The college basketball season has officially tipped off. Today’s Top 25 match-ups feature 17 of the 25 preseason ranked teams listed in the College Basketball is Less than a Month Away post. You may notice that some of these teams are going up against scrub DI programs leaving the point spread absent, unfortunately. However, some are present! These may presume to be the “tighter” match-ups. For instance, North Florida is visiting the “IZZO ZONE” at Michigan State (2nd). I really like the play on North Florida right here simply because the Spartans recently went against a DII opponent and squeaked by with a lousy eight point win. Certainly not a win in Tom Izzo’s book. Make a play on North Florida tonight at 7:00pm CST as 31 and a half point dogs.

Some of the Top 25 teams are not “action eligible” simply because the odds makers have little to no information on the opposing scrubs. The best way to make some money tonight though is to find a loop hole and exploit it. How do we do this? First,  sorry to inform you, but you will be needing to do some research. It is possible to gather intel on mid-major programs. Key factors to look for: Do they have any big time transfers? Are they senior heavy? Did they have a good season last year? If you can find some of these boosters, and mix that with an overrated preseason program, then you have a winning equation!

To cash out on your NCAAB plays, you must first understand that the odds makers cannot cover the vast realm that is college hoops. Let’s put it this way; compared to the NBA, odds makers have only 30 teams to worry about and really hone in on. For NCAAB, they have over 200 DI schools to study up on. 99.9999999% of the time, there will be a game that was over/under looked (however you want to look at it). And that is where you will be able to steal a win and cash out big! You can be the your own odds maker with as much research you may choose to conduct on one particular match-up. Point being, there are simply not enough hours in the day for odds makers to focus in on all of the match-ups for that particular day, it is simply impossible.

Once the seasons’ wheels begin to turn and we get into conference play, understand the importance of home court advantage and revenge match-ups. The majority of conferences schedule each teams to play twice each year (one at home and one on the road). The best plays to make occur after a team losing a heart breaker on the road, then later presented with a second stab at that same opponent on their home court. Just keep in mind that these are unpredictable teenagers that run on emotions. Home court advantage is monumental (especially in rivalry games). Also, do not ever think that one team is so good that they will always cover the spread. Do not be afraid to bet against these preseason Top 25 teams. Who knows what they are actually made of.

I would also like to leave you with this side note. Last season, I bet a few NCAAB games at the beginning of the season; much like today. Some won, some lost. Anyways, I was very impresed with my Boise State pick and their team as a whole. So what did I do? Much like a heater in Craps, I let em’ ride! That’s right, I made plays on the Broncos of Boise State about 6 or 7 more times until they finally did not cover the spread. They were on some run man… They were MY team for a while. Point being, find YOUR team this NCAAB season!

A first look at USAToday’s preseason Top 25, who made the list and who did not? Any new faces to the mix? Any historic dynasties get left out?

1. ARIZONA 2. MICHIGAN STATE 3. DUKE 4. WICHITA STATE 5. KANSAS 6. KENTUCKY 7. FLORIDA 8. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 9. LOUISVILLE 10. VILLANOVA 11. NORTH CAROLINA 12. XAVIER 13. WEST VIRGINIA 14. NOTRE DAME 15. NORTHWESTERN 16. MIAMI 17. MINNESOTA 18. UCLA 19. SAINT MARY’S 20. SETON HALL 21. CINCINNATI 22. ALABAMA 23. BUTLER 24. MISSOURI 25. VIGINIA

After a quick glance, you may have to double take at the sight of Missouri being noticed as one of the 25 best teams in the country. Also, the Trojans of US climbed all the way up to the number eight spot! This is a team that has been dominated by their rivals of UCLA in basketball for years (probably forever). Now, they may get a chance for a little redemption during the 2017-18 season… Wait a minute, where is Gonzaga, Oregon, or Baylor?! Probably a mixture of bad recruitments and/or loss of solid seniors leaves them out of this year’s preseason hopefuls. Nevertheless, I am very excited (like always) for this upcoming college basketball season and the road to San Antonio!

Everyone loves to watch the big match-up’s throughout the week. We call these primetime games. Primetime games include Sunday/Monday Night Football, College Game Day, and obviously playoff competitions. Why do I mention this? Sports-books alike and Vegas will put a lot more focus on configuring the lines for these particular games. Okay, we get it. Get to the point! Okay, one tip that I like to take advantage of every so often is to find match-ups that sports-books and Vegas do not necessarily give two shits about (politely put). The odds makers will typically throw out a number and observe where the money begins to gravitate towards to come up with a more even line come closer to game time. So whether you are searching for small schools in college basketball and football, there will always be “holes” in certain match-ups for these FCS schools. It is in your best interest to find these “holes” early in the week so you can get a good line before the line begins to shift. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find lines like this in professional sports because of the simple fact that their are fewer teams. Fewer teams equates to more time being able to post a solid line. So next time you are searching for lines this NCAAF and NCAAB seasons, take a look at a Virginia Military Academy vs. Furman (for example) line and see if you can find an advantage for your next play!

Do you remember me discussing in a previous post titled Week 3, Already?! to look for significant shifts in the lines? Here are a few of the match-ups whose lines have shifted a bit that are worth mentioning. Keep in mind, go in the direction that the money is flowing towards; even if it means giving up a few points on the point-spread. Jaguars @ Steelers: starling line = Steelers -9. Line as of today = Steelers -7.5 (Pick Jaguars). Seahawks @ Rams: starting line = EVEN. Line as of today = Rams -1.5 (Pick Rams).

As always, good luck this week! I like the UNDER in the Bills and Bengals match-up for whatever its worth.