YTD Record: 8-6

After a disappointing 1-3 mark last week, it brings the record this year to 8-6-1. As always, feel free to leave a comment below or reach out on Twitter @Smithers513. Good luck!

Iowa at Purdue -1.5

Utah State +5 at UNLV

From a statistical perspective, you aren’t going to find much that you like about the Aggies. However, they are a scrappy team that is going to be up for the challenge in Las Vegas. Outside of the win over Arizona, I haven’t seen a lot to like with the Runnin’ Rebs this year. Outside of a win over a putrid San Jose State team, UNLV is winless against the rest of the Mountain West, sitting at 1-5 in conference play. The Rebels are a team that typically plays to the level of their competition, due to they are a pretty undisciplined basketball team, but have some solid athletes that can play with some of the big boys, but ultimately their lack of cohesiveness and execution does them in. Utah State is a team that I was bullish on this year given some perceived value on the Aggies given they started a whole new wave of guys, but they are starting to gel nicely. UNLV is coming off a rough three game stretch against Boise State, SDSU, and New Mexico, and I think the Aggies come to town at just the right time. Provided Utah State isn’t out visiting the local attractions Sin City has to offer, they should make tomorrow a close game and be in a good position to get an outright win.

Louisiana Lafayette +8 at Georgia State

I’ve said it before, but wearing the crown as the league’s best team is a very tough role for teams to embrace in conference play, given they are going to get the other teams’ best shot game in and game out. The Ragin’ Cajuns have been a thorn in Georgia State’s side over the last year, handing the Panthers two losses in their last two meetings, including ending their postseason aspirations last season in the Sun Belt tournament. In fact, in the last four contests between these teams, the games have been decided by 7, 3, 1, and 4 points. In a game like this, I will gladly take the 8 points in a game that I think will go down to the wire. These two teams met a few weeks ago, and ULL overcome an early 16 point deficit to rally and hand Georgia State a loss. One of the reasons I think ULL has been able to handle Georgia State and play them tough is they are a team that challenges Georgia State defensively. In their last matchup, Lafayette got to the line 38 times, attacking Georgia State off the dribble. The Cajuns also have the ability to bomb themselves back into games given their propensity to shoot the 3, ranking 4th in the country in 3 PT FG percentage. Any time you have a team that can be lethal from deep and keep Georgia State off guard by being able to get to the charity stripe, it can be a dangerous combination for a dog. I’m going to take the points in a game that I expect to go down to the wire.

DePaul +12 at Xavier

Raise your hand if you had DePaul in first place in the Big East in late January. I’ll wait. Is it time to maybe accept that DePaul isn’t all that bad and our perceptions were off? The line makes sense given Xavier was -10 at DePaul a few weeks ago, but Xavier is a team in a bit of a funk right now. The Musketeers have lost three of their last four, and needed a big rally to beat Marquette last Saturday. Xavier fell in a big hole last night against Providence and was able to claw back, and coach Chris Mack busted out a 1-3-1 zone that I think could be a good weapon for them moving forward. However, now that DePaul knows they have that in their arsenal, they could be better prepped for it on Saturday. It’s a brutal traveling spot for Xavier, having played an OT game at Providence and only having one day of rest before an early tip against DePaul. I think Xavier gets the win, but it will be a hard fought battle and the 12 points will come in handy.