Vegas veteran Benjamin Eckstein, author of America’s Line, brings three decades of experience to make weekly selections in his”Ecks & Bacon” column.
March Madness picks
LAS VEGAS — Gimme some Cal-Irvine +3.5 points on Kansas State. In fact, we took +5 when the line started, and it’s down to +3.5. So, I could take K-State -3.5 and shoot for the elusive middle, and beg for a four-point final margin. Maybe. But lemme tell you about Irving. Yeah, I call them Irving because that has been my grandpa’s name.
And they’ve maybe my FAV nickname , the Anteaters. Yet more, get the Big 12 is WAY better than the Big West. However, Irving roars into the first-round matchup on a 16-0 straight-up run, also has covered nine of the last 10, with one push. Also, one of K-State’s best gamers, an All-Big 12 first-teamer for a couple of decades, F Dean Wade, is GONE. Eaters obtained Id EAT!
Quack Quack. Yeah, the Ducks, baby! Oregon dropped my favorite college player, Bol Bol, yeah, son of Manute, back in January. However, the Ducks do have among the best coaches on this side of the Mississippi, Dana Altman. All he does is win. Altman submitted a 68-54 listing at Kansas State, 327-176 at Creighton, and is currently 235-95 at Oregon. This is not his very best gaggle of ducks, sorry, had to throw gaggle in. Really, how many times can you get to utilize gaggle in a lifetime? Oops, never mind, that’s for geese. Ducks are a flock.
Back to biz. And we are speaking baby, MONEY! Oregon has come down the stretch like Secretariat, winning and COVERING eight in a row. Totally understand the Big Ten is far better than the Pac-12, but Wiscy has been burning cash. The Badgers have covered just two of their past 10, and 20 percent does not make it in my world.
Close down it in Columbia, South Carolina, with Duke -27 over North Dakota State. Are we gonna observe a second HUMONGOUS No. 1 vs No. 16 mad? Not sure but we do have some numbers you might wanna look at. Discussing North Dakota State and Duke. And speaking a 27.5-point spread. That’s a whole lotta chalk. If you’re not fond of this Summit League, then the Bison probably have not hit your radar display. That’s why I’m here. NDSU was a cash cow, or money Bison if you will, covering two of the last 13 overall, and five of the last six on the street.
In terms of the big picture, the Blue Devils’ overall disperse log sits in 18-16, 9-8 on the road and 16-15 as a favored. The Bison’s in general spread mark is 15-17, 7-12 on the road and 4-8 as an underdog. For you totals players, the Dookies have gone OVER only nine occasions, UNDER that an incredible 24 occasions and pushed once, while Dakota has gone OVER 20 occasions and UNDER 12. Gonna tickle a Bison, also make a light play into the dog.
NHL pick Before I let you go, skate on the NHL ice , and catch the UNDER on the Islanders/Flyers game tomorrow night.
And plz, PLZ hit me Twitter over the weekend, @vegasvigorish, only if anything pops on the faculty hoop board.
Benjamin Eckstein is a sportswriter/oddsmaker that is syndicated. His column, America’s Line, together with the Ecks & Bacon appetizer, has run in the New York Daily News and over 100 other papers since 1988. You can follow him online at www.americasline.com. He is loved by many, when he picks winners, and detested by others, when he picks the occasional loser. Should you wanna bit of Eck, hit on his email…ben@americasline.com.

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