Sportswagers
Ohio State @ MINNESOTA
#532 MINNESOTA -1½ -104 over Ohio State
Whenever you wager on a ranked team versus an unranked opponent, you are always almost going to pay a premium for doing so. What’s interesting is that in this case, the unranked opponent is favored so you are taking points with a ranked team against an unranked opponent. We’re suggesting that if you back the ranked team here, you are not getting enough points and therefore are going with the “worst of it”. You see, the Buckeyes just aren’t that good and the oddsmakers know it. OSU has a respectable 12-3 record but they rely way too heavily on D’Angelo Russell for scoring. If Russell is off, there isn’t enough around him to pick up the slack. If he has a great game, the Buckeyes are still beatable. OSU’s defense has been below average and so has their rebounding. We’re just not sold on this team being ranked #22 in the country. In fact, Ohio State has beaten just two top-100 teams, Illinois and Marquette, and both of those wins came in Columbus. They’ll now play in the Gophers barn and that has always been a difficult venue for any opponent.
Minnesota is 0-2 in conference play and 11-4 overall. Two of the Gophers four losses came against #3 Louisville and #24 St. Johns both at neutral sites. Their other two losses came on the road at Purdue and at #12 Maryland so none of their losses can be considered troubling at all. In fact they had an 11-point halftime lead in Purdue but got a little complacent and sloppy in the second half and blew it. Lesson learned. The Gophers are an outstanding shooting team with more balance than the Buckeyes. The Gophers closed out last year on a big run by actually winning the NIT tournament. They won their final five games and seven of their last eight overall. This year they bring back several players from that class including the teams’ three double-digit scorers. Richard Pitino's first season as Minnesota’s head coach was certainly an exciting one, as the Golden Gophers won 25 games (second-most in school history) and we like them this year to be even better. The Gophers do not have a signature win yet but they’re on the verge of one. This is without question a defining moment for the program that could turn a bubble team into a tournament team come March and we like the Gophers to respond with a huge effort.
Our Pick
#532 MINNESOTA -1½ -104 (Risking 0 units - To Win: 0.00)
Ohio State @ MINNESOTA
#532 MINNESOTA -1½ -104 over Ohio State
Whenever you wager on a ranked team versus an unranked opponent, you are always almost going to pay a premium for doing so. What’s interesting is that in this case, the unranked opponent is favored so you are taking points with a ranked team against an unranked opponent. We’re suggesting that if you back the ranked team here, you are not getting enough points and therefore are going with the “worst of it”. You see, the Buckeyes just aren’t that good and the oddsmakers know it. OSU has a respectable 12-3 record but they rely way too heavily on D’Angelo Russell for scoring. If Russell is off, there isn’t enough around him to pick up the slack. If he has a great game, the Buckeyes are still beatable. OSU’s defense has been below average and so has their rebounding. We’re just not sold on this team being ranked #22 in the country. In fact, Ohio State has beaten just two top-100 teams, Illinois and Marquette, and both of those wins came in Columbus. They’ll now play in the Gophers barn and that has always been a difficult venue for any opponent.
Minnesota is 0-2 in conference play and 11-4 overall. Two of the Gophers four losses came against #3 Louisville and #24 St. Johns both at neutral sites. Their other two losses came on the road at Purdue and at #12 Maryland so none of their losses can be considered troubling at all. In fact they had an 11-point halftime lead in Purdue but got a little complacent and sloppy in the second half and blew it. Lesson learned. The Gophers are an outstanding shooting team with more balance than the Buckeyes. The Gophers closed out last year on a big run by actually winning the NIT tournament. They won their final five games and seven of their last eight overall. This year they bring back several players from that class including the teams’ three double-digit scorers. Richard Pitino's first season as Minnesota’s head coach was certainly an exciting one, as the Golden Gophers won 25 games (second-most in school history) and we like them this year to be even better. The Gophers do not have a signature win yet but they’re on the verge of one. This is without question a defining moment for the program that could turn a bubble team into a tournament team come March and we like the Gophers to respond with a huge effort.
Our Pick
#532 MINNESOTA -1½ -104 (Risking 0 units - To Win: 0.00)
The Buckeyes head to Minnesota tonight and come into the contest with an 0-5-1 ATS record in their last 6 road games. Minnesota is the pick (-2) according to Dunkel, which has the Golden Gophers favored by 4 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-2). Here are all of today's NCAA Basketball picks.
| TUESDAY, JANUARY 6 Time Posted: 7:30 a.m. EST |
| Game 505-506: Mississippi at Kentucky (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Mississippi 62/789; Kentucky 87.817 Dunkel Line: Kentucky by 25 Vegas Line: Kentucky by 22 Dunkel Pick: Kentucky (-22) |
| Game 507-508: Connecticut at South Florida (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Connecticut 67.424; South Florida 54.465 Dunkel Line: Connecticut by 13 Vegas Line: Connecticut by 9 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Connecticut (-9 1/2) |
| Game 509-510: Central Florida at Houston (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Central Florida 52.134; Houston 55.393 Dunkel Line: Houston by 3 1/2 Vegas Line: Houston by 7 Dunkel Pick: Central Florida (+7) |
| Game 511-512: East Carolina at Cincinnati (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: East Carolina 53.289; Cincinnati 67.338 Dunkel Line: Cincinnati by 14 Vegas Line: Cincinnati by 16 Dunkel Pick: East Carolina (+16) |
| Game 513-514: Marquette at Georgetown (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Marquette 60.249; Georgetown 70.776 Dunkel Line: Georgetown by 10 1/2 Vegas Line: Georgetown by 8 Dunkel Pick: Georgetown (-8) |
| Game 515-516: Virginia Tech at Florida State (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Virginia Tech 50.038; Florida State 61.993 Dunkel Line: Florida State by 12 Vegas Line: Florida State 10 Dunkel Pick: Florida State (-10) |
| Game 517-518: Michigan at Penn State (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Michigan 60.106; Penn State 59.349 Dunkel Line: Michigan by 1 Vegas Line: Penn State by 2 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Michigan (+2 1/2) |
| Game 519-520: Arkansas at Georgia (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Arkansas 67.279; Georgia 65.657 Dunkel Line: Arkansas by 1 1/2 Vegas Line: Georgia by 3 Dunkel Pick: Arkansas (+3) |
| Game 521-522: Western Michigan at Akron (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Western Michigan 54.653; Akron 57.384 Dunkel Line: Akron by 2 1/2 Vegas Line: Akron by 4 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Western Michigan (+4 1/2) |
| Game 523-524: Central Michigan at Toledo (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Central Michigan 58.457; Toledo 62.461 Dunkel Line: Toledo by 4 Vegas Line: Toledo by 8 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Central Michigan (+8 1/2) |
| Game 525-526: St. Louis at George Washington (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: St. Louis 50.058; George Washington 69.671 Dunkel Line: George Washington by 19 1/2 Vegas Line: George Washington by 17 1/2 Dunkel Pick: George Washington (-17 1/2) |
| Game 527-528: Providence at Butler (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Providence 63.152; Butler 71.207 Dunkel Line: Butler by 8 Vegas Line: Butler by 5 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Butler (-5 1/2) |
| Game 529-530: Auburn at Vanderbilt (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Auburn 58.704; Vanderbilt 68.066 Dunkel Line: Vanderbilt by 9 1/2 Vegas Line: Vanderbilt by 7 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Vanderbilt (-7 1/2) |
| Game 531-532: Ohio State at Minnesota (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Ohio State 68.734; Minnesota 73.361 Dunkel Line: Minnesota by 4 1/2 Vegas Line: Minnesota by 2 Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-2) |
| Game 533-534: Pittsburgh at Boston College (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Pittsburgh 61.514; Boston College 62.676 Dunkel Line: Boston College by 1 Vegas Line: Pittsburgh by 2 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Boston College (+2 1/2) |
| Game 535-536: Villanova at St. John's (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Villanova 71.490; St. John's 70.016 Dunkel Line: Villanova by 1 1/2 Vegas Line: Villanova by 4 1/2 Dunkel Pick: St. John's (+4 1/2) |
| Game 537-538: Texas A&M at Alabama (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Texas A&M 61.214; Alabama 68.394 Dunkel Line: Alabama by 7 Vegas Line: Alabama by 4 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Alabama (-4 1/2) |
| Game 539-540: Oklahoma State at Iowa State (9:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Oklahoma State 65.092; Iowa State 75.629 Dunkel Line: Iowa State by 10 1/2 Vegas Line: Iowa State by 8 Dunkel Pick: Iowa State (-8) |
| Game 541-542: New Mexico at San Diego State (11:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: New Mexico 62.203; San Diego State 66.738 Dunkel Line: San Diego State by 4 1/2 Vegas Line: San Diego State by 7 1/2 Dunkel Pick: New Mexico (+7 1/2) |
| Game 543-544: Quinnipiac at Iona (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Quinnipiac 53.576; Iona 63.081 Dunkel Line: Iona by 9 1/2 Vegas Line: Iona by 11 1/2 Dunkel Pick: Quinnipiac (+11 1/2) |
Cleveland Insider
CBB
Florida State Seminoles -9.5 over Virginia Tech Hokies
Georgia Bulldogs -3.5 over Arkansas Razorbacks
Akron Zips -5 over Western Michigan Broncos
Toledo Rockets -7 over Central Michigan Chippewas
San Diego State Aztecs -8 over New Mexico Lobos
NHL
Philadelphia Flyers -129 over Ottawa Senators
Montreal Canadiens -116 over Tampa Bay Lightning
Minnesota Wild -139 over San Jose Sharks
Vancouver Canucks -118 over New York Islanders
CBB
Florida State Seminoles -9.5 over Virginia Tech Hokies
Georgia Bulldogs -3.5 over Arkansas Razorbacks
Akron Zips -5 over Western Michigan Broncos
Toledo Rockets -7 over Central Michigan Chippewas
San Diego State Aztecs -8 over New Mexico Lobos
NHL
Philadelphia Flyers -129 over Ottawa Senators
Montreal Canadiens -116 over Tampa Bay Lightning
Minnesota Wild -139 over San Jose Sharks
Vancouver Canucks -118 over New York Islanders
