Sports Book Betting

COLLEGE BASKETBALL — February 18

FLORIDA at ARKANSAS
(Line: Florida -5, Total 145.5) — There is little question that Florida is the better team in this matchup. But it has obviously been impossible to beat Arkansas in the Bud Walton Arena thus far, as the Hogs have gone 17-0 straight-up. Mike Anderson, who came from Missouri this season to coach in Fayetteville, likes to create a fast pace with defense, and that isn’t likely to be something that rattles the Gators, who don’t turn it over all that much (11.2 times per game). You know that Billy Donovan’s team is going to shoot threes. That will certainly be a challenge for the Razorbacks, who have yielded just 28% beyond the arc at home. Florida’s probably up to it, and they’ll get a sound scouting report from assistant John Pelphrey, who was the Hogs’ coach last season. But we don’t want to lose sight of the fact that Arkansas has turned back Mississippi State, Michigan and Vanderbilt on friendly ground this season.

JAY’S PLAY: ARKANSAS +5 **

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)

SPORTS BOOK BETTING - BASKETBALL — February 11

BUTLER at CLEVELAND STATE
(Sports Book Betting Line: Cleveland State -6, Total 122) — This is pretty much the “last chance saloon” for a Butler team that has made it to the national final the last two seasons. Of course, this is not really the same Butler team, and the attrition over the last couple of years had to take its toll sooner or later, as Brad Stevens is not besieged with five-star recruits. Butler has often been stopped short when it comes to going up against the more substantial squads, and obviously low-level shooting (40% overall, 28% from arc) has a lot to do with it. Cleveland State doesn’t suffer a lot from that; the Vikings are 44% from three-point range when playing at home, and based on past performances, we’ll assume that the Vikes are capable of bouncing back from the “yikes” they experienced against Valparaiso, as they hit only 26% from the floor. Guard play and balance are selling points for CSU.

SPORTS BOOK BETTING: CLEVELAND STATE -6 **

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)

SPORTS BOOK BETTING - BASKETBALL — February 8

PITT at SOUTH FLORIDA
(Sports Book Betting Line: Pitt -3, Total 123) — Undoubtedly the major reason for the big upswing on the part of Pittsburgh is the return to action of point guard Tray Woodall. With four straight wins, two of them rather impressive over Georgetown and West Virginia, the Panthers have positioned themselves for at-large consideration. But at 15-9, they have to keep winning, and that means avoiding a slip on the proverbial banana peel against a highly beatable foe.

South Florida can play some “D” (41% FG’s allowed) and the win not long ago against then-ranked Seton Hall was nothing to sneeze at. They have shot 42% from beyond the arc at the Sun Dome, and for those of you who like to look at technical trends, the Bulls have covered their last six games as a home dog of three points or less.

SPORTS BOOK BETTING PLAY: SOUTH FLORIDA +3 *

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)

SPORTS BOOK BETTING - BASKETBALL — February 7

MARYLAND at CLEMSON
(Sports Book Betting Line: Clemson -9, Total 134) — For those of you who were wondering, Clemson’s Milton Jennings, who was suspended for academic reasons, is supposed to be playing tonight, but won’t be starting the game in all likelihood. Maryland is a team that has been severely outgunned in recent outings, but have hung in with some heart. Some of the opponents they have faced have been rough - Temple, Florida State, Duke and North Carolina. And the Terps have covered three games in a row. The shortcoming to the Maryland games is that they can’t rely at all on the three-pointer, but Clemson has had a lot of trouble putting distance between itself and opponents, with a dreadful 1-9 ATS record as a favorite. And they are 0-5 ATS at home.

SPORTS BOOK BETTING PLAY: MARYLAND +9 **

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)

SPORTSBOOK BETTING - PRO BASKETBALL — February 3

MILWAUKEE at DETROIT
(Line: Bucks -4.5, Total 183) — In the past, Milwaukee has had some difficulty when Andrew Bogut has gone down with injury; indeed, they had a four-game losing streak without him earlier in the season. But the Bucks have won three out of four games after Bogut suffered a broken ankle, and they have no choice but to learn to play without him because he’ll be out 8-12 weeks. That was a big win for this team on Wednesday at the Bradley Center, and when the beat the Heat previously they can back and dropped a home decision to Atlanta. Could this be a different story?

The long and short of it with Detroit is that the Pistons have all kinds of trouble scoring, and some of their recent shooting experiences have been downright horrid. Losers of seven in a row, they are a far less reliable side than the Bucks, who already beat them by 21 points without Bogut, have covered seven of their last eight games, and should be able to take advantage of a porous Detroit defense that has allowed the opposition to shoot almost 49% from the field.

JAY’S SPORTS BOOK BETTING PLAY: MILWAUKEE -4.5 ***

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)