Las Vegas Expert Picks: March Madness

Vegas veteran Benjamin Eckstein, author of America’s Line, brings three years of experience to produce weekly selections in his”Ecks & Bacon” column.
March Madness picks
LAS VEGAS — Gimme some Cal-Irvine +3.5 points over Kansas State. Actually, we chose +5 when the line started, and it’s now down to +3.5. So, I could take K-State -3.5 and take for the elusive centre, and pray for a four-point final margin. Maybe. But lemme tell you. Yeah, I call them Irving since that was my grandpa’s name.
And they’ve perhaps my FAV nickname ever, the Anteaters. Yet more, get that the Big 12 is WAY much better than the Big West. However, Irving roars to the first-round matchup on a 16-0 straight-up run, and has covered nine of the last 10, with a single push. Also, one of K-State’s very best gamers, an All-Big 12 first-teamer for a couple of years, F Dean Wade, is GONE. Eaters obtained Id EAT!
Quack Quack. Yeah, the Ducks, baby! Oregon lost my favorite college player, Bol Bol, yeah, son of Manute, back in January. However, the Ducks do have among the greatest trainers on the side of the Mississippi, Dana Altman. No matter where he belongs, he does is win. Altman posted a 68-54 listing at Kansas State, 327-176 in Creighton, and is now 235-95 in Oregon. This isn’t his best gaggle of ducks, sorry, had to throw gaggle in. Really, how many times do you get to use gaggle in a lifetime? Oops, never mind, that is for geese. Ducks are a flock.
Back to biz. And we’re talking MONEY, baby! Oregon has come down the stretch like Secretariat, winning and COVERING eight in a row. Totally understand the Big Ten is far better than the Pac-12, but Wiscy has been burning money. The Badgers have covered only two of the past 10, and 20 percent does not make it in my world.
Close it out down in Columbia, South Carolina, together with Duke -27 over North Dakota State. Are we gonna see a second HUMONGOUS No. 1 vs No. 16 mad? Not certain but we do have some numbers you may wanna look at. Discussing Duke and North Dakota State. And speaking a 27.5-point disperse. That’s a whole lotta chalk. If you are not a fan of this Summit League, then the Bison likely have not hit your radar screen. That’s why I’m here. NDSU was a cash cow, or money Bison if you will, covering two of the last 13 total, and five of the past six on the road.
As for the big picture, the Blue Devils’ overall spread log sits at 18-16, 9-8 on the street and 16-15 as a favorite. The Bison’s in general spread mark is 15-17, 7-12 on the street and 4-8 within an underdog. For you totals gamers, the Dookies have gone OVER only nine times, UNDER that an AMAZING 24 times and pushed after, while Dakota has gone OVER 20 occasions and UNDER 12. Gonna tickle a Bison, also create a light play into the dog.
NHL pick Before I let you go, skate on the NHL ice , and catch the UNDER on the Islanders/Flyers game tomorrow night.
And plz, PLZ struck me Twitter over the weekend, even @vegasvigorish, just if anything pops the faculty hoop board.
Benjamin Eckstein is a syndicated sportswriter/oddsmaker. His column, America’s Line, with the Ecks & Bacon appetizer, has conducted in the New York Daily News and over 100 other papers since 1988. You can follow him online at www.americasline.com. He’s loved by most, when he picks winners, and detested by others, when he picks the occasional failure. If you wanna bit of Eck, hit on his email…ben@americasline.com.

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