8* Over Flames/Penguins (1:05 ET): As I've stated previously, it certainly appears as if the All-Star Break came at the wrong time for Calgary. They were the hottest team going in, but have lost five of six (including four straight) coming out. Thursday night was a bitter result for me as I had them only to watch as they went down 3-2 in overtime at Florida. A significant issue since the Break has been the number of goals allowed. They've given up a total of 25 in the six games and now they face the Penguins, who are a top five team in the league in scoring. I look for this game to go Over. 

Of course, Calgary is no slouch offensively either as they are third in the league in scoring. Before the loss to Florida on Thursday, the Flames' last five games had all gone Over the total. Thus, it's no surprise that we have a high total here, but the reality is the oddsmakers probably can't set it high enough. An issue I saw w/ the Flames in the first half is that the level of play they were getting between the pipes was probably unsustainable. Sure enough, Dave Rittich (who had been carrying them in the 1H) has an .853 save percentage his L4 starts. 

Pittsburgh averages 3.5 goals per game at home, so we're gonna see plenty of scoring from both sides this afternoon. The Pens have won their last two games, giving up just one goal in both, but those were against Philadelphia and Edmonton, who are both in the bottom third of the league in scoring. The Over is 15-3 in Calgary's last 18 games overall. The Over is 5-2 in the last seven head to head meetings as well, including a stunning 9-1 result from earlier this year that was in Pittsburgh's favor. That game took place very early in the season (Oct 25th) and while things won't that one-sided this go around, they very well should be as high scoring. 8* Over Flames/Penguins

8* Kentucky (8:00 ET): Tennessee's #1 ranking gets its stiffest test to date here as they must go to Lexington and face a UK team that is going to be quite angry after losing to LSU earlier this week. Coach Cal's Wildcats had won 10 in a row before losing Tuesday here at Rupp Arena. Perhaps they got caught looking ahead to this showdown as they blew an eight-point halftime lead and lost on a controversial put-back at the buzzer. I don't see them dropping B2B home games. With all due respect, I don't know many (other than the pollsters) that think the Vols are really the top team in America. Lay the short number.

Kentucky had mostly been dominating before losing Tuesday to LSU. Maybe it was what they needed to refocus them for this Saturday night showdown. That was their first loss all year at home where they are now 14-1 SU and +17.4 PPG. Overall, they had won 17 straight at home. Defensively, I give UK a pretty significant edge in this matchup. They are top 8 in the country in defensive efficiency (per KenPom) while Tennessee is just 40th. The Vols are giving up an average of 76.9 PPG away from Knoxville this season. That simply won't cut it here as Kentucky is giving up just 62.2 PPG at home.

Tennessee is 23-1 SU, but like I already said, I'm not sure many outside the Volunteer State truly believe this to be the top team in America. They've held that spot for over a month, but that's mostly a byproduct of who they've played. Yes, they did beat Gonzaga in the non-conference portion of the schedule and won 19 in a row (school record) overall. But the schedule, particularly the SEC portion, hasn't been that challenging. Remember they needed OT to win at Vandy. The Vols definitely would NOT be a favorite on a neutral floor vs. the likes of Duke, Gonzaga or Virginia and they do not deserve to be favored here either. The time has come for them to lose. There's really no shame in it. 8* Kentucky

10* Kent State (7:00 ET): Massive revenge game for the Golden Flashes here. They owe Eastern Michigan a little payback due to an ugly 34-point loss up in Ypsilanti last month. Though they have won two straight coming into Saturday, Eastern Michigan rarely turns in a performance as strong as they one we saw vs. Kent last month. The Eagles shot a ridiculous 65.4% overall and were 12 of 19 from three-point range. Meanwhile, Kent State was an abysmal 35.5% from the field, including 9 of 28 from three-point range. Again, it's not like Eastern Michigan is some kind of offensive juggernaut. Earlier this year, they turned in a new record futility w/ just FOUR 1st half pts against Rutgers. I'll take the revenge-minded home chalk.

Since losing to EMU, Kent State has been a pretty good basketball team. Their record is 6-2 SU the L8 games w/ one of those losses coming to MAC-leader Buffalo. The other was to rival Akron in a rough spot last Friday. I actually faded the Golden Flashes there, noting two of their previous three wins had come in OT. The team is a perfect 8-0 SU in games decided by 4 pts or less this season, so they've been equally "lucky" as they have been good. At home though, they've been more the latter as they average 79.4 PPG here w/ an 11-3 SU record. They have won 10 of the 12 games where they've been favored this season, so the Flashes are definitely "taking care of business." Thursday, they beat Western Michigan by 19 on the road.

After its blowout win over Kent, Eastern Michigan immediately lost five of its next six w/ the lone win being another "outlier" performance (against Western Michigan). Over the last week though, the Eagles have turned in two strong defensive efforts in holding Northern Illinois to 49 and Ohio U 57 points. Such an effort here would surprise me in what is a second road game in three nights. Eastern Michigan is just 4-8 ATS (2-10 SU) as an underdog this season, so a second straight outright upset would definitely be "out of the ordinary." 10* Kent State

10* Green Bay (1:00 ET): This is a massive revenge spot for the Phoenix, for they lost in Detroit last month. They didn't just lose mind you; they got blown out, 101-83, in a game the oddsmakers had listed as a pick 'em. At the time, Green Bay was the last remaining unbeaten in the Horizon League. But Detroit was red-hot from the field, shooting 53.6% overall and making 14 three-pointers. I know the oddsmakers have to make some adjustment for this rematch, but Green Bay is at home and should be favored by more than this. I'm laying the points.

To say the shooting we saw from Detroit the first time around was "irregular" would be quite the understatement. The Titans are not a team that typically shoots the ball well. In fact, their FG% for the year is below 40.0 on the road. Defensively, they have their issues as well, giving up 77.8 PPG overall and 81.3 PPG on the road. I should also mention that this will be the 4th consecutive road game for Detroit. They did win last time out (Thursday at Milwaukee), but still gave up 83+ pts for a third straight game. It should be noted that Milwaukee isn't exactly a good team either and Detroit was still listed as a slight underdog. The market hardly has much respect for the Titans and rightly so.

Green Bay is a much better team at home than on the road, which is all too common at this level. The Phoenix are 9-2 SU here on campus, thanks to averaging 89.6 PPG! Defensively, they're also a lot better at home as they allow only 74.9 PPG. That kind of point differential here at home, plus revenge, make the Phoenix a pretty easy call for me Saturday. Green Bay won here Thursday, 66-54 over Oakland, in arguably their finest defensive effort of the season. They likely won't be that stingy again, but I also expect them to shoot a lot better than they did Thursday (34.4%). Their 2nd leading scorer (JayQuan McCloud) didn't even make a shot! He's a 14 PPG scorer. The Phoenix are 6-1 ATS the L7 times laying 3.5 to 6 pts at home. 10* Green Bay