There are 46 games today in men's D1 college basketball. There are no big games today.
January 31 Bennett Value Pick Summary
Value Pick No. 1: Duquesne (plus 3.5)
Value Pick No. 2: Central Florida (-5)
Value Pick No. 3: Washington State (plus 12)
Value Pick No. 4: Over on Louisville v. Virginia (125)
Daily, we recommend 3 or 4 games that have the most differential between the Bennett Spread and the Vegas Spread, and usually one game with a significant over/under differential which is way off what our models suggest. When there are more games played, we tend to have more Bennett Value Picks.
The Bennett Power Score (BPS) was created as a point spread predictor on a neutral court. BPS is based on adjusted margins of victory and strength of schedule for games played to date. More recent games are weighted more heavily. These are updated twice daily as scores are reported and are the foundation for BennettRank (BR). BR ranks all major college sports and divisions twice daily. See all current basketball rankings here.
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Duquesne plus 3.5 over George Washington
| TEAM | BPS | VEGAS Line | BENNETT Line | LAST 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duquesne |
81.3 |
3.5 | -1.8 | 2-3 |
| @ George Washington | 76.4 | -3.5 | 1.8 | 4-1 |
| Neutral Court Spread | 4.9 |
Vegas has George Washington winning this one; we don't. Duquesne is a far better team; ranked BR145 vs. BR206 for George Washington. The neutral court spread would have Duquesne winning by 5. Home field advantage for George Washington isn't enough to compensate for playing the better team. George Washington has lost 6 of their past 7. Duquesne will win this one outright.
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Central Florida -5 over Connecticut
| TEAM | BPS | VEGAS Line | BENNETT Line | LAST 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | 79.8 | 5 | 8.1 | 2-3 |
| @ Central Florida | 85.0 | -5 | -8.1 | 4-1 |
| Neutral Court Spread | -6.2 |
Central Florida is the better team and we are dickering over how much they are going to win by. On a neutral court, we have them winning by 6; which is better than the Vegas spread of 5. Add in the home court advantage, this becomes a value pick.
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Washington State plus 12 over Arizona
| TEAM | BPS | VEGAS Line | BENNETT Line | LAST 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | 92.8 | -12 | -8.6 | 2-3 |
| @ Washington State | 81.2 | 12 | 8.6 | 4-1 |
| Neutral Court Spread | 11.6 |
This is another home field advantage play. We have Arizona beating Washington State on a neutral court by 12; which is the Vegas line. You get the home field advantage on this value pick. The bigger game this week for Arizona will be at Washington on Saturday. They will coast on this one.
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Take the Over — Louisville @ Virginia
| TEAM | PWR SCORE | VEGAS | BENNETT | LAST 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louisville | 91.3 | 2-3 | ||
| @Virginia | 99.3 | 4-1 | ||
| Neutral Line | -8.0 | 125 |
134.3 |
Two good teams here with Virginia currently BR3 and Louisville BR29. Virginia with the home field advantage will put up their usual 70 points. If you believe in the Vegas spread here of Virginia -10; this would put the over at 130 (70 60); we have it as a 135; a very comfortable spread over the Vegas line of 125.
