Cnotes College Hoops Picks,Trends News 2018-2918 !

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SUNDAY, MARCH 31
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

AUB at UK 02:20 PM
UK -4.5
O 142.5

MSU at DUKE 05:05 PM
MSU +2.0
U 150.5

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Michigan State knocks off Duke 68-67
March 31, 2019
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WASHINGTON (AP) Cassius Winston missed an open jump shot but was right there for the rebound. Without hesitating, he stepped back and swished a 3-pointer.

''Now is not the time to doubt yourself,'' Winston said. ''Now's not the time to shy away from those big moments.''

The biggest moment for Michigan State is still to come after Winston led the Spartans back to the Final Four for the first time since 2015.

Michigan State beat Duke 68-67 on Sunday to knock the overall top seed out of the NCAA Tournament in what likely was the end of Zion Williamson's college career. Winston took over the game when his team faced its biggest deficit, stealing the show from Williamson with 20 points and 10 assists in a do-it-all performance fittingly with Magic Johnson there to see it.

''I was locked in,'' Winston said with smile and a piece of one of the nets tucked into his Final Four hat. ''I wanted to do everything I could for my team to get us to that point. We've been working way too hard to stop now.''

Winston didn't know how many shots he took but never hesitated to put the ball up. He was 9 of 23 and never shied away from taking it at Duke and shooting at nearly every opportunity in the East Region final.

The Big Ten Player of the Year and East Region Most Outstanding Player made or assisted on 19 of Michigan State's 30 field goals.

''Winston was the difference maker,'' Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. ''He was either scoring or assisting. He's the best guard we've played against.''

Williamson, the presumptive top pick in the NBA Draft and biggest star of this NCAA Tournament, had a game-high 24 points and 14 rebounds. He said it was a ''high possibility'' this was his final game at Duke.

''We're very upset, obviously, but congrats to Michigan State,'' Williamson said. ''Just looking around the locker room and see your teammates, your brothers and you just think this group will probably never play together again.''

Michigan State's veteran-laden team will have another chance Saturday in one regional semifinal against Texas Tech in Minneapolis. Virginia faces Auburn in the other.

''We're not done yet, and it feels good,'' senior guard Matt McQuaid said.

Winston carried the Spartans into the Final Four , but they received a huge boost from their oldest player. Kenny Goins, a fifth-year walk-on senior who missed his first four 3-point attempts, drained the go-ahead shot with 34.3 seconds left to put Michigan State up 68-66.

''I was out there, great pass, trusted it and let it go and it went down,'' said Goins, the only player left from 2015 when Duke beat Michigan State in the Final Four during his redshirt season. ''As soon as I let it go, I knew it was good. I was ready to celebrate, but I knew I had to get back on defense.''

Duke had the chance to tie but freshman star RJ Barrett missed the first of two free throws with 5.2 seconds left. Duke was helpless with only four fouls, and Winston was able to get the ball away from the Duke defenders and dribble out the clock.

''There wasn't enough time, so I tried to miss the second one and it went in,'' Barrett said.

Michigan State is in the Final Four for the eighth time under coach Tom Izzo, who beat Krzyzewski for just the second time in 13 meetings and second time in six NCAA Tournament games. Izzo is in the Final Four for the eighth time in his career and denied Krzyzewski what would have been a record 13th appearance.

As he wiped away tears, Izzo told the crowd, ''I love you all, I appreciate you all. I'll see you in Minneapolis.''

Izzo had to navigate foul trouble to big man Xavier Tillman, who was essential in guarding Williamson and factoring in on the offensive end. Tillman played 29 minutes and scored 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting.

Duke fell one step short of the Final Four after finally coming out on the losing end of a nail-biter. The Blue Devils won their previous two NCAA Tournament games by a combined three points and escaped in the final seconds only when their opponents missed at the buzzer.

''Everybody that beats Duke is ready to put that on the wall because that's the program that (Krzyzewski has) built,'' Izzo said. ''I do think we beat arguably the best team in the country, but there's another game coming up.''

Falling short likely ended the college career of Williamson, the freshman sensation expected to leave Duke for the NBA. Interest in Williamson has been so high that CBS dedicated a camera to his every move in the NCAA Tournament.

Barrett had 21 points - but not the one that could have sent the game into overtime.

''It's March Madness and people are going to fight their butts off to win this title,'' Barrett said. ''They wanted it more than us.''

REDDISH BACK

Cam Reddish didn't start for Duke but the freshman was the first player off the bench two minutes in after being a game-time decision. Reddish missed the Sweet 16 victory against Virginia Tech on Friday with a left knee injury.

Reddish missed his first two shots before his two free throws gave Duke its first lead at 22-21 with 7:10 left in the first half. Reddish finished with eight points on 2-of-8 shooting.

''Obviously it was sore or whatever but I wanted to be out there with my guys,'' Reddish said.

MCQUAID'S HIGHLIGHTS

McQuaid dunked the ball in the first half and in the second half had a 360-degree up-and-under layup that should be a regular feature on highlight reels.

''I don't know what got into me,'' McQuaid said.

UP NEXT

While this is the Spartans' 10th Final Four, it's the first in program history for their opponent, Texas Tech, which beat Gonzaga to win the West Region.

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Auburn tops Kentucky, reaches Final Four
March 31, 2019
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) The confetti was still swirling around Auburn coach Bruce Pearl when he gazed over a team headed to the first Final Four in school history and declared, ''This one was for Chuma!''

''The next two,'' Pearl added with a triumphant grin, ''are for Auburn.''

Drawing inspiration from injured forward Chuma Okeke, the No. 5 seed Tigers finished off a joyful romp through college basketball royalty by bringing down the winningest program of all. Their 77-71 overtime win over second-seeded seed Kentucky in the finals of the Midwest Region on Sunday came after blowouts of Kansas and North Carolina that served notice: Auburn is more than a football school.

Jared Harper led the way with 26 points, including the tying basket in regulation and a crucial series of layups in overtime. Bryce Brown added 24 points and Anfernee McLemore came up big in the extra session, helping Auburn (30-9) set a school record for wins with its 12th straight overall.

''We wanted to make history,'' Pearl said. ''You have to understand, at Auburn in athletics, we're not Cinderellas in anything. We're really, really good in all those other sports. We win championships. Been a long time since men's basketball has been good.''

Okeke was there in more than just spirit, too. The sophomore forward, who tore his ACL in the final minutes against the Tar Heels, was rolled behind the bench in a wheelchair early in the second half.

He was still there when the wild celebration finally began.

''Moving him to the gym, sitting him on the bench - he doesn't want the camera on him,'' Pearl said. ''He must have been watching the first half at the hotel and said, `I can't stay here. I got to go.'''

The Tigers had only reached the Elite Eight once before, and that was 33 years ago. But after twice losing to Kentucky during the regular season, they rose to the occasion on the game's biggest stage.

Next stop: the Final Four and a national semifinal date with Virginia.

''I'm so glad we came out and battled the whole entire 40 minutes for Chuma,'' Brown said. ''If he was out there, he would have made a huge difference.''

Auburn forced overtime when Harper made a tying layup with 38 seconds left, and the diminutive guard added the first four points of the extra session. And when Ashton Hagans scored for Kentucky, it was McLemore who added back-to-back baskets that forced the Wildcats to play catch-up.

They never made it all the way back.

Samir Doughty made the second of two free throws to give Auburn a cushion with 16.1 seconds to go, and the Wildcats' Keldon Johnson misfired at the other end, wrapping up a victory that surely sent the Tigers' fan base streaming to Toomer's Corner.

''They played aggressive. They played tough. They bumped and it was a grinding-type game,'' Kentucky coach John Calipari said. ''They deserved to win the game.''

PJ Washington came off the bench and had 28 points and 13 rebounds for the Wildcats, but he also had a shot blocked that could have given his team the lead in the final seconds of regulation. Johnson added 14 points and Hagans finished with 10, though he also committed seven turnovers.

''We thought we were going to win,'' said Washington, who declined to say whether it was his final game at Kentucky. ''Just a lot of emotions not being able to finish it the way I wanted to.''

Pearl acknowledged his team would need to shoot lights-out to beat Kentucky, and midway through the first half the Tigers were still searching for the switch.

The team that knocked down 17 3-pointers against North Carolina missed seven of its first eight shots against Kentucky. Brown clanked two wide-open attempts in the first minute, and his brazen bunch quickly found themselves staring at a big hole against a much bigger team.

The plan for Big Blue Nation was simple: bludgeon Auburn inside. And it became a whole lot easier when forwards Malik Dunbar, Horace Spencer and Austin Wiley picked up two fouls apiece.

Despite a depleted front line, the SEC Tournament champs managed to hang tough.

Harper kept dashing to the rim for layups, he converted a four-point play late in the half, and the Tigers - who had won 11 straight after a blowout loss at Rupp Arena - were within 35-30 at the break.

It took Brown finding his rhythm for the Tigers to find the lead.

The SEC's most prolific 3-point shooter this season buried one early in the second half. After he added a pair of free throws on the next trip down floor, Brown corralled a loose ball and dropped another 3-pointer from the corner to give Auburn its first lead at 40-37 with 17 1/2 minutes left.

Then it was Washington's turn to provide the clutch plays.

The sophomore forward, who eschewed the NBA draft for another year in Lexington, made an acrobat duck-under layup to knot the game 58-all. Then, Washington followed up his own miss with a finger-roll to give the Wildcats a 60-58 lead with a minute to go.

Harper's scooping layup later knotted the game, and both teams had chances to score again in regulation. Washington and Johnson had their shots swatted in the paint for Kentucky, and Spencer - an odd choice to take the final shot - missed an open 3 at the buzzer for Auburn.

All that did was delay the wild party that would soon take place on the Tigers' bench.

DO IT FOR CHUMA

The hashtag ''DoItForChuma'' began trending less than 48 hours after Okeke hurt his knee against the Tar Heels. Meanwhile, several Tigers said they took umbrage with a crude picture that a Kentucky fan put up a banner outside his house that made light of his injury. Images of it circulated on social media.

BIG PICTURE

Auburn proved it could win without burying a dozen or more 3-pointers, going just 7 of 23 from behind the arc. The so-called ''football school'' also held their own on the boards, turned the ball over a mere nine times and proved to basketball's bluebloods they are every bit as good.

Kentucky needed more from Tyler Herro, who hit the go-ahead 3 in the regional semifinals against Houston. The polarizing freshman managed just seven points on 3-for-11 shooting, and he was completely absent during the most important stretches off the game.

UP NEXT

The Tigers head to the Twin Cities for the Final Four, where they will face South Region champion Virginia. The Cavaliers beat Purdue in an overtime thriller on Saturday night.

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CBB MARCH MADNESS RECORD OPINIONS AND BEST BETS !

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

03/31/2019 3-1-0 75.00% +9.50
03/30/2019 2-2-0 50.00% -1.00
03/29/2019 6-4-0 60.00% +8.00
03/28/2019 7-7-0 50.00% -3.50
03/27/2019 5-1-0 83.33% +19.50
03/26/2019 6-4-0 60.00% +8.00
03/25/2019 8-6-0 57.14% +7.00
03/24/2019 12-12-2 50.00% -6.00
03/23/2019 8-14-0 36.36% -37.00
03/22/2019 12-15-0 44.44% -22.50
03/21/2019 15-12-1 55.56% +900
03/20/2019 10-14-0 41.67% -27.00
03/19/2019 9-14-1 39.13% -32.00
03/18/2019 2-0-0 100.00% +10.00

Totals..........105-106-4......49.76%.....-58.00


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BEST BETS:

DATE........................ATS................... ..UNITS..................O/U..................UNITS.............TOTALS

03/31/2019.............1 - 1......................-0.50...................2 - 0..................+10.00..............+9.50
03/30/2019.............1 - 1......................-0.50...................1 - 1..................0.50..................-1.00
03/29/2019.............3 - 1.....................+9.50...................3 - 1.................+9.50................+19.00
03/28/2019.............4 - 2.....................+9.00...................2 - 2.................-1.00.................+8.00
03/27/2019.............3 - 0.....................+15.00.................2 - 1.................+4.50...............+19.50
03/26/2019.............1 - 2......................-6.00...................2 - 2..................-1.00................-7.00
03/25/2019.............5 - 1.....................+19.50.................2 - 3...................-6.50...............+13.00
03/24/2019.............6 - 2.....................+19.00.................4 - 5...................-7.50...............+11.50
03/23/2019.............3 - 6......................-18.00.................4 - 5...................-7.50................-25.50
03/22/2019.............5 - 6......................-8.00...................5 - 6...................-8.00................-16.00
03/21/2019.............6 - 3......................+8.50..................3 - 7...................-23.50..............-15.00
03/20/2019.............3 - 7......................-23.00.................1 - 1...................-0.50................-23.50
03/19/2019.............5 - 5......................-2.50...................2 - 6..................-23.00...............-25.50
03/18/2019.............1 - 0......................+5.00..................1 - 0..................+5.00..............+10.00


Totals....................47 - 37.....................+27.00..............34 - 40................-50.00..............-23.00

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Monday’s 6-pack

How NCAA tournament prop bets fared:

— #4 seeds- 5.5 wins. Finished at 5; K-State’s 1st round loss was a crusher. UNDER

— #5 seeds- 4.5 wins. Sitting at 4, with Auburn alive- they have all four wins.

— #6-seeds- 4.5 wins. Finished at 3. UNDER

— #7-seeds: 3.5 wins. Finished at 1. Wofford got only win. UNDER

— #8-seeds: 2.5 wins. Got shut out by the 9-seeds. UNDER

— #9-seeds: 2 wins: Went 4-0 in first round. OVER

Quote of the Day
“I’ll miss coming to practice and seeing my brothers- and especially coach Williams.”
North Carolina senior Luke Maye

Monday’s quiz
When was the last year only one #1-seed got to the Final Four?

Sunday’s quiz
Tony Bennett’s father Dick Bennett got to the 2000 Final Four coaching Wisconsin.

Saturday’s quiz
Colts were based in Baltimore before moving to Indianapolis.


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Monday’s List of 13: Happy April Fools’ Day

13) Auburn 77, Kentucky 71 OT— Last time they played, Kentucky beat Auburn by 27. Not this time, and Charles Barkley’s alma mater is going to the Final Four for the first time. Auburn beat Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky in its last three games; not bad.

Kentucky poached Stanford’s best player (a senior) and surrounded him with three freshmen and a sophomore; college basketball has become more like baseball, where kids jump to where they think the grass is greener, trying to get to the NBA.

Sometimes that grass is greener, sometimes it isn’t. You can get to the NBA from anywhere.

12) Nine of the 16 coaches in the Sweet 16 had already been to a Final Four. Chris Beard, Bruce Pearl and Tony Bennett will all be going to their first one.

11) Michigan State 68, Duke 67— Spartans trailed by 9 in first half, by 3 with 1:51 left, but survived 2-6 shooting on the foul line to get their first Final Four since 2015.

Final Four is a #1-seed, #2-seed, #3-seed, #5-seed.

10) San Francisco 49ers sold two seats inside their War Room on draft night to two people who paid $11,000 each for that experience. The $22,000 will supposedly go to a charity.

9) SI.com did a survey of NFL scouts about which colleges are the best ones to visit when they evaluate players, and Alabama was far and away chosen as the most accommodating.

On Alabama’s 2012 team, all 22 starters played in the NFL. I’m guessing that hasn’t happened much. It also helps recruiting.

8) West Virginia F Lamont West is transferring to Missouri State, which is not a step up or even a lateral move, but he should score more than the 12.1 ppg he averaged LY, starting 20 of the 36 Mountaineer games.

7) Over half the NFL owners (17 of 32) inherited their teams. Only seven of 30 NBA owners inherited their team.

6) In 20 games for Milwaukee against the Cardinals. Christian Yelich has 10 homers, 23 RBI and 22 runs scored.

5) If I’m a Philadelphia Eagles fan, and I hear coach Doug Pederson say “Carson Wentz has it in him to be a better teammate” well, that would worry me. The last thing you should be worrying about is if your quarterback is a good teammate.

4) Dodgers 18, Diamondbacks 5— Third game of the season Saturday night, and Arizona used a catcher to pitch the 7th/8th innings. Seriously, in the third game of the year?

Then the Dodgers let catcher Russell Martin pitch the 9th inning, when they were winning, albeit 18-5. When was last time both teams used a position player to pitch in same game?

3) Minnesota Twins’ starters Berrios/Odorizzi both struck out 10+ guys in their first start, just 2nd time EVER a team had that happen in their first two games of a season. Diamondbacks in 2001 also did it, with Randy Johnson/Curt Schilling.

2) San Diego Padres’ rookie pitcher Chris Paddack was thrown out at first base by the RF on what appeared to be a sharp single to right in his first MLB at-bat, with the bases loaded. I’m guessing that hasn’t happened very often.

1) Orlando 34, Memphis 31— Memphis was up 31-28 with 2:40 left on a rainy day; the snap goes right through the punter’s hands, and Orlando gets the wet ball on the 26-yard line and wins the game.

Refs missed a delay of game penalty on Orlando on the last play before the 2:00 warning, and Mike Singletary went off, getting two unsportsmanlike penalties during the 2:00 warning. Had the feel of a semi-pro game, which isn’t a good look for a new league.

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NCAAB
Long Sheet

Monday, April 1

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DEPAUL (18 - 15) at S FLORIDA (21 - 13) - 4/1/2019, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
S FLORIDA is 80-111 ATS (-42.1 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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NCAAB

Monday, April 1

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Trend Report
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DePaul Blue Demons
DePaul is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
DePaul is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of DePaul's last 5 games
DePaul is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
DePaul is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
DePaul is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games when playing South Florida
DePaul is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing South Florida
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of DePaul's last 6 games when playing South Florida
DePaul is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against South Florida
DePaul is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against South Florida
The total has gone OVER in 5 of DePaul's last 7 games when playing on the road against South Florida
South Florida Bulls
South Florida is 3-8-1 ATS in its last 12 games
South Florida is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of South Florida's last 6 games
South Florida is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games at home
South Florida is 13-5 SU in its last 18 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of South Florida's last 6 games at home
South Florida is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing DePaul
South Florida is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing DePaul
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of South Florida's last 6 games when playing DePaul
South Florida is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against DePaul
South Florida is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against DePaul
The total has gone OVER in 5 of South Florida's last 7 games when playing at home against DePaul


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701Depaul -702 S Florida
S FLORIDA is 8-1 ATS (6.9 Units) after playing 2 consecutive home games in the current season.

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NCAAB
Dunkel

Monday, April 1


DePaul @ South Florida

Game 701-702
April 1, 2019 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
DePaul
63.482
South Florida
59.051
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
DePaul
by 4 1/2
161
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
South Florida
by 1 1/2
151
Dunkel Pick:
DePaul
(+1 1/2); Over

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MONDAY, APRIL 1
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

DEP at USF 07:00 PM

USF -2.0

O 150.5

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Collins scores 23 to carry South Florida past DePaul in CBI
April 1, 2019
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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) David Collins made a game-winning runner with 1.6 seconds left and finished with 23 points as South Florida edged past DePaul 63-61 in the first game of the best-of-three College Basketball Invitational championship series on Monday night.

DePaul tied it at 61 with 7.3 seconds left on Eli Cain's 3-pointer. Collins split two defenders on a high screen to get into the lane and sank a runner near the free-throw line. DePaul got it past midcourt but Cain's shot didn't hit the rim.

Laquincy Rideau had 15 points for South Florida (23-13). Alexis Yetna added 10 points and seven rebounds.

DePaul scored 25 first-half points, a season low for the team.

Cain had 19 points for the Blue Demons (18-16). Max Strus added 17 points. Femi Olujobi had 11 points.

DePaul will host South Florida on Wednesday night.


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CBB MARCH / APRIL MADNESS RECORD OPINIONS AND BEST BETS !

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

04/01/2019 0-1-1 0.00% -5.50
03/31/2019 3-1-0 75.00% +9.50
03/30/2019 2-2-0 50.00% -1.00
03/29/2019 6-4-0 60.00% +8.00
03/28/2019 7-7-0 50.00% -3.50
03/27/2019 5-1-0 83.33% +19.50
03/26/2019 6-4-0 60.00% +8.00
03/25/2019 8-6-0 57.14% +7.00
03/24/2019 12-12-2 50.00% -6.00
03/23/2019 8-14-0 36.36% -37.00
03/22/2019 12-15-0 44.44% -22.50
03/21/2019 15-12-1 55.56% +900
03/20/2019 10-14-0 41.67% -27.00
03/19/2019 9-14-1 39.13% -32.00
03/18/2019 2-0-0 100.00% +10.00

Totals..........105-107-4......49.52%.....-53.50


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BEST BETS:

DATE........................ATS................... ..UNITS..................O/U..................UNITS.............TOTALS

04/01/2019.............0 - 0 - 1.................+0.00..................0 - 1..................-5.50.................-5.50
03/31/2019.............1 - 1......................-0.50...................2 - 0..................+10.00..............+9.50
03/30/2019.............1 - 1......................-0.50...................1 - 1..................0.50..................-1.00
03/29/2019.............3 - 1.....................+9.50...................3 - 1.................+9.50................+19.00
03/28/2019.............4 - 2.....................+9.00...................2 - 2.................-1.00.................+8.00
03/27/2019.............3 - 0.....................+15.00.................2 - 1.................+4.50...............+19.50
03/26/2019.............1 - 2......................-6.00...................2 - 2..................-1.00................-7.00
03/25/2019.............5 - 1.....................+19.50.................2 - 3...................-6.50...............+13.00
03/24/2019.............6 - 2.....................+19.00.................4 - 5...................-7.50...............+11.50
03/23/2019.............3 - 6......................-18.00.................4 - 5...................-7.50................-25.50
03/22/2019.............5 - 6......................-8.00...................5 - 6...................-8.00................-16.00
03/21/2019.............6 - 3......................+8.50..................3 - 7...................-23.50..............-15.00
03/20/2019.............3 - 7......................-23.00.................1 - 1...................-0.50................-23.50
03/19/2019.............5 - 5......................-2.50...................2 - 6..................-23.00...............-25.50
03/18/2019.............1 - 0......................+5.00..................1 - 0..................+5.00..............+10.00


Totals....................47 - 37.....................+27.00..............34 - 41................-55.50..............-28.50

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Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

— If you bet $100 on the Orioles in their first four games, you’d already be up $635.

— Tampa Bay (4-1) leads the Orioles (3-1) by a half-game atop the AL East.

— South Florida 63, DePaul 61— Bulls lead best-of-3 series, 1-0.

— Of the 17 NFL referees in 2014, only six of them still work in the NFL.

— Knicks 113, Bulls 105— Knicks cover as home favorite for 1st time since Nov. 7.

— Wonder how much it costs to open/close the roof at Marlins’ Park?


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Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but……

13) Being involved in fantasy baseball and handicapping baseball teaches you patience; it is a very long season. There is a tendency to overreact to stuff that happens in the first week of the season, but as the cliche goes, it is a marathon, not a sprint.

12) Go through this every year; baseball players get hurt.
— Giancarlo Stanton (biceps strain) goes on the IL.
— 3B Miguel Andujar (labrum tear in shoulder) also went on the IL.
— Rays put 3B Joey Wendle (hamstring) on IL.
— Toronto put P Clayton Richard (knee) on IL.

11) Cardinals 6, Pirates 5 (11)— Chris Archer threw five shutout innings, bullpen blew a 4-0 lead. Archer threw 99 pitches in those five innings. Pirates wound up using eight relievers over the last six innings.

10) Orioles 6, Blue Jays 5— David Hess threw 6.1 hitless innings (82 pitches), then was taken out of the game. Toronto quickly scored two runs; Orioles hung on for dear life.

9) Braves 8, Cubs 0— Chicago made five errors in first five innings of this game; they’ve lost the last three days, giving up 26 runs. Rough start to the season.

8) Mets 7, Marlins 3— Pete Alonso hit his first major league homer, a 440-foot blast, in front of 6,489 fans, most of whom were rooting for the visitors from New York.

7) Belmont basketball coach Rick Byrd is retiring after coaching the Bruins for 33 years. Byrd won 805 games and made NCAA tournament eight times.

Belmont led the country in 2-point FG% in five of the last seven seasons.

6) If you bet on AAF games, some info thru eight weeks:
— Favorites are 22-10 SU, 16-16 vs spread
— Home teams are 18-14 SU, 16-16 vs spread.
— Under is 18-13-1.

5) Red Sox signed SS Xander Bogaerts to a 7-year, $132M contract extension.

4) There is a new minor league team this year, the Amarillo Sod Poodles, AA affiliate of the San Diego Padres. Minor league nicknames are getting weirder and weirder.

3) Phillies had four sellouts all of last year; after three home games this season, they’ve already had three sellouts. Curious to see what kind of reaction Bryce Harper gets in Washington when the Phillies play there tonight.

2) Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper has laid off one-third of its staff. 20 years ago, the paper had 340 journalists; now it’s down to 33.

1. Normal field for a PGA Tour event is 144 golfers, but The Masters has a different set of requirements. Right now, only 86 players have qualified for next week’s tournament, which would be the smallest field at Augusta since 1997.

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Tuesday's NIT Semifinals
Kevin Rogers

Lipscomb (-1, 150 ½) vs. Wichita State – 7:00 PM EST – ESPN

This isn’t exactly the matchup people expected for the semifinals when the NIT began as Lipscomb (28-7 SU, 18-15 ATS) was a five-seed and Wichita State (22-14 SU, 21-14-1 ATS) was listed as a six-seed. The Bison were one win away from capturing the automatic bid out of the Atlantic Sun conference, but lost to Liberty at home, 74-68 to settle for the NIT.

Liberty proved to be a worthy champion from the A-Sun as the Flames bounced Mississippi State in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. However, Lipscomb didn’t hang its head for the consolation prize of playing in the NIT as the Bison went on the road (all in the state of North Carolina) to knock off Davidson, UNC-Greensboro, and North Carolina State all in the underdog role.

Lipscomb rallied to beat Davidson in the opening round as 2 ½-point underdogs, 89-81 as the Bison erased a five-point halftime deficit. The Bison shot 53% from the floor, led by Michael Buckland’s 18 points as Lipscomb connected on 11 three-pointers. Lipscomb crushed top-seed UNC-Greensboro in the second round, 86-69 as 1 ½-point ‘dogs, paced by Rob Marberry’s 24 points on 12-of-13 shooting from the floor to help the Bison improve to 7-2 ATS this season when receiving points.

The final victory for Lipscomb was a thrilling one in Raleigh as the Bison squeezed past N.C. State, 94-93, while outscoring the Wolfpack in the second half, 56-46. Another member of the Bison was the star this time around as senior guard Garrison Matthews went off for 44 points, while drilling eight treys. Lipscomb entered the NIT on a 2-7 ATS run, which included six non-covers as a double-digit favorite. The underdog role worked out for the Bison, who are playing in their first ever NIT Final Four.

Wichita State had an invitation to the Big Dance in each of the previous seven seasons, including a Final Four appearance in 2013, but a complete roster overhaul put the Shockers in unfamiliar territory. The Shockers lost three games in November, while suffering five defeats before AAC play even began (WSU lost eight games all of last season).

Gregg Marshall’s team started AAC action at 1-6, including ugly back-to-back double-digit road losses to UConn and USF. However, things slowly started to turn around for the Shockers, who compiled a 9-2 run to finish conference play, although none of the victories came against great competition (six wins against Tulane, East Carolina, and SMU). Wichita State managed a pair of AAC tournament victories over East Carolina and Temple before getting squeezed by Cincinnati in the semifinals as five-point ‘dogs in a 66-63 setback.

Just like Lipscomb, Wichita State had to do its damage on the highway as the Shockers beat Furman, Clemson, and Indiana on the road to make its first NIT Final Four since 2011 (which they won). After knocking off Furman as a 4 ½-point underdog in the first round, 76-70, the Shockers tripped up Clemson, 63-55 as 6 ½-point ‘dogs, while limiting the Tigers to 28% shooting from the floor. Wichita State took care of top-seed Indiana, 73-63 as 3 ½-point ‘dogs, 73-63, while limiting its eighth opponent in the last 10 games to less than 70 points.

Since failing to cover in the season finale victory at Tulane, the Shockers have covered six consecutive games, while becoming the first team in the history of the NIT to defeat the top three seeds on its way to the semifinals. This is the first ever meeting between Wichita State and Lipscomb, as the Bison look for their second win against an AAC squad after topping SMU as 10-point underdogs in November.

Texas vs. TCU (-1 ½, 138) – 9:30 PM EST – ESPN

The Big 12 has three teams going to the Final Four, all from the Lone Star State. Technically, Texas Tech is heading to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament, while Texas and TCU have to settle for meeting in Madison Square Garden in the NIT semifinals. There is plenty of pride on the line between these two state and conference rivals as the Horned Frogs (23-13 SU, 18-18 ATS) pulled off the season sweep of the Longhorns (19-16 SU, 16-19 ATS).

TCU has captured five of the past six matchups in the series dating back to 2017 as both victories this season finished UNDER the total. These teams first met on January 23 in Fort Worth as the Horned Frogs slipped past the Longhorns, 65-61 to barely cash as three-point favorites. Both teams struggled from the floor by shooting less than 41%, while Desmond Bane led TCU with 17 points. The Horned Frogs grabbed the sweep in Austin in the regular season finale, 69-56 as seven-point underdogs, as Bane went off for 34 points on 14-of-20 shooting from the floor, while the Longhorns shot just 37%.

The Horned Frogs hoisted the NIT championship in 2017, capped off by a blowout of Georgia Tech in the title game. TCU was one-and-done in the NCAA tournament last season after losing to Syracuse in the first round, but got off to a 12-1 start this season with the lone defeat coming to Lipscomb at home. However, the Horned Frogs lost their first five road Big 12 games, while suffering 1-6 run towards the end of the season prior to the victory at Texas on March 9.

Texas jumped out to a 5-0 start, including a neutral-site upset of North Carolina in Las Vegas as nine-point underdogs in November. However, the Longhorns fell the next day to Michigan State in that same tournament, which began a three-game losing skid which included losses to Radford and VCU at home. Shaka Smart’s team leaped out to a 2-0 record in Big 12 play, as the Longhorns won at eventual conference champion Kansas State in the opener.

The ‘Horns lost five of next six games after the 2-0 start, including a 10-point setback in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge to Georgia, who finished near the bottom of the league. There were several highlight wins at home, including victories over Kansas, Baylor, and Iowa State in Austin, but Texas picked up only one road win after beating K-State which came at last-place West Virginia in early February.

Both Texas and TCU reached the NIT semifinals by going 3-0 at home in their first three tournament contests. The Longhorns squeezed by South Dakota State in the opening round, 79-73 as eight-point favorites in spite of jumping out to a 19-0 lead. Texas held off Xavier in the second round, 78-76 in overtime, but once again couldn’t cash as four-point chalk. Leading scorer Kerwin Roach II, who missed the final four regular season games due to a suspension, paced Texas with 21 points, only the fourth game he has topped the 20-point mark this season.

Texas captured a win in its final home game of the season by blasting former conference rival Colorado, 68-55 as five-point favorites. Although the final margin was 13 points, the Longhorns built a commanding 44-19 halftime lead to reach their first NIT semifinals since 1978, the year they claimed their only NIT championship.

TCU is the only top seed remaining as it won all three of its NIT games by double-digits at home. The first victim was state counterpart Sam Houston State in an 82-69 triumph as 12-point favorites, followed up by an 88-72 rout of Nebraska as 4 ½-point chalk in the second round. TCU rallied past Creighton in the third round, 71-58 by outscoring the Bluejays, 41-25 in the second half as Kouat Noi led the Horned Frogs with 25 points. The Horned Frogs started the season at 5-0 ATS away from Fort Worth, but have covered only three of their last 11 games on the highway.

[StarDust Bum]

NCAAB
Dunkel

Tuesday, April 2


Hampton @ Marshall

Game 723-724
April 2, 2019 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Hampton
55.023
Marshall
56.521
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Marshall
by 1 1/2
184
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Marshall
by 5 1/2
173 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Hampton
(+5 1/2); Over

Wichita State @ Lipscomb

Game 709-710
April 2, 2019 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Wichita State
68.933
Lipscomb
63.163
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Wichita State
by 6
155
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Wichita State
Pick
150 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Wichita State
Over

Texas Southern @ Green Bay

Game 725-726
April 2, 2019 @ 9:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Texas Southern
53.234
Green Bay
56.614
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Green Bay
by 3 1/2
187
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Green Bay
by 5
176
Dunkel Pick:
Texas Southern
(+5); Over

Texas @ TCU

Game 711-712
April 2, 2019 @ 9:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Texas
69.726
TCU
73.641
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
TCU
by 4
130
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
TCU
by 1
138 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
TCU
(-1); Under




NCAAB
Long Sheet

Tuesday, April 2

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WICHITA ST (22 - 14) vs. LIPSCOMB (28 - 7) - 4/2/2019, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WICHITA ST is 2-9 ATS (-7.9 Units) when the total is 150 to 159.5 over the last 2 seasons.
WICHITA ST is 5-13 ATS (-9.3 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 77+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
LIPSCOMB is 23-13 ATS (+8.7 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
LIPSCOMB is 23-13 ATS (+8.7 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
LIPSCOMB is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) as an underdog this season.
LIPSCOMB is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) after a non-conference game this season.
LIPSCOMB is 11-2 ATS (+8.8 Units) in non-conference games this season.
LIPSCOMB is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) in road games after allowing 80 points or more since 1997.
LIPSCOMB is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) in road games after scoring 80 points or more this season.
LIPSCOMB is 6-0 ATS (+6.0 Units) after playing 3 consecutive road games over the last 3 seasons.
LIPSCOMB is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
LIPSCOMB is 7-0 ATS (+7.0 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record after 15 or more games over the last 2 seasons.
WICHITA ST is 230-186 ATS (+25.4 Units) as a favorite since 1997.
WICHITA ST is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in all tournament games this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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TEXAS (19 - 16) vs. TCU (23 - 13) - 4/2/2019, 9:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TEXAS is 4-19 ATS (-16.9 Units) as a neutral court underdog of 3 points or less or pick since 1997.
TEXAS is 23-43 ATS (-24.3 Units) when playing with 5 or 6 days rest since 1997.
TCU is 29-16 ATS (+11.4 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
TCU is 6-14 ATS (-9.4 Units) against conference opponents this season.
TCU is 194-242 ATS (-72.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1997.
TCU is 120-157 ATS (-52.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record after 15 or more games since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
TCU is 5-1 against the spread versus TEXAS over the last 3 seasons
TCU is 5-1 straight up against TEXAS over the last 3 seasons
4 of 6 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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HAMPTON (18 - 16) at MARSHALL (21 - 14) - 4/2/2019, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MARSHALL is 36-20 ATS (+14.0 Units) as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points since 1997.
HAMPTON is 17-9 ATS (+7.1 Units) in all games this season.
HAMPTON is 17-9 ATS (+7.1 Units) in all lined games this season.
HAMPTON is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
HAMPTON is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record after 15 or more games this season.
MARSHALL is 12-22 ATS (-12.2 Units) in all games this season.
MARSHALL is 12-22 ATS (-12.2 Units) in all lined games this season.
MARSHALL is 4-12 ATS (-9.2 Units) after scoring 80 points or more this season.
MARSHALL is 8-15 ATS (-8.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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TEXAS SOUTHERN (24 - 13) at WI-GREEN BAY (20 - 16) - 4/2/2019, 9:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WI-GREEN BAY is 7-0 ATS (+7.0 Units) as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points over the last 2 seasons.
TEXAS SOUTHERN is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) in road games after scoring 80 points or more this season.
TEXAS SOUTHERN is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in all tournament games over the last 2 seasons.
TEXAS SOUTHERN is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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NCAAB
Armadillo's Write-Up

Tuesday, April 2

Hampton is 5-8 outside Big South (#211 NC sked); they won three of last four true road games, losing by seven at Campbell in Big South tourney. Pirates won eight of last nine games after being 10-15 at one point this season; they’re experience team #8 that plays pace #31 with a bench that doesn’t play much (minutes #300). Marshall won eight of its last nine games, winning last five home games; Thundering Herd is 9-6 outside C-USA; they play 5th-fastest tempo in country, are experience team #143 (#26 in MC).

Texas Southern is 6-8 outside SWAC, but all 14 of those games were on road; their first D-I home game this season was Jan 19 (they did have two non-D-I home games). Tigers won 16 of their last 18 games overall, winning their last eight true road games. TSU won its last game in triple OT at ULM, rallying back from down 14 in 2nd half. Wisc-Green Bay scored 93.3 ppg in winning first three games in this event; Phoenix is experience team #105 that plays tempo #12- they’re 7-7 outside Horizon (NC sked #10). Green Bay won six of its last seven home games.

NIT, New York City

Lipscomb has to be very fired up to be playing in NYC; they’re located in Nashville, so they’re not yokels, but national TV for an A-Sun team is a big deal. Lipscomb won at TCU this year, lost by 4 at Louisville; they beat NC State 94-93 in Raleigh LW, making 14-28 on arc. Bisons are #48 experience team whose eFG% is #48 in country. Wichita State won 14 of its last 17 games after starting season 8-11; they’re experience team #274 (#346 in MC) that has been riding on back of senior F McDuffie. All three of Shockers’ NIT wins were true road games.

TCU beat Texas twice this season, 65-61 at home, then 69-56 in Austin; Texas took total of only 16 FT’s in those two games. Longhorns lost their last four games away from home- their last road win was Feb 9 in West Virginia. Texas is experience team #281 that plays tempo #320. TCU won five of its last six games, winning two of last three on road; Horned Frogs are #203 that is very thin due to in-season defections. TCU scored 80.3 ppg in winning its last three games. Dixon is rumored to be in the mix for the UCLA job; he is a TCU alum but grew up in LA.




NCAAB

Tuesday, April 2

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Trend Report
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Wichita State @ Lipscomb
Wichita State
Wichita State is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Wichita State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
Lipscomb
No trends to report

Hampton @ Marshall
Hampton
No trends to report
Marshall
Marshall is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Marshall's last 5 games at home

Texas @ TCU
Texas
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Texas's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Texas's last 12 games when playing TCU
TCU
TCU is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
TCU is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Texas

Texas Southern @ Wisconsin-Green Bay
Texas Southern
No trends to report
Wisconsin-Green Bay
Wisconsin-Green Bay is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games at home
Wisconsin-Green Bay is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games at home


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709Wichita St -710 Lipscomb
WICHITA ST is 10-1 ATS (8.9 Units) in road games versus good ball handling teams - committing <=14 turnovers/game after 15+ games in the current season.

711Texas -712 Tcu
TCU is 11-3 ATS (7.7 Units) versus teams who make 8 or more 3 point shots/game on the season in the current season.

717S Florida -718 Depaul
DEPAUL is 18-33 ATS (-18.3 Units) in home games after 2 straight games where they had 5 or less steals since 1997.

723Hampton -724 Marshall
HAMPTON is 6-0 ATS (6 Units) when playing against a marginal winning team (Win Pct. 51% to 60%) in the current season.

725Texas Southern -726 Wi Green Bay
WI-GREEN BAY is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) as a home fav of 3.5 to 6 over the last 2 seasons.

725Texas Southern -726 Wi Green Bay
TEXAS SOUTHERN is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) when the total is >=160 over the last 2 seasons.

725Texas Southern -726 Wi Green Bay
Johnny Jones is 7-0 ATS (7 Units) in road games after scoring 80 points or more 2 straight games (Coach of TEXAS SOUTHERN)

[StarDust Bum]

NIT

Favorites: 19-9 SU & 12-16 ATS
O/U: 14-14

CIT

Favorites: 12-9 SU & 9-12 ATS
O/U: 10-11-1

CBI

Favorites: 14-1 SU & 7-7-1 ATS
O/U: 9-6

[StarDust Bum]

TUESDAY, APRIL 2
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

WICH at LIP 07:00 PM
LIP -1.0
O 150.5

HAMP at MRSH 07:00 PM
HAMP +7.0
O 174.0

TEX at TCU 09:00 PM
TCU -1.0
U 138.0

TXSO at GB 09:00 PM
GB -6.0
O 175.5