Getting Back On Track With Thursday College Hoops Looks

The hooker got me last night. Let me clarify in case my wife happens to stumble upon this article. The hook (.5) got me in the college basketball game last night. I took Auburn at +3.5 and they lost by four points. I would never advocate buying points in basketball, it is a losing endeavor, but nights like that frustrate the hell out of you. Tonight, I'm going to share a couple of plays that we can get involved in for college basketball.

San Francisco vs. Gonzaga, 9:00 ET

There are no ranked teams playing tonight which is a bit strange, but not the end of the world. We can find some good teams to still watch and bet on. San Francisco is making some noise even if 99% of readers and even avid college basketball fans couldn't tell you their team name (Dons). On the season, they are 15-5 and 4-1 in their conference. They are coming off of a loss against Saint Mary's, and it wasn't just a loss it was a 17-point embarrassment on their home court. That should indicate they try and come out with a better effort in this game. Their other losses came at the hands of Boise State, Grand Canyon, Arizona State, and Utah State. They really haven't beaten anyone all that impressive with the exception of a road win over Vanderbilt. I am not sure they can matchup well with Gonzaga. Now, to be clear, Gonzaga isn't nearly as good as they were last year or two years ago. They are still solid, but not great. Their losses this season are against Purdue, Washington, UConn, San Diego State, and Santa Clara. The Santa Clara loss was a bit unexplainable, but they've responded rather well since the loss. In the two games since, they have won by 25 points and 42 points. Now they get to return home and play on a nationally televised game. I do think that hypes up San Francisco a bit because this is likely to be the only game outside of an NCAA tournament appearance that ends up on a national network. However, I think Gonzaga is the better team and they are playing really tough right now. I'll take Gonzaga to cover the -9 in this game.

College basketball has been a profitable bet to follow before this week. Let's get back on track. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

SMU vs. North Texas, 7:00 ET

Nights like tonight are actually good for the sport of college basketball. While I love watching ranked matchups, it isn't exactly exciting to watch a team like Kansas beat the pulp out of the Jesuit Seminary (not a real school... I think). This is a game that features two teams that aren't very popular, but are evenly matched. SMU comes into the game and sits with a 13-5 record and 4-1 in the conference. They are a solid offensive team that puts up around 76 points per game while holding opponents to just 62 points. Their defense has been more of a calling card for them this season than the offense and I think it is probably the reason they've been so successful. SMU has beaten some solid opponents this year with a win over West Virginia and close losses to Wisconsin, Dayton, Arizona State, and Memphis. While it is never easy to go on the road to win a college game, they are 3-2 in road games this season. North Texas is a decent enough club right now as well with an 11-6 record and a 4-1 conference standing. They did lose their most recent game, a 56-44 loss to Charlotte. I will mention their other losses this season came in clumps. They lost two early in the season and then three in a row around the beginning of December. Their next game will also be nationally televised and facing a (currently) ranked opponent. They play at a rather slow pace so this game could be an under, but at just 126.5 points, there would be very little room for error. At this point the game is a pick'em so I'll take SMU. It should be a battle, but I'll take SMU in this one at -120.

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