The Point Spread Column

By: Bob Johnson   Date: March 11, 2006

They call it March Madness and it is definitely here. The conference tourneys are winding down to the final games this weekend. Next up will be the NCAA Selections on Sunday and then the race for the FINAL FOUR!

We have had a great basketball season overall but yesterday was not a good day. We were on a nice 13-6 roll until yesterday. I took a flyer on that Minnesota+6 game and it lost even though it probably was the right side. Minny matches up well with Iowa and they played them to OT in Iowa City and beat them in Minnesota, so the points looked good. They played even 30-30 to halftime. Iowa's Horner just got off in a zone and although Grier got 29 for the Gophers, they lost by 10. San Diego State blew a 7 point halftime lead quickly and fell behind. They got nothing from their bench and needed a late 3 and 2 foul shots to win 63-60. San Diego State needs to win every game because they have a low RPI despite being the class of the Mountain West. If they don't win Saturday in the final, they could be out. I was really surprised by UNLV nearly beating them. UNLV just got better bench scoring than SDS. The Aztecs will play Wyoming who upset Utah in the late game. The winner gets an automatic bid.

In the MAC semifinals, Akron led nearly the entire way vs. Toledo. They blew a 6 point halftime lead. They maintained a lead throughout the second half although it narrowed to 4 with about 2 1/2 mins left. Akron has been one of the more reliable teams this year. Akron simply fell apart very late in the game! They missed free throws all night and Toledo rallied in the final minute and beat them especially on the boards. Toledo had a terrible season but outrebounded Akron badly on the offensive glass and hit a late 3 and got a dunk to finish Akron off. They will play Kent St. in tomorrow's final.

I was hitting just over 55% in College baskets until yesterday and everytime I get in that 55-60 range I take a hit. It is called a "correction". Then, the fight is to get over that hump and end at 60% or better. We have been over 60% earlier this year and we are in good position to end that way. One more streak and we all make solid money this season. We were 5-2 for the week and had won every night since Monday, so you can't win every day. Hopefully, we get something good for Saturday. The dogs went wild Friday winning several big games outright and covering well over 60% of the action. Outside of only one bad week all year, we haven't had many bad days at all this year in basketball. That is good, because those who don't have good information are already tapped-out. The old saying is that in basketball you "GRIND OUT" a profit over time. It is up and down and you have to weather the bad stretches and hit the streaks over the long haul. If there is a game that comes to me that I know would be a double play, then I will release it that way. But it will have to come to me, I won't go searching for it trying to manufacture a big game when it may not exist. I'll know it when I see it.

The selection for the NCAA Tourney will be on Sunday and we will be ready to roll with all the biggest winners of the year. The games will begin Thursday March 16th. Do not miss the Big Dance. Also, don't forget the NIT and NBA. There is so much basketball left. Get on our Award Winning Phone Service and cash in big. Get the information you need to win. I have access to the best information in the business and I have consistently produced winners in NCAA Tourney play. Call 1-800-527-1739 and join us. We are having a great season. We will have a fun and profitable tournament. The best way to win is with our telephone service selections.