EACH day during the NCAA tournament, hoop maven Tim Sullivan, the Post’s two-time defending Saturday’s Heroes champion, will offer his plays of the day:
Memphis (+3) over Texas A&M: The Aggies have become a popular play during the Dance, but we can’t help but remember they were on the ropes vs. both Penn and Louisville, sneaking out a miracle cover in the latter. The home crowd will help Texas A&M, but Memphis, even with the injuries, is better than both of those aforementioned teams, and the Tigers really put it all together Sunday vs. Nevada. And perhaps most important, unlike the Aggies, they’ve been here before.
Pitt (+3) over UCLA: We tend to fade the trendy picks in the tournament. And with 72 percent of this game’s wagers in Las Vegas on the team that has four capital letters in it, we’ll jump on the team with just one. The Panthers will control the tempo, and while UCLA can certainly excel in that style, the points and an overdue Aaron Gray are too good to turn away in this teacher (Ben Howland) vs. pupil (Jamie Dixon) contest.
Ohio State (-5) over Tennessee: Playing with fire going against the Volunteers, who nipped us by a half-point on Sunday. But here’s thinking: The Buckeyes have had their tournament scare and will learn from it. Even though the Vols lost by just two and covered vs. Ohio State in the regular season, Greg Oden had 24 points and 15 rebounds. If he does that again, the spread result will be different.
Last week: 8-6-2; Tournament: 8-6-2.