indiancowboy
5*: Penn State +9 is our 5* Big 10 GOM today.
5* NBA GOM Winner on Sacramento +8.5 over Pistons.
December GOM: Bucks Outright over Jazz.
Winning 7 of 10 Days in the NBA.
Now, 24-8 Lifetime on 5* Selections:
And, why not? Penn State is a top 70 ranked team going on the highway to a Wisconsin team ranked in the top 50. Folks, that is only a differential of 15 spots. Wisconsin comes off a big win against Michigan on the road defeating them by double-digits and now they return home. But, this isn't your daddy's Penn State basketball team. This team is very different this year. Penn State once again is a top 65 team. This is the same team that defeated Georgia Tech on the road 85-83 as fairly big dogs. This team also defeated top 40 Northwestern at home by 4 points. Want to know something about Northwestern? They are a top 40 team and frankly, I think they are better than Wisconsin. Heck, watch Northwestern cash on the ML today against Michigan State despite the fact I stayed away from that game as NW comes off a tough loss on the road and return home in conference play against Michigan State. But, back to our play here. For Penn State to be getting 9 points as they are a 12-2 team, and only losses come by 6 and 5 to Temple and Rhode Island on the road is a lot of points. In short, the line is inflated here as Wisconsin is the public favorite year in and year out and they return home after a big win over Michigan on the road. Thus, 65% or more favor Wisconsin here. But, the true spread according to my numbers should be no more than 4-5 points. Remember as well that Penn State was devastated with injuries last year. Well, they have those players back, the backups more seasoned and experienced and this team is playing with a chip on its shoulder as they are tired of being the stepchild of the Big10. Penn State lost to Wisconsin last year by a score of 77-41. You don't think this team remembers that 36 point loss on the road? Well, they play in that same stadium, have their starters back, their backups are even better, this is expected to be a low scoring game and we are getting 9 points on top of that and Wisconsin by no means is blowing teams out or has the capability of blowing teams out. Look at what Wisconsin has done even when they win as this is a half court type offense that is very methodical and not an up and down type of team. After all, Coach Bo has never had this team has a run and gun type of team as it has always been slow and steady. Thus, although it is nice for a power ranking win straight up, it is not as nice for an ATS cover. This is why you see Wisconsin at 6-5 ATS this year and Penn State at 5-2 ATS this year. Wisconsin only beat Idaho State by 2 at home and Coppin State by 11. They are a type of team that stays in all and if not most ballgames (exception probably Georgetown) but this team struggles against teams that can shoot the ball well on the perimeter and Penn State has no trouble scoring so if Penn State takes an early lead in this game, Wisconsin will still stay in their element and crawl back in it. I look for Penn State to have the more potent offense here, great revenge, Wisconsin by no means is the type of teams that blow teams out, this is a conference game and Penn State will be very game here and who knows, maybe even win this baby outright and cause some shock waves in the conference as they will do week in and week out all year long (as will Northwestern for that matter). Folks, the Big 10 is changing and some of the mid ranked teams in this conference will be extremely strong this year. Nittany Lions are 4-0 ATS when facing a spread of this margin of 7 to 12 points as underdogs.