Brandon Lee
Mar 14 '18, 9:10 PM in 9h
NCAA-B | Arizona State vs Syracuse
Play on: Syracuse +1½ -101 at 5Dimes
10* NCAAB FREE PICK (Syracuse +1.5)
I'll take my chances here with the Orange in Wednesday's First Four matchup against Arizona State. There's a lot of people who don't think either of these teams belong in the field of 68, but it is what it is. I think we saw last night just how weak the Pac-12 is this year with UCLA going down to St. Bonaventure. Now it's Arizona State's turn to head home early.
The Sun Devils were a remarkable story early on this season, as they came out of nowhere to start the season 12-0 with wins over the likes of San Diego St, Kansas St, Xavier, Kansas, Vanderbilt and St. Johns. Then things took a turn for the worse and Arizona State went just 8-10 in what turned out to be a weak Pac-12. I think this team continues to get too much respect for what they did and not who they are right now.
This isn't a great Syracuse team, but Jim Boeheim has shown in the past that if he can just get his team into the Big Dance they can do some damage. Last night we saw the Bruins really struggle to crack the zone of the Bonnies. A big reason for that is Washington is really the only team in the Pac-12 that plays primarily zone defense. Arizona St lost their only meeting with Washington and scored a season low 64-points in the process. The struggles against the zone and the lack of defense the Sun Devils play (give up 81.3 ppg away from home), will make it tough for them to win here. Give me Syracuse +1.5!
Dennis Macklin
Mar 14 '18, 8:00 PM in 8h
NCAA-B | Temple vs Penn State
Play on: Penn State -9½ -105 at 5Dimes
DMack's Free Play for Wednesday, March 14, 2018 is on the Penn State Nittany Lions
The Nits were close to a Big Dance bid and then lost four of their final six. They started the year No.243 in experience so they have some good kids here that should make some noise next year and here with an excellent regular season under their belts. Temple is as hit an miss as you will find but the Owls seemingly folded their tents last and were not even competitive on the road in their final three games losing by 7+ points to less than they face here. Penn State rolls.
The Mack Attack split out on Tuesday but is still 31-17 over his L48 plays. Six big CBB plays locked and loaded for Wednesday including a five-game Power Pack and Graveyard Bail Out!
Jesse Schule
Mar 14 '18, 9:10 PM in 9h
NCAA-B | Arizona State vs Syracuse
Play on: Syracuse +2 -109 at pinnacle
Arizona State vs Syracuse Free Pick March 14, 2018
Can you remember when Arizona State was ranked in the Top 5? They were ranked #3 overall in the AP rankings after winning their first 12 games of the season. They have since lost 11 of 19 games, and they should consider themselves quite fortunate to have made it into the tournament. They will be a small favorite in their first round matchup against Syracuse, and there is actually quite a lot of similarities between the two teams. Both teams won a total of 20 games, and both teams were 4-6 away from home. Both teams have lost five of their last eight overall. The biggest difference I can see here between these two teams, is the strength of schedule in the ACC compared to the PAC12. Syracuse has faced Top 25 teams eight times this season, while Arizona State has only faced four ranked teams. The Orange were eliminated in the second round of the ACC Tournament by defending national champs North Carolina, while Arizona State was beaten in the first round of the PAC12 Tournament by unranked Colorado. The last time the Orange slipped into the Big Dance as a bubble team, they went all the way to the Final Four before being eliminated by the Tar Heels.
Take CUSE.
GL,
Jesse Schule
Mike Lundin
Mar 14 '18, 10:05 PM in 10h
NBA | Heat vs Kings
Play on: Heat -6½ -109 at 5Dimes
#NBA FREE PICK FROM MIKE LUNDIN
The Miami Heat were without both both Hassan Whiteside (hip) and Dwyane Wade (hamstring) when they took 115-99 loss at Portland on Monday. They're likely to be without the duo again when visiting the Sacramento Kings Wednesday night, but I still like the Heat to bounce back with a big win here. Note that Miami is 4-0 ATS in its last four games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points and still a solid 9-2-2 ATS in its last 13 games overall.
The Sacramento Kings are coming off back-to-back losses at Denver and OKC and will play their third game in four nights. Tough scheduling spot for a team with nothing to play for, and they'll face a Miami side battling for a playoff berth and seeking revenge for an 89-88 loss to the Kings on Jan. 25.
My free pick is on Miami Heat.