Broseph's Bits And The Thursday Gospel

It was a rare 0-3 night for the gospel. That's the problem with betting games that have big point spreads. Kent State and Missouri State both won and while their fanbases are happy, those who backed the team in the financial matter didn't share those same feelings. It's ironic really if you think about it. Gamblers go from team to team, game to game changing their rooting interests. It's almost as bad as those Dallas Cowboys fans who couldn't pick out the state of Texas on a map.

The true sports gambler has no favorite teams...only ones that make him money and ones that he fades on a regular basis. It's a difficult life to lead as often it leads to wild mood swings and frequent cursing. Ironically, I'll continue to fade Bradley despite the fact that they've seemingly figured things out. It's the stubborn nature of the gambler. He believes 85% of the time that he's on the right side and the wrong result happened. I'd like to say that I fit in that category, but not at the 85% level. Maybe it's more like 45% of the time that I think I made the right wager and the wrong thing happened. I may be betting on Washington and Washington State tonight, but Saturday I could be on their opponents. It's all about the matchups and all about the gut feelings I get.

With that, let's see where my money is going on Thursday:

Western Kentucky -5 -- The Hilltoppers welcome the Blue Raiders to town. MTSU is 12-12, 7-4 in the Sun Belt. They score 70.5 points per game while giving up 68.8. The team has gone 2-3 in conference on the road losing at South Alabama, Arkansas State and Florida Atlantic. MTSU is on a three game win streak, but they are running into a hot Western Kentucky team. They are led by James Washington III (13.9 ppg) and Jason Jones (13.2 ppg). The Hilltoppers have bounced back from a very slow start to the season. Their problem is defense where they allow 72 points per contest. Sergio Kerusch (16 ppg), Juan Pattillo (14.3 ppg) and Steffphon Pettigrew (13.9 ppg) lead the way for WKU. Western Kentucky has won five of their last six after losing 11 of their first 16 games. The team lost at home two games ago, but bounced back with a 20 point win over Louisiana Monroe on February 5th. The team preached more energy and focus at home. This is a better team who may be hitting their stride at the right time.

Washington -13.5 -- The Huskies will be so glad to be home on Thursday when they host California. Washington has lost three straight all away from their own building. They fell at Washington State, Oregon State and Oregon during the three game trip. At home, Washington is a completely different team having won each game there by double digits. Ironically, they beat California 92-71 at their place on January 16th. The Huskies have not won a game at home by less then 10 points at all this season. They are led by Isaiah Thomas (16.5 ppg), Matthew Bryan-Amaning (15.7 ppg) and Justin Holiday (12.5 ppg) on offense. Washington is scoring almost 85 points per game. California's problems reside on the defensive end as they allow over 70 points per game. They do have multiple scorers on offense, but lack the veterans who can handle the tough environment they'll see. Cal has won at Arizona State and USC. They've also lost by 14 to woeful Stanford. The Huskies have covered in six of their nine games as a home favorite of 12.5 points or more this season. We think they'll do so again.

Washington State -8 -- Stanford will play the Washington road portion of their PAC 10 conference schedule. The Cardinal are 12-10, 5-6 in the conference. They score only 64.6 points per game while giving up 62.1. Jeremy Green (14.9 ppg) and Josh Owens (11.8 ppg) lead the way offensively. They lost to Wazzu at home 61-58 on January 15th. The road has been unkind too as they've lost their last three by 10 points or more to Arizona, USC and UCLA. This is the team that also lost to Butler by 33 on the road as well. The Cougars are a different team at home. They've beaten Oregon State, Oregon and Arizona State by double digits there while knocking off the Huskies 87-80. Wazzu's big three is Klay Thompson (21.2 ppg), Faisal Aden (13.6 ppg) and DeAngelo Casto (10.6 ppg). They've covered seven of their 11 home games this season and 10 of their 14 games as a favorite. We like both of those trends to continue.

Broseph's Bits And The Thursday Gospel

National Signing Day came and passed by with schools across the country receiving orals from kids who are deciding about their future. Something about this irks me especially having watched ESPNU's coverage most of the day. I realize a lot of these kids are very good and will be good additions to the school's they choose. My problem is the way this is being done and the networks feeding into their egos. One of the players wore a hat that said "Nick Who." Really, these kids don't need the pomp and circumstance. Sign your LOI and fax it in without the rest of us watching. Make your impact on the field and then we'll cover you in the media. Until then, you are just another player going to just another school.

The festivities made me wonder about other things that I'd like to announce and how I could spice it up. What if I went to a bar, stood on a barstool there and pulled out the picture of a woman there that I'd like to go out with? When I'm done, the next guy can do so as well. It's National Dating Intention Day. On a smaller scale, the man or woman of the house can stand in front of the family and declare what's for dinner that evening. They pull out a steak or chicken from a paper bag and declares it's Steak Day! Another declaration that could be made is the official team of choice. When a child turns five, he is able to stand up at his birthday party and declare which sports team he will officially throw his allegiance to. He can put a bunch of memorabilia on a table to make us think he's going to go one way when he's really going another. Finally, we could have a guy stand up in his house and declare that he's not paying this bill anymore. The problem with this one is that there's consequences with it.

I'm trying to use some humor in my column because my picks have been in the dumps as of late. The problem is that I'm in no man's land. I've shown flashes of brilliance in handicapping, but currently I'm mired in a slump. It happens in the world of gambling. When someone gets cold, you can use their picks for fade material. Anyways, we're going to give a few totals including one for a game that could be real fun to watch....if it was on TV.

South Alabama/Western Kentucky Over 143.5 -- South Alabama hits the road after going thru a stretch of four home games in five. They'll take on Western Kentucky on Thursday night. The Jaguars started a stretch of 70 points or more with the Hilltoppers on January 20th losing 84-75 at home. South Alabama doesn't mind running with it's opponents doing so in their last four. They average 70.9 points per game while giving up 72.2. Martino Brock (14.8 ppg), Tim Williams (13.3 ppg) and Augustine Rubit (12.7 ppg) are the Jags main threats with two other players averaging at least eight points per game. Much like their opponent, Western Kentucky also allows 72.2 points per game. They score 70.3 and rely on Sergio Kerusch (15.9 ppg), Steffphon Pettigrew (13.6 ppg) and Juan Patillo (14.1 ppg). This team has played just seven home games where they average 73.1 points per game. That goes well against South Alabama who gives up 76.3 points per game on the road. This one should be a shootout. The Hilltoopers have shot 50% or better in two straight against South Alabama.

FIU/Troy Over 154.5 -- “I think it’s going to be one of the highest-scoring games in the league.” That's a quote from Troy's head coach referring to Thursday night's contest between FIU and Troy. The two schools are the 2nd and 3rd best scoring teams in the conference while inhabiting the bottom two spots in scoring defense. The Golden Panthers have scored 70 or more in every game since December 18th. They come at you in many ways with DeJuan Wright (14.7 ppg), Eric Frederick (13.9 ppg), Alex Legion (13 ppg), Marvin Roberts (11.4 ppg) and Phil Gary (10 ppg). Legion is questionable for the contest due to some disciplinary issues. Troy allows nearly 80 points per contest. They turn to Vernon Taylor (15.2 ppg), Will Weathers (13.1 ppg) and Bernard Toombs (10 ppg) along with three others averaging at least eight points for scoring. The Trojans have scored at least 70 in four straight and five of their last six home games. These two have combined to go over in 20 of 28 games. Last year Troy won at home 81-78 and at FIU 84-68 so we think this number may not be high enough.

Notre Dame/DePaul Over 142.5 -- It's been a real struggle for DePaul this season as they look for their first conference win of the season. The Blue Demons get another shot on Thursday when they host Notre Dame. The biggest issue for them is defense as they've given up at least 70 points to all but one Big East opponent. DePaul hasn't scored enough to be allowing 70-80 points per contest. They have the 140th ranked defense allowing nearly 75 per game. DePaul has a few scorers in Cleveland Melvin (14.5 ppg), Brandon Young (11.7 ppg) and Tony Freeland (10.7 ppg). They'll face a Fighting Irish team that loves to score. They are putting up almost 75 per contest. Ben Hansbrough (16.5 ppg), Tim Abromaitis (14.2 ppg) and Carleton Scott (11.7 ppg) lead the way. Notre Dame has won three straight contests after losing two in a row to Marquette and St. John's. ND is all over the map with regards to scoring. They have put up 76 and 73 against UConn and St. Johns, but have also been held to 54 and 56 by St. John's and Pittsburgh. We feel like the Irish should be able to score at will on DePaul. Last year, Notre Dame defeated DePaul 87-77. Eight of their last 12 meetings have gone over the total.

TWTW: "The Damn Thing Is Over..." WKU Streak Ends At 26

((HT: WBKO-TV Bowling Green/CollegeHeightsHerald))

Western Kentucky's 26-game losing streak - the longest active streak in Division I- came to an end with a 54-21 win at Louisiana-Lafayette. The Hilltoppers led 3-0 through one quarter and never trailed.

And you thought TLB was chapped at LSU's loss to Auburn...

Sophomore quarterback Kawaun Jakes was 18-for-22 passing for 262 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 28 yards and two more scores. True freshman running back Antonio Andrews had two touchdowns on the ground as well.

The Hilltopper defense also scored twice on a second-quarter fumble return by Quanterus Smith and a fourth-quarter interception return by Derrius Brooks.

WBKO's coverage is here... the play-by-play call from the end is awesome...

Here's the reaction they got when they landed back in Bowling Green...


It's almost like they won a bowl game or something...
Well, you know what...???

It probably felt like it...
Now they try to get a winning streak going against North Texas...

Hilltoppers Volleyball Coach Saves Team's Life

The women's volleyball team from Western Kentucky University is, frankly, lucky to be alive. They played the University of South Alabama last Friday night after being involved in an accident that could have killed them.

It gave Western Kentucky Coach Travis Hudson time to reflect on a harrowing trip to Mobile.

He said, "Its been a long 24 hours."

In northern Alabama as they were travelling from Bowling Green to Mobile, their bus driver had a heart attack behind the wheel and died while their sleeper bus was on the Interstate.

Coach Hudson discovered what had happened just in time...

Here's the story, thanks to our friends at NECN and Local15 in Mobile...
And your postgame...

Western Kentucky Fires Head Coach

Those of us at OSG HQ don't know if this was one of those times where we jinxed someone or not.

The Hilltoppers have always been one of our Bottom of the Barrel teams in college football this year. Last week's rankings can be found here...

David Elson has been coach of the team since its renewal in Division One.

BUT... Western Kentucky fell to 0-9 and 0-5 in the Sun Belt Conference after a 40-20 loss Saturday to Troy.

Reports are that, as of early this afternoon, Elson will be out of there after the season. He's 39-41 in seven seasons as the Hilltoppers' coach, but he will finish the season with the team.

Here's the highlights from the Troy game, thanks to our friends at WBKO-TV in Bowling Green... Jeff Woods and James Brandenburg double-team coverage...