Happy Thursday, fellow sports investors! We got our first college hoops sweep of the year, as our player props went 3-0 to run our record to 14-13 on the young season. After a rough go of it last week, it was just what the doctor ordered.
Ryan Conwell of Xavier continued to be a cash cow for us, as he easily went over his 14.5-point line against St John's. The Kansas at TCU game was also kind to us. Both Zeke Mayo and Vasean Allette stayed under their respective point totals to let us break out the brooms.
Thursday's card is kind of light because there are very few marquee matchups on the board. However, I did find two plays I like quite a bit in the Maryland vs. Illinois showdown. Those are posted below. Good luck!
Online sportsbooks opened this line at Illinois -7 on yesterday's lookahead line. That number isn't all that surprising, especially since the Fighting Illini is ranked 17th in the land. Early sharp money has pushed the line to Illinois -9 as of Thursday morning.
There hasn't been a whole lot of movement on the game total. It opened at 158.5 but now sits at 158 at most sports betting apps. Since both of these teams play stellar defense, I would expect more money to come in on the Under.
MD at ILL: 9:00 PM EST (FS1)
We're getting a pretty good bargain on this Under, as FanDuel has this one posted at 12.5 instead of 13.5. No offense to Caesars, but FanDuel is much sharper when it comes to player props. That's not the only reason I like the Under though.
Reese is a solid forward for the Terps, but he could have a rough go of it tonight against Illinois' big men. Illinois ranks 6th in defensive efficiency, so Reese won't be able to count on many open looks from the field. The Fighting Illini also ranks 3rd in three-point defense, which is a bonus.
The yearly metrics also favor an Under on Reese. His median point total for the '24-25 campaign is just 11 points and he typically only takes 8 shots per game. Give me an Under to get this party started.
MD at ILL: 9:00 PM EST (FS1)
Don't worry Over fans! I didn't leave y'all out! There seems to be quite a bit of value on Ivisic tonight, so we'll jump on it. Ivisic's median point total is 13.5 this season, so I was more than a bit shocked to see this line posted so low.
I get that Maryland big man Derik Queen (6'10") will be a high NBA draft pick but asking him to guard the 7'1", 255-pound Ivisic is a tall order (see what I did there). Ivisic's 3-inch height advantage could get him a few offensive rebounds and some chances at some easy buckets.
The yearly trends also point to an Over in this spot. Ivisic has scored 11 or more points in 12 of his 18 ball games this season. He's also gone over this line in 6 of his 10 home games. The Over is the play here!