March Madness Predictions Free - December 23, 2008

We hit well last night, going 5-2. Today we come back with seven picks...

Today's NCAA Basketball Picks:

Game: Marist at Delaware (7:00 PM Eastern)
Pick: 3 units on Marist +11.5 (-110) (risk 3 to win 2.7)

Here we have a sub-.500 team that is 1-3 at home on the year, laying double digits. Delaware is the better team in this one, but this line is too large. Marist has a better defense and should be able to find enough offense to hang. The Blue Hens are just 1-9 ATS at home against losing teams the past three seasons and 0-6 ATS against teams that average less than 65 points per game. Under Monte Ross, this team is 3-12 ATS as a favorite and 1-9 ATS against losing teams. I'll take the large points here.

Illinois Chicago is 4-0 UNDER on the road this season which is keeping this line low. Their offense is stout at 60.4 ppg allowed, but they can also score as they are averaging 72 per game. Toledo's offense is terrible, but being at home, they should be able to find the bucket. Coming off three straight losses, one in which they scored 35, I expect the Rockets to bring an inspired effort and find some offense. Illinois Chicago has put up 74+ points in four of their last seven games. I like this one to go OVER.

Kent State has won two in a row, but they lost five straight prior to that. Those two wins are misleading too as they were -15.5 and -19.5 favorites in them! They failed to cover the spread in either and have lost seven in a row ATS. They are 1-3 SU and ATS on the road this season. Meanwhile Cleveland State has won three in a row and seven of nine. Over those nine games they have had just one ATS loss. The Vikings play stifling defense, having held their twelve opponents to 57.1 ppg. In five home games, they have allowed just 52.4 per game! That's over 24 points better than the 76.7 allowed by Kent on the road. This spread just isn't big enough, given the disparity in the two teams. Take the Vikings to get the win and cover.

Buffalo has won two in a row and three of four. They have a winning record overall and a winning road record. Their defense is the best one on the court tonight. And, they are getting a bushel of points. Siena has played extremely well at home this season, but they have faced a schedule full of cupcakes so the stats are misleading. Their spreads at home this season? -13.5, -13, -17.5 and a no-lined game against Albany. Under Reggie Withersppon, the Bulls are 43-30 ATS in non-conference games. I like them plus the points.

The Flyers have opened up some eyes early as they are off to a 10-1 start, with the only setback coming on the road at Creighton. Dayton is doing it with big numbers as ten players have made solid contributions to their early success. No one is getting more than 28 minutes a game on the court, keeping fresh bodies in at all times. The Thundering Herd has won four straight. All four games were expected easy wins, but they struggled in the process. Dayton comes at you with fresh athletic players that play defense for 40 minutes, and it wears teams down. The Flyers are allowing just 33.7% from the field. It is going to be difficult for an average shooting Marshall team to stay in this one, so I'll back the Flyers to continue their winning ways with a convincing win.

The Aggies have struggled on the road, but they have played some top teams which should help them here, especially in an in-state rivalry game. The Aggies are a very good shooting team with a pair of 40%+ shooters from deep in Young and Gibson. They move the ball around well offensively as they have three players that have combined to produce 100 assists. The Lobos miss J.R. Giddons, but have managed to win some games. They have been playing well under the line, as they are just 2-7 ATS in their last nine and they failed as a double-digit favorite in the only two in their last nine games. The Lobos have not managed to cover any of their last five at home against a team with a losing record, and I like the Aggies to shoot well enough here to stay within the number.

Yes, Sacramento State is awful. They have won just one game out of ten, and their offense is pretty week. But, their defense is not strong either and they have gone OVER in four of six games. George Washington has gone OVER in two of three lined games. The Colonials are nailing 40.2% from beyond the arc and are allowing over 72 ppg on the road. I like this one to go OVER the low total.

Results: 3-4

NCAA Basketball Picks Resources:

• Don't forget to read our 2008 NCAA basketball gambling preview here.
• Read our college basketball betting here.
• Check out 2008 college basketball prior pick season results here.
• View our betting NCAA basketball here.
• Don't forget to visit our NCAA basketball Game-of-Day-Preview.
• Don't forget to visit our blog college basketball picks.
• View free college basketball predictions here.
• Check out our updated NCAA basketball odds lines and spreads.
• View march madness brackets here.
• Here we show our NCAA basketball against-the-spread records.
• Hop over to our ncaa march madness picks here.
• Updated today: NCAA basketball picks.

Check out the last five NCAA Basketball Picks Newsletters:

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-December-22-2008
The Gators have been holding down the bad teams on their schedule as they always play top level defense under Coach Donovan. Their home opponents from non-BCS schools have been limited to 56.8 ppg wit...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-December-21-2008
Two horrible teams get together in this one. Combined they have five wins to 13 losses. Charlotte hasn't seen action since December 10. Is this team that much better than Youngstown that they can ...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-December-20-2008
Sometimes the big-name school against the no-name makes it look easy. Georgia is coming off a big layoff here, and with a mediocre-caliber opponent, they may not be focused or sharp here. They have al...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-December-19-2008
The UL Monroe Warhawks certainly haven't gotten out of the gate as they expected at 2-7, but they have played their last five on the road. This team has been getting exploited defensively as they ...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-December-18-2008
The Bulldogs preparation for this one may have been reduced by the fact that head coach Rick Stansbury was out sick with a viral infection, which caused him some time in the hospital. Both of these te...