3* on UMass +

Massachusetts vs. La Salle, 01/30/2013 19:00 EDT, Score: 61 - 60

Point Spread: +9/-103 Massachusetts

Sportsbook: 5Dimes

Result: Win

3* on UMass +

La Salle is being over-rated here today because of how they have played lately, and I think that is also why the Minutemen have a great chance of pulling off the upset. This Explorers team is coming off back to back wins against Butler and VCU. That is no easy feat, but it primes them for a letdown against UMass today.

The Minutemen aren't a team you want to face with less than your full focus either. This team lost early to NC State and Miami, which looking back doesn't seem so bad. They have some decent wins against Richmond last time out, East Carolina, Providence and Harvard too.

LaSalle plays pretty solid defense because they force a lot of turnovers, but UMass takes care of the ball. They also shoot at a decent rate and with the Explorers giving up a lot of easy buckets trying to force turnovers, they shouldn't have a problem putting points on the board tonight. LaSalle on the other hand can struggle to score. UMass's main problem si they foul too much but the Explorers are not a good foul drawing team.

This is a good matchup for the Minutemen and they are catching enough points for me to take them.