Ncaa Bracket Predictions - March 13, 2010

We took it on the chin last night on the CBB floor, finishing 1-7-1, dropping us to 19-19 over the last five days - erasing our nice run. As we inch closer to Selection Sunday, we go with seven premium CBB picks including a 4-unit play.

Today's NCAA Basketball Picks:

Game: Tennessee vs. Kentucky (1:00 PM Eastern)
Pick: 3 units on Tennessee +4.5 (-110) (risk 3 to win 2.7)

The Kentucky Wildcats have lost just two games this season and one was to the Tennessee Volunteers, so they won't be intimidated here. Along the way the Wildcats had several close calls, and although this team is stacked with talent, they are a very young and vulnerable team as well. The Vols are an experienced and talented team, and have enough to take this one down to the wire, or win it. They have come up huge as an underdog, where they have turned in a 22-9-1 ATS mark in their last 31 as a dog of 6.5 or less. Away from the comforts of home, the Wildcats are just 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight as a neutral-site favorite. I'll go with Tennessee here.

The Rhode Island Rams may have played themselves into the NCAA Tournament with their win yesterday, but certainly could put the icing on the cake with a win here vs. the Owls. This is a team that has a lot of talent, yet played inconsistently at times, but when they bring their "A" game, they can play with almost anyone. The Owls have won eight straight games, and have played consistently well, but URI did force them to OT in one of the meetings this season. The Rams are definitely the team in need here, but they are also good enough to win this one, so I'll go with Rhode Island here.

The Duke Blue Devils have a good chance at a No. 1 seed if they can run the table in the ACC Tournament. The Blue Devils have been perfect at home this year, but have really struggled on the road. They were down to Virginia at the half, and needed a huge second half to take the Cavs. Miami, Fla. is on the bubble, and a win in this one will put them in the big dance, so I expect a lot of energy from them here. The Blue Devils have not fared well in the ACC Tournament as a big favorite as they have posted just a 2-9 ATS mark in their last 11 tourney games posted as a favorite of 9 or more. The Hurricanes have been a potent dog at 8-1 ATS in their last nine taking points. I'll go with Miami, Fla. here.

The Ohio State Buckeyes could be feeling the emotional backlash of their game yesterday. Evan Turner hit a 35-40 footer as time expired to propel the Buckeyes from sure defeat, to survive and advance. The Illini closed the season playing poorly, but got things together in a must win situation vs. a very good Wisconsin team, and got the win as a similar-size dog. This team has been good enough when playing well to have beaten the Badgers twice, Vanderbilt, Clemson and Michigan State, so don't count them out here. They are also 6-1 ATS as a dog from 7-12.5 in their last seven. This might be a slow start for Ohio State and will have the Illini believing. I'll take the points and go with Illinois here.

North Carolina State made a run in this tournament four years ago as they won three straight as a dog before losing to North Carolina in the final, but even covered that game as well. Are we looking at this team coming together again in the ACC Tournament? The Wolfpack have turned-in two upsets already to get here, and will be very confident here vs. a Tech team they barely missed beating on the road by just 2 points. They will have the crowd behind them here - as the dog always gets the fans, and no one wants to be playing The Pack right now. NC State is 8-2 ATS in their last 10 on a neutral court, covering four of their last five vs. Georgia Tech as the dog 9 of the last 10 in this series. I'll go with NC State here.

If there were any doubts that the Aztecs would be dancing come tourney time, those doubts were erased with a resounding big win over New Mexico. That means that they have now beaten all three top Mountain West teams - BYU, New Mexico and UNLV. The Aztecs can play with anyone, so getting a handful of points here is definitely the way to go. UNLV owns wins against the top teams here as well, but the Aztecs have taken care of business with UNLV with this cast of seniors with a 4-1 ATS mark in the five meetings. This one could go either way, so the points are huge here. I'll back San Diego State.

Both of these teams are barely above .500, but that doesn't matter as one of them will be heading to the play in game on Tuesday in the NCAA Tournament. That may seem like a dream to the Golden Lions who opened the season at 0-11, but has really clamped down opponents on the defensive end since. Despite two overtime games in their last 10, only two opponents have gotten out of the 50s against Arkansas Pine Bluff. Texas Southern has played two low scoring, half-court games in the tournament. Couple that with the fact that the last meeting between these clubs was decided in overtime, but even with the extra session, just 110 total points were scored. This one gets played in similar fashion, so I'm going with the UNDER here.

Results: 5-2

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Check out the last five NCAA Basketball Picks Newsletters:

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-March-12-2010
The Duke Blue Devils are a huge favorite in this one, and I don't think they will be going with starters deep into the second half with a likely three straight games in three days. It is has been ...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-March-11-2010
The Hurricanes have been held to the 60s or less in 10 ACC games, and aren't a team that likes to get out and run, but would rather work in the half-court. After touching 70 in 13 of their first 1...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-March-10-2010
The Houston Cougars certainly draw attention from oddsmakers as they like to run up and down the floor. The problem is this team carries totals it can't achieve and, despite the big offense, the u...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-March-09-2010
Bethune Cookman is barely over .500, and Florida A & M well below. Regardless of the outcome here the winner is playing in the play-in game come tournament time. Bethune Cookman, for those that do...

NCAA-Basketball-Picks-March-08-2010
The Siena Saints have been the kingpin in the MAAC for the past three years, and they are playing this one at home where they have now won 37 straight games. This is a talent-laden Saints team that is...