FOLLOW@CIMINI

Today I have a six game NCAA/NBA hoops package. To purchase click on the picks page.

For a free play I’ll head to the AAC conference which has been one of my strongest conferences this season. One it is easy to dictate this conference as the Big East transplants such as Louisville and UConn have dominated. Newcomers such as Memphis, SMU, and Creighton haven’t been too shabby either. The disparity in the conference from the top teams to the bottom is by far the biggest gap of any conference. There have been a wide margin of blowouts from teams such as Houston, South Florida, Central Florida, Rutgers, and Temple.

Today two teams square off that have been down all season. Rutgers from a talent standpoint has not played to their capabilities compared to a Central Florida team that has rode the hot hand of their guard Sykes, who has been a dynamic player for them all season.

This is a game where the oddmakers have given Central Florida a generous 4.5 point home spread advantage. Their style of play running up and down the court and scoring at a high rate makes them intriguing quick trigger play. But I’ll fade them here as they’ve struggled to separate from teams as the pace they play at is just as detrimental as it is successful.

Rutgers hasn’t thrived this season not because of offense but because of their defense. In a free flowing game with better talent on the Rutgers side I like them to cover this line with a solid push in the final ten minutes to overtake Central Florida.