- T-Ho
College Lacrosse Quarterfinal Predictions
We are down to our final 8 teams and there is no telling what will happen. Last week’s blog went 3-0 and I hope all of you were able to tail and make some money along with me! We have 4 games this weekend and I will be giving you my best picks for all of them. Let's jump right in.
**Odds provided by Draftkings Sportsbook**
Rutgers -1.5 vs UPenn O/U 25.5
Well it seems that the Rutgers NASCAR offense lives to make another lap. I personally thought that Harvard was going to make it more of a game but I have to give props to the Scarlet Knights. Rutgers handled Harvard behind Ross Scott's 8 goal performance. This is the first time that Rutgers and Penn have played since 1986. I am all about a New Jersey vs Pennsylvania battle. If we look at the numbers, Rutgers is averaging about 17 goals per game and 12.6 against while Penn is sitting at about 13 for and 11 against. If we are being completely honest I think that Rutgers can handle pretty much any team that isn’t Maryland, so I’m liking their odds going into this one. I think that Penn may have used all their gas winning the Ivy League tournament. I obviously can’t underestimate them and Rutgers also has let teams into games at times. I feel this will be a high scoring affair if both teams are hitting their average goals a game so I will be taking the Over. I will also be taking Rutgers ML at -130 I think they can win straight up but I am staying contentious of Penn making it close.
The Pick: Over 25.5, Rutgers -130
Princeton -1.5 vs Yale O/U 28.5
I will be the first to say I am not the biggest fan of this line. Mainly because the Ivy League has been a tossup all season so it doesn't matter who is favored and who is not, anyone can win. These two have matched up 16 times since 2009 and Yale has won 10 of the 16. It is also true that of the 16 games only one time has the game going over 29 goals scored. I know historic matchups can only mean so much but I think it can play a factor here. I think it is relevant because it shows how often games do not reach 30 combined goals even though we feel it may be a shoot out. I think also the recent bias of Yale’s games plays a large part in this line. I’d rather take the under in the wrong than take the over and be wrong. The reason for that is if I take the under and I’m wrong that means that it’s a super fun high scoring game, if the under hits well then we all go home with a little bit of extra money.
The Pick: Under 28.5
Cornell -2.5 vs Delaware O/U 25.5
Last weekend the Delaware Fightin Blue Hens shocked the world as they upset number two seeded Georgetown. The Hens are getting hot at the right time and I feel they’ll keep it rolling right into Sunday. I know that Gavin Adler will look to erase Delaware's number one but they are a team that gets production from the attack and the midfield spots. This is also a very meaningful game for other reasons as Delaware’s Ben Deluca was once the head coach at Cornell. Sports books are being sneaky because both of these teams average around 13 goals a game so that means that the over under is in play but not definite either way. If we’re going off of feeling, I feel that Delaware is peeking at the right time and will give Cornell everything they have so I am going to take the Blue Hens and the points and hope for the best.
Maryland -4.5 vs Virginia O/U 29.5
Here it is, the game that everybody has been waiting to see, the tournament meeting of the two best teams in college lacrosse. I know I am one of the many people who is upset that this meeting had to happen in the quarterfinals but regardless I am hopeful that it will be a good game. When it comes to these teams I feel like season stats go out the window. There are not many trends that I can follow or numbers that I can find that can accurately measure what is going to happen in this game. The last time these two teams met we all thought that Virginia would possibly win and at least make it close and they ended up losing by 11. I don’t think that the Cavaliers would let the same team do that twice in a season nor twice in a lifetime. These guys are the two defending national champions for a reason and they have to prove it come Sunday. They are representing themselves, they are representing the conference and they need to show that Maryland can be beaten. The Hoos are getting 4.5 goals to play with and I think that Connor Shellenberger and Matt Moore can make it happen.
The Pick: UVA +4.5, Over 29.5
Those are my predictions for this weekend's games. Stay tuned for another blog dropping soon with my predictions for next time. If you like my picks, or disagree with me, let me know on Twitter @t_hohenshelt. As always lets have ourselves a weekend and make some money, responsibly.
References:
https://cornellbigred.com/sports/mens-lacrosse/schedule/2022
https://virginiasports.com/sports/mlax/schedule/
https://bluehens.com/sports/mens-lacrosse/schedule/2022
https://scarletknights.com/sports/mens-lacrosse/schedule/2022
https://pennathletics.com/index.aspx