College Basketball Parlay Picks for Tuesday, March 1st (2022)
It’s the final week of the regular season and the madness of March is so close. The games featured today do not have much implication on the tournament, but one will pin two top-11 conference foes that could very well decide seeding movement on Selection Sunday.
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No. 4 Duke (-14.5) vs. Pittsburgh O/U 137 (Tip 8 p.m ET)
Duke is certainly one of the hotter teams right now, winning six straight and 11 of their last 12, but they haven't all been walks in the park. On Saturday, they had one of their best offensive performances against Syracuse as they fired 32 three and hit 15 against a horrible defense. The Blue Devils are well-balanced, especially with Paolo Banchero, Wendell Moore Jr., and Trevor Keels, who are all shooting above 40%, along with five players averaging double-digit points per game. They've been moving the ball well with 25 or more assists in two of the last three games. When you have confident scoring options, you have no problem allowing anyone to have the ball.
Pitt is sinking into a pit as they've lost six of their last nine. They're not moving the ball around, and perimeter shooting has not been good. The Panthers’ presence on the board could keep them in this game, with forward John Hugley averaging 14.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game and Mouhamadou Gueye with two blocks per game. If they can physically box out Ponchero and Williams, they could have a shot for the upset.
Unfortunately, you still have to worry about Ponchero and Moore on the wings draining threes. The Panthers do not have firepower if Duke gets hot, and they've been shooting very well as of late. This could be over quickly.
No. 9 Providence vs. No. 11 Villanova (-10) O/U 134.5 (Tip 6:30 p.m. ET)
The matchup of the night is coming down to one of the better conferences in the country. Providence clinched the Big East regular-season title in a conference that could have five teams in guaranteed.
Villanova's chemistry is their strongest argument to win the championship; a starting lineup of upperclassmen where any of these guys could be the focal point of another team. The problem they run into is the lack of depth. As we get into March, you're playing with little rest. The inability to put out a fresh lineup could hurt, as you saw in the last game against UConn when the team started to burn out and allowed the Huskies to score six unanswered points in 36 seconds in the 71-69 loss.
The Friars are built on that same chemistry of veteran players, and it just went right this year. They went from one of the Big East’s worst teams last season to capture the regular-season title. When looking at the makeup of this team, you have to acknowledge how hot guard Jared Bynum has been lately. He hit a switch and has been leading the team as he’s scored 18 or more points in six of seven games and averaging 4.6 assists per game. His three-point shooting has also been exceptional as he’s hit shooting as he’s hitting 55.8% in his last seven games, but Villanova is good at guarding the perimeter as they’re allowing under 32% from behind the arc.
Providence has exhausted a lot of energy the last couple of weeks — they’ve recently played an overtime game against DePaul, Butler, and a 3OT game against Xavier. Add that emotional win on Saturday to grab the Big East regular-season title, they have to be drained. Villanova at home will be hungry to avenge that recent loss, and the crowd at Finneran Pavilion will be hyped.
Ole Miss vs. No. 14 Kentucky (-17) O/U 141.5 (Tip 7 p.m.)
Kentucky suffered a heart-breaking loss to Arkansas on Saturday and are now the three-seed in the SEC playoffs. But on the bright side, we saw guards TyTy Washington Jr. and Sahvir Wheeler make their returns. Neither of them played particularly well, but they have a couple of games to get right and should be fine. We can’t talk about Kentucky without mentioning the astounding Oscar Tshiebwe. He might need to make a spot on his trophy case because he likely locked in the Wooden award with 30 points and 18 rebounds against the Razorbacks.
Tshiebwe may have some trouble having that type of game against Ole Miss with center Nysier Brooks battling him on the boards. The veteran big man can play physically, and although he doesn’t come near Tshiebwe’s 15 rebounds per game, grabbing eight boards per game is nothing to ignore. The Rebels are actually a good team on paper as they’re fourth in the SEC in effective field goal and 3-point percentage. Jarkel Joiner and Matthew Murrell both shoot over 34% from behind the arc, and either can get hot at any time. If you see how well this team plays, they have the talent, but it’s just that they play in an outstanding conference that will send at the very least five teams to the tournament.
This should be a win for the Wildcats, but the question is will they cover? Kentucky is just 9-8 ATS at home this season and has covered a double-digit spread at home just once this year. Kentucky still gets it done, but the over is the best bet.
Total Parlay (PointsBet): +595
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