Locks
NBA (0.5 Unit) San Antonio Spurs +4 @ Chicago Bulls (-110): 7:00 PM CT on NBA TV
The Bulls might be leading the Central standings, but this is a completely different team without Zach LaVine in the lineup as will be the case tonight. A red-hot Spurs team could easily be a live dog in this spot.
San Antonio has not been known for its road prowess this season, at least not until the past two games. Those easy wins have been powered by 53% shooting, which should continue tonight against a Chicago team having trouble guarding anything. The Bulls offense also really takes a step backward with LaVine out of the lineup, evidenced by their close win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night.
The Spurs already beat Chicago in the previous matchup, a comfortable win in a game where LaVine played and dropped 30 points. Without that scoring pop available tonight, the Bulls could find themselves playing catch-up all game. I’ll take the points here in what’s likely a close game if not outright Spurs win.
NCAA Basketball (0.5 Unit) Georgetown @ Creighton -10.5 (-110): 8:00 PM CT on FS1
Creighton is squarely in the bubble conversation, and while they have some quality wins this season, they need as many as they can get. That means taking advantage of this stretch in the schedule against several of the Big East bottom feeders and winning by wide margins. A last-place Georgetown team that Creighton just beat by more than this number on Saturday should be easy for the Bluejays to run out again.
Saturday’s game saw the Hoyas have no answer inside for the Creighton front line, even without Arthur Kaluma available. Georgetown is 265th in two-point defense, so I see Creighton continuing to exploit that advantage in this rematch. Creighton’s strong defense has been elite at home, allowing just 0.868 points per possession. I just don’t see this struggling Hoyas team being able to keep up, and the Jays should win big to build up their resume.
NCAA Basketball (0.5 Unit) Washington St./Oregon Under 136 (-110): 8:00 PM CT on ESPNU
Both teams here are off embarrassing home losses, and in order to bounce back, I see that forcing them to rely on what they do best: defend in a slow-paced game. Both teams are better defensively than offensively, particularly with Oregon back to looking broken on that end. But Oregon’s constantly-changing defensive schemes are tough to game plan for, especially on a short turnaround for a Washington State team not known for its offensive ability.
The Cougars are known for their defense though, ranking 18th in efficiency and 23rd in points allowed. Combine that with them being 249th in pace, and there’s a reason why their conference games are 10-2 under this total, including 8 straight. Wazzu’s size should also give Oregon some trouble, and their excellent offensive rebounding ability will extend possessions and drain clock. But mostly I see two struggling offenses up against strong defenses in a slow game, and that has me taking the under.
Degenerates
NCAA Basketball IUPUI @ Illinois-Chicago -10.5 First Half (-110): 7:00 PM CT on ESPN+
IUPUI has six players on its roster and put out a call to the student body for volunteers to join the team. That’s how bad it has gotten for the team ranked dead last by pretty much every metrics site, and who has zero D1 wins on the season. However, their closest D1 game came against this UIC team a month ago, and I don’t think that indignation is sitting well with a Flames team who was shorthanded that day.
UIC was missing its best player Damaria Franklin and best rim protector Michael Diggins for that game. With them back in the fold tonight this one should get out of hand as most do for IUPUI. Recent opponents have been running the Jaguars out early and taking mercy on them in the second half, so I see that playing out again here. With motivation and a healthy roster, UIC should build themselves a comfortable lead at the break.
Tiny Nick is 592-471 ATS (+81.6 Units) on his Locks since joining Zone Coverage.
Every day he will offer his Locks and Degenerate picks. Locks are the games he’s confident in. Degenerates are entertaining but riskier picks.
