Ricky Dimon
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The weekend in college basketball doesn’t really heat up until Saturday, but there are 2 games involving top 25 teams on Friday. We also have a couple of Atlantic 10 games on the schedule, so there is enough to work with as we try to formulate a winning mega parlay.
Pickswise has enjoyed plenty of success with college basketball handicapping of late, namely 5 Best Bet winners in our last 6 such efforts. Let’s keep it rolling!
Illinois -16 alternate spread (+210)
St. Bonaventure -2 (-110)
Davidson ML (-105)
Parlay odds: +1055
For this parlay we are going with two favorites against the spread – one on an alternate number – and one underdog on the money line. Let’s break down each of the three legs one by one.
Illinois -16 alternate spread over Michigan (+210)
The Wolverines travel to Illinois for their third straight road game after they had to cancel their matchup against Michigan State due to health and safety regulations. In a press conference on Thursday, coach Juwan Howard stated that some players have been sick and in quarantine while others were in protocols due to close contact. Because of that, their practices have lacked cohesion. In their loss at Rutgers on January 4, the shorthanded Wolverines played just 6 players for more than 10 minutes and were without Brandon Johns, Terrance Williams, and Frankie Collins – who are all key bench pieces for them. Illinois is a tough place to play already, let alone when extracurricular factors involved. This could be an absolute beatdown.
Check out our Michigan vs Illinois preview
St. Bonaventure -2 over VCU (-110)
This game in St. Bonaventure could have a huge impact on who represents the Atlantic 10 in the NCAA Tournament. St. Bonaventure had a very disappointing loss to Virginia Tech on December 17, when a fair amount of people probably jumped off the Bonnies’ bandwagon. They are no longer some people’s favorite to win the Atlantic 10 and are far from their preseason top-25 ranking, but they have a chance to change that today. St. Bonaventure is still 9-3 on the season with big wins against Boise State, Clemson, and Marquette. This is a great opportunity for the Bonnies to prove to people that they are still the best team in this conference. They have 5 seniors in their starting lineup who are fully aware of how big this game is for their at-large hopes. Look for VCU to struggle, allowing the Bonnies to cover.
Check out all our college basketball previews and picks for Friday
Davidson ML over Richmond (-105)
While the Spiders have won 3 of their last 5 games, they have started off conference play 1-2 and have lost by an average margin of 18.5 points in those games. The visiting Wildcats are coming off a 77-67 home win over UMass on Tuesday and have started conference play 3-0. In fact, Davidson is on a 12-game winning streak and has won by an average margin of 15.2 points in that span. The 10th-ranked Davidson offense is led by junior forward Hyunjung Lee, who ranks 2nd in the A-10 with 17.4 ppg while his teammates Foster Loyer, Luka Brajkovic, and Michael Jones are all scoring in double-figures with 16 ppg, 13.2 ppg, and 12.3 ppg, respectively. Despite the Wildcats’ recent struggles against Richmond, they are arguably one of the hottest teams in college basketball and have the advantage on both sides of the ball. The Fighting Stephen Currys should be able to continue their hot streak.
Check out our Davidson vs Richmond preview
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