March Madness: Round 3 Day 2: Wichita State Kentucky Pick ATS

Unfortunately for yours truly, a busy Saturday of work and preschool fundraisers had me checking scores on my phone more than watching them on TV. Fortunately, it turns out I missed the sanest day of madness so far, with 6 higher seeds moving on, five of them covering, and only one really big surprise in the 11th seeded Dayton Flyers advancing past the Syracuse Orange. Sorry UConn, although I envisioned you getting trounced by Villanova today, the storied rivalry between you and the Wildcats makes any outcome completely unsurprising. Especially when Napier is channeling the ghost of Kemba Walker. 

No thanks to Nova or the Oregon Ducks who appeared (on my crappy-ass phone) to just implode at the end of their game with Wisconsin, including a spread-losing technical and free throws with one second left on the clock, TSZ had it's first sub-par day of the tournament (1-2 ATS), while leaving our overall total at a respectable 6-3 ATS. Let's get right to today's action with another edition of One Tall (favorite), One Small (dog), and One Bell of the Ball (a low-seeded dog as long as they exist). 

One Tall

#1 Virginia Caveliers (-6) over #8 Memphis Tigers: We believe the Virginia Caveliers got just the wake up call they needed on Friday when Coastal Carolina scored 35 points on their stingy defense in the first half and went into the locker room with the lead. The Cavs proceeded to hold the Chanticleers (what is that???) to 24 points in the second half and win the game easily by 11. In this match-up, the Cavs will not take Memphis lightly, will come out with the defensive switch on, and the Tigers will struggle to produce in the half court offense. Virginia doesn't blow teams out, but they wear them down enough to force fouls late and get the cover here. 

One Small

#6 Baylor Bears (+3.5) over #3 Creighton Blue Jays: There are a ton of dogs to choose from today, anywhere from Stanford early to Kentucky to Mercer to SF Austin. We, however, are going to roll with a Baylor squad that has really hit their stride of late. The Bears come into this match-up having won 11 of 13 games, and we believe they will give Creighton a run for their money. I honestly have no idea which team will win this game, which is why the points are so attractive. 

One Bell of the Ball

#14 Mercer Bears (+7.5) over Tennessee Volunteers: We're taking another Bears squad, this time the senior-led team from Mercer University that knocked off the Duke Blue Devils Friday morning and still aren't getting any respect from the odds makers. We wouldn't be surprised at all to see a #14 seed playing in the Sweet Sixteen.

Enjoy your Sundays, everyone. These games should be dandies. Yes - I said dandies. 

May the Spreads Be With You,

Vinny and Marco

March Madness: Round 3 Picks ATS

Another epic day of The Madness as we bid farewell to Coach K(KK) and the Duke Blue Devils. I'm not sure why I'm so vehemently opposed to Duke as a franchise, especially considering Manny (our bracket busting leader) had Mercer today - I guess it's just another example of me rooting against greatness. On Saturday I'll root against (not bet against) Florida, Syracuse, and Michigan. For some reason the State schools of Michigan and San Diego are exempt from my high-seed targeting and anyone coached my George Clooney is okay by me. Where does he find the time? A doctor, an actor, an now this...



No other huge surprises today unless you thought you were in a time machine and Shaka Smart was going to take you and your office pool to the Final Four again. That game had a pretty epic comeback by Stephen F. Austin, capped by a four point play to send the game to overtime where the 12th seeded Lumberjacks moved on to the next round.

And then there were thirty-two...

Thanks to the aforementioned Lumberjacks and the high-flying Iowa State Cyclones and no thanks to the Kansas State Wildcats for missing the cover by one, our two day total at TSZ is a respectable 83%. If only our bracket looked that good...

Round 2 Record: 5-1 ATS

Let's get to Saturday's action with yet another round of One Tall (favorite), One Small (dog), and One Bell of the Ball.

One Tall

Villanova Wildcats (-3.5) over UConn Huskies: The Wildcats were fortunate to escape their own mental unpreparedness on Thursday, and it likely served as a wake-up call. Nova, as much as a 29-4 team can be, is kind of a sleeper in this tournament, not getting nearly the attention on the national stage that Florida, Arizona, Michigan State, or Louisville are getting. Once again, Jay Wright has a team built for the post-season. They come into this game with a 15-3 ATS record in their last 18 Saturday games whatever that means, and we believe they'll take care of their weekend business again with UConn. Go Nova and if you're feeling bold, take the OVER 132.



One Small

Dayton Flyers (+6.5) over Syracuse Orange: The Orange have been erratic at best since losing their first game of the season a few weeks back. They are 1-6-1 ATS in their last 8, and their defense appears to be the culprit as their last four games have all gone OVER the total. Dayton, on the other hand, is playing like they were early in the year and are rolling into the third round with a 4-1 ATS record in their last five games. Take the points, and if you like parlays, take the OVER 128.



One Bell of the Ball

Oregon Ducks (+5) over Wisconsin: Harvard gets honorable mention, but Michigan State looked more impressive to me in their first game than Wisconsin. Both of these teams are coming into this game on a roll, with Wisconsin racking up four ATS covers in their past 5 games while the Ducks are 8-1-1 in their last 10 neutral site games and 5-1 ATS in their last 6 overall. To us, this comes down to conference strength, and this year we're backing Pac 12 teams big time. Take the points in a shootout and watch the Ducks waddle into the Sweet Sixteen.


Best of luck, everyone.

Vinny and Marco

March Madness Round 2 Locks ATS

Well, well, well, a nice start to our tourney picks here at TSZ. With our inaugural One Tall, One Small, One Bell of the Ball we rolled to a 3-0 ATS beginning. Unfortunately NC State choked late in regulation and left us looking for a replacement Cinderella in the Midwest. Nonetheless, this is a gambling blog, so we'll take the half point victory and bid farewell to the Wolfpack. Michigan, on the other hand, covered their fifteen points with a 57-40 victory over Wofford and the Dayton Flyers not only covered but upset the roller coaster ride that was Ohio State University.

What an awesome first day. Although we already lost a billion dollars today when St. Joe's, Cincinnati, and Oklahoma joined NC State in the losers bracket, it was fun to see some lower seeds advance to the next round where they will surely meet their fate at the hands of a continued lack of real parity in college basketball. Where for art thou, Brad Stevens? Where for art thou?

            
"Yes, the Eastern Conference is exactly like coaching in college."

In the interest of time, let's get right to today's action. Remember, the rules are - One Tall (favorite), One Small (underdog), One Bell of the Ball (a very low seed or a money line upset). Here we go:

Current 2014 Record: 3-0 ATS

One Tall: Iowa State Cyclones (-8.5) over NC Central Eagles

The Cyclones are hot (5-1 ATS in their last 6 neutral court games; 4-0 ATS in their last 4) and the Eagles are not (2-6-1 in their last 9). Enough said.



The Small: Kansas State Wildcats (+6) over Kentucky Wildcats

I love the way Kansas State plays defense. I do not love the way Kentucky plays inconsistently. Look for the purple Wildcats to come out much more prepared early, while the blue Wildcats claw their way back for a late win.



The Bell of the Ball: #12 SF Austin Lumberjacks (+6.5) over #5 VCU Rams

SF Austin currently owns the second longest winning streak in the nation behind Wichita State. They started the season 3-2 and are currently riding a 28-game win streak including an 18-0 run through the Southland Conference. No longer wearing the slipper themselves, look for the VCU Rams to not only not cover, but to get an early exit from the ball at the hands of the upstart Lumberjacks.



Best of luck everyone,

Vinny and Marco

March Madness Round 2: One Tall, One Small, One Bell of the Ball

Well, the March Madness is underway, and in my own personal undocumented/fictional bracket I'm 1-0 SU/ATS backing the NC State Wolfpack in their upset of Xavier last night. Unfortunately, I missed the early game, so we'll call that a draw. In fact, let's call yesterday a wash and boycott tonight's match-ups because somehow a 13-19 Cal Poly team is dancing with a 19-16 Texas Southern (is that even a real school?) while a 23-9 Larry Brown-led SMU Mustang teams is sashaying as a #3 seed in the NIT.


               "Ridiculous."

We know, Larry. And we couldn't agree more. That being said, we gave up the points and parlayed the Under tonight, so thank you for motivating your Mustangs with the unjustifiable shunning. P.S. A.I. says, "Hi."

In lieu of participating in the mockery that is Round 1 of the NCAA tournament, we begin our ATS Journey Through the Tourney with our first edition of One Tall, One Small, One Bell of the Ball. Every day of the tournament, Marco and will be picking an ATS favorite, an ATS dog, and Cinderella team which can either be a dog or a lower-seeded money line winner. Let's get right to it.

The Tall: 

#2 Michigan Wolverines (-15) over the #15 Wofford Terriers

With an abundance of favorites to choose from, we're going to roll with a very big dog against - both figuratively and literally - a very small dog. This game just comes down to size and athleticism. According to my lines, I have Michigan favored by 20 on neutral court. The lights will be too bright for Wofford as Michigan begins it's journey back towards the Final Four.

The Small: 

#11Dayton Flyers (+6.5) over #6 Ohio State Buckeyes

Both the Flyers and the Buckeyes have been up and down this year. The line seems pretty accurate, which means this game is going to come down to performance. Although we trust OSU's defense, their offense has been anemic at times, which leads us to believe that Dayton will hang tough. While OSU is a horrible 3-7 ATS away from home this year on neutral courts, Dayton comes into this match-up having won 10-12 SU and are a staggering 9-2 ATS on the road against non-conference opponents since last season. The Flyers might not raise the victory flag, but they'll raise the blood pressure of Buckeye fans across the nation.

The Bell of the Ball

#12 North Carolina State Wolfpack (+3.5) over #5 St. Louis Billikens

In case you're wondering, The Billiken was a charm doll created by an American art teacher and illustrator, Florence Pretz who is said to have seen the mysterious figure in a dream. Similarly, the St. Louis squad will only see the third round of this tournament in theirs. We love the momentum that comes with shaking off the nerves and winning that play-in game. Don't be surprised if we back Tennessee tomorrow, but for now we'll take the points with the Wolfpack even though we anticipate the SU victory. St. Louis has been horrible this year going 10-19 ATS, while NCST comes in on a six game ATS win streak.

Who are your Talls, Smalls, and Bells of the Ball?

Vinny and Marco

TSZ Gone Wild...I Mean Crazy...I Mean Mad

It's that time of year again, everyone. The greatest three weeks of sports known to mankind has arrived yet again. And by known to man I mean "North America," and by greatest I'm speaking strictly in terms of the incredible waste of employers time, money, and resources spent on employees feigning sick, having mysterious deaths in the family (again), making unnecessarily long trips to the bathroom with their cell phones, or watching seventeen different Gamecasts while simultaneously trying to get those TPS Reports out ASAP.



It's outrageous. It's incomprehensible. It's practically pandemic. And best of all it's here. Just look at the numbers.

86: Percentage of employees who will devote at least part of their workday to updating brackets, checking scores, and following games during March Madness

*Who are the 14% and how can I make sure we never become friends?

81: Percentage of employees who devote at least part of their workday to following the tourney.

2.5 million: Workers who will spend at least 90 minutes a day watching the tournament.

11: Percentage of workers who admit to spending at least five hours of their workday following March Madness.

*These people, I love. I can't wait to get back to wasting full-time work next year.

14: Percentage of college basketball fans who admit to having called in sick during March Madness.

6: Percentage of employees who take the first two days of the tournament off from work.

$175 million: Amount of money employers will pay workers for time they spent distracted by March Madness during the first two days of the tournament alone, using the estimated average wage of $23.29 per hour.

50 million: Americans who participate in office pools.

58: Percentage of people who enter at least one betting pool

57: Percentage of employers who condone or encourage March Madness distraction.

41: Percentage of employers who think the tournament "had a positive impact on the workplace."

Taking into consideration these last two figures, Marco and I thought it best to fire up the TSZ engines for a three-week sojourn back into the degenerate world of gambling. And by sojourn back, I mean we've been waiting patiently here since the day after the Super Bowl looking, searching, scrounging for any excuse to put our hard-earned money on the line. 

What we want to know is: Who's In???

If you'd like to join our TSZ March Madness Cyber-Office Pool, send us an e-mail and we'll send you a link to join our extremely low-cost, high-fun office pool. Included for free regardless of whether you join our pool or not will be three weeks of almost daily picks for the tournament submitted by yours truly, Marco, and (hopefully) our NFL Friday Five Contest Guru - Manny.

If you'd like to join us, please send me an e-mail at: vinnyandmarco@gmail.com and I will send you instructions along with a link to fill out your brackets. The more the merrier. 

We look forward to hearing from you. 

May the Spreads Always Be With You,

Vinny and Marco