The 2009 Final Four is in Detroit this weekend and the lines and odds are already out.  FiveStarPick.com will be giving its members the ATS winners of both games this weekend and in the Championship Game on Monday night.  

North Carolina remains the favorite to win it all at -165 (risk $165 to win $100) by Las Vegas sportsbooks.  The Tar Heels advanced to the finals by beating the No. 2 seed Oklahoma, 72-60, in the South Region finals. The Heels easily covered the spread as seven-point favorites.   As always, Ty Lawson was the fuel to Roy Williams’ fire.  Lawson scored 19 points, grabbed five rebounds, had five assists and three steals against one turnover in the victory.  Las Vegas currently lists North Carolina as a 7.5-point favorite over Villanova with the total hovering around 162.

The Villanova Wildcats knocked off top-seeded Pitt in Saturday’s closest game.  Scottie Reynolds scored the game winning shot with 0.5 seconds left to send ‘Nova to the 2009 Final Four for the first time since 1985. The Wildcats won outright as 2-point underdogs.  Coming into the tournament, Villanova’s odds to win it all was 40/1 (risk $100 to win $4,000).  Since, the number has moved to 5/1.

Michigan State dominated Louisville in the Midwest Region finals with a 64-52 victory as seven-point underdogs.  Tom Izzo has brought MSU to the Final Four 5 times now in his career. The Spartans won the title back in 2000 by beating Florida in the championship game.

Las Vegas sportsbooks have opened UConn as a 4-point favorite over Michigan State with a total of 131. UConn beat Missouri 82-75 in Saturday’s West Region finals and covered the 6.5-point spread by a half point thanks to 10 consecutive free throws in the final minute and a missed lay-up by the Tigers with a second left on the clock. Kemba Walker had 23 points off the bench.

So who do YOU think is going to cover these spreads in the 2009 Final Four?  We would like to hear your thoughts about how to handicap these games, 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 the 2009 Final Four winners against the spread 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.  By the way, our dime bettors were up over $100K in 2008.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com had a slight kink in the armour last night with a 1-3 ATS record, but today is a new day, and new opportunities have presented themselves.  The focus of today’s preview is the Big East/Big 12 showdown between the UConn Huskies and the Missouri Tigers.  Las Vegas sportsbooks list UConn as 6.5-point favorites with the total coming in around 150. 

UConn (30-4 straight up, 14-14 against the spread) crushed Jim Calhoun’s Purdue team, 72-60, as a seven-point favorite.  Hasheem Thabeet led the Huskies with 15 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocked shots. Craig Austrie had a team-high 17 points, while A.J. Price had 15 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Stanley Robinson chipped in 10 points and 11 boards.

Missouri (31-6 SU, 20-10 ATS) roasted the Number 2 seed Memphis, 102-91.  Missouri won outright as a 5-point underdog.  J.T. Tiller scored a team-high 23 points, while Leo Lyons had 15 points and 12 rebounds. DeMarre Carroll added 17 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a blocked shot.   The victory was Missouri’s sixth straight both SU and ATS.

UConn has covered the spread in all three of its tournament victories over Chattanooga, Texas A&M and Purdue. The Huskies have won by an average of 31.3 points per game.  UConn owns a 6-4 ATS record in 10 games as a single-digit favorite. Meanwhile, Missouri has compiled a 4-2 ATS record in six games as an underdog.

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