My picks went 2-2 last night, moving me to 25-19 on the season. The best game of the night resulted in a loss, but I'm cool with that because it was worth it to watch West Virginia and Kansas State battle through 50 minutes of hard-fought basketball. Huggins v. Martin is an absolute joy, with Huggins' genius zone defense schemes battling Martin's slashing, ball movement offense. In the end, both teams looked in solid mid-season form and Kevin Jones & Co. proved too much. This game might end differently in a few weeks, though. Keep an eye on both squads.
Here's how I did last night:
W 53-67: No. 24 Harvard @ No. 9 UCONN (-6.5)
L 57-64: Boston College @ Providence (-13)
W 81-92: West Michigan @ Detroit (-5)
L 85-80 (2OT): West Virginia @ Kansas State (-2)
Let's get to tonight's lines!
8:00pm ESPN2: Richmond (+3.5) @ VCU
Freshman guard Kendall Anthony and Richmond can put up points in a hurry, while VCU hasn't shown that they can provide much resistance, giving up 69, 73 and 72 points in their three losses.
8:00pm ESPN3: Iowa @ Iowa State (-9.5)
Odd that neither of these teams is the best in the state, with that distinction clearly going to Northern Iowa at this point in the year. Normally I would bet on a tight game between in-state rivals, but Iowa has just player in double figures and have only scored 55, 54 and 60 in their last three games.
9:00pm Comcast MA/SNY: Old Dominion @ Fairfield (-2)
The Stags spread the ball really well and senior Rakim Sanders leads a solid offensive core. It does bother me that Fairfield has lost their last two at home but ODU's 39.0% FG rate doesn't inspire me enough to change my mind.
9:00pm Root Sports: Wyoming (+6) @ Colorado
Wyoming is riding a six-game winning streak but Colorado has played by far the better schedule. Colorado has a balanced attack that's real strong on the boards, but Wyoming doesn't turn the ball over much and this is a good chance to add some validity to their season.
Ryan ZumMallen writes about basketball and interpretive dance in Long Beach, CA. Follow him on Twitter at @ryanzummallen.