Parlaying the Surest Winners From Different Sports
It pays to follow various sports. Diversify your betting card with a four-team money-line parlay.
San Diego (10-3) hosts Pepperdine (3-10) today at 4 ET. The Toreros are favored by 10 points.
This season’s Pepperdine is heading down the same path as last year, when they finished 3-10. They rank towards the bottom of Division-1 in just about every defensive category. Problematically, they don’t score a lot, either. They face a San Diego defense that is ranked 53rd in defensive efficiency despite facing the 130th most difficult schedule. Pepperdine lacks the weapons to keep up with San Diego.
The Toreros have the 54th-highest point distribution from behind the arc. They’ll get plenty of chances to shoot threes against Pepperdine’s 324th-ranked perimeter defense. As a team, San Diego ranks 151st in three-point completion.
The Waves, meanwhile, rank 334th in three-point completion and face San Diego’s top-ranked perimeter defense. They’ll rely on their freshman point guard to make plays, Colbey Ross, who is trying to play as well on the road as he does at home. Ross is reflective of his team in that he shoots much better inside the arc than outside. But San Diego’s superior length (ranked 79th in height) helps it rank 39th in opposing two-point completion. Ross is also reflective of his team through his poor play on the road. Pepperdine is winless on the road, 0-6, with 3 of those losses coming against teams which rank over 100 spots lower than San Diego in KenPom’s rankings. Pepperdine is a terrible spot in its fourth consecutive road game against a surging Toreros team that has won and covered 3 of its last 4.
Marquette (9-4) hosts Georgetown (10-4) today at 4:30 ET. The Golden Eagles are favored by 9.5 points.
Georgetown is in a difficult betting spot, coming off a double-overtime loss.
The now poorly-rested Hoyas surrendered a huge lead at home to Butler, giving up 51 second-half points even though Butler finished 3-for-21 from three. Georgetown’s defense ranks 103rd in efficiency despite having faced one of the softest schedules thus far.
Now they travel on the road for the second time this year. Their first time was a narrow victory against the currently 2-10 Richmond.
Georgetown’s untested perimeter defense ranks average. Marquette’s well-tested, 7th-ranked offense should take advantage. Marquette loves shooting threes. It has the twelfth-highest point distribution from three and ranks 28th in three-point completion. The Golden Eagles’ top shooters are point guard Andrew Rowsey, who ranks 238th in three-point completion, and power forward Sam Hauser, who ranks 65th in this category.
But the Golden Eagles are also dangerous inside the arc. Rowsey and shooting guard Markus Howard rank in the top-100 in free throw completion and the former draws the 88th-most fouls. Howard and Hauser also complete over 57% from inside the arc. The Golden Eagles’ offense has faced the 58th-toughest array of defenses and should have no problem racing past a weary Georgetown team.
Tennessee (8-7) needs to beat Jacksonville (10-5) at home on Sunday at 4:25 ET in order to make the playoffs. The Titans are favored by 3 points.
Concerns surrounding the Titans have been overstated. They have lost three games in a row, but two of which were on the west coast and one was a tight cover vs the Rams, who are 7-1 SU on the road. The Titans are 5-2 at home and boast wins against physical, playoff-caliber teams such as the Seahawks, Ravens, and the Jaguars in a 21-point blowout in Jacksonville.
On the flip-side, hype over the Jaguars has been exaggerated. They are 10-5 but are no different than the team that got blown out vs Tennessee. Their record is so strong largely because they have faced one of the softest schedules in the NFL.
The key for the Jaguars is to stop the run. In each of their wins besides three, the Jaguars have allowed fewer than 100 rush yards. In each of their losses, they allowed over 100 rush yards. When the Jags lost to the Titans, the Titans ran for 179 yards on 5 yards per carry. Derrick Henry, who ran for 92 yards on 14 carries, is back to the lead the Titans for the injured DeMarco Murray. Henry is more elusive, explosive and stronger after contact than Murray, whose injury is a blessing in disguise for Tennessee.
Passing-wise, Eric Decker will continue to be crucial for Tennessee. Decker has 11 receptions in 16 targets in the slot in the past 2 weeks. The Jaguars’ cornerbacks suffer a set-back in quality after their top 2. Aaron Colvin is allowing a passer rating of nearly 90 against quarterbacks who throw in his direction in slot coverage.
The Titans can score plenty between Mariota and Henry and thus make Jacksonville come from behind and have to pass to keep pace. Quarterback Blake Bortles, who is notorious for throwing interceptions despite the Jaguars’ conservative, run-first offense, is not the guy who the Jags want to rely on. Bortles has thrown over 30 passes in each of the Jags’ 5 losses. In 4 of their wins, he has thrown 30 or fewer passes.
Michigan (8-4) plays South Carolina (8-4) at noon on January 1st in the Outback Bowl. Michigan is favored by a touchdown.
South Carolina’s offense is pedestrian. It ranks 82nd in yards per play, 95th in time of possession and 69th in third-down conversion. South Carolina lacks the ability to sustain drives on offense. This won’t change with assistant coach Bryan McClendon calling plays for the first time.
Without playmaker Deebo Samuel on offense (or special teams), South Carolina is 0-4 SU when rushing for fewer than 100 yards. Yet Michigan ranks 22nd in yards allowed per carry.
The key is in the trenches: SC’s O-line ranks 60th in power rate and 76th in stuff rate while Michigan’s D-line ranks 4th in power rate and 4th in stuff rate. These numbers mean that South Carolina struggles in short yardage situations and that its running backs often get met behind the line of scrimmage. Conversely, expect a lot of Michigan's Rashan Geary in the backfield, who leads UM’s D-line with 10.5 tackles per loss.
The same kind of statistical disparity exists between SC’s D-line against the run and UM’s run blocking. UM’s rush attack, led by Karan Higdon, Chris Evans, and Ty Isaac, each of whom averages over 5 yards per carry, can wear down SC’s poorly-ranked D-line and its three scholarship linebackers.
The success of Michigan’s rush attack assuages concern over its pass protection by preventing obvious passing downs. Quarterback Brandon Peters is a safe quarterback, with a 4:0 touchdown-to-interception ration and the inclination to check down in the face of pressure. Michigan has enough firepower on offense while its defense shuts down South Carolina. SC won’t achieve the huge plays on defense and special teams that it has so often relied on to win.
Pick: San Diego Toreros, Marquette, Tennessee Titans, Michigan Wolverines ML Parlay.
It pays to follow various sports. Diversify your betting card with a four-team money-line parlay.
San Diego (10-3) hosts Pepperdine (3-10) today at 4 ET. The Toreros are favored by 10 points.
This season’s Pepperdine is heading down the same path as last year, when they finished 3-10. They rank towards the bottom of Division-1 in just about every defensive category. Problematically, they don’t score a lot, either. They face a San Diego defense that is ranked 53rd in defensive efficiency despite facing the 130th most difficult schedule. Pepperdine lacks the weapons to keep up with San Diego.
The Toreros have the 54th-highest point distribution from behind the arc. They’ll get plenty of chances to shoot threes against Pepperdine’s 324th-ranked perimeter defense. As a team, San Diego ranks 151st in three-point completion.
The Waves, meanwhile, rank 334th in three-point completion and face San Diego’s top-ranked perimeter defense. They’ll rely on their freshman point guard to make plays, Colbey Ross, who is trying to play as well on the road as he does at home. Ross is reflective of his team in that he shoots much better inside the arc than outside. But San Diego’s superior length (ranked 79th in height) helps it rank 39th in opposing two-point completion. Ross is also reflective of his team through his poor play on the road. Pepperdine is winless on the road, 0-6, with 3 of those losses coming against teams which rank over 100 spots lower than San Diego in KenPom’s rankings. Pepperdine is a terrible spot in its fourth consecutive road game against a surging Toreros team that has won and covered 3 of its last 4.
Marquette (9-4) hosts Georgetown (10-4) today at 4:30 ET. The Golden Eagles are favored by 9.5 points.
Georgetown is in a difficult betting spot, coming off a double-overtime loss.
The now poorly-rested Hoyas surrendered a huge lead at home to Butler, giving up 51 second-half points even though Butler finished 3-for-21 from three. Georgetown’s defense ranks 103rd in efficiency despite having faced one of the softest schedules thus far.
Now they travel on the road for the second time this year. Their first time was a narrow victory against the currently 2-10 Richmond.
Georgetown’s untested perimeter defense ranks average. Marquette’s well-tested, 7th-ranked offense should take advantage. Marquette loves shooting threes. It has the twelfth-highest point distribution from three and ranks 28th in three-point completion. The Golden Eagles’ top shooters are point guard Andrew Rowsey, who ranks 238th in three-point completion, and power forward Sam Hauser, who ranks 65th in this category.
But the Golden Eagles are also dangerous inside the arc. Rowsey and shooting guard Markus Howard rank in the top-100 in free throw completion and the former draws the 88th-most fouls. Howard and Hauser also complete over 57% from inside the arc. The Golden Eagles’ offense has faced the 58th-toughest array of defenses and should have no problem racing past a weary Georgetown team.
Tennessee (8-7) needs to beat Jacksonville (10-5) at home on Sunday at 4:25 ET in order to make the playoffs. The Titans are favored by 3 points.
Concerns surrounding the Titans have been overstated. They have lost three games in a row, but two of which were on the west coast and one was a tight cover vs the Rams, who are 7-1 SU on the road. The Titans are 5-2 at home and boast wins against physical, playoff-caliber teams such as the Seahawks, Ravens, and the Jaguars in a 21-point blowout in Jacksonville.
On the flip-side, hype over the Jaguars has been exaggerated. They are 10-5 but are no different than the team that got blown out vs Tennessee. Their record is so strong largely because they have faced one of the softest schedules in the NFL.
The key for the Jaguars is to stop the run. In each of their wins besides three, the Jaguars have allowed fewer than 100 rush yards. In each of their losses, they allowed over 100 rush yards. When the Jags lost to the Titans, the Titans ran for 179 yards on 5 yards per carry. Derrick Henry, who ran for 92 yards on 14 carries, is back to the lead the Titans for the injured DeMarco Murray. Henry is more elusive, explosive and stronger after contact than Murray, whose injury is a blessing in disguise for Tennessee.
Passing-wise, Eric Decker will continue to be crucial for Tennessee. Decker has 11 receptions in 16 targets in the slot in the past 2 weeks. The Jaguars’ cornerbacks suffer a set-back in quality after their top 2. Aaron Colvin is allowing a passer rating of nearly 90 against quarterbacks who throw in his direction in slot coverage.
The Titans can score plenty between Mariota and Henry and thus make Jacksonville come from behind and have to pass to keep pace. Quarterback Blake Bortles, who is notorious for throwing interceptions despite the Jaguars’ conservative, run-first offense, is not the guy who the Jags want to rely on. Bortles has thrown over 30 passes in each of the Jags’ 5 losses. In 4 of their wins, he has thrown 30 or fewer passes.
Michigan (8-4) plays South Carolina (8-4) at noon on January 1st in the Outback Bowl. Michigan is favored by a touchdown.
South Carolina’s offense is pedestrian. It ranks 82nd in yards per play, 95th in time of possession and 69th in third-down conversion. South Carolina lacks the ability to sustain drives on offense. This won’t change with assistant coach Bryan McClendon calling plays for the first time.
Without playmaker Deebo Samuel on offense (or special teams), South Carolina is 0-4 SU when rushing for fewer than 100 yards. Yet Michigan ranks 22nd in yards allowed per carry.
The key is in the trenches: SC’s O-line ranks 60th in power rate and 76th in stuff rate while Michigan’s D-line ranks 4th in power rate and 4th in stuff rate. These numbers mean that South Carolina struggles in short yardage situations and that its running backs often get met behind the line of scrimmage. Conversely, expect a lot of Michigan's Rashan Geary in the backfield, who leads UM’s D-line with 10.5 tackles per loss.
The same kind of statistical disparity exists between SC’s D-line against the run and UM’s run blocking. UM’s rush attack, led by Karan Higdon, Chris Evans, and Ty Isaac, each of whom averages over 5 yards per carry, can wear down SC’s poorly-ranked D-line and its three scholarship linebackers.
The success of Michigan’s rush attack assuages concern over its pass protection by preventing obvious passing downs. Quarterback Brandon Peters is a safe quarterback, with a 4:0 touchdown-to-interception ration and the inclination to check down in the face of pressure. Michigan has enough firepower on offense while its defense shuts down South Carolina. SC won’t achieve the huge plays on defense and special teams that it has so often relied on to win.
Pick: San Diego Toreros, Marquette, Tennessee Titans, Michigan Wolverines ML Parlay.
