Vegas Play of the Day: Utah at BYU

By Case Keefer (contact)

Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2014 | 11:03 a.m.

Ideally, a time will come when I can dive deeper into the college basketball board with the South Point-lined Play of the Day.

But, as of now, I’ve only started dipping myself into the season by watching a handful of the best teams. I’ll stick with that group in trying to rebuild my $10,000 starting bankroll.

BYU minus-3.5 vs. Utah: $330 to win $300

Somewhat oddly, these are two of the teams I’ve watched this season. I came away thinking they were just about even, meaning 3.5 points is not a big enough line for the home team in a heated rivalry game.

I’m not convinced the line isn’t over adjusted, albeit only in a minor fashion, following Utah’s 69-68 victory to snap Wichita State’s regular-season winning streak last week. The Utes did everything they could to give the win away to where, by the end, it could have gone either way.

BYU’s two highest profile games have carried that same characteristic too — only the Cougars lost. They fell in overtime to both San Diego State and Purdue in this year’s Maui Invitational.

Had those games fallen a different way, which they easily could have, the Cougars are larger favorites here.

The Marriott Center will be at its most raucous. There’s a reason Utah hasn’t won in Provo in seven straight tries, dating back to 2005.

BYU would love nothing more than to put an end to Utah’s sudden ascension. The Cougars are in a prime position to complete their wish.

Standings: Bern (59-49-1, $12,216), Keefer (51-59-1, $7,261), Brewer (50-56-3, $4,555)

Case Keefer can be reached at 948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.