3
Drake-3.5
Portland even
Game of the Night
Moorehead State@Belmont(-4.5) (139.5)
The Ohio Valley semifinal is a rematch of our “game of the night” last month where Moorehead (lol) beat Belmont by 1 in a 48-47 rockfight. I really thought Belmont could’ve received an at-large bid, but after getting thumped by 30 to Murray State those dreams are over. Gun to head, I’d take the value with the points in this one, but I’m just going to sit back and enjoy it instead.
Picks
Longwood vs North Carolina A&T Under 137
Hurry up and pick this one, it’ll be on in 30 minutes. The end of the Radford/A&T game was painful to watch; both teams stunk and were slow paced. Early game, two slow paced teams, NC A&T with an abysmal offense? Hammer the under, I’ll even sprinkle Longwood -6.
High Point vs Winthrop-6.5
Winthrop is a wagon. I don’t see anyone tripping them up until the final with Longwood, which will be a dogfight. High Point is in win it for Tubby Smith mode, but they’re not getting past the Eagles
Buffalo+3@Kent State (145.5)
Two successful teams, two completely different styles. Buffalo is going to try to use tempo and run on teams, Kent State will be methodical, getting a quality shot and playing good defense. Both teams are great at what they do, so I’ll take the value with the points here. Jeenathan Williams and David Skogman on Buffalo will be matchup nightmares for Kent State.
Southern Illinois vs Drake-3.5 (127.5)
This series was electric during the regular season, but the cream will rise to the top in conference play (probably not). I’m taking Drake knowing damn well the Salukis will probably go on a run and win the whole fuckin’ Missouri Valley conference.
San Diego vs Portland (even) (139)
Portland was a surprising team in the WCC, beating San Francisco to knock them off my bubble. They get out and run on teams, whereas San Diego moves at a snail pace, but is still below average defensively. I love Portland moneyline, maybe a sprinkle on the over since both teams are sub-par on the defensive end.
Not a great board, but appreciate college basketball on days like these if you love the days like last Saturday. More conference predictions to come.
The Morning Flush 