Matt Fargo Handicapper Reviews & Picks

This is a play on the ATLANTA HAWKS for our NBA Friday Supreme Annihilator. Atlanta has caught fire after a slow start to the season as it has won eight of its last nine games to get to two games over .500 and move two games behind Washington in the NBA Southeast Division. The offense has been rolling with an average of 119.7 ppg during the winning streak. The Hawks are outscoring opponents by 9.5 ppg at home and they are ranked No. 7 in the league in Effective Field Goal Percentage which is 10 spots ahead of Philadelphia. The Hawks are also No. 2 in three league in three-point percentage and going against the No. 23 ranked three-point defense. The Hawks are 21-5 ATS in their last 26 games as a home favorite. We won with Philadelphia last time out as it fell to the Celtics by a point in a big rivalry game and has now lost three of four games to go back to .500 on the season. They have been decent on the road at 5-5 but are in the bottom half of the league in Opponent Effective Field Goal Percentage and ride into a tough game against a hot offense. The Sixers are 2-7 ATS in their last nine games following a straight up loss. Here, we play on home teams where the line is +3 to -3 after having won five or six of their last seven games, with a winning percentage of between .450 and .550 on the season. This situation is 49-20 ATS (71 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (506) Atlanta Hawks

This is a play on the UTEP MINERS for our CBB Game of the Week. UTEP has won three of its last four games to move to 4-2 on the season and is now hosting the second of two rivalry games in the Battle of I-10 against New Mexico St. The Miners lost the first meeting by six points and will be out for revenge with a full roster. They played their last game without Souley Boum and Christian Agnew who were out on COVID protocol and the former is their leading scorer at 20.0 ppg so this is a big edge for their backcourt. UTEP is 3-1 at home with the lone loss coming against UC Riverside where they managed only 40 point with Boum being a huge absence in that game. The Miners are 6-1 ATS in their last seven games following a straight up win. For New Mexico St., it is its second rivalry game this week after losing to New Mexico on Tuesday 101-94. The Aggies are now 5-2 on the season with the other loss coming against Utah St. by 27 points. They are averaging 77.7 ppg so they like to run but their defense pays the price as well as they are allowing 72.1 ppg which is No. 252 in the country which is not a good thing coming against a weak schedule. This is the first true road game for New Mexico St. which is a big concern as the Aggies have just one starter returning and playing in a hostile environment is a cause for concern. The Aggies are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 road games against teams with a home winning percentage of greater than .600. Here, we play on home teams after allowing 55 points or less going up against an opponent after a combined score of 175 points or more. This situation is 98-49 ATS (66.7 percent) over the last five seasons. 10* (864) UTEP Miners

This is a play on the WESTERN KENTUCKY HILLTOPPERS for our C-USA Championship Winner. A magical season ended abruptly for UTSA as it brought a perfect 11-0 record into its season finale and got housed by North Texas in a game that was not even as close as the final 22-point deficit. The Roadrunners came out of the gates by covering eight of their first nine games but then they came back to earth with a 10-point win over 3-9 Southern Mississippi as 32.5-point favorites, a three-point win over UAB and then the loss to the Mean Green. For having such a good record, UTSA has been overly average on the field as it is ranked No. 36 in total offense and No. 41 in total defense and that was against a schedule ranked No. 124 in the country. Taking nothing away from winning but the overrated Roadrunners could be in for a long night here. Western Kentucky has been absolutely rolling as it has won seven straight games following a 1-4 start that saw three one-possession losses that was culminated with a loss at home against UTSA so revenge is in play here. The Hilltoppers offense nearly unstoppable as they are ranked No. 1 in the country in total offense and has averaged 45.3 ppg during its winning streak but it is the defense that could be the deciding factor here. They have allowed only 18.9 ppg over these last seven games and while they did allow 52 points against UTSA prior to that, they outgained the Roadrunners by 106 yards but penalties a couple costly turnovers did then in. The Hilltoppers are 16-5-1 ATS in their last 22 games following a straight up win. Here, we play against teams where the line is +3 to -3 that are outscoring opponents by seven or more ppg, after allowing 31 points or more in two straight games. This situation is 45-18 ATS (71.4 percent) over the last 10 seasons. 10* (303) Western Kentucky Hilltoppers