It is finally here.  March Madness…our time to shine.  FiveStarPick.com has been crushing the brackets this year analyzing stats, trends and injury reports to bring our clients the best opportunity to win against the spread in this year’s college basketball tournament.  The focus of today’s preview is the 8/9 matchup at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia betweent the Texas A&M Aggies and the Brigham Young Cougars.  Las Vegas Sportsbooks list the Cougars as 3-point favorites with the total hovering around 139.

The Aggies won last season’s tournament meeting with BYU, 67-62, as 1-point favorites.  Texas A&M (23-9 SU, 15-9 ATS) won each of its last six regular-season games before losing to Texas Tech in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. Nevertheless, the Aggies are a robust 10-3 ATS in their last 13 games.  A&M is 6-1 ATS in its seven tournament games since 2006. They were eliminated by UCLA in last season’s tourney, 51-49, as 9.5-point underdogs.

BYU has Lee Cummard, who averages 16.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. The Cougars have two other great scorers in Jonathan Tavernari (16.2 PPG) and Jimmer Fredette (15.9 PPG).  But their schedule is no where near that of a Big 12 school and should have their hands full with the Aggies today.  BYU had covered the number in nine straight games before failing to cover in its regular-season finale in the MWC Tourney.  BYU is only 5-6 ATS as a single-digit favorite this season, but Texas A&M has cashed at a 9-3 ATS clip in 12 underdog spots. 

So who do YOU think is going to cover this spread?  We would like to hear your thoughts about how to handicap this game, so leave us a Comment by clicking the Comment button below.  Or better yet, why not try our service out for 2-days for only $19.99 and see if our talent for picking College Basketball winners exceeds your expectations?  With over 3400 active members, you owe it to yourself to find out why FiveStarPick.com is the most accurate sports handicapping service on the net.  Our dime bettors were up over $100K in 2008.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com has been hot on Seminole Basketball as of late with our members getting the Noles yesterday as 9-point dogs.  Toney Douglas gave money line wagerers (risk $100 to win $350) something to line their pockets with as he scored 27 points and lead FSU to a 73-70 win over North Carolina.  But today is a new day and the question is…can FSU avoid a post upset let down when they take on Duke today?  Las Vegas sportsbooks list the Blue Devils as 6-point favorites with the total hovering around 134.5.

Duke (26-6 straight up, 15-15-1 against the spread) got a scare in Friday’s quarterfinal game against Boston College.  Gerald Henderson hit the game winner with 34 seconds left to lead the Dukies to a 66-65 victory. 

FSU (25-8 SU, 18-8-1 ATS) almost got upset by Georgia Tech, but slipped by with a 64-62 victory. Douglas went 11-16 from the floor to score 25-points and vault his team to another win.  That’s how FSU has done it all season long.  Douglas is the go-to guy offensively, while the entire team plays major D.

Duke and FSU met twice during the regular season with the Blue Devils winning in both outings…but the ‘Noles covered the spread in both.  Duke owns a 4-6-1 spread record in single-digit favorite situations and the ‘Noles are 11-4-1 ATS when listed as an underdog this season.

So who do YOU think is going to cover this spread?  We would like to hear your thoughts about how to handicap this game, so leave us a Comment by clicking the Comment button below.  Or better yet, why not try our service out for 2-days for only $19.99 and see if our talent for picking College Basketball winners exceeds your expectations?  With over 3400 active members, you owe it to yourself to find out why FiveStarPick.com is the most accurate sports handicapping service on the net.  Our dime bettors were up over $100K in 2008.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

What a tough night last night in the NBA.  The betting public got crushed by the bookmaker across the board.  It is going to happen eventually.  Today we are giving our members the ATS winners in five (5) basketball games, but the focus of this preview is tonight’s late NBA game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Clippers.  Las Vegas sportsbooks list the Cavaliers as 10-point road favorites with the total set at 192. 

Cleveland (49-13 SU, 41-21 ATS) attempting to win its sixth straight over the Clippers (15-48 SU, 25-38 ATS) after losing in Boston, 105-94, as 1 ½-point road dogs.  The Cavaliers bounced back with a win at home against Miami on Saturday, 99-89, as 9-point favorites.  Cleveland is 7-3 SU and 5-5 ATS in its last 10 games on the road and 20-10 ATS versus teams with a losing record.  The Cavs last played L.A. on January 30th and won 112-95…covering the enormous 15-point spread.

The Clippers are on a five-game losing streak and have dropped 15 of their last 20 games.   If we try and find a positive it’s that the Clippers are 5-3 ATS when coming into a game off of two days rest and a 6-1-1 ATS against the Central division this season. But that’s stretching it pretty thin.  The Clips are a dismal 19-28 ATS after a SU loss (106-105 loss against Indiana on Saturday) and a 12-16 ATS as the home underdog.

What does all this mean?  Who covers the spread in tonight’s game?  Try our service out for 2-days and see if our talent for picking NBA Basketball winners exceeds your expectations?  With over 3300 active members, you owe it to yourself to find out why FiveStarPick.com is the most accurate sports handicapping service on the net.  Our dime bettors were up over $100K in 2008.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com and its members had a crappy day yesterday with a miserable 1-3 ATS record…but there is a lot of great action on the board today in several sports…the PGA Tour, College Basketball and the NBA.  The focus of today’s preview is the long anticipated ACC matchup between the Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tarheels.  Las Vegas sportsbooks list the Heels as 8.5-point home favorites with the total hanging in around 165.

Duke (25-5 straight up, 15-14 against the spread) is riding a 5-game winning streak after beating Florida State Tuesday as a 12-point home favorite, 84-81. The Blue Devils had covered the spread in their previous three games before facing the ‘Noles.  Duke was down to Florida State at halftime, 40-34, and then outscored the Seminoles in the second half, 50-41. The Blue Devils shot 40 percent from the field and 33 percent from 3-land.  Gerald Henderson lead the offense with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Kyle Singler added 20 points and 7 boards.  

North Carolina (26-3 SU, 11-15 ATS) is coming off an 86-78 win against Virginia Tech last Wednesday as a 9 ½-point road favorite. The Tar Heels are just 1-4 ATS their last five outings.  North Carolina shot 41 percent from the field and center Tyler Hansbrough contributed 22 points and 15 rebounds in the victory.  Ty Lawson added 22 points and 5 assists.  The ‘Heels are a solid 13-1 SU at home but only 4-8 ATS.  The Tar Heels are 4-1 SU and ATS their last 5 meetings with Duke after prevailing February 11th, 101-87, as a two point road favorite.  

So who do YOU think is going to cover this spread?  We would like to hear your thoughts about how to handicap this game, so leave us a Comment by clicking the Comment button below.  Or better yet, why not try our service out for 2-days for only $19.99 and see if our talent for picking College Basketball winners exceeds your expectations?  With over 3400 active members, you owe it to yourself to find out why FiveStarPick.com is the most accurate sports handicapping service on the net.  Our dime bettors were up over $100K in 2008.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

USA TODAY – After an amazing showdown earlier this week, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James didn’t have to wait long for a rematch.

Wade and the Miami Heat try to hand James and the Cleveland Cavaliers just their second loss at Quicken Loans Arena this season on Saturday in the final regular season meeting between two of the league’s top scorers.

Cleveland (48-13) has won two of three against the Heat (33-28) this season, with all three games decided by fewer than 10 points. Monday’s meeting in Miami was the most competitive. Wade had 41 points, but James scored 42 as the Cavs rallied from a 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to win 107-100.

“We don’t want each other to have bragging rights,” said James, who is averaging 37.7 points against the Heat this season. “We definitely go at it when we play each other.”

Wade, the NBA’s leading scorer at 29.5 points per game, is eager for the rematch. He’s averaging 30.3 points against Cleveland this season, and has reached the 40-point plateau in three of Miami’s last four games and four of the last seven.

“I enjoyed the battle that we had,” Wade said Friday night after scoring 42 points in his team’s 108-102 win in Toronto. “You all saw it on ESPN, right? It was a good show.”

Wade, who was 17-for-23 from the floor Friday, is averaging 36.4 points since the All-Star break.

“Right now I’m just in a groove and when my jump shot is going like it is, I get more confident,” he said. “Hopefully I can keep it up.”

Keeping it up Saturday night could prove a daunting task.

The Cavaliers are 27-1 at home this season, with the only loss coming against the league-leading Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 8. Since then, they’ve won four straight by an average of 17.8 points at Quicken Loans Arena, where they’re allowing an average of just 88.2 points.

Cleveland has also won nine of 11 overall, but lost 105-94 loss at Boston on Friday. James struggled, shooting 5 of 15 and finishing with 21 points. He spent the final minutes on the bench with the Cavs unable to cut into the double-digit deficit.

The Celtics moved within percentage points of Cleveland for the top spot in the East and home-court advantage in the playoffs. The home team has won all three meetings in the season series.

“Both teams know it takes on a different meaning because we may face each other late in the season,” James said. “At one point, somebody’s going to have to get a win on the other’s home court.”

Cleveland has lost consecutive games only once this season, falling at home to the Lakers and at Indiana on Feb. 8 and 10. The Cavs have won eight of their last 10 home games against the Heat, including a 93-86 victory Dec. 28, when James’ 33 points led the way.