MLB Best Bets – Free (Wednesday 7/24)
Josh Gross
Multiple times each week, FTN Bets’ resident college basketball junkie, Brad Evans, will attempt to posterize the ‘books with his favorite selections, whether sides, totals, teasers or parlays. As always, fade or follow Brad’s picks — fading is encouraged — that’s up to you.
2-leg alternative line parlay play: Loyola-Chicago (-3.5), Arkansas (-8.5) (Tipico Sportsbook)
Odds: +133
Leg 1: Oregon St. vs. Loyola-Chicago (-3.5)
Will the clock strike midnight for the Midwest region’s Cinderella story? Loyola, an incredibly well-coached and high-execution team, is a chore to score on. The Ramblers place opponents in an iron maiden, giving up 0.858 points per possession in their last six contests. They close off baseline drives, deflect passes in normally available lanes and generally suffocate the competition until submission. Overlooked, they’re often lethal from three shooting 45.7% as a collective over the last month. In other words, they’re more than just decorated big Cameron Krutwig. Oregon St.’s turnover proneness is a problem. Without a viable ball-handler, look for Porter Moser to institute midcourt traps to trigger mistakes, a similar treatment witnessed against Ayo Dosunmu and Illinois. If the Beavers succumb to the pressure, are limited in generating second chances and perform only averagely along the arc, they will fold quickly. Expect Sister Jean to march on.
Leg 2: Oral Roberts vs. Arkansas (-8.5)
The amount of sophomoric jokes flying around about the Fighting Evangelicals matches the number of triples they’ve drained over the NCAA Tournament’s first two rounds. They’re prolific, a team equipped with limitless range. The nation’s leading scorer Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor were nothing shy of brilliant against Ohio St. and Florida (113 total points and 29 rebounds). Arkansas, however, is a different animal. The Razorbacks’ length, athleticism and breakneck pacing exhaust opponents. They’re also the 10th-stiffest team nationally in points per possession allowed. They extend and defend energetically, meaning ORU will once again need to drill an ungodly bevy of threes to compete. Arkansas glass wiper Justin Smith, too, is an enormous matchup problem against the Golden Eagles’ exploitable interior. The backdoor is always open given ORU’s long-distance affinity, but, on paper, the Muss Bus should drive his team to a 15-plus point victory. Recall, the Razorbacks defeated Oral Roberts 87-76 back in December, killing the Golden Eagles with 24 offensive rebounds.
Season record: 35-38
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