Ricky Dimon
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March is here, and the madness is not far away. Some small conference tournaments are underway, bigger ones will get going next week, and round one of the NCAA Tournament is exactly 2 weeks away. We are coming down the home stretch of college basketball’s regular season, and today’s slate powers us toward the finish line with 6 top-25 teams taking the court. Among them are No. 2 Arizona and No. 6 Kansas.
Let’s take a look at our three-team mega parlay for Thursday. We hit this yesterday at +1125 odds with a couple of huge upsets, let’s make it two in a row!
Illinois -14.5 alternate spread (+125)
Ohio State -6 (-110)
Washington ML (+160)
Parlay odds: +1017
For this parlay we are going with two favorites against the spread – one on an alternate number – and one underdog on the money line. Let’s break down each of the three legs one by one.
Illinois -14.5 alternate spread over Penn State (+125)
Penn State had won 3 of its last 4 games heading into last Saturday but was absolutely demolished at home by Nebraska via a 93-70 decision. The Cornhuskers shot 58.2% from the field, including 13-of-20 from deep, and all 5 of their starters scored in double figures. Needless to say, that is alarming against one of the worst teams in the Big Ten for a team that is defensive oriented. The Nittany Lions have struggled offensively this season, ranking 306th nationally in points per game (65.3). Now they have to into a hostile road environment and they haven’t won away from home since January 5. Adding insult to injury, Illinois’ offense is one of the best in the business (76.9 ppg). Kofi Cockburn ranks 2nd in the conference with 21.5 ppg, while Alfonso Plummer and Jacob Grandison both shoot better than 40% from deep and pace an offense that averages 76.9 points per game. Illinois most recently defeated Michigan 93-85, so it is playing with some confidence. Expect this one to be a blowout.
Check out our Penn State vs Illinois preview
Ohio State -6 over Michigan State (-110)
Michigan State could not keep its momentum going following a huge upset win over Purdue. The Spartans went into Ann Arbor on Tuesday and got blown out by Michigan, 87-70. They have just been unable to put things together this season, mostly due to poor point-guard play and inconsistent performances away from the Breslin Center. Michigan State could continue to struggle on the road when it travels to Ohio State, which is seeking to bounce back from an upset loss to Nebraska. The Buckeyes are on a 2-game losing streak but picked up a massive road victory at Illinois last Thursday. They were in serious contention to get a share of the Big 10 regular-season title before those recent losses but are now in jeopardy of falling outside of the top 4 in the conference. This is a great bounce-back opportunity for Ohio State against a struggling opponent that is especially woeful on the road.
Check out our Michigan State vs Ohio State preview
Washington ML over Oregon (+160)
Oregon was once 9-3 in the Pac-12 but has hit the wall in a big way coming down the home stretch. The Ducks are 2-4 in their last 6 games and have not won on the road in almost exactly a month (February 5). Now they travel to Washington, which also isn’t playing particularly well but is a decent 9-9 in conference. The Huskies took care of Washington State at home last weekend and were competitive most of the way with UCLA on Tuesday aside from one big Bruins run midway through the second half. Washington surrendered only 25 first-half points, and such a defensive effort could be sustainable for a full 40 minutes against a reeling Oregon squad as opposed to a high-powered UCLA attack. Sound the upset alert.
Check out all our college basketball previews and picks for Thursday
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