TOM STRYKER’S FREE BASKETBALL SELECTION MONDAY, MARCH 7TH
#889 SANTA CLARA (+5) over St Mary’s at 11:30 PM EST
Off the 91-67 blowout victory over Portland in the quarterfinals, look for Santa Clara to give St. Mary’s fits in this WCC semifinal matchup. The Gaels enter this tournament game off a huge home upset win over the ‘Zags and this is going to be a difficult encore for head coach Randy Bennett and his boys.
Even though the Broncos won the last meeting between these two schools in their own backyard back on February 8th, the fact that Santa Clara holds a disturbing 6-24 SU record in the last 30 meetings will certainly keep them focused on this contest. Thankfully, in the WCC Tournament, head coach Herb Sendek’s kids sport a solid 24-14 ATS mark including a reliable 19-7-2 ATS provided they hit the floor with momentum off a straight up win. With those two parameters live and the Broncos entering off back-to-back SU and ATS victories, this team trend explodes to a golden 7-0 ATS.
On top of the world off that monster upset win over Gonzaga, St. Mary’s will come crashing down hard in this postseason battle. For starters, when fighting with revenge, the Gaels hold a surprising 17-32-1 ATS record in their last 50 lined games. In this situation taking the court with momentum off a SU and ATS win, Coach Bennett’s troops drop to a woeful 9-14 SU and 6-16-1 ATS. Even worse, single-digit favorites that check in off a game against Gonzaga hold a shocking 4-7 SU and 1-10 ATS mark in their last 11 tries.
Off the upset win over the No. 1 team in the nation and with a potential rematch against the Bulldogs in the Championship Game, the Gaels will have trouble covering this number in this brutal wedge contest. Take Santa Clara. Thanks and best of luck, Tom.
TOM’S 30-6 ATS CBB ELITE TOURNAMENT WAGER
Stryker swept the board yesterday cashing tickets with NC Wilmington and Michigan State and he’s back with one more postseason wager that will grab the cash. Two strong angles support this selection, and these situations hold solid marks of 12-2 ATS and 9-0 ATS. Grab Tom’s CBB High Roller Tournament Best Bet for $30.