Frank Sawyer

At 7:00 PM ET on Thursday, we will be playing the Indiana Hoosiers (744) plus the points versus the Purdue Boilermakers (743). THE SITUATION: Indiana (13-4) has won three of their last four games after their 78-71 win at Nebraska as an 8-point favorite on Monday. Purdue (15-2) has won three straight and seven of their last eight games after their 96-88 upset win in double-overtimes at Illinois on Monday.

REASONS TO TAKE THE HOOSIERS PLUS THE POINTS: The Hoosiers defeated the Cornhuskers despite allowing them to make 47.1% of their shots — that was the worst defensive effort in their last ten games. Indiana has quickly become one of the best defensive teams in the nation in the first season under head coach Mike Woodson who has brought his vast experience as a head coach in the NBA to Bloomington. Indiana ranks 13th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency. They have covered the point spread in 6 straight games after a victory where they did not cover the point spread as a favorite. They return home where they are 11-0 this season with an average winning margin of +22.4 net Points-Per-Game. They have already beaten Ohio State at home this season. They have covered 8 straight games at home — and they have also covered the point spread in 11 of their last 15 road games against teams with a winning percentage over 60% on the road. The Hoosiers have also covered the point spread in 10 of their last 13 home games as an underdog. Purdue played their best defensive game in their last five contests after holding the Illini to 41.6% shooting. The Boilermakers have failed to cover the point spread in 12 of their last 18 games after playing a game where at least 175 combined points were scored. Purdue has also failed to cover the point spread in 11 of their last 15 games after winning six or seven of their last eight games. One of the Boilermakers’ two losses this season was on the road as a favorite against Rutgers. Purdue has failed to cover the point spread in 11 of their last 16 road games when favored.

FINAL TAKE: The Boilermakers have failed to cover the point spread in 4 of their last 5 games as a favorite — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 7 games against teams with a winning record. Indiana has covered the point spread in 5 of their last 7 games against teams with a winning percentage over 60%. 10* CBB Purdue-Indiana FS1-TV Special with the Indiana Hoosiers (744) plus the points versus the Purdue Boilermakers (743). Best of luck for us — Frank.

At 7:00 PM ET on Thursday, we will be playing the Massachusetts Minutemen (734) plus the points versus the Saint Louis Billikens (733). THE SITUATION: UMass (7-9) has lost four in a row and six of their last seven contests after their 81-68 loss to Rhode Island as a 2.5-point underdog on Saturday. Saint Louis (11-5) won their third game in their last four with their 63-45 win against Fordham as a 13.5-point favorite on Saturday.

REASONS TO TAKE THE MINUTEMEN PLUS THE POINTS: UMass only shot 35.7% from the field on Saturday in what was the worst shooting effort in their last 14 games. The Minutemen rank 35th in the nation in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency. UMass ranks third in the nation by nailing 41.4% of their shots from behind the arc — and they take 41.4% of their field goal attempts from 3-point land. In conference play, the Minutemen are making 46.4% of their 3-pointers. They face a Billikens team that has allowed their five opponents away from home to shoot 36.3% from 3-point land — and their three games in true road games in hostile environments, their home hosts have made 39.7% of their shots from downtown, the 319th worst mark in the nation. UMass has covered the point spread in 8 of their last 13 games after losing five or six of their last seven games. And while they have allowed at 77 and 81 points in their last two games, they have then covered the point spread in 11 of their last 17 games after allowing at least 75 points in two straight games. They stay at home where they are 6-2 on the season with an average winning margin of +6.5 Points-Per-Game. They score 80.1 PPG at home — and they have already upset Penn State and Rutgers at home this season. They have covered the point spread in 10 of their last 12 home games after playing a game at home. They are also 25-9-1 ATS in their last 35 home games — and they have covered the point spread in 20 of their last 26 home games as an underdog. The Billikens made 45.3% of their shots on Saturday which was the best shooting effort in their last five games. But they have scored just 63 points in each of their last two games — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 30 of their last 44 road games after not scoring more than 65 points in two straight contests. They held the Rams to only 28.6% shooting in what was the best defensive effort in their last 13 games. But Saint Louis has failed to cover the point spread in 13 of their last 16 games after not allowing more than 50 points in their last contest — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 22 of their last 29 road games after not allowing more than 50 points in their last contest. Away from home, the Billikens are 3-2 while making only 41.4% of their shots — and they allow their opponents to make 47.5% of their shots away from home. Saint Louis has failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 6 games on the road — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 7 straight road games against teams with a winning record at home. The Billikens have also failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 6 road games when favored by up to six points.

FINAL TAKE: UMass has covered the point spread in 4 of their last 5 games against teams with a winning percentage over 60%. 25* CBB Atlantic 10 Underdog of the Month with the Massachusetts Minutemen (734) plus the points versus the Saint Louis Billikens (733). Best of luck for us — Frank.

The PGA Tour moves from Hawai’i to California for The American Express in La Quinta, California. The competition will take place on three golf courses for the first three days at the PGA West Stadium Course, the Nicklaus Tournament Course, and the LA Quinta Country Club. After three first three rounds where the 156 professionals played each course, the cut will take for Sunday for the top 65 golfers (plus ties) with the final round taking place at the Pete Dye-designed Stadium Course. Winning scores have been in the -20s for 14 straight years at this tournament.

Our Top Overlay Bet on the golfer who offers the most value relative to their odds is on Matthew Wolff who is listed at +2800 at DraftKings. Wolff is a candidate for a breakout campaign this season after overcoming a difficult 2021 on-and-off the golf course. After missing the cut at the Masters, Wolff took a few months off from the tour — but he returned in the fall in strong form by making all four cuts in his four events including a second-place at the Shriners and a tie for fifth at Mayakoba. Wolff is a good ball-striker — he ranks 17th on the tour for ’21-22 in Shots-Gained: Tee-to-Green. What makes Wolff one of the most intriguing younger players on the tour is his short game. He ranks fifth on the tour in Shots-Gained: Approach the Green and fifth in Shots-Gained: Putting. Overall, Wolff is third this season in Shots-Gained: Total. He can put up a big number this week. He ranks 11th on the tour in Birdie Average and third in the field this week in his last 12 rounds. Wolff leads the field this week in Shots-Gained: Par 5s in his last 12 rounds as well. This is Wolff’s first event since mid-November — and his record is spotty here with a tie for 61st place and a tie for 40th place in his two previous appearances. But that is why we are getting the current leader on the touring Adjusted Scoring at +2800 odds. Wolff is linked with Gary Woodland for Round One head-to-head prop bets. Woodland is a bomber off the tee — but he can struggle with his irons. He ranks 154th on the tour for ’21-22 in Shots-Gained: Approach the Green. The 37-year old has been dealing with back issues ever since his torn labrum in his hip in 2020 — and he might have picked up a bad habit or two to compensate for the pain. In his last 12 events going back to the Memorial last June, Woodland has missed the cut seven times. He has only made one cut in his first four events this season — and this will be his first event since mid-November. Take Wolff (7149) versus Woodland (7150) for Round One head-to-head prop bets. Best of luck for us — Frank.