Friday's college hoops slate finds several
little guys taking the floor, including a conference opener for Siena and Rider plus NIU at Milwaukee, and we have NCAA basketball picks on each.
Season: 21-19 ($0.10)
'Tis the season to be jolly, and nothing brings more jolly
into the holidays than some extra cash. College basketball bettors have a very
light schedule to choose from to try and make a little money on Friday, and
sometimes that can be a good thing.
More options certainly give handicappers more places to find
value, but a shorter slate can help narrow the search down in some cases. There
are just 11 games on Friday's card, making it a very narrow search indeed.
Lighter Friday schedules are something we're going to have
to get used to. For the past month, starting with the big opening day back on
November 9, we've been spoiled to a certain extent with at least a few marquee
teams to consider leading into the weekend. But that's about to change with most of our Fridays from here on out occupied
with games from conferences like the Ivy League and MAAC to name a couple.
A MAAC conference opener is on our list tonight when Siena gets a visit from
Rider. Our other selection will be a
MAC-Horizon League clash as Milwaukee hosts Northern Illinois.
Let's get to it.
Rider vs. Siena
Loyola (MD) was the pick to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference in the preseason, but the Greyhounds got their league slate off on a
losing note this week with a home setback to Niagara. Could that open the door for a team like
Rider to sneak in and surprise everyone?
Probably not, but if the Broncs are going to pull off such a
stunt, they'll need to get out to a fast start with conference road wins over
teams like Siena. The good folks who set the NCAA basketball
odds sent Rider out as a 2.5 point favorite in this conference opener for both
schools.
Rider comes off a 75-66 win at Drexel, just missing the
10-point cover, and has won three of its last four. The lone defeat in that stretch was a poor
showing at home vs. La Salle as the Explorers
jumped to an early 11-point lead that the Broncs never could make up, thanks to
18 turnovers and a poor night shooting the rock, from both the field and
charity stripe.
Siena
has dropped its last five, covering just one of the three lined games in that
span, and the Saints have been horrible on offense all season. They've also yet to give the home fans
anything to cheer about with defeats in all three contests at Times Union
Center. Siena
does have a rebounding machine in OD Anosike, and neutralizing him on the glass
will be an issue for Rider.
Northern Illinois
vs. Milwaukee
The Huskies might be the talk of the Mid-American Conference
on the gridiron, but all signs point to the Huskies, and the rest of the MAC,
taking a backseat to Ohio
on the hardwood.
All signs also point to their opponents on Friday, the
Milwaukee Panthers, sitting in the same spot as the Huskies in the Horizon
League. The Panthers drag a 5-game
losing streak into this matchup, yet are still favored by 11 against NIU. No total was released with the overnight
odds.
The spread wouldn't be so large if this game was played a
week ago before Paris Gulley came back from his hand injury for Milwaukee. The senior guard is definitely the go-to guy
on offense for the Panthers, and NIU will need to either shut him down or hope
Gulley can't find the net.
Northern Illinois,
meanwhile, doesn't have a player in double-figures on the scoring end, and it's
not because the Huskies like to spread it around. Only 10 teams are scoring less than NIU's
54.6 PPG average, and the squad has failed to break the 50-point mark in four
of the seven trips to the floor.
My picks: Rider
-2.5 / Milwaukee
-11 at Bookmaker