Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza 3/8/2016

by Doc's Sports - 3/8/2016

College basketball takes center stage when it comes to sports betting this month starting with Championship Week in the conference tournaments. In the latest round of questions for Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza, we will get his insight into which teams might be cutting down the nets later this week in a few of those tournaments right in his backyard.

Formerly known as the Vegas Sports Informer during a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, Raphael once held the prestigious position as the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. Since then, he has been bouncing back and forth between the gambling capital of the world and Big Easy in New Orleans running a successful and diverse sports investment service. The following is this week's Q&A with one of Doc's most interesting handicappers.

Doc's Sports: This year's West Coast Conference Tournament has gone chalk with the No. 2 Gonzaga Bulldogs taking on No. 1 St. Mary's in Tuesday night's championship in Las Vegas at the Orleans Arena. The Bulldogs have already lost to their rivals twice in the regular season, but will the third time be the charm?

RE: The pressure is going to be dialed up on Gonzaga in what could easily be a must-win game to get into this year's Big Dance. Other than the fact that it is hard to beat the same team three times in a single season, I like the Bulldogs chances to push the tempo and out pace St. Mary's on the scoreboard to get the win.

Doc's Sports: The Mountain West Tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas gets underway this Wednesday. You have been high on San Diego State all season long, so will the Aztecs add a tournament title to their regular-season MWC title this week?

RE: San Diego State is clearly the best team in the MWC this season, but that does not mean that the winner of a probable Fresno State vs. Boise State matchup in the semifinals can't pull off the upset in the championship game, especially if either team can turn things into a high-scoring affair.

Doc's Sports : Another conference tournament bound for Las Vegas is the Western Athletic, with action slated to get underway on Thursday at the Orleans Arena. While this conference has lost quite a bit of the luster it once had, is there any team that can stop New Mexico State from rolling to another WAC Tournament title?

RE: The only team I could have seen getting in the way of New Mexico State was Grand Canyon, but it's not eligible for postseason play. This is one tournament where it is pretty safe to chalk with the favorite.

Doc's Sports : The biggest college hoops betting event in town this week is the Pac-12 Tournament at the MGM Grand Garden Arena from March 9 to March 12. No. 8 Oregon claimed the regular-season title, but the top four seeds in this conference tournament are all ranked in the AP's latest Top 25. Do you have the Ducks coming out on top, or will one of those other three teams rise to the occasion?

RE: I would not be all that quick in handing the Pac-12 tournament title to Oregon with the way that California has been playing down the stretch. The Golden Bears hammered the Ducks by 20 points the last time these two met, and a clear path has been set in the bracket for another meeting in the Pac-12 Tournament Championship Game.

Doc's Sports: As a bonus pick, which team do you have winning this year's Sun Belt Tournament in your other stopping grounds in New Orleans?

RE : The favorite would have to be the Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans as the regular-season champion, but I am leaning towards the UT-Arlington Mavericks as the No. 3 seed in this tournament. The Mavericks have built up some solid momentum with four straight wins after losing to the Trojans in late-February.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza .

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