We have reached the point in the college basketball season where you have reliable teams that you trust on to come through with winning bets every game.
A lot of my favorite teams to bet on, or at least the ones I have the best reads on, hit the hardwood on Tuesday night.
First and foremost, it is a HUGE night for my Miami to win the ACC regular-season title futures bet. The Hurricanes have a potential trap game on the road against an inconsistent Virginia Tech team before finishing the regular season at home.
Nothing has changed since the Canes were a 5.5-point road underdog against North Carolina last week. They are the underdog in Blacksburg despite being one of the three competent teams in the ACC.
Virginia Tech is a good team that has a lot of good offensive weapons, so at the bare minimum, the premier ACC clash of the night will be exciting.
Tennessee's trip to College Station will likely be a different type of exciting. The Vols and Texas A&M excel on the defensive side of the ball, and that game will likely end somewhere in the low 60s. Tennessee has a chance to play spoiler against an A&M team that is second in the SEC, but has a backloaded league schedule.
Some of my other favorites, like Arkansas, Missouri and Youngstown State are on the Tuesday slate as well, and they make up the rest of the eight-play card.
Tuesday CBB Picks
Overall Record: 135-133-7 (3-1 Monday)
Miami (+125) at Virginia Tech (Over 153.5) (7 p.m. ET, ESPNU)
I love everything about Miami.
The Hurricanes have an experienced lineup, led by Nijel Pack, that comes into Blacksburg with four straight games of 80 or more points.
Virginia Tech has alternated wins and losses in the last seven games. The Hokies are at least consistent when it comes to scoring. All but one of those seven contests had both teams over 70 points.
I would not be surprised if both teams reach the high 70s because both teams have a top-25 two-point offense on KenPom. I think Miami is the more complete team and that will show at the end of the game.
Tennessee (+120) at Texas A&M (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)
All of the pressure is on Texas A&M to win in College Station.
The Aggies are in contention for the SEC regular-season title with Alabama, but they have a brutal backloaded schedule that started last week with games against Arkansas and Missouri.
A&M survived those two games, but the Vols will bring a different defensive level to the floor and I think that is what trips up the Aggies.
Tennessee is still a solid team and it can use a win on Tuesday to make a statement to everyone that it can recover from a tough loss to Kentucky.
Georgia Tech at Pittsburgh (-12) (7 p.m. ET, ACC Network)
Georgia Tech is no longer a live underdog in my mind.
The Yellow Jackets earned their signature upset win over Virginia Tech last week and they should have eyes on winning out against Louisville, Syracuse and Boston College in the bottom half of the ACC.
Pittsburgh can't play around on Tuesday. The Panthers need a win to stay alive in the ACC regular-season title hunt. They visit Miami in two weeks and need one loss from Virginia, which could come this week, to be in the mix.
Pitt proved in its last two home games against Louisville and Boston College that it can put away the weaker teams in the ACC. The Panthers won those two contests by a combined 53 points.
Mississippi State at Missouri (-3.5) (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Missouri needs to be the mayor of Bounce-Back City.
The Tigers suffered a pair of tough losses to Auburn and Texas A&M, both of whom held them to 60 points or fewer.
Mississippi State plays solid defense, but it is a bit challenged when it comes to offense.
Missouri ranks 70th on KenPom in three-point offense. Mississippi State ranks 358th. There is also a gap of over 300 places in free-throw shooting.
I think we see Mizzou's offense wake up and the visiting Bulldogs are unable to play catch up.
Youngstown State at Robert Morris (Over 143.5) (7 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
Youngstown State has one of the best offenses in Division I.
The Penguins average 83.8 points per game, but they also give up 72.2 points per contest.
If YSU keeps up its regular scoring pace, I just need Robert Morris to score in the 60s. The Colonials scored over 65 points in four of their last five games, so that fits right in with the game script I'm predicting.
Marquette at Creighton (Over 146.5) (8:30 p.m. ET, FS1)
Marquette and Creighton both rank in the top 60 in field-goal percentage in Division I.
Both teams also rank in the top 35 of adjusted efficiency and effective field-goal percentage on KenPom, and Marquette loves to push the pace. The Golden Eagles rank third in adjusted tempo.
I think both teams will get up and down the floor and it turns into one of the most exciting games of the night.
Georgia at Arkansas (-13.5) (9 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Arkansas showed in its 84-65 win over Florida on Saturday that it can be dominant with Nick Smith in the fold against some of the weaker sides in the SEC.
Georgia is coming off a 108-59 shellacking in Tuscaloosa on Saturday. The Bulldogs lost by 20+ points to Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn and Texas A&M. They also fell by 14 points to Kentucky.
I'm banking on that trend to continue in Fayetteville.