Cashing In

Your "Bad Beat" for Tuesday is on:

Villanova (minus 4) at Cincinnati.

Let me first clarify that this number was 4 max and there were at times 3's and 3 1/2's out there. Also the game wound up pushing the four so it's not my best work ever but anybody who did lay the four with Jay Wright's Wildcats are a little perturbed.

The game was tied at the half but then Villanova exploded out of the gate in the second half eventually building a 66-51 lead with under six minutes to play. That lead should have been easy for Scottie Reynolds and the fellas to protect.

Or not.

The Bearcats went on a 15-0 run to get within one and after a ton of free throws in the last minute the game ended 77-73 Wildcats.

Cincinnati did miss a 30 foot three at the buzzer so it could have been a true bad beat but this is how the game ended.



Your winners for Wednesday are on:

4* Maryland (pk) vs. Duke.

3* Kansas State (plus 9 1/2) at Kansas.

A losing 1-1 Tuesday as Georgia Tech imploded in the second half.



Call me crazy but I am not sold on Duke. The Blue Devils don't have an inside presence, stop it with Brian Zoubek and Maryland has been phenomenal at home this season.

Coach K's team did win and cover in the first meeting but as always Duke is not the same team on the road as they are at Cameron. Those rims at home just seem to help the Duke shots go in, it's kind of crazy. Jon Scheyer can shoot the ball anywhere but I'm not so sure about the supporting cast.

Greivis Vasquez has been great this season and is coming off of that great game in Virginia Tech helping the Terrapins get within a game of Duke for the ACC title.

Revenge, at home, the better inside game and a few other factors make me all about the home Turtle today!



Kansas at home pretty much never loses and shouldn't lose tonight but Kansas State plays at too high of a level to ever not take a number such as this back. Clemente and Pullen are great shooters and great players.

Frank Martin may not have as deep of a squad as Kansas or a real big man that can counter Cole Aldrich but every single game the Wildcats have been competing and laying it all on the linre and I don't expect anything different today.

K State will need to weather an early storm because that is what happens with Bill Self's team at home but guard play cannot be belittled these days and if the three's go in for the visitors this game will come down to a last possession.