These loaded Saturday slates will be gone before we even know it, so we must cherish them. Due to the larger slate, I will have more bets than normal, so my write-ups are gonna be marginally less in-depth than usual.

Umass Lowell -9.5 @ New Hampshire

New Hampshire is the 7th worst team in KenPom net rating in the country and lost to this team by 17 already. Fun fact: earlier this year New Hampshire lost the first half to the Endicott College Gulls, which is a D3 program with less than 5,000 students. Even at home, I don’t see how New Hampshire will be able to keep this a single-digit game, as this Umass Lowell offense grades out so much better than New Hampshire’s defense.

Houston -1.5 @ Arizona

Houston on the road.

The Cougars have yet to lose a true road game all year, and I don’t think they will break that trend tomorrow. If Houston plays composed, they should dominate the turnover battle, with Houston only turning the ball over 8.6 times a game while Arizona turns it over 11.8 times a game. Houston is top 6 in both offensive and defensive net ratings on KenPom, which is just insanely cracked. I HATE betting on shot chuckers like Caleb Love so I kind of have to fade Arizona here even on their home court.

Georgia +2.5 Vs Missouri

The Bulldogs need to win here after dropping 2 games in a row, and I think they will play with some urgency at home. The Bulldogs play good transition D and can limit catch-and-shoot opportunities that Missouri can thrive on. This Georgia defense doesn’t get enough credit as one of the best in the sec, being ranked in the top 25 on KenPom for defensive rating. Georgia is 13-2 at home and was able to keep Auburn very close.

Auburn +2.5 @ Alabama

This matchup is SO COOL! #1 vs #2 Iron bowl?! I need a side here because I will 100% be watching, so I’m just gonna take the best offense in the country with the points. Alabama does happen to be the second-best offense in the country, but their defense isn’t anywhere close to the Tigers. Not gonna overthink here, give me the better offense and the better defense to go beat their biggest rival in their own backyard.

Georgia Tech -4 Vs Cal

These poor nerds at Berkeley are on the back end of a cross-country road trip where they already had to play Duke at the start. I have a lot of recency bias going on with the Yellowjackets after their road win against Clemson. Georgia Tech missed 13 free throws in that game and still won. Cal has a horrible defensive rating of 108.6 (200th in the country) which should be flattering to Georgia Tech’s pretty bad Offense. Fun fact, this is the first matchup between these teams since 2012 which is pretty cool

Harvard -1.5 Vs Columbia

The nerds are on a bender!!!!

Both Columbia and Harvard gonna be playing their second game in two days tomorrow. Harvard gets the extreme advantage of not having to travel and getting to stay at home for another game. Columbia, on the other hand, just lost to Dartmouth by 22 on the road. While Harvard is coming off an impressive win against Cornell. Harvard already beat this Columbia team once this year and now gets to play them with extreme home-court advantage.