After a one-day reprieve, I'm back with NEC's Best Bets. Friday was a rough one; I was all-in on the Bryant Bulldogs, assuming that there was no way Jared Grasso would keep Peter Kiss out of the lineup against URI. Well, I was wrong (clearly). At least I was able to grab the 'under' once I saw Kiss wasn't in the starting '5', but that doesn't count here. Last night, Wagner grabbed the best win for the conference in 21-22; a 58-44 win at VCU, which came into the game ranked #1

In stock trading, the saying goes; "the trend is your friend". Well, I should have listened. Big East foes have hammered NEC teams in the season's first week, yet I steered clear of Providence -15.5 against Sacred Heart despite watching Aaron Clarke roll his ankle on Tuesday night. The Pios put up a good fight but ran out of gas at PC, ultimately losing 92-64. Instead, I went with NJIT +2.5 (actually, +3.5) and got burned by a Highlanders team that couldn't hit a layup. Don't

Another light slate tonight, with just two NEC games on the docket (remember, games against D-1 games do not exist as far as I'm concerned). Last night I took Seton Hall -25.5 over FDU and won easily; Big East teams have covered big lines against NEC teams in three games so far. Which is why I'm staying far away from Providence -15.5 against Sacred Heart tonight; the Pios looked really good in their season-opening OT win at La Salle on Tuesday, and I'm not quite sure what to

While it was a great night in NEC land last night, my first bet didn't go according to play; I took the Mount +23.5 at Villanova and the Wildcats simply laughed at that line. There's only one game today; Fairleigh Dickinson opens its season at another Big East opponent, Seton Hall. I put a governor on myself that if there's an NEC game being played, I have to bet it. Anyway; this is not gambling or financial advice, and I'm not suggesting anyone copy me. These are my bets, an

With sports gambling now legal, at least in Connecticut, why not start looking at betting lines? But first; I am not a gambler. In fact, the first time I ever bet on a sporting event was a few weeks ago when I put the entire $1.50 that was in my Fanduel account on the Boston Red Sox to win Game 6 of the ALCS. They didn't, though I didn't mind since I'm a die-hard Yankees fan. Anyway; this is not gambling or financial advice, and I'm not suggesting anyone copy me. Don't come a

Every week I will go through the NEC schedule (D1 games only; games against non-D1s don't exist in my world) and highlight some games to watch. As always, point spreads are per Kenpom. All NEC home games can be found on NEC Front Row. Anyway; Coach Beard, take it away! Tuesday, 11/9 Mount St. Mary's (+24) at Villanova, 4:30pm, FS1 Central Connecticut (+31) at Connecticut, 6:30pm, FS1 Hartford at Wagner (-5), 7pm St. Francis (PA) (+5) at George Washington, 8pm on ESPN+ St. Fra

It's the pre-season, and you know what that means; more rankings! Rather than just unveil an All-NEC team, I wanted to go through who I believe are the top 15 players in the league. A caveat; these rankings are essentially who I would want on my team, if I were drafting a squad. Let's face it; we all like different types of players for different reasons. Me? I like point guards, shooters (and point guards who can shoot!), high usage offensive players, and bigs who provide ver

We're back, baby! Opening day of the college hoops season is a little more than one week away, and everyone has had their say as to what's going to happen in the Northeast conference this year. Well, now it's my turn. What am I most looking forward to? A normal season! A full non-conference season, no (or very limited) pandemic-related shut-downs, fans in the stands, and an 8-team NEC Tournament. If you watched the NEC's Media Day last week, you may have noticed a theme just