Ferringo 1/3/09
1.5-Unit Play. Take #727 Ohio State (+2) over Michigan (4:30 p.m.)
Big rivalry game here for these two teams. And even though I’m ignoring the “unranked favorite over a Top 25 team” I still feel like this is a solid spot. Michigan stinks. Maybe they will play out of their heads because they are at home, but they haven’t beaten anyone this year. Anyone. They have gotten blown out by teams like Marquette and Utah, they lost at Indiana, which is terrible. Their best wins are over Detroit and awful Creighton (in OT). They have proven squat. They are soft inside, they aren’t shooting well, and they really have two guys that can do anything (Sims and Harris). Ohio State ran into a buzzsaw in Wisconsin this week. Nothing they could have done about that one. I know that the Buckeyes are floundering without Evan Turner. But they still have some guys that can play. Lighty, Diebler and Buford are all in double digits. Simmons and Lauderdale are close. P.J. Hill can run the point. This team still has some guys that can play and I think that they are better than the Wolverines.
1-Unit Play. Take #721 Creighton (-4.5) over Evansville (3 p.m.)
It is obvious that Creighton is awful. But are they this awful? Are they so awful that they are going to lose on the road to Evansville? We lost with the Jays in Indiana State and now it looks like the Aces are actually taking more of the action in this game. Well, Creighton has won eight of nine in this series and I think that Dana Altman’s skill and his team’s desperation is enough for a blowout here. I mean, their losses lately are at George Mason by 3, at New Mexico by 5, against Northern Iowa and at Indiana State. Those are respectable and all were close. Evansville just isn’t up to snuff and their only wins in the last month are against UT-Martin and Georgia Southern. I’m not impressed. I’ll take the disrespected favorite.
1-Unit Play. Take #723 UTEP (Pk) over Texas Tech (3 p.m.)
Here we have a heavy reverse line movement away from the Top 25 team. To the point that this game is now at just +1. Why? Is it because UTEP may be the better team here? Now that Derrick Caracter is in the fold I think it’s clear that UTEP has more on the interior and is equal on the perimeter to the Red Raiders. Texas Tech (barely) beat Washington at home. Good for them. But Washington sucks, so I don’t know how much credence I give that win. Other than that, Tech has beaten Stanford (also sucks) and played two not-as-close-as-the-scores-looked games in losses to New Mexico and Wichita State. Tech is mediocre. I am following the line movement here and we’ll dabble on the curious RLM.
1-Unit Play. Take #711 Wisconsin (-4.5) over Penn State (2 p.m.)
Little bit of a letdown/look ahead spot here for Wisconsin. But the issue is that Penn State just isn't very good. At all. They have one good player - Talor Battle - and I think that Wisconsin can neutralize him with Trevon Hughes. Bo Ryan's team just wins, man. And they have three of the four best players on the floor here. This Wisconsin team is talented enough and tough enough to go get a road win here over a Penn State team that has done nothing but lose to decent teams this year. Their two best wins are Davidson and Virginia. Not impressive at all. Wisconsin is good enough to blast Duke and Ohio State, they are good enough to beat sagging Penn State.
2-Unit Play. TEASER: Take #727 Ohio State (+7) over Michigan (4:30 p.m.) AND Take #738 Duke (-5.5) over Clemson (7:45 p.m.)
1-Unit Play. TEASER: Take #718 Northern Iowa (-2.5) over Missouri State (2 p.m.) AND Take #729 Providence (+10.5) over St. John’s (5:30 p.m.)
0.5-Unit Play. TEASER: Take #718 Northern Iowa (-2.5) over Missouri State (2 p.m.) AND Take #723 UTEP (+5) over Texas Tech (3 p.m.)
0.5-Unit Play. TEASER: Take #715 Houston (+11.5) over Iowa State (2 p.m.) AND Take #727 Ohio State (+7) over Michigan (4:30 p.m.)
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Originally Posted by Robert Ferringo
