Editor’s Note: Joe Stunardi is our resident bracketologist, as well as our all-around numbers guy. He’d say that you shouldn’t read too much into it, since the sample size is only 125 bets, but his picks published here and back at All Things NIT have had an average return on investment of 6% when weighted by confidence (1 for low, 2 for medium, 3 for high), meaning he’s about as successful as a bettor who wins 56% of their straight bets.
As always, use these picks at your own risk. Only you are responsible for any money you lose following Joe’s picks. At the same time, though, you’re also responsible for any money you win.
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Only three picks for you all today—it’s possible I’m being too careful, but with injuries affecting half the NIT games (I like both Texas and Nebraska to cover, but it’s close enough that it’s possible my understanding of the impact of Jaxson Hayes’ absence and half Nebraska’s roster’s absence is wrong, so I’m holding off), and the NCAA Tournament offering fewer advantageous lines today, here we are.
As always, the lines come from the Vegas consensus at the time I write this.
Wichita State @ Clemson – NIT Second Round
Wichita State looked great on Wednesday against Furman. But don’t expect Clemson to allow 14 offensive rebounds today. Clemson should struggle to score, but Wichita State should struggle to score more.
Pick: Clemson -7 (-110). Medium confidence.
Harvard @ NC State – NIT Second Round
It’s been fun having Harvard here, but NC State forces a lot of turnovers, and Harvard turns the ball over a lot. Bad recipe for the Crimson.
Pick: NC State -10 (-110). Medium confidence.
Virginia vs. Oklahoma – NCAAT Second Round
Yes, I’m just picking half the ACC teams today.
Actually, it seems like this line has slid towards Oklahoma a bit through the application of recency bias to each team. Oklahoma doesn’t shoot efficiently enough to have much of a chance, and Virginia remains one of the best teams in the country. It isn’t a slam dunk, but there’s reason to feel good about the Cavaliers today.
Pick: Virginia -10.5 (-110). Low confidence.
