TSR 12/18/19 CBB Picks

Yesterday's Pick Results (Season Pick Standings can be found here)
Nick 8-2
Sam 7-3
Zach 7-3

WEDNESDAY’S GAMES

Game 1: Tennessee at Cincinnati (7:00)

Nick: Tennessee--Rick Barnes gets his 700th career win in a strong road win.

Sam: Tennessee-- Has there been a bigger disappointment in college basketball this year than the play of  Jarron Cumberland?

Zach: Cincinnati- Jarron Cumberland bounces back from his blunder against Colgate and has a huge game

Game 2: ETSU at LSU (7:00)

Nick: ETSU--LSU's schedule is elite, and I applaud them for that. ETSU gets a huge upset victory on the road against the Tigers. #2BidSoCon

Sam: LSU-- I love LSU’s willingness to play top mid majors. Along with ETSU they have already played Rhode Island, Utah State, and a true road game at VCU.

Zach: LSU

Game 3: UNCG at Vermont (7:00)

Nick: Vermont

Sam: UNCG

Zach: Vermont

Game 4:Alabama at Samford (7:30)

Nick: Samford--Alabama is struggling lately under Nate Oats, and Samford is undefeated at home. This has the makings of an upset. #2BidSoCon

Sam: Alabama

Zach: Alabama- This is gonna be a closer game than most think as Samford has yet to lose at home and they bring in their biggest opponent to date

Game 5: Oakland at Syracuse (8:00)

Nick: Syracuse

Sam: Syracuse-- Both teams are not very good..

Zach:Syracuse

Game 6: UNC at Gonzaga (8:30)

Nick: Gonzaga--As these two below both say, the absence of Cole Anthony is huge for the Tar Heels. Gonzaga wins this game easily, as North Carolina is reeling at the moment.

Sam: Gonzaga-- Even with Cole Anthony I think UNC would lose this by double digits. Without him? They will get run out of Spokane rather quickly.

Zach: Gonzaga- This game could get ugly, and fast. Without Cole Anthony, this team is a mess and it is rightly so they are not in the Top 25

Game 7: St Mary’s at Arizona State (9:00)

Nick: St Mary's

Sam: St Mary’s-- Just a few years after Randy Bennett’s team was left out of the tournament because of a bad non league schedule, he has really beefed up the Gaels schedule. Good for him.  

Zach: St Mary’s- Will be fun to watch the guard matchup of Jordan Ford and Remy Martin, both averaging over 20 ppg

Game 8:Pacific at UNLV (10:00)

Nick: UNLV

Sam: UNLV

Zach: UNLV

Game 9: Utah at Kentucky (9:00)

Nick: Kentucky

Sam: Kentucky

Zach: Kentucky

Game 10: Michigan State at Northwestern (8:00)

Nick: Michigan State--Northwestern is by far the least fearful visiting environment in the Big Ten. In what I assume will be a pro-MSU crowd, the "home" team wins the game. Michigan State has some issues to work on, but this should be an opportunity for players to step up and prove their contribution. Perhaps Connor George or Foster Loyer will best their three-point efforts from Saturday, or will it be someone like Gabe Brown or Aaron Henry who reach career highs?

Sam: Michigan State-- Yes, the Big Ten has yet to win a road conference game but Northwestern has yet to host a conference game. If the Spartans lose this one, real concerns will, and rightfully should, arise.

Zach: Michigan State- The Big Ten finally wins a road conference game. The Spartans are just far better than the Wildcats, but this year, you never know. Does this show how deep the B1G is, or how it’s not?

Upsets:

Nick: Vanderbilt over Loyola IL (+1.5) Sam: Cleveland St over DePaul (+15)

Zach: College of Charleston over VCU (+5.0)