Daily Three 1/25

 Hello,

 Last night was another solid 2-1 showing. The late night hammer hit again and West Virginia got Bob Huggins paid again. The lesson last night was really never underestimate a Tony Bennett coached team. I did and paid the price. Tonight, we are going with the same formula, 2 NCAAB games and 1 NBA game including a late night hammer. Also, a loyal reader has suggested that I start putting down net gain/loss of units throughout my picks. I have gone through all of the picks and will have them in the overall record section in replacement of the winning percentage. For every pick I make, we are going to assume that 10 units have been wagered. It is up to you to decide how much a unit is worth to you, whether it be $1, $5, $10, etc.. We are definitely on the right side of the unit count, but we can be much higher and we will continue to strive for it.

NBA
New York Knicks at Dallas Mavericks -4.5

 In today's version of stupid NBA nicknames, I present to you the New York Knickerbockers, or for short the Knicks. Knickerbockers do not represent a person but rather the style of pants worn by Dutch Settlers in the 1600s who were coming across the Atlantic to find a new life. The pants were as the Knicks website describes it rolled up right below the knee, a very clear symbol for a Dutch Settler I guess. The Knickerbocker style was so popular, New York City's greatest symbol throughout the late 1800's was "Father Knickerbocker" (this is what he looked like). The name came to be after a meeting between team executives led to nicknames being thrown into a hat and the most popular name in the hat was Knickerbocker (thanks for the help Knicks website). So, the team that plays in the "Mecca of Basketball" is named after a pair of pants, super. The only way the knickerbocker would be an appropriate name for a basketball team is if the team actually embraced them and wore them while they were playing. Imagine Melo just hitting a fadeaway jumper with those things on. I mean their shorts end right below the knee, I'm sure it will be a seemingly unnoticeable change in comfort. For actual basketball analysis, the Knicks continue to put forth very little to trust, and the Mavericks are coming off a 49 point beatdown of the Lakers. I think the Mavs keep the momentum going and take down the Knickerbockers handedly.

NCAAB

Rhode Island Rams -4.5 at Richmond Spiders

 I have written up the Rams before and mentioned how they were the media's preseason Cinderella darling. The return of E.C. Matthews was so propel the program to a point it has not reached since the days of Lamar Odom. Unfortunately, they have struggled to live up to high expectations. They have gotten off to a rough 12-6 start with some really bad losses to LaSalle and Providence. While some would look at this and think that the media may have overrated the Rams in the preseason, I look it at the other way and know that this team just hasn't reached its full potential. The team is loaded with veteran talent and leadership that should mesh together in the upcoming weeks. Matthews, Hassan Martin, Jarvis Garrett, Kuran Iverson, and Jared Terrell just have too much talent for a team to underachieve throughout an entire season. The Rams have won their past two games and look like may be starting to pick up the pace. They are significantly higher rated in the Kenpom than Richmond and also boast way more talent. Look at this game as the chance to watch the Rams pick up the pace before you watch them become stars in March.

Washington Huskies at Arizona State Sun Devils -4

 Bang bang, bang bang, bang bang. That noise is the return of the normally timed hammer. In this game, we have the potential number one draft pick, Markelle Fultz visiting the site of legendary "Wall of Mystery" (while opposing teams are shooting free throws, the student section will surprise the shooter with a mysterious person or act behind the wall). When looking at records, this game does not have too much meaning outside of the Pacific, however back in the day, this game would be stacked across FanDuel and DraftKings games everywhere. With an over/under of 171, sharks and fish alike would be crunching the numbers to fit as many guys from this game in their lineup as possible. Unfortunately, the powers that be felt that only the saints in Las Vegas had shown good behavior and could bet on college kids, while the rest of the country was filled with sinners that were up to no good. So, in honor of the DFS days, I am just going to give out a few individual plays for tonight's gam.

. Markelle Fultz (Washington): The man is going to most likely be the number one pick in this year's draft, and he does everything for this team. 23 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 6.1 apg, and about a block and half and a steal and a half a game. If he had a DFS salary right now, he would definitely be in the 11k range, which is basically unheard of in the industry.

. David Crisp (Washington): Someone has to be on the end of all of Fultz's assists, and it is usually this man. Crisp leads the Huskies in three pointers made and three pointers attempted, which is incredibly valuable on DraftKings with the three point bonus. Crisp is probably the second best option on the Huskies

. Shannon Evans II/Tra Holder/Torian Graham/Obinna Oleka (Arizona State) - Yeah, picking these four don't necessarily constitute an individual play, but they all play 32+ minutes on a team that is projected to score over 80 points tonight. I wouldn't blame anyone for picking any combination of these four players.

For actual game talk, Washington has won only one road game all year, and it was at Seattle University, which is basically a home game. The Sun Devils should run over a Husky team that is too dependent on their young star.

Yesterday: 2-1
Overall: 30-22-2 (+77 Units)