The 2022 NCAA Basketball Season is inching closer and closer to March Madness as teams duke it out in their conference tournaments in their last-ditch efforts to improve their seeding in the national tournament, or just make the case why they belong.
The Vanderbilt Commodores were the big winners of last night, as they defeated the higher-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide. Indiana Hoosiers pulled a historic comeback and eliminated the Michigan Wolverines without remorse.
Here are the best games from tonight’s loaded slate to bet.
Creighton vs Providence -3
Providence has had one of the best seasons in school history. Friars recorded four wins over ranked opponents en route to a 25-4 record.
They are also no stranger to close games. They have had close matchups with Villanova, Marquette, and the other powerhouses of the Big East, which should have helped prepare them for do-or-die moments in the tournament like they will face tonight. The Friars are solid fundamentally, have multiple playmakers and scorers, and speedy guards looking to make an impact.
Creighton is a tough team that won 21 games this season. They lost their only matchup with Providence by 19 points just three games ago. The Bluejays shoot the ball poorly from three and commit way too many turnovers, both of which should lead to their downfall against one of the nation’s most consistent teams.
Oklahoma vs Texas Tech -7
Do not let the histrionics from Oklahoma’s surprise victory over Baylor distract from the story of their season, which was one of consistent mediocrity and disappointment.
The Sooners have won four in a row and at least made their situation more interesting. Prior to that, they had lost 11 of 14. They cannot rebound the ball to save their life and are porous defensively.
Texas Tech is a much more solid outfit and, although this is not the best predictor of matchups, beat the same Baylor team by double-digits recently.
The Red Raiders beat seven ranked opponents during the regular season. They have better stats in nearly every category except three-point shooting; they are also the more mentally tough team and will be able to come out with a comfortable victory.
Miami +9 vs Duke
Duke has shown too many vulnerabilities lately to award them enough trust against a fairly large spread and decent opponent; a two-point win against Wake Forest, blowout loss to North Carolina, and narrow victory against a Syracuse team without its best player (Buddy Boeheim) in their game yesterday are all not inspiring enough results to project them to cover the spread.
Their best player, Paolo Banchero, is also not the takeover player that his talent would suggest he is. Which could hurt them in big moments.
Miami beat Duke by two points in their lone regular-season matchup and is riding high after a Jordan Miller buzzer-beater won them yesterday’s game. That should propel them to a solid performance today, whether they win or not. Miami is streaky from three, so if they are on, do not be surprised if they even find a way to win the game.
