Thank goodness for the AFC East. While the Packers, Saints and Panthers disintegrated, the Jets and Bills did pretty much what I expected and prevented the day from being a disaster. Remember, sports gambling is a lot like blackjack: when you’re having a good run, you want as much money involved as possible; when it’s a bad day, you want to get out of the day as cheaply as possible. A 2-3 day isn’t great, but it could have been worse.
There’s a lot on the docket today with Thanksgiving college basketball tournaments as well as NBA and NHL games, so it’s time to get back after it. Here are my best bets for November 22.
SANTA CLARA, +130
This is a case of shooting vs. rebounding and defense, as Santa Clara has been scoring almost at will in four wins this season. TCU has played quality defense and has gaudy rebounding stats, but the Frogs also have played an incredibly soft schedule to date; their best win was over Southern Mississippi. Santa Clara has a 16-point win over Stanford and a 22-point win over Nevada on the resume, so I like the Broncos’ chances.
PROVIDENCE, -110
I’m not completely sold on the Friars, but they’ve got a nice win over Wisconsin in Madison on the resume, and whenever you can go to the Kohl Center and win, you’ve got my attention. Northwestern is also 4-0 and looking pretty good, but I’m still taking a wait-and-see approach with the Wildcats because they’ve gotten off to good starts before crashing when the schedule difficulty stepped up in the past. Chris Collins said the Wildcats were better at Big Ten media day; now’s the time to prove it. I think Northwestern will come close, but I think Providence is a little better and will get a narrow win.
GEORGE MASON, -190
There’s a tournament happening in South Dakota tonight, so this needed to make it on here. The Patriots are off to a flying start under Kim English, as they’ve beaten Maryland and only have one slip against a good James Madison squad. Washington, on the other hand, can’t put the ball in the net at all. I joked about Pittsburgh not being able to throw the ball in the Monongahela on Friday, but Washington is even worse; the Huskies rank 357th out of 358 in field goal percentage. Mason should collect another P5 win here.
GOLDEN KNIGHTS, +135
St. Louis really isn’t playing well right now; the Notes have dropped six of their past eight contests and gone to overtime in a seventh. Vegas, on the other hand, has six wins in its past nine and should still be able to play on the road after a long homestand. The Golden Knights are coming off five in six, with the lone loss being to Carolina, so there’s a lot to like about getting them for plus money.
HORNETS, +150
Charlotte has won three of its past four meetings with Washington, and the Wizards’ success at home is due to end eventually. Washington is 7-1 at Capital One Arena this season, but Charlotte has been decent away from home and didn’t have too far to travel after its last game, as its past six games have all been in the Southeast. It’s worth taking a chance on the Hornets here.
