January 13, 2021 Picks:

College Basketball:

Notre Dame at #18 Virginia (-9.5) - Virginia has won five games in a row against Notre Dame, and are looking for #6 today. These two teams have already played this year, with Virginia getting a 66-57 win. Virginia’s defense is starting to look like Tony Bennett teams of old, allowing only 55 points per game in conference play. That continues today. Pick: Virginia 68 Notre Dame 56

Northwestern at #21 Ohio State (-8.5) - I don’t know what to think of Northwestern. They looked so good early on and have since lost three games in a row, not being competitive in any of them. They were against the top teams in the Big Ten, which is what the Buckeyes are. They will struggle again and the Buckeyes will cover. Pick: Ohio State 76 Northwestern 62

#16 Louisville (-7.5) at Wake Forest - Wake Forest has lost three games in a row, and none of the teams they have played in this losing streak is as good as Louisville. The Cardinal have won four in a row, including a big rivalry win against Kentucky. We don’t see the Demon Deacons keeping this one close, as they fall for the fourth consecutive time. Pick: Louisville 74 Wake Forest 61

#15 Texas Tech at #4 Texas (-2) - This should be the best game of the day. The Red Raiders and Longhorns meet up in Austin in what will be a physical, tough game between two of the best in the Big 12. The Longhorns look like a more complete team right now, so that is why we are picking them in a close game here. Pick: Texas 79 Texas Tech 75

NBA:

Dallas (-4) at Charlotte - The Hornets have won four games in a row, but Dallas will be the best team they have played in the last week. The Mavericks are looking like an offensive juggernaut once again with Luca Doncic at the helm. Even though we think Dallas is the better team, we are going with the Hornets in this one. Pick: Charlotte 113 Dallas 109

Milwaukee (-11) at Detroit - These two teams played twice last week, with the Bucks beating the Pistons by 10 and 15 points in the two games. Those two games were in Milwaukee. This one is in Detroit. We think that Milwaukee will win this one, but will come just short of covering the 11 points spread. Pick: Milwaukee 117 Detroit 108

Brooklyn (-6) at New York - Kyrie Irving is missing yet another game for the Nets, who are coming off a hard fought win over the Nuggets yesterday. Kevin Durant hasn’t been playing in back to back games this year, and while it looks like he will play today it will be interesting to see how he does. The Knicks haven’t been playing well, but we think they get the win today. Pick: New York 107 Brooklyn 101

Memphis at Minnesota (-2.5) - Minnesota finally got a win in its last game after suffering a six game losing streak before it. Memphis has won two games in a row, and we think they will make it three. Tyus Jones has filled in well for Ja Morant, and today will be another good game for him and the Grizzlies. Pick: Memphis 105 Minnesota 98

Los Angeles Lakers (-8) at Oklahoma City - Both of these teams are playing the second night of a back to back, with the Thunder beating the Spurs yesterday and the Lakers beating the Rockets. The biggest key for the Thunder is do they have anyone that can stop Anthony Davis. We say no they don’t. Pick: Los Angeles Lakers 125 Oklahoma City 112

New Orleans at Los Angeles Clippers (-7) - We are on the fence on this one. We think that either the Pelicans will win outright or the Clippers will win by 20. New Orleans hasn’t played a games since January 8th, and the Clippers haven’t played since January 10th. Both teams will be well rested. Just a matter of which Clippers team will show up. We are going with the one that plays down to their opponent. Pick: New Orleans 124 Los Angeles Clippers 120

Portland (-3.5) at Sacramento - These teams played last week and the Blazers blitzed the Kings 125-99. We don’t think Portland is going to win by 26 again. We do think that they will win by more than three however. Pick: Portland 119 Sacramento 110

Happy picking everyone!