NFL Previews 
MLB Previews 
NBA Previews 
NHL Previews 
Soccer Previews 
Big Ten hoops action heats up again on Thursday. Let’s take a look at the right way to go at America’s Bookie:
Best College Basketball Betting Sites
Iowa Hawkeyes at Maryland Terrapins Picks
When: 7 PM ET (ESPN2)
College Basketball Betting Odds: Iowa -4.5, Total 155.5
This is an interesting matchup between coaches who have been at their respective schools forever – Fran McCaffery is in his eleventh year at Iowa, while Mark Turgeon is in his tenth season at Maryland.
Iowa leads the nation in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency. As a team they are solid from both inside and outside the arc; they don’t cough the ball up, and they have the best player on the floor, who may just be the best player in the country – or at least the front-runner for the Wooden Award. Luka Garza, the 6-11 forward/center, is a rarity in that he is a top prospect as a senior, and he doesn’t miss all that much from two-point range, hitting 66% of his shots. And when he wants to step out, he can hit the triple as well (48.7%). Unfortunately his 30 points and ten rebounds weren’t enough for the Hawkeyes to overcome top-ranked Gonzaga earlier in the season.
But this particular task can be accomplished. Maryland has risen up to beat Wisconsin, on a night when the Badgers hit just 47% from two-point range. But most of the time they have come up well short, losing to Clemson, Michigan, Rutgers, Indiana and Purdue, coming within eight points only against the Boilermakers. And the only way that they were keeping that game against Indiana competitive was that the Hoosiers were so awful from beyond the arc.
Yes, Iowa had some difficulty “punching up” against Gonzaga, but most other programs are punching up at THEM. Garza had a pair of 21-point efforts against the Terps last season, but Iowa has some unfinished business after shooting just 36% against a much better Maryland squad in an 82-72 loss on January 30.
The Play: IOWA
Live CBB Odds and NCAA Basketball Picks
Indiana Hoosiers at Wisconsin Badgers Picks
When: 7 PM ET (FS1)
College Basketball Betting Odds: Wisconsin -7.5, Total 129.5
Indiana has certainly played some high-level opposition (Texas, Illinois) and has a formidable inside player in Trayce Jackson-Davis, but the Hoosiers aren’t real capable from long range, and so it could be a big blow if Armean Franklin, their only genuine three-point threat , has to sit with an ankle injury. He had to leave during the recent 63-55 victory over Maryland, a game IU won despite making just four triples in 22 attempts.
Wisconsin clearly has the offensive edge, because they are so proficient from beyond the arc. Triples from the Badgers come from several places – guard D’Mitrik Trice (44%), Brad Davison (42.2%) and even big men like Micah Potter and Nate Reuvers. And they don’t leave a lot of possessions on the table (nation’s third best in turnover percentage).
The Hoosiers take 67.3% of their shots from inside the arc, and unfortunately that’s where Wisconsin really defends well (allowing just 40.8%). So it doesn’t amount to a real advantageous matchup for Archie Miller’s team, which can’t even play the “tempo” game with this opponent.
