I've stated this about 50 times on this forum. I'll expound a bit. Let's say that you have the following lines available:
TeamA -3.5 -110
TeamB +4.5 -110
TeamA wins the game by 4 points approximately 8% of the time. Fair value for the game is TeamA -3.5 +100.
If you calculate your expected value for simply betting the side with value (TeamB +4.5 -110) versus playing the middle, you get the following results...
Middle:
50% -0.1 units
8% +2 units
42% -0.1 units
(0.92*-0.1) + (0.08*2) = +0.068 units
Straight:
58% +1 unit
42% -1.1 unit
(0.58*1) + (0.42*-1.1) = +0.118 units
Long term, you'll do far better by simply wagering the side with value rather than attempting the middle, even though both methods are profitable long term. By attempting the middle, you are only costing yourself money.