Big 12 Breakdown

I think we’re looking at a conference here that’ll see four teams head into the largest NCAA Basketball Betting tournament of all time.

Oklahoma is going through a tough spell with their big injury to Griffin, and while their seed might be in question, their invitation definitely is not. If anything, they’re switching to the role of spoiler once the Big 12 tournament roles around, either squashing Mizzou’s hopes of climbing to a 2 seed (if Kansas doesn’t accomplish that first), or putting another mid-tier conference team down for the count.

I’m looking at you Kansas State.

Missouri and Kansas obviously are locks, as well. MU holds the upper hand right now at PokerStar.it due to their miraculous, possible fluke of a comeback against the Jayhawks in Columbia this season, but the rematch in Lawrence is probably going to tell a different story. That game takes center stage March 1, and don’t think the Sooners and everyone else in the basketball world won’t be watching.

Then Missouri, assuming the at least escape Kansas without an injury (knock on wood) stumbles back home to face the Sooners, who’ll be hungry for a beating to re-establish themselves as a threat. They might be playing Mizzou, but they’re going to want to send a message to North Carolina, UConn, Pitt and others even more so.

And then you have Texas, who’s been clinging to life at the bottom of the Top 25 polls lately, and will probably make it in as an 8 or 9 seed. And that’s where I think it’ll end for the conference.

Kansas State, Oklahoma State or anyone else will have to stage an impressive and dominant PokerStars.com run to a Big 12 title to open anyone’s eyes, but with three tough, talented teams ahead of them, I don’t see that happening.

So it’ll be, in this order, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Texas. I see Oklahoma still getting in as a number one seed if they win out. Kansas tops Missouri, and win or lose in the Big 12 championship game, earns a No. 2 seed in the tournament, a 3 at the lowest. Mizzou gets a 4 and should be happy with that.

I wouldn’t bet on any of these teams to make it past the sweet 16, though. None of them are strong enough, not even Oklahoma. To check out the latest NCAA College Basketball Odds visit BaskeballSportsbook.com.

Blackjack Rules

Blackjack is one of the most played casino games around the world and the card games first origins are known to come from France. The goal in blackjack is to have the closest possible cards that equal 21 without going over 21 and you only need to beat the dealer. The other players on the table are also playing against the dealer, but you don’t need to play against the other players which is good.

The game begins with the players on the blackjack table placing there bets. The dealer will then start with the player to the left of him and begin dealing out one card to each player including himself face up. The dealer then deals the second card to every player face up except for the dealer’s second card which is face down. Once the cards are dealt out the player to the left of the dealer will start playing there hand. The choices you have when it’s your turn to play your hand are as followed.

  • The most common move you’ll make when playing internet blackjack is HIT which is asking for another card to be added to your hand. Since the highest valued card is 11 whenever you have 10 or less you should always hit. When you have 12-15 you need to decide whether you’re going to hit based on the cards that have been played and what the dealers face up card is.
  • When you have the hand that you want you STAND which ends your hand and you stand at the total you currently have in hopes that it remains closer to 21 then the dealer. The dealer could also bust which means you automatically win so standing is a good move when the dealer has a face up card of 2-6.
  • You can DOUBLE DOWN which means you need to double your bet and you get one card only to make the best hand possible. The only time you should double down in blackjack is when you have a 10 or 11 total.
  • You can SPLIT PAIRS if you want as well when you’re dealt a pair, but this requires adding another bet to the split pair and playing both hands. It’s not the best move to make, but can payoff sometimes so keep it in mind.

Those are the four moves you can make when you’re gambling online and you’ll generally only hit and stand. The best hand is a blackjack which is when you have an ace and any ten valued card. A blackjack also beats any other combination of 3+ cards that equals 21 and you also get paid 2:1 on a blackjack generally.

Other than some basic blackjack strategy, there isn’t much you need to really learn when you’re playing blackjack because the dealer and other players will help you out if need be. Over time you’ll want to read up some simple strategies that you can use to increase your chances of winning money though. Many online casinos offer blackjack so you can play for free on many of them to practice and learn the game from experience.