December 12th Picks

Christian's Picks


1. Manchester City: Win or Draw

     I really like City here to at LEAST draw Chelsea. I think SFTC is putting this on here because just in case Chelsea wins, ESPN wants credit for breaking people's streaks. Oh, and also because it's on ESPN 2 and as we all know, ESPN puts on every game they televise on the Streak. Here are the initial reasons to be just a bit skeptical and why this game is on here... Chelsea just beat Valencia 3-0 at home and Newcastle 3-0 away. However, they have also lost to Liverpool twice at home recently and to Bayer Leverkusen away in UEFA play. Now, for the reasons to pick Manchester City... They are without a doubt, the best team in the EPL with a +35 GD in just 14 matches. They are coming off of a very nice win against Bayern Munchen 2-0, a 5-1 win against Norwich City, and a 1-0 away win at Arsenal. It's not like Manchester City is cold and Chelsea is hot so there's no incentive to see a trap in this game. Also, according to these odds, Manchester City is 61% to win/draw. I think that Manchester City will either win this 1-0 or draw 1-1. If Chelsea somehow wins this game, I wouldn't be too upset because it would be a pretty fluky game if that happened. With some confidence, Go City!



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Streakhelp's Pick

Any Other Result (Oregon vs. Portland State)

I don't feel great about this pick, but there really isn't a lot I like for today anyway. However, Portland State doesn't seem to be as much of a “creampuff” team as I originally thought. At 5-3, Portland State ranks 17^th in rebounds, and 53^rd in points per game (76.6), pretty respectable stats. Portland State has struggled on the road though, sitting at 0-3 and coming off a 93-87 loss to Utah Valley on the road.

Oregon (5-2) has fared better against opponents overall, with losses to Vanderbilt on the road (78-64) and BYU at home (79-65). Offensively I think these teams are pretty even (so far from what I've seen), but Oregon's defense has a better edge. I'm honestly not sure Oregon can win by more than 10 if Portland State were to bring their “A” game (or if Portland was at home). Oregon averages about 15 assists (63^rd in nation) and shoots around 47% from the field (55^th in nation), these categories have been pretty decent for the Ducks. This should be pretty close. If Portland loses, I think it will be right around 15 (15-17), but I have more confidence in the under. AOR for me.

December 11th Picks

Ryan's Picks:


Pick #1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

I like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to win an in-state road game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Bucs expect to get their starting quarterback Josh Freeman back from injury. The Jaguars are a bad team who have already fired their head coach Jack Del Rio this year. Their starting quarterback is Blaine Gabbert who has been the worse of the rookie qbs who have started this season. In addition, the Jaguars have one of the worst offenses in the league. Even though the bucs have under achieved, I expect them to be able to run the ball and play good enough defense to beat the jags.

Pick #2 North Carolina Tar Heels

I like the North Carolina Tar Heels to beat the Charlotte 49ers for the NCAA Men Division 1 soccer championship. The Tar Heels are the number 1 seed while the 49ers upset Creighton to get into the finals. The Heels had the better regular season (21-2-2)  and played in the tougher conference. They have much more talent than Charlotte and I expect the North Carolina Tar Heels to defeat the Charlotte 49ers comfortably.