1/20 5:30PM CBB (525) MINNESOTA at (526) NEBRASKA
FREE PICK: (526) NEBRASKA -3
Early conference struggles for both Minnesota and Nebraska. But it certainly appears the Cornhuskers have found some reasonably solid footing of late while the Golden Gophers have yet to relocate their pre-conference mojo.
Minnesota did finally get that elusive first conference win last time out as they outlasted Rutgers. But it wasn’t easy as the Gophers had to withstand a couple of Rutgers charges and the defense was substandard yet again.
It’s not as though Minnesota has been perfection on offense. They have been turning it over too often and the foul shooting has been very erratic. But the real issues have been on the defensive end. The Gophers are getting chewed up on the inside and they’re also surrendering far too many offensive rebounds.
Nebraska is not going to win any awards for offensive proficiency. They really don’t seem to have a good flow and the Cornhuskers can really struggle to cash in even the open looks. But Tim Miles has his guys playing intense defense and it’s pretty clear that’s how they’re going to have to win their games this season.
My eyes tell me that Nebraska is farther along than Minnesota right now. The Huskers ended up getting their doors blown in at Wisconsin last outing, but the prior two games were good wins over Illinois and Rutgers. Neither of those teams is top tier by any stretch but they were still what I thought were solid performances in that Nebraska accomplished their game plan in terms of pace and style and got the wins.
I expect more of the same tonight. Minnesota doesn’t seem to flourish when things get physical and that’s what they’re very likely to receive in Lincoln tonight. Nebraska has complied an admirable record vs. the spread at home, while the Gophers have burned money on a regular basis when putting on the road uniforms. I don’t see the number as a big obstacle tonight, so I’ll be looking at Nebraska minus the points.
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It's only natural to want max confidence on your bet. Confidence from a pro handicapper is NOT demonstrated from crazy names or 10,000 stars. No, it's demonstrated by how RARE the true level of confidence is. Tuesday is my One & Only college basketball GAME OF MONTH. I'm that confident.