Vegas veteran Benjamin Eckstein, author of America’s Line, brings three decades of expertise to produce weekly selections in his»Ecks & Bacon» column.
March Madness picks
LAS VEGAS — Gimme some Cal-Irvine +3.5 points over Kansas State. In fact, we took +5 when the line started, and it is now down to +3.5. So, I could take K-State -3.5 and shoot for the elusive centre, and pray for a four-point final margin. Maybe. But lemme tell you. Yeah, I predict them Irving because that has been my grandpa’s name.
And they have maybe my FAV nickname , the Anteaters. Once again, get that the Big 12 is WAY better than the Big West. However, Irving roars into the first-round matchup on a 16-0 straight-up run, also has two of the last 10, with one push. Also, one of K-State’s best players, an All-Big 12 first-teamer for two decades, F Dean Wade, is GONE. Eaters gotta EAT!
Quack Quack. Yeah, the Ducks, baby! Oregon dropped my favorite college player, Bol Bol, yeah, son of Manute, back in January. However, the Ducks do have among the greatest trainers on this side of the Mississippi, Dana Altman. All he does is win. Altman posted a 68-54 record at Kansas State, 327-176 in Creighton, and is currently 235-95 at Oregon. This is not his best gaggle of ducks, sorry, had to throw gaggle in. Really, how often do you get to use gaggle in a life? Oops, never mind, that’s for geese. Ducks are a flock.
Back to biz. And we are speaking MONEY, baby! Oregon has come down the stretch just like Secretariat, winning and COVERING eight in a row. Totally understand that the Big Ten is way better than the Pac-12, but Wiscy has been burning money. The Badgers have covered just two of the past 10, and 20 percent doesn’t make it within my own world.
Close down it in Columbia, South Carolina, with Duke -27 over North Dakota State. Are you gonna see a second HUMONGOUS No. 1 vs No. 16 upset? Not sure but we have some numbers you may wanna seem at. Discussing Duke and North Dakota State. And speaking a 27.5-point disperse. That’s a whole lotta chalk. If you’re not fond of this Summit League, then the Bison likely have not hit your radar screen. That is why I’m here. NDSU was a cash cow, or cash Bison if you will, covering nine of the last 13 total, and five of the last six on the road.
In terms of the big picture, the Blue Devils’ in general disperse log sits in 18-16, 9-8 on the street and 16-15 as a favorite. The Bison’s in general spread markers is 15-17, 7-12 on the road and 4-8 within an underdog. For you totals gamers, the Dookies have gone OVER only nine occasions, UNDER an AMAZING 24 times and pushed once, while Dakota has gone OVER 20 occasions and UNDER 12. Gonna tickle a Bison, also create a light play into the dog.
NHL select Before I let you go, skate onto the NHL ice , and grab the UNDER on the Islanders/Flyers game tomorrow night.
And plz, PLZ hit me Twitter over the weekend, @vegasvigorish, only if anything pops on the college hoop board.
Benjamin Eckstein is a syndicated sportswriter/oddsmaker. His column, America’s Line, with all the Ecks & Bacon appetizer, has conducted in the New York Daily News and above 100 other newspapers since 1988. You can follow him on line at www.americasline.com. He is loved by most, when he picks winners, and detested by others, when he chooses the occasional loser. If you wanna piece of Eck, hit on his email…ben@americasline.com.
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