Vegas Play of the Day: Notre Dame vs. Northwestern

By Jesse Granger

Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2016 | 10:52 a.m.

We’ve entered the third season of the annual South Point-lined Play of the Day competition, effective July 1.

Starting bankrolls have reset to $10,000, with the maximum bet being to win $1,000 and the minimum wager $300. Ray Brewer won the 2015-2016 season, after Taylor Bern prevailed in 2014-2015. As of Nov. 1, Jesse Granger has taken the place of the retired Taylor Bern.

Notre Dame minus-3.5 vs. Northwestern, $550 to win $500:

This game in the Legends Classic Championship tournament will serve as a good measuring stick for two teams coming off solid wins.

I think the betting market is slightly overreacting to Northwestern’s 77-58 win over No. 22 Texas on Monday night.

Notre Dame is coming off of an impressive 89-83 win over Colorado in which the Fighting Irish offense was firing on all cylinders. The Irish had three scorers with at least 17 points, led by junior forward Bonzie Colson, who had 22 against Colorado and is averaging 20 points per game this season. Colson is also averaging nine rebounds per game and should be very effective against a very undersized Northwestern front court.

The Irish can score with anyone, averaging 88 points per game this year, and will try to shoot Northwestern out of the game. While the Wildcats did shoot the ball well against Texas, I don’t think they can do it on back-to-back nights.

I will lay the points with the undefeated Irish at the Barclays Center.

Current Standings: Bern (16-12, $13,317), Brewer (18-15, $11,015), Keefer (22-20-1, $9,131), Granger (1-5, $7,680)