Karl Garrett
50 DIMER - USC TROJANS
Tim Floyd's team is peaking right now, as they closed the regular season with wins in 5 of their last 6, including a dominating home court victory over Top 10 Stanford.
I expect the Trojans to stay close to the Bruins in this cross-city rivalry tonight, as USC has already handed the Uclans 1 of their 3 losses this year, 72-63 - and in Westwood no less!
The schools did split the season series this year, as UCLA was able to stop a 4-game against the spread slide with the win in the most recent meeting back on February 17th.
Right now, the USC youngsters are playing above their heads, and I don't expect that to stop in this spot tonight. The Bruins may well win this game, but not by this impost.
Take the points!
20 DIMER - ST. JOSEPH'S HAWKS
St. Joe's home finale win over Xavier has seemed to give this team a boost, as the Hawks have ripped through the first two rounds of this tournament, and now must face the X-Men once again here in the semis. If Joey's can get by, I would say the chances of going to the Big Dance are 100%, so expect Martelli's crew to bring their A-game tonight.
Playing in nearby Atlantic City will also help, as the crowd should definitely be in the Hawks corner.
St. Joe's has covered the last 4 series meetings, all in the underdog role, and the Musketeers are just 6-8 against the spread on the road this year.
Have to take the points in this one.
10 DIMER - PITTSBURGH PANTHERS
Pitt really showed me something with yesterday's overtime win over Louisville, and I like them to make it to the finals of the Big East tournament once again this season with the win over Marquette.
The Golden Eagles played a strange game against the Irish yesterday, as they trailed by as many as 10, but did come off the deck to get the outright win as the small dog.
No such luck tonight, as Pittsburgh well remembers that Friday night on February 15th when they went into Wisconsin, and were drilled 72-54 as the 5-point dog. Last season in this very tourney, Pittsburgh won a 10-point decision over Marquette, and as Yogi Berra once said, tonight is "deja vu, all over again!"
The Panthers are in that New York city groove, and it is going to lead to tomorrow night's final.
Pitt is it
10 DIMER - LA LAKERS
Hard to knock the Hornets, as New Orleans is as hot as any team out West, and they have won and covered 6 of their last 8. Still, the G-Man prefers Kobe and his band of merry-men in this one, as the Lakers are on a 17-3 straight up run, and this game is priced at a number they should have no trouble getting on top of.
These teams have split a pair of games this season, with the visitor winning and covering in both.
On the road, the Lake Show is on a 19-7-1 run their last 27, and while I am sure they are itching to get to Sunday's road game at Houston, they cannot afford to be looking ahead with the Hornets only a game behind in the loss column.
Think of this one as an early "playoff" type of a game. My money is on the Lakers as they continue to be "road warriors".
Michael Cannon
Friday's Plays...
15 Dime ?
NORTH CAROLINA
Take the Tarheels minus the big number this afternoon over Florida State.
North Carolina is poised to make a run in the ACC tournament. Coach Roy Williams has successfully worked point guard Ty Lawson back into the lineup gradually, and the last few games have allowed him to get his legs back under him.
If Lawson is able to play more than the 23 minutes he played against Duke in their last game, North Carolina should easily be able to cover this number.
While Lawson was out of the lineup with his ankle injury, it allowed players like Marcus Ginyard and Danny Green to step up in his absence.
Of course, it also allowed Tyler Hansbrough to elevate his game to an even higher level.
Now that all the pieces are back in the puzzle, this Tarheel team is once again the class of the ACC.
Florida State relies too much on its perimeter game for them to stay close today. When they miss, it allows the Tarheels a chance to run and score easy buckets with their fast break offense.
Take North Carolina minus the big number as they grab the win and cover.
5 Dime ?
PURDUE
Take Purdue minus the points over Illinois tonight in the Big Ten tournament.
I really like the way Purdue is playing right now. They are a team that never gets rattled, no matter how the game is going.
It?s this trait that will carry them past Illinois tonight.
Purdue is a smart team that executes its offense with efficiency. They have gone 8-2 SU in their last 10 games (8-1-1 ATS).
This medium number should be no problem for them against an Illinois team that?s failed to cover five of its last seven games. They narrowly escaped with a victory over an inferior Penn State team yesterday, and that does not bode well for them tonight.
Take Purdue as they grab the cash with the win and cover.
ST. JOE?S
Take the points with St. Joe?s tonight when they take on rival Xavier in the A-10 Tournament.
These two teams split their season series with St. Joe?s grabbing the cash in both games.
Xavier has the experience edge, but St. Joe?s has been up to the challenge in each meeting.
St. Joe?s has been one of the better teams against the spread in the A-10, going 18-11 this year.
Xavier, on the other hand, may be the class of the conference but has failed to cover the number in three of its last four games.
St. Joe?s has cruised to wins over Fordham and Richland in the first two rounds, winning by a combined 32 points.
You can bet they will be focused and ready for the task on hand tonight.
Take the points with St. Joe?s as they battle Xavier down to the wire and grab the cash.
WEST VIRGINIA
Take the points with West Virginia tonight when they take on Georgetown.
I made the mistake of going against the Mountaineers with Connecticut yesterday, and I?m not about to do it again tonight.
That?s because Joe Alexander is a man possessed right now, and I don?t think there?s a player in the conference that can shut him down the way he?s playing right now.
Alexander is averaging a whopping 29.8 ppg over his last five games, and not even the vaunted Hoyas defense can slow him down.
Georgetown benefited from an uncharacteristically hot game from beyond the arc in its win over Villanova yesterday, but I don?t see them lighting it up again like that tonight.
Center Roy Hibbert failed to score in Georgetown?s 19-point win yesterday, which is absolutely embarrassing. The guy is 7-2 and he takes two shots from the field.
If Georgetown relies on its perimeter game again tonight, they?ll be lucky to win this game, let alone cover.
Take West Virginia as Alexander keeps shooting lights out and the Mountaineers stay within the number.