Week #12

This should be an exciting weekend for college football. We have many games where bowl decisions will be made and national title hopes dashed. In addition to this, we have the start of another fantastic college basketball season underway. B. Anthony has been documenting daily his thoughts on the top games to play. The first couple of weeks are great times to find some easy winners when the public is still betting on last year’s team. I gave you The Drake last year about this time and I am on the scoop to find similar talented and under-exposed teams. For now, on to football. Here are the standings:

Coach 120
JB 119
CCR 116
TG 114
Dollar Bill 114
D43 114
T Bone 113
Money 111

Miami @ Georgia Tech
Fresno St. @ San Jose St.
Boise St. @ Nevada
Texas Tech @ Oklahoma
BYU @ Utah
Iowa @ Minnesota
Illinois @ Northwestern
Oregon St. @ Arizona
Washington @ Washington St.
Florida St. @ Maryland
Boston College @ Wake Forest
Pitt @ Cincinnati
Tennessee @ Vandy
Akron @ Ohio
UCONN @ South Florida
Michigan St @ Penn St.___1____pts

Another Thursday is in the books, and Money managed to pick the loser again. I am so bad on Thursday nights. I really like both San Jose State and Nevada at home, getting points to win. Fresno state is really banged up and not the same the team they have been in the past. Nevada can score and this game is always a shootout. I believe Oklahoma will win, but I will take the points and bet on Texas Tech. I said it last week about Penn state and I will say it again here; the BCS system will play itself out. Texas Tech, while vastly talented, is not the best 1 or 2 team in the country. They lose here. I like Utah in the holy war. They have played a tougher schedule and have done better in big game situations. I really hope Oregon State wins because I would love to see them in the Rose Bowl. But, Oregon state is not going to play in the Rose Bowl. It just 'aint happening. Arizona is a great at home and they cover the line and beat OSU. Too bad though. I have no comment on the apple bowl. Who cares? Vanderbilt will win easy over Tennessee.

The Coach omitted The Big Game this week from his selections. Not sure why. I really like Stanford getting 9 points. This is a real gift. Take the Cardinal now and hope the line drops enough so a MONEYline bet is given and take that bet as well. This is a 50/50 game. Both teams have average QBs. Yes, Riley is an average quarterback. In fact, I may be kind calling him average. I don’t think he is very good. Longshore is worse though. Both teams have a good running game. Cal has the better D. Better coach? That is easy. Harbough wins here. He is a better big game coach, and by big game I don’t mean cal/Stanford, I mean winning a big game like USC, of which Tedford has NEVER done. Go Bears, but I expect a Cardinal win.

College picks

SAN JOSE STATE +3.5 vs. Fresno state
VANDERBILT -3 vs. Tennessee
STANFURD +9 @ Cal
NEVADA +7 vs. Boise state
ARIZONA -3 vs. Oregon state
TEXAS TECH +7 vs. Oklahoma


Pro picks

NEW ENGLAND +1 @ Miami
BEARS -8 @ LAMBS

Survivor thought:
I already made my pick to D43 last night. I told him to take Pittsburgh. He did, and then talked himself out of it. Instead of sitting back and watching all the upsets come in this weekend, he has to pick a team and hope for the best. My choice is Da Bears. Definite NO on Denver.

Money

Anti-WCC Cellar

Pepperdine and LMU are in action tonight, so load up against them. Games are hours away and lines are already moving against them. Not a good time to wait and see.

Notre Dame -22.5 vs LMU. Blow-out, early and often!!! Line is up in the first 30 minutes from opening.

New Mexico st. -15 vs Pepperdine. A tough place to play and a bad team. Line started at 13.5.

I am more convinced than ever that there are few dominant teams this year. Other than NC and Louisville, everyone can and will be beat on a regular basis. UConn is talented but will never be consistent. UCLA showed that they miss Love, a lot!!!!!!!!

Not sure about this one, but watch for UNC to play a stinker tonight at UCSB. They have a stop over on their way to Hawaii, and last time they did this, they had a national championship team and lost to Santa Clara in Oakland! This will be ugly and at -17.5, I don't think they will care enough to cover.

Big numbers. Washington State is giving 30 to Sac. St today. I won't play it, but Sac State might only score 25 points tonight. Washington St. has lost some of their offensive fire power, but their defense has improved, not sure how that is possible!!!

B. Anthony

NCAA hoops Dreaming-Day 2

College Gaming continues.

The 24 hour marathon, worked, I am hooked and will be posted daily until the buzz wears off.

Last night showed the reality of betting. All four tv games were very close to the lines, and depending on when you got on you could have won or lost on either side!

UNC is better than Kentucky, but the injury to Zeller, the big stiff was deserved because they were trying to cover at the end of that game. They won by 19, which was a cover against B. Anthony, but not really what they wanted. They wanted and should have had a 30 point win.

Curry scored 44 and he didn't play that well, and Griffin will have a record setting number of rebounds this year. His 25 rebounds last night seemed Easy!!!!!!!!!

Overall for last night was 4-2-1. The one random lock, BYU won easily. The bottom half of the WCC is very bad and I will play against them often in the early season. Portland, LMU, Pepperdine will have very long, sad seasons!

Tonights game.

I want to play Villanova, but better judgment has me staying away. Line is about 16, and I think Niagara will take this one right down to the end between 15 and 20, and that is just not worth it.

Kent State -1.5 vs St. Louis. Not that often that I will take a road favorite, especially against a Majerus coached home-dog. But St. Louis has 8 scholarship freshman, and Rick is still teaching this team to play his offense. He doesn't care if they score, as long as they run the sets. This game will be low scoring, for the Billikens. Experience wins out, even on the road!

Good Gaming-

B. Anthony

8-6-1 ytd

24 Hour Marathon- Heavenly Vacation

B. Anthony only wishes he could fulfill his dream day: Son on the lap and constant basketball for 24 hours!!!! ESPN created this little fantasy, and we are enjoying the ride.

Last night saw many teams get underway, with some familiar results. Memphis was frenetic, ugly, shot horribly, 2-19 from three, and still won by 22 points. They need Xavier the Savior for next years run to the final four, but they will be a 30 win team this year because of scheduling!

Quick notes:

A. USF Rising- A perennial door mat-(no longer a lock anti-bet)
I am hoping Rex Walters and Calvin Byrd do a good job at USF. I am going to jump on the wagon early and say they will! They are contemporaries who shared the court with B. Anthony several times, and they know how to work hard, work smart and get teams to play together. This is huge when you will always be slightly less talented.

B. 20-9' will make a difference. Said it yesterday, say it again today.
C. Stephen Curry, player of the year. He will prove it again tonight. Amazing that a guy who teams scheme for specifically can shoot 14-19 from the field, and get 9 assists. He doesn't take bad shots.... period......

Games Tonight- 4 TV games + a few others. Not always the smartest way to go, but might as well give everyone a chance to see my picks in action.

Boston College -7.5 vs St. Johns- Tyrese Rice back from suspension will drop 30 + in a double digit win!

Kentucky +18 vs North Carolina- Tar Heels will miss Hansborough on the boards. The Kentucky second shots will keep them in the game for a while, and down the stretch they will keep it around 10. Too many points this early in the year!

Davidson +4 vs Oklahoma- Two All- Americans living up to their hype. Problem is Davidson plays fantastic team defense and Griffin will be surround while he gets his 25pts and 15 bds. Curry will take and make all kinds of good basketball shots. 28, 8 assists, 4 bds, 3 steals. Davidson wins outright!

UAB +4 vs Arizona. This is simply an anti- Arizona bet!

USC -15.5 vs New Mexico St. Early season home game. Early gitters will keep this game reasonable, but USC's defense will make this a 20-30 point blow out in the 2nd half!

USF + 14 vs Cal- I am taking the points in this local battle. I think Lowhorn will have a huge game in front of his home town fans!!

BYU-9.5 vs Pepperdine- Pepperdine is bad, not quite as bad as LMU, but close!

Good Gaming,

B. Anthony
4-4 ytd!

NCAA Preview + Picks

B. Anthony is very excited for the beginning of college hoops season. It is hard to get my hands around the entire landscape of college basketball, but I am anxious to start making picks.

For some reason, time is a little less available. Friday night was not a great start, 2-3, but truth be told the first two games were the winners, and the only ones I had a clue on. The others were wishful thinking. I will keep those out of my future picks.

Before we get to picks, let me give you my 6 favorite teams. Mostly to watch and bet on!!!

Villanova- The experienced guard play, good coaching, and it is time for them to have a great year. They had a good showing against Kansas last year. Currently ranked 23rd, they will be a top five team before league wears them down!

Gonzaga- All the usual suspects, Bouldin will be the glue with Pargo, Daye and Heytfelt putting up big numbers. Plus they have a very good freshman point guard. He will make plays to help put them over the top. Another team that will spend the entire year in the top 10. I will give them 31 wins this year on the way to the elite 8!! See attached from Zags staff. "Demetri Goodson. Best on ball defender that I think I have seen, especially for a freshman. He won't put up big numbers like Pargo, but I think he will actually have a bigger impact on the game than Pargo will."
Memphis- Just because they are Memphis, the league is weak, and they get bonuses to cover. They will look like a top 15 team until they play someone good, like Gonzaga!
I
USC- Will compete because of DeRozan and because Floyd is dirty! Trojans are athletic across the front line and back court will be steady.

Marquette- Another guard heavy team that will have a great year. McNeal will be an all-american, and Dominic James is a great senior leader. He will stop shooting so much so they can just win!

Michigan State- They are very well balanced and ready for a break out year. The Beat down they took from Memphis last year taught them a lesson. They will be a good team to cover big at home. They are just bigger and stronger and more disciplined than 99% of the teams out there.

Look for St. Mary's to be slightly overconfident early, but have a great run. Kent St, Wright State, or VCU will emerge again. I see VCU covering 7 of 10 games this year!!

I am leaving out the obvious, North Carolina, prognostications, because they are great and will be great all year, so why talk about it!

I think Notre Dame will beat UConn every time they play, so I will leave out UConn, and I cannot tout ND, because whenever I do, they will disappoint.

Final Four- Michigan State, Gonzaga, UNC, Marquette: Well rounded teams, anyone of them can win it all, but I will go with Michigan State. (Traditionally, I don't like this team, but something is different, defense wins)

Top Freshman-
Greg Monroe-Georgetown- 18pts and 9bds
Demar Derozan-USC 23pts, 6 bds, 4 assists
Tyreke Evans- Memphis 15 pts, 9 assists, 4 bds, 3 steals
Jrue Holiday- UCLA Solid all-around play on a good team 12 ppg
Samardo Samuels- Louisville 18 ppg and 11 bds. (solid)

Picks tonight

Fresno State +22 vs St. Mary's- Too many points for a Midnight tip!

UAB- 10 vs Santa Clara. Too much defense and quickness for the Broncos. The last few steals make this an 18-20 point loss!

Nova -20 vs Fordham- A good game for the Wildcats to hit 15 threes and blow this wide open!!!


B. Anthony Ytd 2-3

(much more to follow)
BY THE WAY, THE NEW 3PT LINE AT 20'9", WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE. NOT AS MANY PLAYERS, ESPECIALLY BIGS STEPPING OUT, WILL SHOOT IT AS WELL.

IT WON'T BOTHER STEPHEN CURRY, WHO SHOOTS FROM AN AVERAGE OF 24 FEET!