Handicapper Article

Smart Money College Hoops Weekend Watchdog
Alex Smart Sports
Posted: 2010-01-29
Smart Money turns its attention to the college basketball world to fill you in on all of the great action that no college basketball fan should miss on Saturday!

Duke Blue Devils vs. Georgetown Hoyas 1:00 ET... The Dookies and Hoyas both take a break from conference play on Saturday. This isn't your average walk in the park for either team, though. Duke has already proven this year that it can play with anyone in the nation. It has already faced arguably 11 NCAA Tournament teams this year, and of the ones outside of the ACC, it has destroyed Charlotte (101-59), Arizona State (64-53), Connecticut (68-59), and Gonzaga (76-41). Georgetown's 'D' had better be able to keep the Blue Devils from dominating on the outside, or it's going to be a long day for a team that is coming off of a dismal 56-point performance against Syracuse on Monday night.

Northern Iowa Panthers vs. Missouri State Bears 3:05 ET... Missouri Valley Conference ball is always hot and heavy, and two teams that have NCAA Tournament aspirations should put on a great show at the JQH Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Bears had a very impressive out-of-conference run that featured 'W's against a few tourney-caliber squads, but they've fallen off in MVC play. A win against a sure-fire tournament team in conference would go a long way towards righting the ship. The Panthers won the first clash between these teams 84-76.

Baylor Bears vs. Texas Longhorns 4:00 ET... Baylor is suddenly struggling to find traction in the Big XII and has lost three of its L/4 conference games. A 76-74 home loss to Kansas State was crippling to its NCAA Tournament hopes, but not all is lost. The Bears are still 15-4 overall and are still probably comfortably in the Field of 65 if the tourney started today, but this schedule down the stretch is going to be brutal. Texas would love nothing more than to erase the memory of those two losses last week by blowing up the Bears in what would be its first cover since December 22nd.

Vanderbilt Commodores vs. Kentucky Wildcats 4:00 ET... The Commodores may be the hottest team in the country right now outside of the Big East. Vandy has cashed in ten straight wins SU and is 7-1 ATS in its L/8 overall. Many thought that this recent string of four out of five and five out of seven road tests would cripple the Commodores' chances of making the NCAA Tournament, but all it has done is secured their spot. Kentucky is coming off of its first loss of the season at South Carolina on Tuesday night, and will be coming back home with angry intentions on its minds. The Cats have dropped six out of eight SU against Vandy SU, including a 77-64 loss in Nashville last season.

Kansas Jayhawks vs. Kansas State Wildcats 7:00 ET... The rivalry between Kansas and Kansas State may provide the best NCAA basketball betting affair of the entire week. Both of these teams are still competing for a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and KSU is still trying to prove that it belongs in the discussions with the big boys in college basketball even though it already has a win against then #1 and undefeated Texas to its resume. Kansas won't be a pushover though, as it likely has a deeper and more talented squad than Texas and certainly won't be taking the Wildcats lightly. Manhattan should be rocking for what will surely be a can't miss game.



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