Matt Fargo CBB
5-0 LAST 5
GAME: Cornell @ Kansas Jan 6, 2010 8:00PMSPORT: College Basketball PicksPICK: Cornell Offered at: 22 BelmontREASON FOR PICK: This is risky going up against the top team in the nation but a massive amount of points has us taking. Kansas is the best team in the country without much of an argument but this is a pretty tough spot. Yes, the Jayhawks have won 50 straight games at Allen Fieldhouse and a lot of those have been blowouts but Kansas is coming off a road win at Temple and it has another road game at Tennessee on Sunday making this a difficult one to get up for. The Jayhawks are well aware of the recent success for Cornell so they certainly will not be looking past the Big Red but this is a ton of points to cover against a big time quality opponent. Cornell enters this game with a 12-2 record and it is currently riding a 10-game winning streak. The Big Red have actually played a tougher schedule than Kansas this season and the results have been favorable with some quality wins on the slate. They are 9-1 away from home which is the best winning percentage in the nation and included among Cornell’s road wins are victories over teams from the SEC (Alabama), the Big East (St. John’s), the Atlantic 10 (Massachusetts and La Salle), as well as perennial mid-major powers Bucknell, Davidson and Vermont. Overall, Cornell’s 12-2 record after 14 games is tied for the best start in school history. If Kansas does pull out to a big lead, every point is going to count for Cornell and that means free throws become very important. The top four players in the backcourt, Louis Dale, Geoff Reeves, Ryan Wittman and Chris Wroblewski have made 91-105 free throws this season (86.7 percent), including 36-42 in the final three minutes of games within 10 points (85.7 percent). Cornell also has a nice situation on its side. Play against favorites of 20 or more points that are coming off a win against the number and playing only their 2nd game in eight days. This situation is 83-33 ATS (71.6 percent) over the last five seasons. Also, Cornell will be getting senior guard Louis Dale back in the lineup tonight after he missed the last three games with an ankle injury.
3* Cornell Big Red
