What a minor difference a week made! After just missing on three big-payout parlays two weeks ago, we played the same strategy last week and made a minor splash thanks to the help of one long shot parlay that won and returned better than 3 to 1 odds. With another win at +187, we made a small profit last week, but large enough to turn our minor net loss for the season into a net gain of 2.3%.
Of course, as we say every week, our financial loss or gain is merely imaginary, as we are playing with imaginary funds that never run out but never accrue. This feature is presented just for fun, and we strongly urge you not to wager real money on what you read here, unless it merely validates your research.
This week presents the fewest number of games that met our criteria this year in any week. We could only go with four parlays of two teams apiece. None are major long shots, but they all top +120, which is the minimum odds we will play. Enjoy!
An answer to a frequent question: Will you have Bracketnomics this year?
Answer: We plan to introduce an updated, new Bracketnomics edition this year. We actually hoped to have this debut last season, but obviously, the nasty virus ended the basketball season just before the NCAA Tournament brackets were chosen.
Another Question from many of you: Where have you been? You have not produced what you normally have.
Answer: Our basketball ratings were delayed because the ratings are based on advanced statistical metrics produce too much variance until about 3,500 total games have been played. Many teams have played too few games to lower the variance.
Additionally, we have been working many hours creating an advanced sabermetric tabletop baseball strategy game, one that includes many factors that other games do not have. We hope to be ready to debut this game in March. Stay tuned to this page for information on the new game and its website.
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We are publishing our most popular weekly feature at the PiRate Ratings a day later than normal. Four weeks of issuing some interesting parlays that we had a lot of faith in as winners only to see the games cancel the day that we published them forced us to take an extra 24 hours to try to eliminate the chances that we would see five parlays become void just after putting them out on this forum. Additionally, we tried to avoid games that involved teams that have forewarned that even as late as Friday afternoon, they could decide not to play. Also, there is the case of one team that is in danger of not having enough scholarship players remaining. Their choices would be to fold up operations for the year or play under the 53-man (or in this case 53-man and woman) limit.
Last week, we broke even, which is no fun. Our winning week was just a minute from being guaranteed, until the Baltimore Ravens scored at the end to make that game a push. It happens.
This week, we are stressing money line parlays paying off at better than even money odds. November was very kind to us in these plays, as we made a big fat profit on these better than +100 odds games. We are only going with one NFL selection, but in our statistical minds, it is our best parlay of the entire season–kiss of death!
Before looking at our selections for the week, please remember, that we have lost no money this year or any past year when issuing these selections, because we NEVER wager a penny on them. All of our picks are made with imaginary money at an imaginary book. We do know from your feedback that many of you actually use this site for wagering advice, but we don’t understand why. If you want to throw away hard-earned money because of something you read here, why not just donate that amount to a worthy charity. Our favorite charity with the five lasses that help me here on the PiRate ship is “Save A Fox” in Faribault, Minnesota: https://www.saveafox.org/.
Enjoy the selections, and the way to enjoy them is by keeping your money in your wallet.
College Money Line Parlays
1. 2-teams at +107.96
Must Win
Opponent
Odds
Miami (Fla.)
Duke
+107.96
Missouri
Arkansas
2. 3-teams at +145.28
Must Win
Opponent
Odds
Western Mich.
Eastern Mich.
Washington
Stanford
;+145.28
Cincinnati
Tulsa
3. 2-teams at +173.41
Must Win
Opponent
Odds
Texas A&M
Auburn
+173.41
Central Mich.
Ball St.
4. 3-teams at +124.20 CANCELLED!
Must Win
Opponent
Odds
Kentucky
S. Carolina
Buffalo (BU was en route to Ohio)
Ohio
+124.20
Iowa St.
West Va.
5. 3-teams at +153.92
Must Win
Opponent
Odds
Toledo
N. Illinois
San Diego St.
Colorado St.
+153.92
NC St.
Georgia Tech
6. College 10-point Teaser at -110
Selection
Opponent
Spread
TCU
Oklahoma St.
+11
Nebraska
Purdue
+11
Memphis
Tulane
+11.5
7. College 10-point Teaser at -110
Selection
Opponent
Spread
Fla. Atlantic
Ga. Southern
+12.5
San Jose St.
Hawaii
+11
Oklahoma
Baylor
-11.5
8. College 10-point Teaser at -110
Selection
Opponent
Spread
Nevada
Fresno St.
+3.5
Oregon St.
Utah
+21.5
USC
Washington St.
-2.5
9. NFL 10-point Teaser at -110
Selection
Opponent
Spread
Minnesota
Jacksonville
Pk
Miami
Cincinnati
-1.5
Seattle
N.Y. Giants
-0.5
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* When we refer to these as key games, this is when both teams are fighting for a conference championship or contending for an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
Coming Monday–Updated Ratings, Monday’s Games, and New Bracketology.
Comments Off on PiRate Ratings College Basketball For February 16, 2020
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