Sports Picks & Predictions

This is a play on the MISSISSIPPI ST. BULLDOGS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three Pack. After opening the season 11-0, Mississippi St. has dropped its last two games including a loss to Alabama last week in its conference opener. The Bulldogs hit the road where they are 1-0 and are catching a massive number which is significant here based on this matchup. These are two of the best defenses in the country squaring off and this game has the lowest total of any game on the Tuesday schedule so a low scoring game greatly gives the big underdog an advantage. Mississippi St. is 6-0 ATS in its last six games after two or more consecutive losses. Tennessee opened SEC action with a four-point win at Mississippi last week to make it two straight wins to improve to 11-2 on the season. The Volunteers are 6-0 at home and have completely dominated here by outscoring opponents by 37.4 ppg but have not even been close to tested by a quality opponent. They have the best shooting defense in the country and by an even bigger margin in those home games and while the Bulldogs are no offensive juggernaut, this is the best they have seen. Here, we play on road underdogs of 10 to 19.5 points after being beaten by the spread by 30 or more points total in their last three games going up against an opponent after going under the total by 48 or more points total in their last seven games. This situation is 39-12 ATS (76.5 percent) since 1997. 10* (617) Mississippi St. Bulldogs

This is a play on the WASHINGTON ST. COUGARS for our CBB Sunday Enforcer. Last week, Washington St. won its opening game at the Diamond Head Classic but followed that up with a pair of losses against Hawaii and Utah St. before returning home to resume Pac 12 play where it lost to UCLA by one point on Friday. The Cougars are now 0-3 in the conference with one of the other losses coming at home against Utah by just two points so they are a couple possessions away from having a winning record and now are now laying a short number at home with the public all over the road team. One major factor the public is against the Cougars is that they are 0-12 against the Trojans since January of 2016 but the last two meetings in Pullman were decided by just one bucket. USC is coming off a win at Washington on Friday and has opened Pac 12 play 3-0 for the second consecutive season and for only the second time since the 2002 season, when it began 5-0. USC has won seven consecutive games for the first time since beginning last season 13-0 but are in a tough spot with its second road game in three days and having a game against rival UCLA on deck. Like the Cougars, the Trojans possess a solid defense but one advantage the Cougars will possess on offense is its three-point shooting. Washington St. is 40-23 ATS in its last 63 home games after a loss by six points or less. 10* (810) Washington St. Cougars

This is a play on the CLEVELAND CAVALIERS for our NBA Saturday Enforcer. Cleveland is coming off its third straight loss on Thursday as it fell to Indiana by nine points as a short favorite. The Cavaliers are No. 4 in the Eastern Conference, four games behind Boston and are in the midst of a nine-game stretch where seven of those games are on the road with this being the first game of a home-and-home with Chicago. The defense is coming off its fourth worst performance of the season as it allowed 126 points, the most it has given up since November 18, a span of 22 games and seeing that the Cavaliers possess the best scoring defense in the league, they will be out for some retribution. Cleveland is 13-5 against teams ranked outside the top 16. Chicago has won two straight games and five of its last six following a four-game slide to get back to three games under .500. The Bulls are one of six teams within two and a half games of each other vying for the final three playoff spots in the conference and they remain home where they are just one game over .500. In their last game against Detroit, the Bulls shot 57.6 percent from the floor which is just the tenth time they have eclipsed 50 percent shooting and they have gone 3-6 in the previous nine follow up games. Here, we play on road favorites off two or more consecutive upset losses as a favorite going up against an opponent off a home win. This situation is 51-22 ATS (69.9 percent) since 1996. 10* (509) Cleveland Cavaliers

This is a play on the KANSAS ST. WILDCATS as part of our CBB Saturday Three Pack. Kansas St. has won five straight games to improve to 11-1 on the season and opens Big 12 action at home where it is 7-0 and outscoring opponents by over 21 ppg. The Wildcats failed to make the postseason a year ago after it was eliminated in the first round of the big 12 Tournament with a loss against West Virginia which sets up a revenge spot on Saturday. West Virginia has won four straight games, all at home, and hit the road for just the third time this season after splitting its first two true road games. The Mountaineers rolled over Pittsburgh as a road favorite but then lost at Xavier by 10 points as a small underdog and this is only the fourth time is has gotten points all season, going 1-2 in those games and heads to its toughest environment yet. Here, we play against road teams as an underdog or pickem averaging 76 or more ppg going up against teams allowing 63 or fewer ppg, after three straight wins by 10 points or more. This situation is 130-78 ATS (62.5 percent) since 1997. 10* (770) Kansas St. Wildcats

This is a play on the LONG BEACH ST. 49ERS as part of our CBB Saturday Three Pack. Long Beach St. dropped its Big West Conference opener against UC San Diego in overtime on Thursday which snapped a two-game winning streak and sent the 49ers back under .500 for the season. They are now 3-2 at home and are 0-3 ATS in the three lined games at The Walter Pyramid and now they go from a nine-point favorite to a chalk by just a bucket in a great bounce back spot. UC Riverside easily defeated CSU Bakersfield in its conference opener at home and has now won two straight games and hits the road for the first time in two weeks. The Highlanders are 2-4 on the road compared to 6-1 at home and in neutral court games and this presents a letdown spot following a pair of double-digit victories. Here, we play against underdogs in a game involving two teams allowing between 67 and 74 ppg, after two straight wins by 10 points or more. This situation is 124-80 ATS (60.8 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (762) Long Beach St. 49ers

This is a play on the PACIFIC TIGERS as part of our CBB Saturday Three Pack. Loyola-Marymount has been one of the surprise teams in the West Coast Conference as it is off to an 11-4 start following a 20-point conference opening won at Portland on Thursday. The Lions have won and covered three straight games and are now favorites on the road as they come in with a 2-2 record on the highway. Pacific has struggled at home this season, going just 3-7 in its 10 home games following a 20-point loss to BYU last time out. The Tigers have failed to cover each of their last three games and are now getting value as they are getting just a bucket less than they were against the Cougars. Here, we play on underdogs in a game involving two teams allowing between 67 and 74 ppg, after scoring 50 points or less. This situation is 135-77 ATS (63.7 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (754) Pacific Tigers

This is a play on the DENVER NUGGETS for our NBA Friday Enforcer. We played against Denver on Wednesday and caught a big fourth quarter rally from the Kings as the Nuggets lost by a point, squandering a 19-point lead in the process. They have been one of the better teams in the league coming off a defeat as they are 8-3 following a loss and look to get it back following an 8-1 run previous to that Sacramento loss. Denver is back home where it is 12-3 including six straight wins and after short stint in first place in the Western Conference, the Nuggets are now tied with New Orleans for the top spot, one game up on Memphis. This is a good matchup at home where they can dictate the pace of the game and controlling that is the key. Miami is coming off a win over the Lakers on Wednesday which was its second straight victory to get back over .500 on the season and this is the start of a five-game roadtrip looking to better its most recent trip on the highway where it went 4-0 but those were against some pretty below average competition. The Heat are 7-9 on the road overall which includes a 2-5 record against teams with a winning record and yet they continue to be overpriced. Miami has been favored in 10 of its last 11 games and while it comes in as an underdog here, it is a short price and this line has already dipped by a bucket despite the Heat having the worst ATS record in the NBA at 12-22-1. Here, we play on home favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points shooting 46 percent or better on the season, after three straight games allowing 47 percent or higher shooting. This situation is 62-30 ATS (67.4 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (576) Denver Nuggets

This is a play on the NEW YORK KNICKS for our NBA Thursday Enforcer. The Knicks were rolling along with eight straight wins but have since lost four in a row including an improbable loss against Dallas in overtime on Tuesday. Going into that game, teams that led by nine or more points with 35 or fewer seconds remaining were 13,884-0 but that record is now 13,884-1 as the Knicks blew it and had to watch Luka Doncic score a career-high 60 points and grab a career-high 21 rebounds to go with 10 assists in the 126-121 loss. The Knicks have to get up off the floor and not only bounce back from that but get rid of this losing streak that has seen them drop down to a tie for the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference yet are just one game out of ninth place in the jumbled bottom half of the conference. It was another instance where the Knicks could not get past one of the top teams in the NBA as they are now 3-11 against the top ten which is the third most losses in the league against the top ten but they are 15-6 against the rest of the league. New York is 10-7 on the road and it is a perfect 3-0 straight up and ATS when favored on the highway. The Spurs were in a tailspin with a 1-16 run but then won three in a row before its recent 2-5 slide including a 16-point loss at Oklahoma City on Tuesday. The Spurs did win their most recent home game against Utah as they had their second best defensive performance of the season by allowing just 40.2 percent shooting but they still have the worst defense in the league, allowing 50.4 percent shooting and could not catch the Knicks at a worst time. Here, we play against home underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points after a game where they failed to cover the spread going up against an opponent after failing to cover the spread in three or more consecutive games. This situation is 42-17 ATS (71.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (559) New York Knicks

This is a play on the NORTH TEXAS MEAN GREEN as part of our CBB Thursday Three Pack. Two of the top teams in C-USA square off in an early conference battle. North Texas has won five straight games including the last four coming away from home and it returns to UNT Coliseum where it is 4-0 and while this is the biggest home test so far this season, the Mean Green easily passed the first one against Fresno St. They pride themselves with their defense as they are ranked No. 2 in the country in scoring, allowing more than 60 points only once, and No. 16 in shooting defense and can shut down this potent offense tonight. North Texas is 15-4 ATS in its last 19 games against teams shooting 45 percent or better from the floor. Florida Atlantic has won 10 straight games since suffering its only loss at Mississippi and while this includes a big win at Florida, the Gators are not the team we expected them to be. The last nine wins have come against no one as the Owls have either faced non-Division I teams or been favored in every game by at least six points. Despite playing a pair of SEC teams, the Owls have played a schedule ranked No. 277 which shows how bad the rest of the schedule has been. Here, we play against road teams as an underdog or pickem averaging 76 or more ppg and after three straight wins by 10 points or more going up against teams allowing 63 or fewer ppg. This situation is 130-77 ATS (62.9 percent) since 1997. 10* (720) North Texas Mean Green

This is a play on the WESTERN KENTUCKY HILLTOPPERS as part of our CBB Thursday Three Pack. Western Kentucky is coming off a pair of losses against two major conference teams on the road at Louisville and South Carolina and the Hilltoppers were favored in both so it is bounce back time in their conference opener. They have gone 0-4 ATS over their last four games which is keeping a leash on this number and they are back home where they are 4-0 and this has been one of the best home environments in the country as Western Kentucky is 75-18 (.806) at Diddle Arena under head coach Rick Stansbury. This is a very experienced team with plenty of scoring options as there are six Hilltoppers with significant Division I experience that now total 4,610 Division I points. Rice is off to a surprising 9-3 start but eight of those wins have come at home against absolutely no one with the best victory being Western Michigan with Georgia Southern being a close second. The Owls have played a schedule ranked No. 307 and it is only that high because of one game at Texas and while that was considered a quality loss in overtime as 24-point underdogs, that was the first game for the Longhorns following the suspension of head coach Chris Beard. Rice is 1-3 on the road overall with the other two losses coming at Pepperdine and Middle Tennessee St. by 39 and 35 points respectively. Another horrible road spot for Rice tonight. 10* (680) Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

This is a play on the BUTLER BULLDOGS as part of our CBB Thursday Three Pack. Butler got off to an 8-3 start but has lost two straight games to open conference play and they were not close as they lost by 22 points against Connecticut and 22 points against Creighton and now with a week off, it is time to get back on track. There has been a common theme with those five losses as the Bulldogs were underdogs in all five of those games and the wins also have a theme where they were favored in all eight victories, going 7-1 against the number. Butler is 6-1 at home with the lone loss coming against the No. 2 Huskies and it is in a good spot as it has gone 16-4 ATS in its last 20 games after two or more consecutive losses. This is a very balanced team as the Bulldogs five starters are each averaging double figures in scoring and they now have more depth with Jalen Thomas and Ali Ali back in the rotation after each missing the first 11 games. Providence has opened 2-0 in the Big East Conference following a four-point win at Seton Hall and a five-point home win against Marquette in overtime. The Friars have won five straight games while covering all five of those and are now catching another short price on the road. They have been solid on offense but the defense has kept games closer than they probably should have been and will be facing one of the best shooting teams in the conference. 10* (670) Butler Bulldogs

This is a play on the SACRAMENTO KINGS for our NBA Wednesday Enforcer. Sacramento will be out for some immediate revenge following a seven-point loss to Denver last night as it blew a 20-point lead and was outscored 34-23 in the fourth quarter. It was the second straight loss for the Kings as they fell to 17-15 and they remain in the No. 7 spot in the Western Conference. Sacramento is now 9-7 at home which includes just a 1-3 start on this current six-game homestand and this is an important time to turn things around as they are in a stretch of 15 of 19 games taking place at home. Sacramento is ranked No. 3 in total offense and No. 4 in shooting offense and is coming off its lowest point total over its last six games despite shooting a solid 48.8 percent from the floor. The Kings have covered three of four games this season when playing on back-to-back nights and this is the first instance of a home-and-home in consecutive nights. Denver has won five straight games and eight of its last nine to maintain a one game lead over New Orleans for first place in the Western Conference. The Nuggets are now 10-8 on the road which is very good but not close to their 12-3 home record and the victory last night snapped a 1-3 road skid. Like the Kings, the offense is the strength as they are No. 7 overall and No. 2 in shooting and also like the Kings, they struggle on the defensive side of the floor and they could once again be without Aaron Gordon who missed last night and is questionable tonight with a shoulder injury. Denver is 6-17 ATS in its last 23 games after three straight games where they made 47 percent of their shots or better. Here, we play against road teams where the line is +3 to -3 coming off an road win scoring 110 or more points, when playing their 3rd game in four days. This situation is 52-25 ATS (67.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (548) Sacramento Kings

This is a play on the ILLINOIS-CHICAGO FLAMES as part of our CBB Wednesday Three Pack. Illinois-Chicago is 8-5 which included wins in three straight games while covering four in a row before heading to Northwestern prior to the holiday break and the Flames were destroyed by 38 points to the surprising Wildcats so the time off came at a perfect time. The Flames have a very strong defense which was not on display in that last game as they allowed Northwestern to shoot 51.4 percent from the floor which was only the fourth time all season they have allowed an opponent to shoot higher than 47 percent from the floor and they have a good matchup here against a poor offensive team. The Flames are 4-2 at home which is not great but both losses came when they were underdogs and Illinois-Chicago is 6-0 ATS as a favorite this season. After a 2-6 start to the season, the Redbirds have turned things around to win four of their last five games as they head back into MVC play where they are 1-1. Illinois St. won all four of those games at home but going back, it has lost five straight games away from home and comes into a tough spot playing a team back home coming off a 38-point road loss that has been stewing for a while. The Redbirds are ranked No. 193 or worse in all six shooting and scoring categories on both sides of the ball. Illinois St. is 0-6 ATS in road games after a game where they made 78 percent of their free throws or better this season. 10* (634) Illinois-Chicago Flames

This is a play on the NORTHERN IOWA PANTHERS as part of our CBB Wednesday Three Pack. Missouri St. is off to a 5-7 start including 1-1 in the MVC and a slow start was expected with so many key pieces lost from last season. The Bears snapped a four-game losing streak with a blowout win over Central Michigan before the holiday break and now they hit the road where they are just 1-3, the lone victory coming as their only game as a road favorite. Their strength is defense but likely does not have enough offense to keep up here as they are ranked No. 324 in scoring and No. 245 in shooting. Additionally, Missouri St. is ranked No. 361 in free throw shooting at 58.7 percent and that dips even lower to 56.1 percent away from home. It has also been a slow start for Northern Iowa as it is also off to a 5-7 and 1-1 start but it is coming off consecutive wins for the first time this season and both were impressive double-digit victories over Towson and St. Bonaventure. The Panthers are just 4-3 at home but two of those losses came by three points and the other one as a significant home underdog against projected MAC champion Toledo. While Missouri St. possesses a solid defense, Northern Iowa is not far behind and it faces one of the worst offenses in the country. Sophomore guard Bowen Born has stepped up in a big way for the Panthers following the AJ Green departure as he leads conference in scoring at 19.3 ppg. 10* (636) Northern Iowa Panthers

This is a play on the VILLANOVA WILDCATS as part of our CBB Wednesday Three Pack. When Villanova lost to Temple in its second game of the season, you knew something was not right. Flash forward to a 2-5 start and things definitely were not right but the Wildcats have righted the ship as they have won five straight games including a victory to open Big East play following an impressive 15-point win over a solid St. Johns team. This has no doubt coincided with five-star freshman and top-five projected NBA Draft Pick Cam Whitmore making his debut. One hidden edge is that Villanova is No. 1 in the country in free throw percentage. Connecticut is off to a 13-0 start and has shown to be an early season National Championship frontrunner. This team is athletic, deep and loaded at every position and it is the cohesiveness that is most impressive. The Huskies are going to find their share of roadblocks along the way and this could definitely be one of those but more than nothing else, a closer than expected game is what we are looking for. This line is completely inflated with Connecticut off to an 11-1-1 ATS start to the season as not many will want to step in front of this train but at this price, we gladly will. Here, we play against home favorites of 10 to 19.5 points with a winning percentage of .800 or higher having covered six or seven of their last eight games against the spread. This situation is 68-38 ATS (64.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (611) Villanova Wildcats

This is a play on the MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES for our NBA Western Conference Game of the Month. Both Phoenix and Memphis are coming off losses on Christmas and we expect the Grizzlies to be the team to rebound as they head back home where they are 13-2 and are actually getting some value here. Memphis won in Phoenix last week by 25 points as a three-point favorite but we are seeing a small line shift based on venue change and it will be out to bounce back from that 1-3 roadtrip that has sent it into third place in the Western Conference, one game behind Denver for first. Desmond Bane is back in the lineup after missing a month and after a solid debut, he struggled from the floor on Sunday against the Warriors as he was just 2-13 shooting. The Suns have lost three straight games and are now three games back in the Western Conference and are going to have to patiently wait to get fully healthy again as they finally got Chris Paul back but are again down their best player. Phoenix got Devin Booker back on Sunday but he lasted only four minutes as he suffered another injury, this time a groin injury and he will be out on Tuesday. The Suns are just 5-10 on the road including 1-5 over their last six games on the highway including losses in all three games when getting points while covering only one of those. The offense definitely has taken a hot with Booker back on the bench and they will struggle again against this defense after scoring just 100 points in the meeting last week. Here, we play against teams off a road cover where the team lost straight up as an underdog going up against an opponent off an upset loss of 10 points or more as a road favorite. This situation is 56-24 ATS (70 percent) since 1996. 10* (526) Memphis Grizzlies

This is a play on the SETON HALL PIRATES for our CBB Tuesday Star Attraction. This is an important stretch for Seton Hall. Including the game at Xavier a week ago prior to the holiday break, the Pirates are in a stretch where five of seven games are on the road and after a 0-2 start in the Big East, this game alone is huge. Prior to the rest, Seton Hall lost to Providence and Xavier by four and three points respectively and going back, three of its last four losses have come by five points or less. The Pirates are still a game over .500 and the strength they bring is their defense as they are ranked No. 35 in defensive efficiency and have one of the best perimeter defenses around, ranking No. 15 in three-point shooting defense. In the last game at Xavier, Seton Hall held the Musketeers, one of the top offensive teams in the country, to their lowest three-point shooting percentage this season at 25 percent and their second-lowest point total of the season with 73 points. Marquette has opened 1-1 in the conference and in eight games against teams from major conferences, the line the Golden Eagles are laying here is tied for the highest with the other being against Georgia Tech and Seton Hall is rated much higher than the Yellow Jackets. Marquette is 7-1 at home including 2-1 against those major conference teams and while that includes a win over Creighton, the Bluejays have been in a major slump. The Golden Eagles have a very solid offense and will be facing a test here and we can see this game playing out just like the game against Xavier for Seton Hall as the game is shortened which significantly favors the sizeable underdog. 10* (601) Seton Hall Pirates

This is a play on the LOS ANGELES LAKERS for our NBA Tuesday Ultimate Underdog. The Lakers have lost four straight games and eight of their last 11 and while this would typically be a contrarian play by playing against a Los Angeles team, it is contrarian by playing them here. They have failed to cover five straight games and the injury bug has hit once again with Anthony Davis once again on the shelf for at least a couple weeks so basically it has been LeBron James as the only production from the starting five. Los Angeles has fallen into No. 13 in the Western Conference with a lot to make up to get back into the playoff mix. The Lakers are ranked No. 7 in scoring offense and No. 9 in shooting offense and that has still held true during this losing skid and now faces a below average defense. Orlando is still well out of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference but it has narrowed the gap after an awful start as the Magic have gone 8-1 over their last nine games with the lone loss coming against Atlanta by just one points after nearly coming back from a late 13-point deficit. The Magic have covered 10 straight games and that is part of the contrarian aspect along with the straight up victories as the value is starting to turn with this being their third straight game as favorites and only the fifth time all season they have laid points. Orlando is now 9-9 at home and the Lakers visit will always bring extra energy for the home team but the Magic are in a tough spot. Here, we play on underdogs allowing 114 or more ppg on the season, after three straight games where both teams scored 115 points or more. This situation is 32-9 ATS (78 percent) since 1996. 10* (515) Los Angeles Lakers

This is a play on the NEW ORLEANS PELICANS for our NBA Monday Star Attraction. New Orleans has put a halt to a four-game losing streak with a pair of wins at home against San Antonio and on the road at Oklahoma City and it heads back home for the start of a three-game homestand. It is 13-4 at home this season which includes an 8-1 run the last nine games and it has been dominant by outscoring opponents by eight ppg in those 17 games while covering six of nine games against teams with a winning record. The Pelicans are one game behind Denver for first place in the Western Conference and the recent two-game winning streak is even more encouraging considering they were without Zion Williamson in those games because of an illness but he will be back in the lineup tonight. Indiana is coming off a pair of upset road wins the last two games which puts it into a go against situation. The Pacers improved to 17-16 on the season which has them in a tie with Atlanta for No. 7 in the Eastern Conference yet prior to the recent winning streak, they went 3-8 over their previous 11 games. The Pacers have not been able to put any sort of winning streak together as they have gone 1-6 in their last seven games following a win and it has not been pretty for the most part, losing those games by an average of 11 ppg. They do own an impressive six wins over teams ranked within the top ten but this is not the spot for that to continue. Here, we play against underdogs with a winning percentage between .501 and .600 coming off two or more consecutive upset wins as a road underdog. This situation is 57-22 ATS (72.2 percent) since 1996. 10* (512) New Orleans Pelicans

This is a play on the MIAMI HEAT as part of our NBA Friday Three Pack. Miami had its four-game winning streak come to an end on Tuesday with a 10-point home loss against Chicago to fall back to .500 on the season. The Heat were without Jimmy Butler because of a stomach issue but he will be back tonight which will help the offense that has been inconsistent the entire season and they will also be facing a below average defense. Miami is 9-7 at home which is nothing spectacular and while it is an average 7-7-1 ATS following a loss, this is a much better situation than when coming off a win where the Heat are 3-13 ATS. They are the worst ATS team in the league but are catching value here as they were favored by 3.5 points at Indiana in their last meeting less than two weeks ago so the line difference based on venue shift is way off. Indiana snapped a two-game losing streak with a big win at Boston on Wednesday as it got a huge game from Tyrese Haliburton as he scored 33 points but is questionable tonight with a wrist injury so he might not be close to 100 percent if he goes. The Pacers have not been able to put ant sort of winning streak together as they have gone 0-6 in their last six games following a win and it has not been pretty for the most part, losing those games by an average of 11 ppg. Playing at a quick pace is the plan here but not a good plan against this team. Here, we play on favorites coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off an upset win as a road underdog. This situation is 80-44 ATS (64.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (570) Miami Heat

This is a play on the MILWAUKEE BUCKS as part of our NBA Friday Three Pack. Milwaukee is coming off a loss at Cleveland on Wednesday to snap a two-game winning streak and the Bucks have gone just 3-3 over their last six games. But the one thing they do not do is lose consecutively as they are 7-1 this season following a loss and this is the first of two straight games against the top of the Eastern Conference with Boston on deck Christmas Day. Milwaukee is now a half game ahead of the Celtics for first place in the conference and while there is a ton of basketball left, these early games do go a long way. The Bucks defense remains the strength as they are No. 2 in opponent shooting and No. 3 in points allowed and can challenge this Nets team that has been overachieving because of the opposition they have faced which has not been very good. Brooklyn is playing its best basketball of the season as it has won seven straight and 11 of its last 12 with a home loss against Boston being the lone blemish. Taking a look at this recent 12-game run shows the Nets have played hardly anyone with wins over Portland and Indiana being the only victories against teams that are currently in a playoff spot and they are both in the No. 8 spot in their respective conferences. The offense remains the best shooting team in the league but this is their biggest test. Here, we play against favorites after scoring 120 points or more in two straight games going up against an opponent after scoring 43 points or less in the first half last game. This situation is 48-21 ATS (69.6 percent) since 1996. 10* (559) Milwaukee Bucks

This is a play on the CLEVELAND CAVALIERS as part of our NBA Friday Three Pack. Toronto came through for us on Wednesday as it won in New York to snap the Knicks eight-game winning streak but we are fading the Raptors as they are facing one of the top defenses in the league and will not be able to get the same 52-point game from Pascal Siakam that they got against the Knicks. Toronto is just 4-12 on the road and while it was in a great contrarian spot in its last game, it is time to fade the Raptors on the road on another short price. The Raptors are four games under .500 and have no offensive consistency as they are one of the worst shooting teams in the league at No. 28 overall and No. 30 from long range. Cleveland is coming off a big win against Milwaukee to make it five straight wins and after a little bit of a lull, the Cavaliers are creeping up in the Eastern Conference as they are now in the No. 3 spot, one game behind Milwaukee for first place. Cleveland is ranked No. 1 in the league in points allowed and No. 5 in defensive shooting and we know who they will be keying in on here. The offense is slowly improving and the Cavaliers are now No. 7 in shooting as they have shot 47 percent or better in six of their last seven games and will be going up against the No. 29 ranked shooting defense so they are again projected to go well above 50 percent tonight. Here, we play on home favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points revenging two straight losses going up against an opponent off an upset win over a division rival as an underdog. This situation is 60-24 ATS (71.4 percent) since 1996. 10* (564) Cleveland Cavaliers

This is a play on the IONA GAELS for our CBB Friday Supreme Annihilator. Iona is coming off a bad loss in the first round of the Diamond Head Classic as it fell to SMU by four points as a 9.5-point favorite and the Gaels are now laying fewer points today against a worst team. This was the second straight loss for Iona as it lost at New Mexico by eight points before heading to Hawaii but that was not a shocker as the Lobos are off to a 12-0 start to the season. The Gaels opened 7-2 with solid wins over St. Louis, St. Bonaventure and Princeton and they will be out for a big bounce back here and want to close the tournament strong before heading into MAAC play where they are the heavy favorite to win the conference. Seattle is also coming off a loss as it fell to Utah St. 84-56 and is not in a good spot in the second game of the tournament. The Redhawks are off to an 8-3 start which looks good on paper but underneath that record tells a different story. Seattle has won only one game season when not favored and that was a win at Portland as a 3.5-point underdog. In the other three games as underdogs, which were all losses, the Redhawks were not competitive as they lost by 11, 15 and 28 points. They are 5-0 at home against cupcakes which has inflated the record and overall, the Redhawks have played the No. 285 ranked schedule in the country. Here, we play on neutral court teams averaging between 74 and 78 ppg going up against teams allowing between 67 and 74, after playing a game where both teams score 80 points or more. This situation is 31-6 ATS (83.8 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (879) Iona Gaels

This is a play on the UNLV RUNNIN' REBELS for our CBB Thursday Supreme Annihilator. Southern Mississippi is off to a very surprising 11-1 start but a win at Vanderbilt is its only notable win and the last three victories have come as favorites of 13.5 points or more and now they go into a place at the wrong time. Three of those victories have come against non-Division I teams while four others have comes against teams ranked in the 300 range as the overall schedule is ranked No. 323 in the nation so this is easily its first real test of the season. The Golden Eagles overall numbers are excellent but it is due to the schedule they have played and every strength they have goes up against every strength UNLV has on the other side. UNLV opened the season 10-0 but lost last time out against a very good San Francisco team by a bucket as a six-point chalk and are only laying a couple points more against a team not nearly as strong as the Dons. The Rebels have not played the toughest of schedules either but it is ranked 100 spots higher and this is a get right game before MWC season gets underway. They are now 5-1 at home and outscoring opponents by over 20 ppg and bring in a top 50 defense in both scoring and shooting and can lock this Golden Eagles offense down. One key stat not to overlook is the fact that Southern Mississippi in ranked No. 303 in free throw shooting. Here, we play against road underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points averaging 76 or more ppg and after three straight wins by 10 points or more going up against teams allowing 63 or fewer ppg. This situation is 68-31 ATS (68.7 percent) since 1997. 10* (858) UNLV Runnin' Rebels

This is a play on the NEW ORLEANS PELICANS for our NBA Thursday Enforcer. New Orleans has lost four straight games since ascending to the top of the Western Conference and bad news came across Wednesday. Zion Williamson has been declared out for this game with an illness which puts New Orleans now out with its two stars as the Pelicans also will be without Brandon Ingram for at least two more games. Williamson has averaged 28.6 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 6.0 apg and 1.5 spg in the 11 games with Ingram out so his absence will be big but even when he was in the lineup, the Pelicans have been slumping. That being said, the line has dropped significantly and the New Orleans roster is still better than San Antonio even with those two out and there are plenty of options to step in, namely Jonas Valanciunas and CJ McCollum. This is a typical spot where a superstar goes out and others pick it up in the first game of the absence. San Antonio opened the season pretty strong by going 5-2 but then lost 16 of its next 17 games before finally getting into the win column with three straight victories. The Spurs then lost two more but came back with an upset win over Houston, if you can call it that, by 19 points as a 4.5-point underdog. Now they are getting only three more points. Not nearly enough. They are a respectable 5-8 on the road but three of those came during that early run. Here, we play on favorites coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off an upset win as a road underdog. This situation is 79-44 ATS (64.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (552) New Orleans Pelicans

This is a play on the WRIGHT ST. RAIDERS for our CBB Thursday Enforcer. Wright St. is coming off a 52-point win over Northwestern Ohio but that cupcake victory was needed for the Raiders after having lost four straight games coming into that. A favorite in the Horizon League, they started 0-2 and then had another pair of losses in nonconference play against Western Kentucky and Akron, two very good teams and both on the road, and while they now hit the road again, they have a great matchup here to keep the momentum going before getting back into conference action next week. This is one of the best shooting offenses at No. 15 in the country going up against one of the worst defenses in the nation as the Raiders look to finally get back to over .500. Miami Ohio is coming off an upset win over an excellent Bellarmine team on the road as a 7.5-point underdog and it has now won four of its last six games. Two of the others came against two awful teams and the other against a non-Division I team. Two of the RedHawks five wins have come against said non-Division I teams so that Bellarmine win was a shock and now they come back down to earth. They are ranked No. 328 in scoring defense and No. 345 in shooting defense and while the offense is better, it is not nearly good enough to keep up. Here, we play on road teams as a favorite or pickem with a +3.5 to +8 ppg scoring differential and after scoring 95 points or more going up against teams with a +/- 3.5 ppg scoring differential. This situation is 63-25 ATS (71.6 percent) since 1997. 10* (821) Wright St. Raiders

This is a play on the OREGON ST. BEAVERS for our CBB Wednesday Supreme Annihilator. Oregon St. has won two straight games following a 1-6 run to get it back to .500 on the season and it closes out its three-game homestand in solid spot to get back over .500 after starting the season 3-0. The Beavers have already doubled their win total from all of last season so the improvements are already showing and there will be no lack of motivation here as they will want to roll into Pac 12 action on a inning streak with three straight conference road games on deck. Oregon St. is 12-3 ATS in its last 15 games after having won two of their last three games. Denver is off to a solid 9-4 start but it has beaten no one as its best win is a victory at Idaho St. by a point as a 3.5-point underdog. Overall, the Pioneers have played a schedule ranked No. 360 out of 363 division I teams and have played just one team from a major conference which resulted in a 23-point loss at UCLA and while Oregon St. is not on the same level as the Bruins, we are not asking them to win by 23 points so this is still la big step up in class for Denver. The Pioneers lost at Nebraska-Omaha by 17 points as a slight favorite on Monday and is in a tough travel spot. Here, we play against underdogs averaging 53 or less shots per game on the season, after two straight games making 50 percent of their shots or better. This situation is 48-23 ATS (67.6 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (748) Oregon St. Beavers

This is a play on the TORONTO RAPTORS for our NBA Divisional Game of the Month. Here, we have two teams heading in complete opposite directions and the short number is putting the majority on the Knicks. New York has won eight straight games including a 38-point blowout against Golden St. last night to move to 18-13 on the season and the Knicks are currently in the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference. This was the first victory for New York over the Warriors at home since 2013 so that was certainly a statement victory which spells a letdown tonight. This is typically not a good situational spot for the Knicks as they are 1-4-1 ATS in their last six home games against teams with a road winning percentage of less than .400. Toronto meanwhile has lost six straight games and has the complete opposite record of the Knicks at 13-18 as the Raptors have fallen completely out of the playoff picture as they are now 2.5 games out of the final spot in the Eastern Conference. Four of those six losses came by four points or less which includes an overtime loss against Philadelphia on Monday so this skid could be a complete flip if the bounces went differently. The Raptors are only 3-12 on the road so looking at the broad numbers makes New York the easy side here but a line like this is what makes this a great contrarian spot. Here, we play on road underdogs off a close loss by three points or less to a division rival going up against an opponent after two consecutive covers as a favorite. This situation is 24-6 ATS (80 percent) since 1996. 10* (539) Toronto Raptors

This is a play on the CALIFORNIA GOLDEN BEARS for our CBB Wednesday Enforcer. California is the only team remaining in all of Division I that has yet to win a game and it comes into Wednesday as the favorite which is putting the public on the Mavericks. The Golden Bears are 0-12 and having no wins is clearly not a good thing but they have played a very tough schedule and they are in a great scheduling situation here. They are coming off a road loss at Santa Clara on Sunday and return home where they are 0-7 which includes four losses as slight favorites and here they are again in their final nonconference game before Pac Ten action resumes next week. California is 15-6 ATS in its last 21 games after scoring 30 points or less in the first half in two straight games. We played on UT-Arlington as our free play for Monday as it went into San Francisco and defeated the Dons by five points as a 15-point underdog which snapped a three-game losing streak. That could provide momentum heading into tonight or it could bring a letdown and we are banking on the latter. The Mavericks have covered three of their last four games and it was their defense that got the job done the other night and they now face one of the worst offenses in the country so it looks inevitable that they are going to smother another opponent but the short travel turnaround could pose an issue after having nine days off prior to the last game. 10* (700) California Golden Bears

This is a play on the DENVER NUGGETS for our NBA Tuesday Enforcer. Denver is coming off a win over Charlotte on Sunday to make it four wins in its last five games and with the victory, the Nuggets improved to 18-11 on the season, which has them tied with the Suns for the No. 2 spot in the Western Conference. They trail Memphis by one game so a win here gets Denver into a first place tie and tonight the Nuggets are getting points at home for the first time this season. They are 9-3 at home with the three losses coming by a total of six points including the last two where they shot 50 percent or better from the floor and the first defeat came with no Nikola Jokic in the lineup. He is listed on the injury report along with Jamal Murray, which is the likely reason this line is what it is, but both are listed as probable and are good to go. Memphis had its seven-game winning streak snapped with a loss at Oklahoma City on Saturday and in those seven victories, six were at home while the other one was at Detroit. The Grizzlies are 13-2 at home but just 6-8 on the road where they are anywhere between 3-9-2 and 3-11 ATS and even if this game flips back to Denver being favored, that is fine as Memphis is 0-4 ATS as a road underdog. Their defense remains No. 3 in efficiency but this will be a test facing the No. 3 ranked team in offensive efficiency as they are 2-5 this season against teams ranked in the top six in that category. Two contrarian situations favor Denver tonight. First, we play against road teams covering eight or more of their last 10 against the spread, playing six or less games in 14 days. This situation is 39-17 ATS (69.6 percent) over the last five seasons. Second, we play on teams failing to cover six or seven of their last eight games against the spread, with a winning record on the season playing another winning team. This situation is 131-83 ATS (61.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (528) Denver Nuggets

This is a play on the FRESNO ST. BULLDOGS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three-Pack. Fresno St. opened the season 1-5 before a pair of much needed wins but it has lost two straight coming into this game, both as favorites, and this is the final tune-up before Mountain West Conference opens up at the end of the month. Those early five losses came against some very good teams where they were underdogs in all of those with the exception of one-game where it was favored by a point against San Francisco. Fresno St. has been really close to a much better record as every loss have come by single digits as the defense has been really good as the Bulldogs are No. 54 in points allowed and has a great matchup here facing one of the worst offenses in the country. CSU Bakersfield is just 4-6 with two of those wins coming against non-Division I teams but what really stands out has been the losses. The Roadrunners have lost three straight which came against Dartmouth, San Jose St. and Abilene Christian. The schedule has been a challenge based on playing a lot away from home but in three home games, they are 2-1 with the two wins coming against those aforementioned non-Division I teams. This is a bad spot with a team with no proven win and with low expectations coming into the season that has been pegged near the bottom of the Big West Conference. Here, we play against home teams as an underdog or pickem after scoring 60 points or less in three straight games, with just one or fewer starters returning from last season. This situation is 100-59 ATS (62.9 percent) since 1997. 10* (643) Fresno St. Bulldogs

This is a play on the ILLINOIS-CHICAGO FLAMES as part of our CBB Tuesday Three-Pack. Northwestern is off to a surprising 8-2 start considering the Wildcats have been picked to finish No. 13 in the 14-team Big Ten Conference. They do have a quality win at Michigan St. but nothing else except for that as the rest of the schedule has been soft. Northwestern has relied on a very strong defense that is No. 7 in points allowed and No. 3 in opponent shooting but the issue in games like this is the fact the offense is putrid as the Wildcats are No. 313 in scoring and No. 355 in shooting. Trying to cover a number this high against a very good team makes it difficult because of that as the Wildcats have laid double-digits four times, going 1-3 ATS with the only cover coming against Chicago St. which is ranked No. 327 in the country. Illinois-Chicago is 8-4 which includes wins in three straight games while covering four in a row. The Flames also have a very strong defense which means this looks like a low scoring game which is evidenced by the fact this is the sixth lowest total on the entire card tomorrow of 42 games in total. The schedule has not been great but in 11 lined games, the Flames have been underdogs in five of those and have covered both when getting double digits. Here, we play against favorites of 10 to 19.5 points shooting 73 percent or better from the free throw line and allowing a shooting percentage of 33 percent or less going up against teams shooting between 65 and 69 percent from the free throw line. This situation is 26-5 ATS (83.9 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (631) Illinois-Chicago Flames

This is a play on the NORTHERN COLORADO BEARS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three-Pack. Northern Colorado comes in two and a half games worse than Air Force as it is just 5-6 including a 1-2 record at home and the line flipped early going to the Bears being the favorite and it makes sense and we are on it. The Bears were on a 4-1 run before going to Colorado on Saturday and losing by 11 points but covered the 15.5 points and that game ended a stretch of six straight games away from home. This is their first home game in 29 days and Northern Colorado wants to get some retribution on its home floor after losing to non-Division I Colorado Christian by a point. The defense has been awful of late but that was all on the road and now face a team not accustomed yet to feel it on the road. Air Force is 8-4 thanks to possessing one of the softest home schedules in the country where the Falcons are 8-2 that includes five straight covers and six straight overall and that is bringing the public into play. They have shot great over this stretch but all of the good ones were at home and in the two games they have been on the road, where they are 0-2, they have shot just 40 percent. The shooting defense has been solid as well but all at home again and while they have allowed only 50 percent shooting once, that was in one of the road games. Here, we play against road teams after beating the spread by more than six points in three consecutive games going up against an opponent after beating the spread by 24 or more points total in their last three games. This situation is 56-24 ATS (70 percent) since 1997. 10* (618) Northern Colorado Bears

This is a play on the ST. THOMAS TOMMIES for our CBB Monday Supreme Annihilator. North Dakota is coming off a non-Division I victory over North Central-MN which snapped a four-game losing streak that included three road losses all of which were by double-digits. Those defeats dropped the Fighting Hawks to 2-4 on the road and they hit the highway for their conference opener Tuesday. They will be in for a struggle this season as two of their six wins came against non-Division I teams and they have been underdogs in 10 of their 11 lined games. This is a game St. Thomas has had circled since last season as it went 4-14 in the Summit League which was its first season at this college level and now coming off a disaster of that that, it knows it is better and wants to get out strong. The Tommies were picked No. 8 in the preseason poll but there was not much separation between them and the No. 4 spot so this team could surprise as they are already just one win shy of their total from all of last season. Head coach Johnny Tauer has two of his three double-digits scorers back from year one in Riley Miller and Parker Bjorklund and both are in double-digits again joined by freshman guard Andrew Rohde to head an offense that is No. 93 in total offense and No. 59 in shooting offense. Additionally, St. Thomas is one of the best free throw shooting teams in the country (No. 12) against one of the worst (No. 322). Here, we play against road teams as an underdog or pickem in a game involving two teams shooting 36.5 percent or better from long range, after a game where they made 50 percent of their three-point shots or better. This situation is 62-32 ATS (66 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (816) St. Thomas Tommies

This is a play on the ATLANTA HAWKS for our NBA Divisional Game of the Month. This is a ripe spot for Orlando to get blown out as the Magic are coming off another win at Boston to sweep the back-to-back on the road, both coming as double-digit underdogs. That made it six straight wins for Orlando with the first four coming at home where it was an underdog in all of those as well. The two wins in Boston moved the Magic to just 3-11 on the road which makes this an awful spot staying on the road for a back-to-back and playing their third game in four nights. Orlando is 0-4 in the second game of a back-to-back this season and now after covering seven straight games, we are getting value based on that as the last five road games, they were getting 10 or more points. It has been a rough stretch for Atlanta as it has gone 4-8 over its last 12 games but did snap a two-game slide with a blowout win at Charlotte on Friday. Sitting at 15-15, the Hawks are in the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference and while injuries have been a slight issue, Trae Young is back healthy and playing well as he is close to averaging a double-double with 27.0 ppg and 9.9 apg and his assist numbers have surged and has helped the rest of the roster. One of the recent losses was an 11-point loss at Orlando two games back so immediate revenge is in store and Atlanta is 27-14 ATS in its last 41 home games revenging a loss where opponent scored 110 or more points. Here, we play on home favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points revenging a loss of 10 points or more, playing only their 2nd game in five days. This situation is 62-33 ATS (65.3 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (506) Atlanta Hawks

This is a play on the DETROIT PISTONS for our NBA Sunday Enforcer. Brooklyn is rolling along with five straight wins including the first three of this four-game roadtrip and going back it has won nine of its last 10 games but this is a very common trip up spot. The Nets are now 8-7 on the road with the scoring differential just about dead even at +0.4 ppg with a big reason being its poor perimeter defense. They are allowing opponents to shoot 38 percent from long range which is slightly above the season average allowed that checks in at No. 29 in the NBA. Detroit has certainly had its share of problems this season at 8-23 overall but the Pistons do have a winning record against the number because of inflated numbers like this one. The Pistons are coming off a loss to Sacramento on Friday to make it four losses over their last five games as they still possess the top ranked schedule played in the NBA which has obviously played a role in the overall record but this is an excellent spot against a team not fully focused here. The Pistons are 8-2-2 ATS in their last 12 games against teams with a winning straight up record. Here, we play against teams with a winning percentage between .600 and .750 after two consecutive covers as a favorite, playing a team with a winning percentage between .250 and .400. This situation is 48-21 ATS (69.6 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (568) Detroit Pistons

This is a play on the CHICAGO BULLS for our NBA Friday Enforcer. The Knicks have won five straight games including at win at Chicago on Wednesday in overtime to improve to 15-13 on the season which has out them into sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The victory against the Bulls was just their fourth against a top 16 team this season which is the second fewest for a top 16 team, ahead of only the Clippers who have three victories against this group. Additionally, New York has 10 losses against the top 16 which is the most in the top half of the NBA and while that is tied with the Bulls, Chicago has double the amount of wins. The Knicks have won three straight road games but the other two came against Detroit and Charlotte which are a combined 15-43 on the season. Chicago has lost two straight games with the first coming in Atlanta in overtime as well on a last second shot. This is a great spot to bounce back to remain above .500 at home. And they have a solid edge in offense as their efficiency in No. 3 in the league over the last three games and they go up against a Knicks defense that is middle of the road in defensive efficiency. Here, we play on favorites coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off an upset win as a road underdog. This situation is 79-41 ATS (65.8 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (544) Chicago Bulls

This is a play on the MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. The Clippers are coming off a 20-point win over Boston and while we were on the wrong side of that, we are fading Los Angeles here in what is close to an 11-point line shift and no matter good the Celtics may be, they are not separated by this many points against a competent that sits right around the .500 mark. The Clippers got the best game of the season from Kawhi Leonard as he scored 25 points to go along with nine rebounds and six assists and they need this the rest of the season to make any long playoff run but that is something that cannot be counted on yet. The Clippers are just 8-6 at home and could be in for a lookahead spot here with Phoenix on deck tomorrow. Minnesota has lost two straight games, both in Portland to from a game over .500 to a game under .500 which came after a mini run of 3-1 as it still plays in the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns. The Timberwolves are a respectable 6-7 on the road and like the Warriors, they are a top ten team overall in shooting on both sides of the floor which makes them dangerous any night and especially in betting aspects of getting a number this big. Here, we play against home favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points with a winning percentage between .501 and .600 coming off a home win scoring 110 or more points, playing a losing team. This situation is 47-19 ATS (71.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (519) Minnesota Timberwolves

This is a play on the GOLDEN ST. WARRIORS as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. We played against Golden St. last night as it was able to build an early lead but that did not last long as it fell behind as many as 26 points in the 16-point loss against Milwaukee. The road struggles are evident as the Warriors fell to 2-12 on the highway and this is a good spot to bounce back in the midst of this six-game roadtrip that gets tougher after this. Despite a .500 record, the Warriors are a top ten team in both offensive and defensive shooting , effective field goal percentage and three-point shooting. Indiana has lost its first two games of this three-game homestand and has lost six of its last eight games as the overachieving start has started to catch up. This is no great home court advantage like the Warriors have gone against for most of the season as the Pacers are 8-6 with half of those wins coming against Orlando (twice), Detroit and Washington. While the Warriors are top ten in the aforementioned shooting rankings, the Pacers are ranked in the bottom half of the league in all of those with the exception of offensive three-point shooting. Here, we play on road teams after allowing 63 points or more in the first half in two straight games going up against an opponent after scoring 90 points or less. This situation is 36-13 ATS (73.5 percent) since 1996. 10* (501) Golden St. Warriors

This is a play on the ATLANTA HAWKS as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. Atlanta is coming off a 25-point loss at Memphis on Monday to make it four losses over the last five games. After a great start to the season where the Hawks opened 10-6, they have lost eight of their last 10 games with the inconsistency of Trae Young being in the lineup being a big issue with that. He missed the last game against the Grizzlies with a back issue and comes into this game questionable but will likely be in the lineup in the start of a get right stretch of six straight games against teams with a losing record. Orlando has turned a corner with wins in three straight games, all at home and all as an underdog of at least 6.5 points but this corner cannot last very long. The return of some key injured players have started to show some bright signs recently but prior to this run, the Magic lost nine straight games which included a home loss by 17 points against Atlanta where they were getting 6.5 points. Now they are getting just 2.5 points and they are 1-4 ATS this season when getting three of fewer points with the lone win and cover coming against 7-20 Charlotte. Here, we play on favorites with a scoring differential of +/- 3 ppg going up teams with a scoring differential between -3 and -7 ppg, after a loss by 15 points or more. This situation is 38-14 ATS (73.1 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (503) Atlanta Hawks

This is a play on the UTSA ROADRUNNERS for our CBB Tuesday Ultimate Underdog. UTSA comes into Tuesday after falling to undefeated New Mexico on the road this past Saturday to fall to 5-4 on the season and while facing its biggest test of the season, it is also getting the most points it has seen. The Roadrunners got off to a slow start against the Lobos but hung in and kept it very respectable in a very tough environment and we expect the same here against an opponent in a tough spot. The offense had had their struggles this season and will be facing a tough defense but the Roadrunners do have some edges on the other side as they have a very strong perimeter defense that can combat the outside shooting of the Utes. The Roadrunners are 5-0 ATS in their last five games against teams with a winning percentage above .600. Utah comes into the game riding a four-game winning streak that has been highlighted by an 81-66 win of then-number-four Arizona at the Huntsman Center. The Utes are now 8-2 and while one of the losses was a quality one against Mississippi St. by just three points on a neutral floor, the other came against San Houston St. by 10 points at home so focus could be an issue again. A big reason for that is the fact Utah travels to rival BYU in its next game and will be out for revenge following an 11-point loss to the Cougars at home so they have had that game circled. The Utes have covered five straight games so this line is inflated due to that as we have this line well below that based on the most recent power ratings. A low scoring game is expected which favors the underdog especially one that is this big. 10* (619) UTSA Roadrunners

This situation is MILWAUKEE BUCKS for our NBA Tuesday Enforcer. We played against Milwaukee on Sunday as it went into Houston and lost outright as a 10-point favorite and now it is back home in the second part of the proverbial sandwich where the Bucks won at Dallas Friday and has the Rockets in-between the two games which possibly caused the letdown, lookahead situation. The loss kept the Bucks a game and a half behind Boston for first place in the Eastern Conference and they head into Tuesday where they are 12-3 at home and look to get back on track following a 7-1 previous to Sunday. The Bucks are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 home games against teams with a losing road record. Golden St. snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Boston on Saturday as it avoided a Celtics pursuit of getting revenge from the NBA Finals from last season. The Warriors moved back to a game over .500 on the season which has been a major disappointment following their championship last year. Golden St. improved to 12-2 at home but now hit the road where it has been a disaster with a 2-11 record with the only wins coming against Houston and Minnesota on the highway and it has lost two straight since that most recent win against the Timberwolves. The Warriors are 2-6 ATS in their last eight games following a straight up win of more than 10 points. Here, we play on home teams after two or more consecutive unders, that have a scoring differential between +3 to +7 ppg going up against teams with a scoring differential of +/- 3 ppg. This situation is 87-40 ATS (68.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (568) Milwaukee Bucks

This is a play on the BOSTON CELTICS for our NBA Nonconference Game of the Month. Boston opened this roadtrip with three wins including a solid 27-point win over then-Western Conference leading Phoenix where it built a 45-point lead but suffered a loss at Golden St. on Saturday by 16 points which was its worst defeat of the season. The Celtics are now 21-6 and after the previous five losses, they won four of their follow up games and by an average of 11.5 ppg and are in another good spot to bounce back from the most recent loss. Boston remains in first place in the Eastern Conference as the offense still is tops in the league in scoring, three point shooting and free throw shooting while sitting No. 4 in overall shooting. The Clippers return home from a four-game east coast roadtrip where it went 2-2 and they are 15-13 overall showing nothing special along the way. They are just 7-6 at home and are still barely ranked in the top 20 in the power rankings as their schedule has been very easy, ranked No. 28 in the league as their wins have come against the poor teams in the NBA. Los Angeles is 13-5 against teams ranked outside the top 16 and just 2-8 against the top 16 that includes a 1-5 record against the top 10, one of only three teams in the entire league that has only one win against a top ten team, their being a two-point win against Cleveland. The Clippers do have a tough defense but the offense does not have enough to keep up. Here, we play on road favorites coming off a road loss by 10 points or more going up against an opponent off an road win scoring 110 or more points. This situation is 39-12 ATS (76.5 percent) since 1996. 10* (563) Boston Celtics

This is a play on the CREIGHTON BLUEJAYS for our CBB Monday Enforcer. After a 6-0 start to the season, the Bluejays have lost four straight games and have fallen outside the top 25. The four losses were not bad ones as they were against Arizona, Texas, Nebraska and BYU, all of which have winning records so no real harm there especially when three of those were by five points or less and all away from home. Creighton is still ranked No. 27 in the latest ratings as the schedule has been a difficult one which is ranked No. 52 in the country and it was shorthanded last game with Ryan Kalkbrenner sitting out which was confirmed just one hour before the game so they had to change on the fly and it clearly did not work out and he should be good to go Monday. Arizona St. is 9-1 to open the season which does include a win over Michigan but there has not been much besides that with a schedule that is ranked No. 185. The Sun Devils are a quality team with a defense that has led the way, allowing 34.4 percent shooting from the floor which is No. 4 in the country, including 25.8 percent shooting allowed from long range which is No. 8. This is a good thing because the offense has struggled despite the soft schedule as Arizona St. is bottom third in the nation in overall shooting and shooting from behind the arc. Creighton finally gets that bounce back win after three straight failed efforts. 10* (811) Creighton Bluejays

This is a play on the MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS for our CBB Sunday Enforcer. Minnesota is coming off a home loss against Michigan and while it was by 15 points, we have to look at the value here as the Golden Gophers are now getting double that amount tonight which seems way off considering Michigan and Mississippi St. are separated by just a half-point in the power rankings. Minnesota is now 4-5 on the season following four straight losses and bettors are steering clear of the Gophers so the linesmakers hands are tied when setting this number and despite the inflated line, Minnesota is a go against for the majority. Mississippi St. is off to an 8-0 start but it is in a very tricky spot here as the Bulldogs are plying their first true road game of the season and over its last two games on a neutral floor, it resulted in a pair of wins by just three points against Marquette and Utah. Overall, the Bulldogs have played the No. 346 schedule in the country out of 363 teams so while they possess the No. 1 ranked scoring defense in the nation, that is totally skewed and despite the strength of schedule, the offense has been below average in all major statistical categories so if we are expecting a low scoring game, the total is the lowest on the entire Sunday board, that favors the underdog and especially a big one at home. Here, we play against road teams with a winning percentage of .800 or better after going under the total by 42 or more points total in their last seven games, playing a team with a losing record. This situation is 28-3 ATS (90.3 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (788) Minnesota Golden Gophers

This is a play on the HOUSTON ROCKETS for our NBA Sunday Enforcer. We played against Houston on Friday as it lost at San Antonio in the first game that it has been favored in all season and now heads back home where it is significantly better than it is on the road. The Rockets have been better overall, going 4-4 over their last eight games which includes three straight home wins where they are now 4-5 on the season as opposed to 3-13 on the highway so they have played a very heavy road schedule. This is part of the reason Houston has played the No. 3 ranked schedule in the league and they are catching a huge number at home where they are 4-1 ATS against teams with a winning record including an outright win over Philadelphia in its last game at home. The Rockets will be out for revenge following a 20-point loss in Milwaukee in the first meeting this season which is tied for their biggest loss of the season. Milwaukee is coming off a one-point win at Dallas on Friday to make it four straight wins and victories in seven of its last eight games. That puts the Bucks in a tough situation here as coming off that win and having a game on deck at home against Golden St. leads them into a tough sandwich spot. The runs along with the Celtics loss last night puts Milwaukee now one game behind Boston in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks are 7-3 on the road and they have actually been outscored overall on those 10 road games despite being four games over .500. The Bucks are just 2-5 ATS as favorites of more than seven points. Here, we play on teams coming off an upset loss as a favorite going up against an opponent off a road win by three points or less. This situation is 52-22 ATS (70.3 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (550) Houston Rockets

This is a play on the PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS for our NBA Saturday Enforcer. Portland is coming off a brutal home loss against Denver on Thursday as it went down on a last second three-pointer from Jamal Murray which snapped a modest two-game winning streak. The Blazers fell to 5-6 at home as they are one of only three teams in the Western Conference that possess a losing home record with San Antonio and Houston being the others. That being said, they are in a great spot here coming off that loss and facing a team on a back-to-back. Portland is ranked No. 4 in the league in three-point shooting going up against the Timberwolves perimeter defense that is No. 25 in long range shooting allowed which sets up Damian Lillard to have another huge game similar to his outburst against the Nuggets. Minnesota has won two straight games following a 10-point win at Utah last night. This is the Timberwolves fourth time this season playing back-to-back games and while having gone 1-2 against the number in the first three instances and this is the first of the season where both consecutive games have come on the road. The offense has been on a roll but the defense has been dreadful as the Timberwolves have allowed 123 ppg over their last six games. Here, we play on teams coming off a loss by three points or less to a division rival going up against an opponent after a road game where both teams scored 100 or more points. This situation is 35-10 ATS (77.8 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (536) Portland Trail Blazers

This is a play on the ST. LOUIS BILLIKENS for our CBB Saturday Enforcer. St. Louis is coming off a bad loss and looks to regroup as it heads back home where it is 5-0 on the season and is in a great situation for a big bounce back. After losing by 22 points at Iona, Boise St. and Drake offer two of their few remaining chances at wins that will display in the NET rankings, which came out this week. That loss to the Gaels dropped the Billikens way down the power rankings to No. 81 so these are the types of games they can ill afford to give up before conference play gets going. The Billikens have been at their best in this spot as they are among the better offensive teams in the country at home. They face a strong defense but one that has yet to see an environment like this. The Billikens have had injury issues early this season but are expected to be fully healthy as they begin their three-game homestand. Boise St. has won six straight games following a 1-2 start and it hits the highway for its first true road game of the season. It has already notched three wins against Power Five opponents, which is the most ever for the Broncos in a single season so that is a concern but they will be facing their first team going through some adversity. Here, we play against road underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points averaging between 67 and 74 ppg and after two straight wins by 10 points or more going up against teams allowing between 67 and 74 ppg. This situation is 39-14 ATS (73.6 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (716) St. Louis Billikens

This is a play on the ARIZONA WILDCATS for our CBB Saturday Star Attraction. Two of the best shooting teams in the country square off in Las Vegas. The Wildcats have size, play an up tempo style and are battle-tested this season with wins over Cincinnati, San Diego St. and Creighton all of which came on a neutral floor at the Maui Invitational. Arizona enters the game with the second-best offense and the best effective field goal percentage in the country and the Indiana defense, which has been extremely solid, has not been tested like this. The Wildcats are balanced inside and out and having the fastest paced team in the country is even more potent as their bigs run the floor better than any team in the nation. The Hoosiers are playing away from home for the just the second time in close to three weeks and that one trek resulted in a 15-point loss at Rutgers. Indiana does have the better overall numbers on the defensive side as it has only allowed one opponent to score more than a point per possession in a game this season which was against Xavier as the Hoosiers escaped that with a two-point win. The only other solid win was a 12-point win over North Carolina but the Tar Heels have gone from No. 1 to unranked so that victory has lost a lot of its luster. Here, we play against underdogs shooting 52 percent or better on the season. This situation is 83-48 ATS (63.4 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (711) Arizona Wildcats

This is a play on the SAN DIEGO ST. AZTECS for our CBB Saturday Supreme Annihilator. Following a pair of losses against Arizona and Arkansas, San Diego St. has rebounded with three straight wins but you have to go all the way back to November 21 to find the last time the Aztecs have covered a game, a span of five straight contests. They are laying a short number here and while they are the designated road team, this is on a neutral court in Phoenix with this being another opportunity for a quality win similar to the last time they covered against Ohio St. which was also on a neutral floor. St. Mary's snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Missouri St. by 20 points so that bounce back is out of the way and that was arguably their best win of the season as the Gaels have lost to all three opponents that are ranked within the top 100. They have relied on a strong defense but have a test here against a San Diego St. team that is coming off an awful performance against Troy were it won but managed a season low 60 points. Offensively, they have struggled throughout the season as they have shot over 50 percent only once and faces a defense that has allowed 50 percent or higher shooting only once. Here, we play on neutral court teams as a favorite or pickem coming off a home no-cover where the team won straight up as a favorite, in a game involving two teams with winning percentages between .600 and .800. This situation is 73-36 ATS (67 percent) since 1997. 10* (637) San Diego St. Aztecs

This is a play on the AIR FORCE FALCONS for our CBB Friday Enforcer. After a 1-3 start that included a pair of four-point losses including one in overtime at home against Texas A&M-Commerce, Air Force has won five of its last six games including five straight victories at home where the home court advantage is typically pretty sizable. This is a very young teams with 17 of the 20 players on the roster being underclassmen which led to the rough start but now they are coming together especially on the defensive end. Air Force is ranked No. 5 in the nation in three-point shooting defense at 24.0 percent and No. 36 in scoring defense at 61.2 ppg. This is the last game for the Falcons for nine days because of finals which puts some extra importance on this game as well as the fact they will be out for revenge following a 21-point loss at Arkansas St. last season. Arkansas St. stays on the road following a loss at Central Arkansas on Tuesday to fall to 0-3 on the highway and 5-4 overall with that overall record being skewed. Three of those wins came against non-Division I teams Bethel, Lyon and Harding by 25, 24 and 31 points respectively so those have skewed their overall numbers and even the other victories have been suspect. The Red Wolves also have defeated Mississippi Valley St. which is the lowest ranked team in the country at No. 363 and Tennessee Martin which checks in at No. 307 and their own ranking of No. 266 seems inflated with a schedule played ranked No. 350 in the nation. 10* (888) Air Force Falcons

This is a play on the INDIANA PACERS for our NBA Eastern Conference Game of the Month. Indiana was on a decent roll where it was on a 9-2 run before heading out on a seven-game roadtrip where it ended up going 2-5 to fall to 13-12 on the season. The Pacers are now back home for the start of a four-game homestand and while they have been playing over their heads based on their power ranking that is in the bottom third of the league, this is a good spot to get back into the win column to get some of that momentum back. They have a mismatch advantage in the backcourt tonight as Tyrese Haliburton, Benedict Mathurin and Buddy Hield are averaging 54.7 ppg to go along with a lot of depth from the bench. Indiana is 7-4 at home and the Pacers are 5-1 ATS in their last six home games against teams with a losing road record. One reason for the backcourt disadvantage for Washington is that Bradely Beal is on the shelf again as he is out with a hamstring injury and as mentioned in other scenarios, teams initially tend to step up when a star player goes down but this is now the third game with him out and his absence has been felt as the thin backcourt does not have a reliable scorer to make up for his production. The Wizards have lost four straight games and seven of their last eight to crawl back under .500 for the season and the road has not been kind of late as they have dropped six straight games on the highway. The Wizards are 6-16-1 ATS in their last 23 road games against teams with a home winning percentage of greater than .600. Here, we play against underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points that are revenging a loss as a favorite, off a cover where the team lost the game straight up as an underdog. This situation is 139-82 ATS (62.9 percent) since 1996. 10* (506) Indiana Pacers

This is a play on the SAN ANTONIO SPURS for our NBA Thursday Enforcer. The Spurs have lost 11 straight games and 16 of their last 17 games with 14 of those against potential and current playoff positioned teams and the other three of those against the resurgent Lakers so while losing like this is certainly not good, it has been a brutal stretch. The lone win came against Milwaukee in a fluke and now San Antonio finally catches a break and gets a team on its own level. They have played the No. 8 ranked schedule in the NBA and have faced only four teams at home with a losing record, covering only one but two of the losses were against the Lakers and the other was against Charlotte which was way back in the season opener. Houston has been playing better as it has won four of its last seven games including an overtime win in its last game against Philadelphia and also included an improbable road win at Phoenix three games back. That being said, the recent stretch is a reason along with the Spurs struggles that the Rockets are favorites on the road for the first time this season and for the first time overall as they have gotten points in all 24 games heading into Thursday. That is an automatic play against situation and one that also falls into a contrarian spot as no one will be betting on the 1-16 run of the Spurs. Here, we play on teams allowing 50 percent shooting or worse on the season and averaging 48 or fewer rpg on the season. This situation is 33-14 ATS (70.2 percent) since 1996. 10* (578) San Antonio Spurs

This is a play on the IOWA HAWKEYES for our CBB Nonconference Game of the Month. The Cyclones lost a ton from last season, most notably their two best backcourt players and leading scorers Izaiah Brockington and Tyrese Hunter who averaged a combined 28.3 ppg, 10.6 rpg and 6.6 apg. Iowa St. has been picked to finish No. 8 in the 10-team Big 12 but has gotten off to a 7-1 start that includes big wins over Villanova and North Carolina. But those were big at the time as Villanova is down under new head coach Kyle Neptune and North Carolina is currently on a four-game winning streak. The Cyclones followed that up by getting hammered against Connecticut and now hit the road for their first true road game. Iowa opened the season 5-0 before a loss against a very good and underrated TCU team and then after a blowout win over Georgia Tech, the Hawkeyes lost by 12 points against Duke, a team that is starting to come around after a pair of early loses, at MSG on Tuesday. The Hawkeyes return home in this rivalry where they are 4-0 and will be out for some big time revenge following a 20-point loss in Ames last season almost to the day. This is a very efficient team that does not give the opponent easy opportunities as Iowa is No. 1 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.93) and second in fewest turnovers per game. They have one of the top scoring offenses in the country at No. 21 and they have four players that are hitting 50 percent or better from the floor. 10* (876) Iowa Hawkeyes

This is a play on the PHOENIX SUNS as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. We played against Boston in its last game and once again, the Celtics stepped up late as it turned a close game against Toronto into a runaway thanks to a 35-18 edge in the third quarter before Toronto made it respectable at the end. The Celtics possess the best record in the NBA at 20-5 and still hold a two-game lead over Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference. Boston has won two straight games after a win over Brooklyn on Sunday prior to the Raptors win which closed a 5-1 homestand. The Celtics are a perfect 9-0 against teams outside the top 16 but 11-5 against teams within that and while still good, it is just 4-2 on the road against those top 16 teams with this being the biggest test of the season. The Suns are still atop the highly competitive top portion of the Western Conference at 16-8 and after a 7-1 run, they are coming off a 19-point loss at Dallas on Monday which was their worst loss of the season. Of those eight defeats, five have come by two points or less so a few bounces their way and they could be right with the Celtics for the best record in the league. Phoenix is 12-2 at home with the two losses coming by three points combined and it is getting points here which it should not be based on the power rankings and the fact they are at home. The Suns are 7-0 ATS in their last seven games following a loss. Here, we play against road teams where the line is +3 to -3 off a road win scoring 110 or more points, playing their 3rd game in four days. This situation is 51-24 ATS (68 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (574) Phoenix Suns

This is a play on the FLORIDA GATORS for our CBB Wednesday Signature Enforcer. Florida had a rough go of it at the Phil Knight Legacy Tournament in Portland as it lost two of three games against Xavier and West Virginia but came home and throttled Florida A&M and Stetson by 40 and 38 points respectively and while we normally take cupcake games like that with a grain of salt, these were big for the Gators and they needed some confidence and momentum back before a brutal stretch coming up starting on Wednesday. They are 4-1 at home and while the one loss was a bad one against Florida Atlantic, the Owls have turned out to be a solid team at 7-1. They match up well here against a team that has been a mismatch for most opponents. Connecticut is 9-0 and has turned into a sleeper national title team at +1800, tied for fifth with Purdue and it comes in ranked in the same position at No. 5 after entering the season unranked. The Huskies do have a good win over Alabama on a neutral floor which has been the only game they have been an underdog in all season which is telling but they do have others on that same floor against Oregon and Iowa St. They have played the No. 140 schedule in the country which is not horrible but they have yet to face a true road game until tonight and it comes against an opponent in need of a quality win over a quality opponent. A big public team should go down here. 10* (706) Florida Gators

This is a play on the MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. Indiana concludes its seven-game roadtrip tonight in Minnesota and it has not been a good one as the Pacers are 2-4 through the first six games but they are coming off a big upset on Monday as they went into Golden St. and came away with an eight-point win as an 11-point underdog. Indiana is now 6-7 on the road which is respectable for a team not expected to do much but has been outscored by five ppg overall and half of those wins came against bottom-feeding teams in the league. On the season, the Pacers are 4-6 against the much tougher Western Conference and they have a ranking of just No. 24 in the NBA as they are one of only two teams ranked in the bottom third of the league that have a winning record. Minnesota has split its first two games in the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns and looks to bounce back from a home loss against Oklahoma City last time out. The Timberwolves have lost two straight games at home where they are just 6-7 on the season and they have been a money-burning 2-6 ATS over their last eight games but are in a good spot here with their high-powered offense going up against an Indiana team that is ranked No. 17 in defensive efficiency and allow the eighth-most points in the league. Also, they are facing a Pacers team with two of their top three scorers questionable for tonight. The Timberwolves are 5-1 ATS in their last six games playing on three or more days of rest. Here, we play on favorites coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off an upset win as a road underdog. This situation is 78-41 ATS (65.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (562) Minnesota Timberwolves

This is a play on the MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES as part of our NBA Wednesday Three Pack. Oklahoma City went through a rough stretch where it lost five of six games but it has rebounded with three consecutive wins including a pair of outright wins on the road at Minnesota and Atlanta as sizeable underdogs. The Thunder are two games under .500 which is still very good for a team expected to be near the bottom of the NBA after losing No. 1 pick Chet Holmgren for the season before it even got underway. To their credit, the Thunder have played the No. 9 ranked schedule in the NBA but it has gone as expected as they are a solid 10-5 against teams outside the top ten but have gone just 1-8 against those ranked within that with the only victory coming against Dallas early in the season and have lost seven straight to the top ten teams. Memphis is rolling again after a bit of a lull where it went 1-4 over a five-game stretch but the Grizzlies have won five of their last six games and are positioning themselves in the top part of the Western Conference. They are 15-9 overall which is good for third place in the conference, one game behind Phoenix for first place. Memphis has dominated the teams it should dominate, going 10-2 against teams ranked outside the top 16 in the league and it brings in a 9-2 record at home, the only losses coming against a surprising Sacramento team that the whole league has caught off guard and the Celtics who have the best record in the NBA. Here, we play against underdogs coming off two or more consecutive upset wins as a road underdog. This situation is 196-129 ATS (60.3 percent) since 1996. 10* (566) Memphis Grizzlies

This is a play on the EASTERN MICHIGAN EAGLES for our CBB Wednesday Ultimate Underdog. Eastern Michigan opened the season with a win over Wayne St. and then went on to lose six straight games but those were against some strong competition as the Eagles were underdogs in five of those games with the exception being a three-point loss against San Diego as a small favorite. They came back with a win against Florida International for their first true road win of the season but gave it back with a 28-point loss last weekend at home against Florida Atlantic. We talk about get right spots and this team is in need of one in a good matchup getting an abundance of points against a team that is struggling just as much. The defense has been a real problem but that will be a no issue here against a team that has scored more than 69 points only once. Illinois St. was riding a five-game losing streak before pulling off a 10-point win over Belmont on Sunday to move to 3-6 overall which is just one game better than Eastern Michigan and the Redbirds are in no position to be laying this number which is the third most they have put down this season. Illinois is just 1-2 at home which included two losses to open the season where it also went 0-6 ATS through its first six games before covering the last two games as underdogs. The Redbirds have one of the worst offenses in the nation as they are ranked No. 329 in scoring and this is against a schedule that is ranked No. 247 in the country. 10* (685) Eastern Michigan Eagles

This is a play on the RHODE ISLAND RAMS for our CBB Wednesday Supreme Annihilator. We played against Rhode Island in its last game against rival Providence and it lost by 14 points as the Rams were abused on the boards which led to not many second chance points and now they have another rival coming into the Ryan Center and this is a perfect get right game. Rhode Island has lost four of its last five games but it has been underdogs in those four losses so they were not too surprising and two of those could have gone the other way. This started as basically a brand new roster and they are still coming together and this starts a very favorable stretch to get a run going before conference season starts. This offense has been putrid from a pace and shooting standpoint but have a good matchup here. Brown is off to a 5-4 start which is about was is expected as the Bears do not have a lot to offer this season as they have been picked to finished No. 6 in the eight-team Ivy League. They do come in on a roll as they have won and covered four straight games after some really bad losses to start the season. The overall issue is the schedule they have played no one as their best opponent has been Massachusetts which was an 11-point home loss and Brown has played the No. 341 ranked schedule in the country out of 363 teams so it has hardly been tested. Despite that, Brown is ranked No. 313 in the nation in scoring and No. 303 in opponent field goal percentage allowed. 10* (678) Rhode Island Rams

This is a play on the TOLEDO ROCKETS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three Pack. The Rockets are coming off a road loss at George Mason on Saturday which snapped a two-game winning streak and dropped them to 5-3 on the season and 0-1 on the road. Toledo is coming off back-to-back conference titles and consecutive NIT berths the last two seasons and has been picked to finish second in the MAC this season so it know how to win games like this that can go a long way as while it really will not be a quality win, it would be more of a detrimental loss. They do own a solid neutral court win over UAB early in the season which set the tone for a 3-0 start before suffering a pair of poor losses as favorites. The offense remains one of the best in the country and they have a good matchup here. Northern Iowa opened MVC play last week and split its games, losing big at Bradley which was expected and it then rebounded with a 17-point win over Evansville. The Panthers are used to being at the top of the conference but not much is expected this season and they are off to a 3-4 start with the three victories coming against one non-Division I Wartburg and the other two coming as double-digit favorites. Those all came at home and are the only three home games this season so Northern Iowa has yet to be tested here. The Panthers were underdogs in all four losses as they were getting six points or less in each and lost those by an average of nine ppg. 10* (639) Toledo Rockets

This is a play on the ILLINOIS FIGHTING ILLINI as part of our CBB Tuesday Three Pack. We played against Illinois on Friday as it dropped its Big Ten opener on the road to No. 22 Maryland, which was its second loss of the season, both coming against undefeated teams, the other being against 7-0 Virginia. This game will be the fourth against a ranked opponent in nine games with the third one coming against UCLA in a nine-point win on a neutral floor so it has certainly been tested and Illinois has 10 wins over top 10 teams since 2019-20, second-most in the NCAA behind Baylor which has 12. This is a raw team that did not bring much back from last season but give head coach Brad Underwood credit for bringing in the transfers that can work together which they have accomplished. Texas has moved up to No. 2 in the country after a 6-0 start and this is not only its toughest test of the season, but it is its longest trip as well. The Longhorns do have one neutral court win but that was against Northern Arizona which took place in nearby Edinburg, Texas so it was hardly a demanding trip. They are coming off a five-point win over Creighton after blowing a double-digit second half lead and that was a game they had a great matchup in with the Bluejays being one of the worst perimeter defenses in the country but now faces a very strong perimeter defense. Texas is 4-14 ATS in its last 18 games against teams averaging 77 or more ppg. 10* (607) Illinois Fighting Illini

This is a play on the GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three Pack. Georgia Tech moved to 5-3 on the season with a 81-63 victory over Northeastern on Friday. Two of its losses were on a neutral floor to teams that earned top 10 wins last week with Utah defeating Arizona and Marquette defeating Baylor. The other loss came on the road at Iowa which just missed out on the top 25 this week. The Yellow Jackets are 4-0 at home and while this will be the biggest home test, they have already built a solid overall schedule and Georgia is certainly no powerhouse. Georgia Tech is 15-5 ATS in its last 20 games after five straight games committing 14 or less turnovers. Georgia has won three straight games, all at home where it is 6-0 but all of those games came as a favorite of at least nine points. The Bulldogs lost their only true road game at Wake Forest by 10 points and overall, they are 7-0 this season when favored and 0-2 when getting points. To their credit, the Bulldogs have already surpassed their win total from all of last season so things are moving in the right direction in Athens but the schedule has helped. Georgia is the fourth lowest ranked team with seven or more wins in all of Division I, ahead of only Fordham, Towson and Duquesne as it has played a slate ranked No. 353 out of 363 teams at this level. Georgia is 7-18 ATS in its last 25 road games after allowing 60 points or less in two straight games. 10* (614) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

This is a play on the TORONTO RAPTORS for our NBA Monday Enforcer. This is going to be considered a fishy line to some as the 19-5 Celtics, leaders of the Eastern Conference by two games over Milwaukee, are only favored by a point and the majority are already lining up on their side. Boston is coming off a win at Brooklyn on Sunday as it bounced back from an overtime loss against Miami on Friday which closed a 5-1 homestand and this is the second game of a six-game roadtrip that sends them out west after this. This is just the second time this season they have played back-to-back games on the road and the first resulted in a win but non-cover against Orlando. The Celtics are a perfect 9-0 against teams outside the top 16 but 10-5 against teams within that and while still good, it is just 3-2 on the road against those top 16 teams. Toronto bounced back from a pair of road losses with a win against Orlando on Saturday to improve to 9-2 at home as opposed to a 3-9 record on the road so the venue has played a big part in its success. The Raptors elevate when playing against the better teams in the league as they are 10-4 ATS this season against teams above .500 including a 6-1 ATS mark at home. Facing the top ranked offense in the league will be a challenge but the Toronto defense forces a lot of turnovers as over its last 17 games, it has taken it away at least 17 times in 12 of those after not doing so in any of their first six games and Boston has had at least 14 turnovers in eight of its last 11 games. Here, we play against teams in the first half of the season where the line is +3 to -3 averaging 118 or more ppg on the season. This situation is 33-13 ATS (71.7 percent) since 1996. 10* (536) Toronto Raptors

This is a play on the WASHINGTON WIZARDS for our NBA Sunday Enforcer. The Lakers have won two straight games and are 7-2 over their last nine games following an upset win over Milwaukee on Friday. It should be noted that three of those wins came against San Antonio which has lost 10 straight games and another against Detroit, one of the worst teams in the NBA. The win over the Bucks was impressive with LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook combining for 87 points but Los Angeles is still just 3-6 on the road with the other two wins coming against the aforementioned Spurs. The Lakers are 8-19 ATS in their last 27 games after successfully covering the spread in two or more consecutive games. Washington lost at Charlotte last time out and has now dropped five of its last six games. All five of those losses were on the highway where the Wizards are 3-8 on the season and they head home where they are 6-1 over their last seven games and they will have a big home crowd on their side in this one with the Lakers in town. Washington is now back under .500 but are in a good spot with James not 100 percent with an ankle injury and the Wizards come in with the No. 3 ranked shooting percent defense in the league and can slow down the Lakers offense after 133 points scored against Milwaukee. Here, we play on teams coming off a loss by three points or less to a division rival going up against an opponent after a road game where both teams scored 100 or more points. This situation is 35-9 ATS (79.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (524) Washington Wizards

This is a play on the WASHINGTON ST. COUGARS for our CBB Sunday Supreme Annihilator. This is a tough scheduling spot for Utah as in most Pac 12 weekends, teams host two games one weekend and go on the road for two games the next but in this case, the Utes got a home game against Arizona Thursday and rolled and now have to hit the road for their second conference game which puts them in a bad spot. Utah has played the second easiest schedule in the Pac 12 behind Washington as prior to Arizona, it was favored by double-digits in all four of its home games and it actually lost one of those against Sam Houston St., and it has split its two neutral court games making this its first true road game of the season. The same scheduling situation goes for Washington St. as it played at Oregon and got smacked by the Ducks but now the Cougars return home to make up for that and catch a Utah team at the right time. Washington St. is 3-3 on the season which includes a 2-0 record at home with blowout wins over Texas St. and Detroit and this is a test they will be fired up for. Utah has one of the best defenses in the country, including its perimeter defense but the Cougars counter with the No. 7 ranked three-point shooting team in the nation as they are hitting 42.1 percent from long range. Great spot and great value. 10* (772) Washington St. Cougars

This is a play on the WRIGHT ST. RAIDERS for our CBB Sunday Enforcer. Wright St. is coming off a humbling loss against Robert Norris in its conference opener and it was not just a loss but the Raiders lost by 21 points as a 12.5-point favorite. We played against the Colonials on Saturday which did not pan out as they did not cover but we expect the Raiders to win this in a blowout. They opened the season with an overtime loss against Davidson but won four straight before a loss against UC-Riverside on a neutral floor and as one of the favorites to win the Horizon League, this has turned into a must win even though it is early in the season. Youngstown St. is coming off that tough loss against Northern Kentucky in overtime and has to hit the road again against a team that is ready for a full effort. The Penguins have no quality wins as four of the victories they were favored in and the other same against a non-Division I team. Thus is the fifth straight game away from home for Youngstown St. over the last two weeks and it’s a trying trek for a team especially coming off that overtime loss that they could have captured in what is a great letdown go against spot. 10* (736) Wright St. Raiders

This is a play on the FAIRFIELD STAGS as part of our CBB Saturday Three-Pack. Fairfield is another team that has waited for nearly a month to play its first home game of the season. The Stags are just 2-6 to open the season which includes five true road game losses following a defeat at Manhattan in the MAAC opener on Thursday. That followed a 2-1 showing in Savannah, Georgia at the Hostilo Hoops Community Classic that included a win over a very solid Towson team and a victory against Evansville with the one loss coming against Mercer by a bucket. Fairfield was picked to finish No. 5 in the MAAC preseason poll so this is a team to watch out for and the Red Sea will be energized tonight, part of a sold out arena. St. Peter's was the story of the NCAA Tournament last season as it ran through the field to make it to the Elite Eight following wins over Kentucky, Murray St. and Purdue before losing to North Carolina. It is far from the same team with a brand new head coach and a revamped roster that is not expected to do a whole lot this season. The Peacocks are off to a 4-3 start but the wins have come against no one of significance and they opened conference action against Mount St. Mary's on Thursday which resulted in a 15-point loss against the team picked to finish No 10 in the 11-team MAAC. 10* (696) Fairfield Stags

This is a play on the MILWAUKEE BUCKS for our NBA Saturday Enforcer. Milwaukee had its three-game winning streak snapped with a loss to the Lakers last night and they are in a great bounce back spot tonight. It was a bittersweet loss as the Bucks welcomed back Khris Middleton as he took the floor for the first time since the start of the NBA Playoffs last season. He scored 17 points in 26 minutes and he will likely rest tonight in the second of a back-to-back but his return just gives them a spark going forward in pursuit of the Celtics. Milwaukee prides itself on defense as it is ranked No. 4 in points allowed and No. 3 in shooting percentage allowed but last night LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook combined for 87 points and the Bucks allowed a season-high 133 points. Charlotte also played last night and it pulled off the upset against Washington and the Hornets have now won three of their last four games, easily their best four-game stretch of the season. All three of those wins came at home and by just nine points combined after starting the season 1-6 on their home floor and they are getting outscored by close to four ppg which may not seem like much but some of those losses came against some bad teams. Charlotte is just 1-3 following a win this season and those three losses have come by an average of 18 ppg. Here, we play on road favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off an home win scoring 110 or more points. This situation is 31-5 ATS (86.1 percent) since 1996. 10* (505) Milwaukee Bucks

This is a play on the NORTHERN KENTUCKY NORSE for our Horizon Game of the Year. Northern Kentucky opened the season by getting throttled at home against Kent St. but has won four straight home games since then including an upset win over Cincinnati and then opened Horizon League action with an overtime win over Youngstown St. on Thursday. The Norse have yet to play on the road but Northern Kentucky did travel to the Gulf Coast Showcase in Florida and lost all three games against Florida Gulf Coast, UT-Arlington and Toledo prior to the two recent home games. Northern Kentucky was picked to finish in a first place tie with Purdue Fort Wayne in the preseason Horizon League poll. Life in the Horizon League did not start very good for Robert Morris as it went 8-28 in its first two seasons but opened 2022-23 with a bang as it went to Wright St., picked to finish third in the Horizon, and won by 21 points as a 12.5-point underdog so this is a big letdown spot and Northern Kentucky certainly took note of that. It was a surprising win for the Colonials that came in on a four-game losing streak and its only two wins of the season were against non-Division I teams Pittsburgh-Greensburg and West Virginia Wesleyan. That victory is giving the Norse excellent value and should turn into a rout. 10* (688) Northern Kentucky Norse

This is a play on the EASTERN WASHINGTON EAGLES as part of our CBB Saturday Three-Pack. It has taken about a month but Eastern Washington finally gets to play its first home game of the season after enjoying the first nearly month of the season on the highway. The Eagles are 2-5 with two wins against Mississippi Valley St. and Stony Brook which is not saying a lot but for a team to have to wait to take its home floor for this long will get the juices flowing. The losses have been bad but expected as all five came as underdogs against some notables in Santa Clara, Yale and Washington St. as well as a vacation in Hawaii against the host Warriors and Mississippi Valley St. North Dakota St. has had a very similar schedule as it has been able to sneak in two home games, a loss against Pacific as a favorite and a win over Non-Division I Crown College. The Bison are 0-6 away from home and it has been ugly. To their credit, the first two games were at Arkansas and Kansas and they did cover both but were still blown out in both. The concern is the other five losses as they failed to cover any of those and four results in double-digit defeats. This team should be fine once Summit League play starts but they are going to the wrong place at the wrong time. 10* (676) Eastern Washington Eagles

This is a play on the PROVIDENCE FRIARS as part of our CBB Saturday Three-Pack. We played against Providence in its last game as it hit the road for the first time and got smacked by a very dangerous TCU team by 13 points to fall to 2-3 after a 3-0 start. The two wins over that stretch were anything but solid as the Friars played Merrimack and Columbia and they basically went through the motions as 20-point favorites in both and still won by double-digits in each of those. They did fail to cover those big lines and they head to rival Rhode Island on a 0-5 ATS run with a bitter taste stemming from that TCU beatdown but it is a good spot with that one game on the road under their belt. Rhode Island is a mess. The Rams have only five players returning on the roster with just a combined 37 starts last season between Abdou Samb, Sebastian Thomas, Jalen Carey, Ishmael Leggett and Malik Martin with Leggett accounting for 30 of those so there is very little experience and it has shown in its 2-5 start to the season which includes losses as favorites against Quinnipiac and Texas St. and a non-cover as an 11.5-point favorite against a horrible Stony Brook team that is ranked No. 329 in the country. The best team the Rams have faced is Kansas St., the lowest ranked team in the Big 12, and lost by 20. 10* (677) Providence Friars

This is a play on the TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE for our CBB Saturday Signature Enforcer. It has been a slow start for Tulsa as it is 2-4 which does include a solid win against Loyola-Chicago by 19 points as a 7.5-point underdog over in South Carolina. Three of those losses came against Oregon St., Murray St. and Oklahoma St. so nothing horrible there and now the Golden Hurricane return home for the first time in three weeks where they are 1-0 and will be not only looking to snap their 0-3 straight up and ATS run but to provide a better performance at home after a satisfactory first game in a six-point win over Jackson St. as a pretty big favorite. Time to break out for a quality win. Oral Roberts is the top ranked team in the Summit League but we are still not sure about this team quite yet as the Golden Eagles are 5-3 but four of those wins came against non-Division I teams and two of those against Oklahoma Baptist and Rogers St. were far from impressive as they won by just 10 and 11 points respectively. Oral Roberts is 1-3 on the road but to its credit, the three losses were against some good teams in St. Mary's, Houston (elite) and Utah St. but none were close. This cupcake schedule is too good to pass up to go against until we see something good come about. 10* (638) Tulsa Golden Hurricane

This is a play on the TULANE GREEN WAVE for our Saturday Supreme Annihilator. We are getting some excellent value on Tulane as it is 5-2 to open the season but has not been able to cover as it has gone 0-6 ATS over its last six games and both of its outright losses came on a neutral floor against Nevada and Western Kentucky in the Cayman Islands. The Green Wave head home where they are 4-0 but just 1-3 against the number as they have not been tested by laying spreads of 16 or more points in all four games but have still won those all by at least 15 points. They are laying a much smaller number here because of the inability to cover as well as the opponent winning streak coming in. This is a solid team picked No. 4 in the preseason rankings. Fordham opened the season with a win over Dartmouth and then got lambasted at Arkansas but the Rams have responded with six consecutive victories yet they should not get too excited. The Rams finished .500 or better for just the second time since 2007 last season but lost coach Kyle Neptune in the offseason to Villanova and expectations are not high as Fordham is picked to finish No. 13 in the 15-team Atlantic Ten. The six consecutive victories are something to build on but going on the road for the first time in three weeks is not ideal especially when the best win of the bunch is Harvard. 10* (612) Tulane Green Wave

This is a play on the BROOKLYN NETS for our NBA Divisional Game of the Year. Brooklyn is 12-11 after a 113-107 win over the Wizards on Wednesday to improve to 3-0 on its season-long seven-game homestand. Kevin Durant has carried the offense of late as he has scored 30 or more points in four straight games and while Brooklyn is just 5-7 when he scores at least 30 points, half of those games took place when the Nets lost six of their first eight games and since then, they are 10-5 and becoming more dangerous as the defense has also picked it up. Brooklyn has allowed just 106.5 ppg over that 15-game stretch and will be out to extend its five-game home winning streak. It is safe to say a coaching change has been a great move. Toronto is coming off an 19-point loss at New Orleans on Wednesday which was its sixth loss in its last seven road games to fall to 3-8 on the season on the highway. This is not a good spot to get right as the defense has regressed as the Raptors have allowed opponents to shoot 50 percent or higher in six of their last nine games and they are catching a red hot offense that has surpassed 50 percent from the floor in seven of their last eight games. Toronto has had no rhythm throughout the season as it has won back-to-back games four times but was unable to turn that into three straight wins all four times and the Raptors are coming off starting their 12th different lineup and that kills continuity. Here, we play on home teams where the line is +3 to -3 after having won five or six of their last seven games, with a winning percentage between .450 and .550. This situation is 51-17 ATS (75 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (564) Brooklyn Nets

This is a play on the COLORADO BUFFALOES for our CBB Thursday Supreme Annihilator. Pac 12 action opens this week with Arizona St. heading to Colorado for the opener for both. Colorado is 4-3 to start the season as it has been very uneven as focus and motivation seem to be the biggest issues. After opening the season with a blowout against UC-Riverside, the Buffaloes lost at Grambling by nine points as a 14-point favorite but came back two days later and defeated Tennessee by 12 points as a 15-point underdog. And it goes on. Colorado snuck by Yale in its last game at home by just three points but it was guilty of having a week off after playing a destination tournament in Myrtle Beach and it possesses a great home court edge at altitude where Colorado is 166-34 under head coach Tad Boyle. Arizona St. is off to a 6-1 start that includes big wins over VCU and Michigan on a neutral floor and the Sun Devils hit the road for the second time this season with the first resulting in a one-point loss against Texas Southern as an 11-point favorite. Obviously, this will be a bigger road test and the line giving Arizona St. a lot of credit based on its overall record and pair of quality wins. Here, we play against road underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points that are averaging between 67 and 74 ppg and after two straight wins by 10 points or more going up against teams allowing between 67 and 74 ppg. This situation is 37-12 ATS (75.5 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (768) Colorado Buffaloes

This is a play on the ILLINOIS ST. REDBIRDS for our CBB Thursday Signature Enforcer. Missouri Valley Conference action is tipping off this week and one game is taking place at Murray St. as the Racers are hosting their first MVC game after coming over from the Ohio Valley Conference. It will certainly be a fantastic atmosphere for their conference home opener but laying this number is very aggressive. The Racers rolled through the OVC last season as they went 18-0 and won their first round NCAA Tournament game but now it is a different story. Not only is it an upgrade in conference but the team is brand new with a new head coach and a roster that returned only two players from last season and are picked to finish No. 8. Murray St. is relying on transfers and freshmen and it has been an uneven start as they are 3-3. Illinois St. is pegged two spots lower and while it also has a big roster turnover, their transfer acquisitions are much better and this is a more veteran team. The Redbirds have dropped four straight games after a two-game winning streak and a big reason this line is so large is that they are 0-7 ATS to start the season so a big adjustment needed to be made and it is way to big. Here, we play against home teams as a favorite or pickem averaging between 74 and 78 ppg and after a loss by 6 points or less going up against teams allowing between 63 and 67 ppg. This situation is 57-22 ATS (72.2 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (759) Illinois St. Redbirds

This is a play on the DETROIT PISTONS for our NBA Thursday Enforcer. We played against Detroit on Tuesday as it lost by 30 points at home to the Knicks despite shooting over 50 percent from the floor and the Pistons have now lost three straight games but we are going the other way on Thursday and taking the bigger number at home. This is big contrarian play and being the standalone game, the public is all over the more public team in what will be considered a short line. Detroit is 6-2-1 ATS over its last nine games and the Pistons are catching a number they have been very profitable at as they are 8-3-2 ATS as underdogs of more than seven points. That defense that was lit up against New York should get a reprieve as Dallas is not a good offense and it needs to be noted Detroit has played the No. 2 ranked schedule in the league. Detroit is 7-0 ATS in non-conference games this season. The Mavericks are coming off a big home win over Golden St. which snapped a four-game losing streak and this sleeper championship team has been inconsistent all over the place. The Mavericks are ranked in the bottom half of the league in almost every major statistical category which has made them dead even at 10-10 on the season. Dallas hits the road where it is just 1-7 which came against Brooklyn in the second game of the season and while they have lost to some really good teams, they also have lost to Orlando and Washington on the highway. The Mavericks cannot lay points over a bucket at they have gone 2-11-1 ATS when laying three or more points. Dallas is 0-9 ATS after one or more consecutive wins this season. 10* (554) Detroit Pistons

This is a play on the TEXAS LONGHORNS for our Thursday Star Attraction. Texas has rolled through its early schedule as it is 5-0 which includes a 19-point win over Gonzaga. The Longhorns come into the week ranked No. 2 in the country and this will be their biggest test of the season and what Creighton normally has advantages in, Texas counters that unlike many other teams can. The big edge is in the backcourt that is led by Tyrese Hunter who was the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and is currently the big playmaker up top who leads the team in three-point shooting and faces and awful three-point shooting defense that is going to give Texas plenty of open looks. Creighton comes into this game at 6-1 following a two-point loss against No. 14 Arizona on to close out the Maui Invitational. The Bluejays did enjoy a pair of top 25 wins and come in as the No. 7 team in the nation so this is no easy out for the Longhorns but it is a tough spot for Creighton as this is its first true road game of the season. The one aspect that Creighton has dominated in is rebounding as it is top 15 in rebounding and No. 10 in offensive rebounds per game allowed but face their toughest test here with Texas led by Dillon Mitchell who is top 10 in the country in offensive rebounding percentage. Here, we play on home teams - after a cover as a double digit favorite, in a game involving two teams with winning percentages of .800 or better. This situation is 47-20 ATS (70.1 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (752) Texas Longhorns

This is a play on the LOS ANGELES LAKERS for our NBA Revenge Dominator. The Lakers have shown signs of improvement after an awful 2-8 start as they went on a 5-1 run before an implosion on Monday as they blew a 17-point fourth quarter lead against Indiana. Los Angeles is in a good bounce back spot here after the defense allowed 32 fourth quarter points and this unit will take exception to that. The Lakers defense has kept their heads somewhat above water as they are ranked No. 9 or better in all seven defensive shooting categories including No. 3 in defensive shooting efficiency. They also get a boost with the return of Patrick Beverly as he is back from his suspension. The offense has been okay but has been hindered by poor long range shooting which could break out here. Portland is coming off a brutal loss last night as it blew an 18-point lead, getting outscored 36-17 in the fourth quarter to make it two straight losses for the Blazers. They shot 49 percent from long range on Tuesday as they remain a top three team in three-point shooting but will face a tough test here and they have had to rely on their perimeter shooting this season which is a tough way to go about having long-term success. Portland is ranked No. 26 in two-point shooting percentage and is in the bottom half of the league in most other shooting categories including being one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the league. Portland is 16-29 ATS in its last 45 games against teams shooting 46 percent or better from the floor. Here, we play on favorites revenging a straight up loss as a home favorite, off an upset loss as a home favorite. This situation is 65-27 ATS (70.7 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (552) Los Angeles Lakers

This is a play on the SACRAMENTO KINGS for our NBA Supreme Annihilator. Sacramento was on a big run with seven straight wins after a 3-5 start but the Kings have dropped their last three games which included two road losses at Atlanta and Boston as healthy underdogs and then dropped their most recent game at home against Phoenix on Monday by five points. They remain a top three offense in efficiency with a 57.1 percent effective field goal percentage thanks to leading the NBA in two-point shooting at 58.8 percent. A lot of this has to do with great transition offense as they are No. 5 in fast break points and No. 4 is assist/turnover ratio. The defense leaves a lot to be desired but they face a middle of the road offense in efficiency. Sacramento is 8-1 ATS in its last nine games after playing a home game this season. Indiana has been one of the bigger surprises in the Eastern Conference as it has improved to 12-8 on the season following a win at the Lakers on Monday as it overcame a 17-point fourth quarter deficit to make it 11 wins in its last 15 games. The majority of those wins have come against some very bad teams as the Pacers schedule is ranked No. 27 in the league and they are No. 24 in the Sagarin Ratings, the lowest mark of any team with a winning record. The Pacers are ranked in the top ten in only one of 14 offensive and defensive shooting categories and that is a No. 87 ranking in defensive two-point shooting percentage. Indiana is 14-27 ATS in its last 41 games after playing 2 consecutive road games. Here, we play on teams coming off an upset loss as a home favorite going up against an opponent off a road win by three points or less. This situation is 35-13 ATS (72.9 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (550) Sacramento Kings

This is a play on the MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES for our NBA Wednesday Enforcer. Minnesota had one five straight games to improve to 10-8 after a slow start but it has since lost its last three games and now will have to go on without Karl-Anthony Towns who is out for upward of six weeks with a calf strain but it is not a huge concern as this is still a great roster that can make up for his absence and we always like the angle of the first game played without a go to guy with others getting the opportunity to step up and make a name. The Timberwolves are a game under .500 at home so that along with the Towns news is giving them value here. The numbers have been great with the exception of long range shooting which has kept the efficiency down as Minnesota is No. 3 in offensive two-point percentage and No. 6 in defensive two-point percentage so they are getting quality shots. Memphis has won and covered two straight games including a win at New York which snapped a three-game road losing streak that all resulted in double-digit defeats. Overall, the Grizzlies are just 3-4 over their last seven games as they remain banged up as well with Desmond Bane and his 24.7 ppg remains on the sidelines and Dillon Brooks and his 17.6 ppg is hobbled with a thigh injury and he is questionable for tonight. Looking at the seven shooting categories on both sides, they are ranked No. 19 or worse in half of those and are not ranked higher than No. 10 in any of those and the perimeter defense has struggled which will help the Minnesota outside shooting. Memphis is 6-17 ATS in its last 23 road games after having won two of their last three games. Here, we play on home underdogs revenging a road loss of 10 points or more, off an upset loss by 15 points or more as a favorite. This situation is 44-16 ATS (73.3 percent) since 1996. 10* (540) Minnesota Timberwolves

This is a play on the TCU HORNED FROGS for our CBB Wednesday Supreme Annihilator. TCU is off to a 5-1 start with the one loss coming against Northwestern St. by a point as a 22.5-point favorite at home so we can toss that hiccup away as the Horned Frogs clearly did not come to play. They did come to play after that as the Horned Frogs rolled over California and Iowa to capture the Emerald Coast Classic in Florida and that is more like what we should expect from TCU as it has been tabbed to finish No. 4 in the Big 12 Conference as Jamie Dixon has this team poised to make a run at the conference championship. TCU has four starters back from the team that nearly made it to the Sweet 16 but an overtime loss against No. 1 seed Arizona ended their season and they bring back the most minutes of any team in the conference. The Horned Frogs are 9-2-1 ATS in their last 12 games against teams with a winning percentage above .600. Providence has won five of its seven games to open the campaign and it has gone as what has been put in front of them. The five wins all came at home against a bunch of patsies where the Friars were favored by double-digits in all five games and they lost their two games against Miami and St. Louis where they were underdogs on a neutral floor. This is the first true road game for Providence and it is not the easiest of trips and with a rivalry game looming at Rhode Island, the focus might not be full here. The Friars have failed to cover each of their last four games. 10* (690) TCU Horned Frogs

This is a play on the DUKE BLUE DEVILS for our CBB Game of the Month. Duke opened the season 6-1 that included a pair of wins out west in the PK Legacy before losing to Purdue in the finals and it was not even close as the Blue Devils lost by 19 points against one of the most underrated rosters in the country. Duke shot 36.2 percent from the floor including going just 2-19 from long range against the Boilermakers and now it heads home to face its second straight Big Ten opponent. The Blue Devils are 4-0 at home and have yet to be tested here but the home floor edge is huge for this team in a great bounce back spot. Ohio St. had a successful run at the Maui Invitational as after getting beat handily by San Diego St., the Buckeyes went on to defeat Cincinnati and Texas Tech in the final two rounds to improve to 5-1 on the season. Ohio St. now hits the road for its first true road game of the season and it comes at the wrong time and wrong place. The run in Hawaii gave us some better perspective after opening the season with three straight cupcake wins and the last two games is adding value into this number as people do not seem to be sold on Duke just yet. Here, we play on home favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points after being beaten by the spread by 24 or more points total in their last three games going up against an opponent after going over the total by 42 or more points total in their last five games. This situation is 46-18 ATS (71.9 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (676) Duke Blue Devils

This is a play on the MIAMI HURRICANES for our CBB Wednesday Signature Enforcer. Miami has gotten off to a 6-1 start with the lone loss coming against undefeated and No. 23 Maryland in Connecticut and the Hurricanes have won their two games since then including an impressive two-point win at Central Florida on Sunday. They are back home where they are 4-0 with all four being blowout wins by an average of 19 ppg. This will be the biggest home test to date but it not an overly difficult matchup and Miami is catching a great line based on the opponent results. The Hurricanes have been average on both ends and while facing a stout defense, that is skewed based on schedule. The Hurricanes are 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 games against teams with a winning percentage above .600. Rutgers has started 5-1 with the lone loss coming against Temple on a neutral floor which has been its only test of the season. The Scarlet Knights other five games have all been at home and they were favored by at least 13.5 points in all of those games while covering four of those. Of the 363 Division I teams, the Rutgers schedule checks in at No. 356 and while this is considered a possible sleeper team in the Big Ten, we have yet to see what they can do after losing Ron Harper, Jr. and Geo Baker. The Scarlet Knights are 2-7-1 ATS in their last 10 road games against teams with a home winning percentage of greater than .600. 10* (674) Miami Hurricanes

This is a play on the EASTERN MICHIGAN EAGLES for our CBB Wednesday Ultimate Underdog. Eastern Michigan has been a brutal disappointment this season as after a win over Wayne St. in its opener, the Eagles have lost six straight games but four of those were competitive games decided by seven points or less including games against Michigan and Oakland. What makes this start more disappointing is the fact Eastern Michigan has one of the best young players in the country in Emoni Bates, a future lottery pick, as he is averaging 19.5 ppg and 6.3 rpg on a team that can put up points but needs to get better on the defensive end. Florida International is expected to be one of the worst trams in C-USA as it is picked to finish No. 10 in the 11-team conference. The Panthers are coming off a couple big wins over Stony Brook and Eastern Washington and now the line is inflated because of those recent double-digit wins along with the struggles of Eastern Michigan. The offense has been good but like the Eagles, the defense is an issue as they have allowed 74 or more points in four of their last five games including point totals of 91 and 107 points. Here, we play against favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points allowing between 74 and 78 ppg and after two straight wins by 10 points or more going up against teams allowing 78 or more ppg. This situation is 22-3 ATS (88 percent) since 1997. 10* (653) Eastern Michigan Eagles

This is a play on the NEW YORK KNICKS for our NBA Tuesday Enforcer. The Knicks got back to over .500 at 8-7 following a pair of wins over Utah and Denver in mid-November but has lost four of its last five games to fall to 9-11. The losses were all against teams from the Western Conference that possess winning record and with three of those ranked in the top ten in the Sagarin ratings. This is a get right game with this already being the third meeting after the Knicks won the first two by 24 and nine points and this is the first meeting on the road where they are a respectable 5-6 on the season. Those six road losses have all come against teams that are No. 11 or better in the ratings and overall, New York is 7-2 against teams ranked outside the top 16. Detroit has gotten off to an expectedly bad start at 5-17 which is the worst record in the NBA but the Pistons have been cashing for backers as they are on a 6-1-1 ATS run but that means little here except for the value that comes with it on the other side. This is the smallest line Detroit has seen over this stretch and five of those games they were getting double digits, covering all of those. Detroit has been better at home than on the road with a 3-6 record with the only notable win coming against Golden St. which is 2-9 on the highway. Here, we play against home underdogs of 3.5 to 9.5 points with a winning percentage of .250 or less having covered six or seven of their last eight games against the spread. This situation is 48-21 ATS (69.6 percent) since 1996. 10* (521) New York Knicks

This is a play on the LOUISVILLE CARDINALS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three-Pack. Maryland and Louisville meet in one of the six ACC/Big Ten Challenge games on Tuesday and it matches two teams that have gotten off to completely opposite starts. The Louisville start has been well documented as it is 0-6 under new head coach Kenny Payne and it heads back home following a 0-3 showing in the Maui Invitational where it lost those games by a combined 77 points. Prior to the trip out to Hawaii, Louisville became the first team since 1980-81 to lose their first three games of the season by one point and the Cardinals 0-3 start at home was the first time since 1940-41 that have accomplished this dubious feat of opening the season with three consecutive home losses. We are backing the Cardinals here as they are better than this and are getting value based on not just the straight up mark but the fact they are 0-6 against the number as well. The Terrapins are off to a 6-0 start and jumped into the AP Poll at No. 23 this week and while they have a good pair of wins over St. Louis and Miami on a neutral floor, they have played no one else as they were favored by 17 or more points in those other four games. This is the first true road game for Maryland which is another reason for going against them and despite laying double digits on the road, the public will be all over a 6-0 team facing a 0-6 team. The Terrapins were not on the radar coming into the season as they were picked to finish No. 10 in the 14-team Big Ten so while the 6-0 start is nice, it is against a schedule ranked No. 298 so we are far from sold on this team just yet. 10* (604) Louisville Cardinals

This is a play on the SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS as part of our CBB Tuesday Three-Pack. South Florida opened the season 0-5 but if there ever is a positive start with five losses, this was it. Three of those losses were by six combined points and another came at No. 15 Auburn by just eight points. The Bulls have responded with two straight wins and can carry that into this second game of a three-game homestand. With three impact transfers in Tyler Harris (Memphis) Keyshawn Bryant (South Carolina) Selton Miguel (Kansas State), early chemistry would be an issue and that was the case with the rough start but it takes time to gel and the feeling is that they are almost there. After laboring through an 8-23 season that featured 25.2 percent shooting from three-point range, worst in the country and 57.5 ppg, there has been an uptick on offense. Massachusetts is 4-1 to start the season including a solid run in winning the Myrtle Beach Invitational with victories over Colorado, Murray St. and Charlotte all by six points or less. The coaching of Frank Martin who is in his first season already looks to be paying off in crunch time but now the Minutemen hit the highway for their first true road game of the season. They have had eight days off since their last game which can hurt the momentum from their winning streak and we figure they are the false favorite. Here, we play against teams where the line is +3 to -3 after two straight wins by six points or less going up against an opponent after scoring 75 points or more in two straight games. This situation is 44-17 ATS (72.1 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (612) South Florida Bulls

This is a play on the SEATTLE REDHAWKS as part of our CBB Monday Three-Pack. Seattle is off to a 5-0 start which comes as no surprise as the Redhawks returned four starters after going 23-8 last season including a 14-4 WAC record and shared the regular season conference title. Granted, the schedule has been far from daunting but this team is loaded once again. Seattle returns four starters including First-Team All-WAC guard and Player of the Year candidate Cam Tyson who leads the team with 28.3 ppg on 50 percent shooting and that scoring average would easily lead the nation but he has not qualified because he has not played in 75 percent of the games as he sat out both games against non-Division I teams. This is little brother vs. big brother and Seattle has the punch to snap its 16-game losing streak in this crosstown series. Washington is off to a 5-1 start with the loss coming against California Baptist and the Huskies have escaped with some poor efforts against lesser teams in North Florida and Utah Tech as big favorites. They are coming off a pair of wins against Fresno St. and St. Mary's in Anaheim so they do come in with some confidence. Washington has been pegged a bottom half team in the Pac 12 after losing their only two double-digit scorers including conference scoring leader Terrell Brown. This is a team of unknowns still and playing a deep and veteran team that is hungry for that signature victory will be a challenge. 10* (815) Seattle Redhawks

This is a play on the SAM HOUSTON ST. BEARKATS as part of our CBB Monday Three-Pack. Sam Houston St. is off to a 6-0 start and it is not because of playing a home heavy cupcake schedule as it has won four games away from home that includes wins at Oklahoma and Utah with the other two coming against Northern Illinois and South Dakota by 34 and 31 points respectively. The loss of Savion Flagg was supposed to be devastating for the Bearkats who led the team with 18.7 ppg and 8.1 rpg and while his absence is certainly a big one, they have adjusted just fine. This is one of the deepest teams in the country as they have 11 players that average double-digits in minutes led by Wichita St. transfer guard Qua Grant who leads the team in scoring and is a floor leader and is one of seven guards that can handle the ball. The depth is key for a team that presses constantly. Nevada is 6-1 to open the campaign with the only loss coming against Kansas St. in overtime by nine points which is its only blemish against the number. This start is surprising as the Wolf Pack are basically starting from scratch after going 12-17 including 6-12 in the MWC. They have been picked to finish No. 8 in the conference with just one reliable scorer returning and some of the big transfer help has fizzled thus far with Tyler Powell from Seton Hall averaging less than a bucket per game and Hunter McIntosh from Elon having yet to take the floor. Wrong team favored. 10* (817) Sam Houston St. Bearkats

This is a play on the UTAH JAZZ for our NBA Monday Enforcer. Utah has come back down to earth a little bit after a 12-6 start as it has lost four straight games but the last two were definitely expected as the Jazz travelled to Golden St. and Phoenix in back-to-back nights against a pair of teams a combined 20-2 at home. Utah returns home where it is 6-2 on the season and will be out to bounce back after its worst home loss of the season against Detroit by nine-points as a 12-point favorite. The Jazz are laying a short price and despite the recent results, they are still ranked No. 5 in offensive efficiency and No. 15 in defensive efficiency. The Bulls are coming off an overtime loss at Oklahoma City which came after a pair of upset wins over Boston and Milwaukee and they remain on the road where they are 3-6. After a decent 5-4 start to the season, Chicago has lost seven of their last 10 games and has been all over the place. The Bulls are an average offensive team, ranked No. 16 in offensive efficiency but the defense has been horrible, ranking No. 26 in defensive efficiency and that makes for a very bad matchup tonight. Chicago has been awful in this price range this season, going 1-6-1 ATS as underdogs of fewer than five points. Chicago is 4-14 ATS in its last 18 nonconference road games. Here, we play against road underdogs coming off an upset loss as a road favorite, with a winning percentage of between .400 and .499 on the season. This situation is 32-7 ATS (82.1 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (516) Utah Jazz

This is a play on the UTSA ROADRUNNERS as part of our CBB Monday Three-Pack. Game three of the 210 San Antonio shootout takes place Monday night with Incarnate Word and UTSA having different results in the first two games. The Roadrunners lost to Grambling in the opener by 20 points before falling in overtime last night so it is time to get back on track. UTSA is not expected to do much in the loaded C-USA but playing for pride tonight on its home floor is paramount before a pair of tough road games at New Mexico and Utah. UTSA has a strong backcourt led on offense by newcomer guards Japhet Medor and John Buggs III but All-Conference selection center Jacob Germany has led the way with 12.7 ppg and 7.4 rpg after a huge night on Sunday. Incarnate Word has done the complete opposite as it has won its first two games, defeating Grambling and Dartmouth by a combined seven points. The Cardinals have overachieved thus far at 4-3 and they have been picked to finish dead last in the Southland Conference and we are getting value on the home team based on the Incarnate Word 4-0 run against the number. They have struggled on both ends of the floor as they are No. 311 in offensive effective field goal percentage and No. 210 in defensive effective field goal percentage. While recent results favor the Cardinals here, they will have too much to overcome with a ton of motivation on the opposite bench. 10* (306616) UTSA Roadrunners

This is a play on the OREGON ST. BEAVERS as part of our CBB Sunday Three-Pack. Big time revenge is in play in the seventh-place game at the Chiles Center pitting Oregon St. and Portland St. this is the second meeting this season between the Beavers and Vikings after Portland St. won in Corvallis 79-66 on November 19th which marked the Vikings first win in the intrastate series as the Beavers claimed the first 16 games dating back to 1974. Oregon St. has some confidence as it lost to Duke by just three points, holding the Blue Devils to 26.7 percent shooting but was unable to shake that off as it fell to Florida by 13 points the following night. The Beavers have already matched their win total from all of last season so the improvements are already showing and there will be no lack of motivation here. The Vikings lost to sixth-ranked Gonzaga in their opener, then West Virginia on Friday night as they committed 24 turnovers, twice their season average, and in the two games, they allowed a combined 60.5 percent shooting from the floor. The win over Oregon St. was impressive but it was a little skewed as the Beavers attempted only 46 field goal attempts. This is not expected to be a good team as the Vikings are picked No. 8 in the preseason Big Sky poll. 10* (789) Oregon St. Beavers

This is a play on the PORTLAND PILOTS as part of our CBB Sunday Three-Pack. Michigan St. is the biggest favorite in the final round of the PK Invitational and will still be a very publicly backed team here based on name and its early season results have far exceeded expectations. The Spartans are 3-2 with wins over Kentucky, Villanova and Oregon with the latter two coming by a combined six points and the victory over the Wildcats coming in overtime. The schedule has been brutal for this young team but they have clearly held their own but after five straight games against teams that can make legitimate NCAA Tournament runs, this presents a letdown spot and laying a large number on an away court. Portland is a team not to sleep on this season as the Pilots have been picked No. 5 in the top heavy WCC after going 19-15 last season including 7-7 in the conference after a 1-42 run in the WCC the previous three seasons. They have been dealing with an injured backcourt but have held their own with a bear miss against North Carolina and then bouncing back with a win over Villanova which prevented a Michigan St./Villanova rematch. Playing a third straight power five team with rich history is not going to faze Portland that will have the home floor edge. 10* (779) Portland Pilots

This is a play on the ATLANTA HAWKS for our NBA Sunday Enforcer. Miami snapped a four-game losing streak with a pair of home wins over Washington on Wednesday and Friday and now it hits the road against where it has been a poor start. The Heat are 1-7 on the road which includes seven straight losses following a win over Portland in their first road game of the season. There have been close calls along the way but four of the seven losses have come by more than what they are getting on Sunday and they are catching the wrong opponent at the wrong time. Miami is 3-13 ATS in its last 16 games coming off two or more consecutive home wins. Atlanta has been all over the place after a 7-3 start to the season as it has lost five of its last nine games including a pretty embarrassing loss at Houston on Friday by six points as an eight-point chalk. That made it three losses in four road games over this recent stretch and the Hawks return home where they are 7-3 and in a great bounce back spot. Atlanta is 6-1 this season following a loss and the lone two-game losing streak this season came in back-to-back road games at Milwaukee and Toronto. Atlanta is 13-3 ATS in its last 16 home games when playing against teams with a winning percentage between .400 and .499. Here, we play on favorites of 3.5 to 9.5 points after failing to cover five or six of their last seven games against the spread going up against an opponent after having covered two of their last three games against the spread. This situation is 103-61 ATS (62.8 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (568) Atlanta Hawks

This is a play on the OREGON DUCKS as part of our CBB Sunday Three-Pack. Villanova has lost three straight games and while the loss against Iowa St. in overtime is looking a lot better after the Cyclones defeated North Carolina as is the loss against Michigan St. prior to that but getting defeated by Portland by 12 points raises questions. The transition from Jay Wright to Kyle Neptune was supposed to be seamless but it has been a struggle as there is also a loss against Temple mixed in there with the two wins coming against LaSalle and Delaware St. by a combined 22 points where they were favored by a combined 50 points. Villanova has been without Big East Preseason Freshman of the Year Cam Whitmore and second team Preseason All-Big East guard Justin Moore. Oregon has also dropped three straight games but has had a tougher stretch as those three losses have come to teams ranked in the Top 20. While not a true home game, the Ducks have the advantage of their campus being nearby so they will have the crowd edge and they have the better roster to bounce back at this point. Oregon could be without N'Faly Dante but the Ducks to have two other big bodies down low as Kel'el Ware and Nate Bittle combine for 40-plus minutes per game and offer size that Villanova cannot counter. 10* (776) Oregon Ducks