Purusing the Lines:02/13/08

For your audio enjoyment:

Pickin'N'Grinin' (Wednesday's 10-12, Saturday's 9-11 PST) discovered on Hootenay Coop Radio
Brought to you by our bluegrass neighbors up north, the West Kootenay Bluegrass Society.

And let's get back to some real NCAA Basketball action after yesterday's hiatus:


Baylor @ Oklahoma State (-1.0 via Bodog)

Still no love for the Bears from the bookies. Cash in now my friends. Baylor has had a rough stretch as of late, losing three of the last four. But two of those set-backs were to teams they were supposed to get beaten by, especially on the road (@KU & UT). And let's blame the home loss to Oklahoma on the quintuple-OT hang-over after their victory against A&M. Baylor is a much deeper team, with eleven (out of 12) playing double-digit minutes (OK St. has eight), and should run down the Cowboys at the end.

Drake @ Southern Illinois (-3.5)

Another roadie underdog. That's how I like 'em. Sure the Salukis have won 17 in a row at home, and are 59-1 at SIU Arena versus Missouri Valley foes since 2001. But the punch-drunk Bulldogs have handled their toughest tasks on the road this year, winning them all except the that second game of the season @ St. Mary's, which is no head-shaker.

Let's let the omnipotent Pomeroy in on this one. 8 vs. 76 RPI, 28 vs. 78 in his esteemed ratings. And heck, let's get our buddy Jeff Sagarin opinion as well: 14 vs. 80. No way Drake is an underdog in this one, not by three and a half. If they lose, buzzer beater. If they cruise, I'd call it a 7-8 point victory. Won't be easy, but this year's Mid-major darlin' should make it to 23-1.

These are the only two I games I'd put cash on the barrel. I like Maryland to keep it close against the Dukies, and Dayton to start it's late-season push to get in The Dance now that the Flyers are getting healthy (though Charles Little is back, they are still waiting on Chris Wright. Hope the Comitte takes this into account).

Staying in the A-10, I think Rhode Island can handled Temple in Philly, but after what they did to the X-men, I ain't betting against the Owls. And let's give K-State the nod over Bobby's boy, even giving Texas Tech 3.5 room for error. Pat Knight will be looking for a job post-March.

We'll once again check the big-board tomorrow.

And as for the music link I introduced, they went to political B.S. interviews about Canadian energy concerns and racial issues. I'll try to make a better pick Thursday.

late-A.B.