There is plenty to like about the dog in this matchup.

1. The first thing I always look for is a matchup where the favorite's best asset is something the dog does horribly. That leaves less to cap because that will always inflate the line as if its a given and there is never a such thing as a given. Right now James Madison(against bad competition albeit) has shown that is can play +margin basketball without winning the turnover battle. Meanwhile Stanford has lost 2 games recently in which it won the turnover battle. Red glag.

2. The next thing I look for is some aspect of the game where the dog is one of the better teams. James Madison is 14th in country right now in def fg%. They held Ohio St. to one of its lowest offensive output(106pts/100 possessions) of the season pre-turner injury. The only team that made it tougher on them was UNC. And Ohio St. also played Cal and FSU.

I don't think Stanford is a very good basketball team right now. James Madison ML

gl all