Date | Match Up | Rating | Score | Result | Profit | Lead Time | Analysis |
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06-05-21 | Nationals +1.5 v. Phillies | Top | 2-5 | Loss | -175 | 7 h 23 m | Show |
This is an 8* on WASHINGTON +1.5 (RUN LINE) The Nationals captured last night’s series opener 2-1. Because of that, we like them +1.5 (run line) on Saturday. The Phillies’ 17-3 win over the Reds on Wednesday is looking like a total outlier as the club has scored no more than three runs in any other of its last eight games. Washington has won three of its last four ball games, all of them coming on the division road. Joe Ross starts on Saturday. He gave up only three hits in his last start and while it ended up being a losing effort, it was the sixth time in seven starts where Ross allowed five hits or less. Ross is 2-0 with a 3.21 ERA all-time vs. the Phillies, who had just six hits in last night’s game. With the exception of yesterday, all the recent putrid offensive efforts by Philadelphia had been on the road. But they only average 4.2 runs/game at home. Spencer Howard is starting for them today and has had issues with a drop in velocity through the first three outings of 2021. Howard hasn’t gone more than four innings yet and the Phillies bullpen has been poor. Play on WASHINGTON +1.5 AAA |
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06-04-21 | Clippers v. Mavs +3 | Top | 104-97 | Loss | -113 | 33 h 35 m | Show |
This is an 8* on DALLAS We’re now 6-0 over the five games of this series with the Under giving us three of those wins. We also won once with the Over. We’ve played the side twice, winning with Dallas in Game 2 and the Clippers in Game 3. The Mavericks now have a 3-2 series lead after taking Game 5 by a score of 105-100. They got 42-8-14 from Luka Doncic, who has been the best player - on either team - in the series. If you’re a Clippers fan, the scary thing is to hear Doncic say “I could have played way better.” We agree that the Mavs could have shot better as a team. They made only 41.6% from the field in Game 5. The home team has yet to win a game, but we see that as likely to change in Game 6 where we like the short home dog. It’s difficult to see the home team losing six in a row in one series. Play on DALLAS AAA |
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06-03-21 | Suns +2 v. Lakers | Top | 113-100 | Win | 100 | 14 h 12 m | Show |
This is an 8* on PHOENIX The Lakers appear lost offensively without Anthony Davis. They still have LeBron James and because of that most are going to expect them to force a Game 7. But we don’t. People have underrated this Suns team all season as their 45-30-2 ATS record is second best in the whole league. The Lakers’ ATS record of 33-44-1 is among the five worst in basketball. The Lakers scored a season-low 85 points in Game 5 and trailed by 30 at halftime. While it’s reasonable to assume things will be closer in Game 6, which is in LA, we don’t think the Lakers can make up the entire gap we saw in the last game. That’s even if Davis plays, which is up to the doctors. The Suns defense has been great since the start of the second half of Game 4 as the Lakers are shooting less than 40 percent. Cameron Payne has really stepped up with Chris Paul playing hurt. Devin Booker is handling the scoring. For LA, James has been settling for threes and not getting to the free throw. His supporting cast simply can’t make up for the loss of Davis. You’re seeing why this was a team that had to win a play-in game just to be part of the playoffs. Take the points. Play on PHOENIX AAA |
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06-02-21 | Grizzlies +9.5 v. Jazz | Top | 110-126 | Loss | -104 | 14 h 57 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MEMPHIS The Grizzlies are facing elimination in Game 5 as the series moves back to Utah. It’s a tall order facing the underdogs as they’ve now got to defeat the team with the best record in the NBA three straight times, including twice on the road. But considering they did win Game 1 here in Salt Lake City, it would be foolish to write Memphis off at this point. We went with them in what turned out to be 112-109 upset in Game 1 and will do the same tonight. Even though they’ve lost three straight, the Grizzlies have not played poorly by any means in this series. Game 2 was an obvious bounce back situation for the Jazz, but Memphis was still within six in the fourth quarter. The two games at Memphis were both competitive. Game 3 saw the Grizzlies ahead with just over four minutes to go. Game 4 saw them fight back and get as close as two points in the fourth quarter. Take the points tonight. Utah’s three point shooting in the last three games has been excellent, but will cool off. The three point shooting for Memphis should improve from the 28.6% we saw in the last game. The Grizzlies are 24-17 straight up (and 24-15 ATS) on the road in 2020-21. The Jazz are only 3-8 ATS their last 11 home games. Play on MEMPHIS AAA |
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06-02-21 | Cardinals v. Dodgers -1.5 | Top | 3-14 | Win | 100 | 14 h 35 m | Show |
This is a 10* on LAD -1.5 St. Louis pulled off an upset, winning 3-2 last night here at Dodgers Stadium. But the idea of them winning two in a row seems remote. The Dodgers, paced by an offense that scores 5.2 runs/game and a pitching staff that allows only 3.9, should still be considered the best team in baseball. They have scored 72 more runs than they have allowed through 55 games. The only two teams with better run differentials this year are the Padres and White Sox. The Cardinals are seven games over .500 and chasing the Cubs in the Central. But they have scored exactly one more run than they’ve allowed. The gap in the two teams’ run differentials is significant to us in handicapping this matchup. So is the fact that Dodgers starter Walker Buehler is 3-0 in his 10 starts with a 2.66 ERA and 0.90 WHIP. He probably deserves better than a 6-4 team start record. His ERA is 0.90 his last three starts as he’s allowed just three runs, one unearned, in 20 innings. There have been only two starts this year where Buehler gave up more than two runs and every start has gone at least six innings. Carlos Martinez did carry a no-hitter into the 7th inning in his last start. But he was facing Arizona. Dodgers are 53-24 L77 if they scored two or less runs in the last game. Play LA DODGERS -1.5 (RUN LINE) AAA |
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05-31-21 | 76ers -8 v. Wizards | Top | 114-122 | Loss | -115 | 9 h 3 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PHILADELPHIA Look for the 76ers to finish off the Wizards tonight and to do so in decided fashion. This is just a one sided series as Philadelphia is averaging 125.7 points/game and allowing only 105.3. The last two games were basically over by halftime and ended up being wins of 25 and 29 points. The Wizards have not shot well, which is essentially doom for them as they don’t play very good defense. The teams have met six times this year with Philadelphia now 6-0 straight up. They’ve scored at least 120 points in five of the six wins. Washington has been held under its season average in four of the six losses. Russell Westbrook is hobbled, which makes things even worse for the underdog. Going back to last year, the Sixers have beaten the Wizards eight straight times. They are on a 10-3-1 ATS run as road favorites coming into tonight. Washington has given little indication that they can “hang” and they are 2-10 ATS the last 12 games as a playoff dog. Play on PHILADELPHIA AAA |
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05-29-21 | Cardinals v. Diamondbacks +1.5 | Top | 7-4 | Loss | -130 | 13 h 47 m | Show |
INCORRECTLY ENTERED PLAY |
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05-29-21 | Nuggets v. Blazers -4 | Top | 95-115 | Win | 100 | 8 h 37 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PORTLAND Portland is looking to avoid dropping back to back home games to Denver, which would put them in a 3-1 hole in the series. The Blazers simply have not defended well over the course of the three games, first allowing the Nuggets to shoot better than 50% overall in the two games in Denver and then 52.6% from three (20 of 38) in Game 3. But we like old “zig zag theory” to come through for Game 4 as Portland should bounce back at home. Damian Lillard, after an incredible individual effort in Game 2, made just 5 of 16 three point attempts on Thursday. He still scored 37 points mind you, but the team ended up 14 of 45 from three point land. It was the second game in this series where we saw a pretty massive discrepancy in three point shooting between the two teams. The discrepancy worked out in Portland’s favor when they won Game 1 and it’s only natural to see a swing in their favor for Game 4. Denver won’t have Will Barton active for tonight and that’s on top of missing Jamal Murray. We don’t think Austin Rivers is capable of duplicating his Game 3 effort and the Blazers should move to 9-4 ATS this season when off a loss as a favorite. Play on PORTLAND AAA |
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05-28-21 | Knicks +4.5 v. Hawks | Top | 94-105 | Loss | -110 | 10 h 3 m | Show |
This is an 8* on NEW YORK Trailing by double digits at halftime in Game 2, the Knicks appeared to be in grave danger of falling down 0-2 in this series with the Hawks. But they put the clamps down in the second half of that last game, holding Atlanta to just 35 points, and it ended up being a 101-92 New York win. Having lost the first game by only two points, Knicks’ fans probably feel as if they should be up 2-0 in the series. That it was the defense that sparked the second half comeback on Wednesday should not come as any surprise. The Knicks allowed the fewest number of points per game in the league during the regular season. They are also the league’s best ATS team with a cover rate of 65.3%, which is well out in front of everyone else. The fact they’ve covered 9 of their last 11 games as road underdogs comes in handy here as they are taking on a team that’s 11-0 straight up in its last 11 home games. The Knicks have suffered only two losses in their previous seven games and each came by just two points. Therefore, taking the points in Game 3 seems like the best option. Play on NEW YORK AAA |
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05-27-21 | Hurricanes v. Predators +1.5 | Top | 4-3 | Win | 100 | 12 h 20 m | Show |
This is a 6* on NASHVILLE +1.5 This may surprise you given that we went so big on Carolina in Game 5. But with none of the last three games decided in regulation and Nashville facing elimination on home ice, we will lay the juice to get the +1.5 in Game 6. The home team is 5-0 in this series. Going back to the regular season, the home team is 11-0 the last 11 meetings! The Predators have scored at least three goals in all four of their home wins this year against the Hurricanes. The ‘Canes are great at home (23-8) but barely above .500 for the year away (16-14). We could see a fourth straight OT game tonight, which is all we’d need as that would assure a one-goal game either way. Given how important home ice advantage has been in this series, we don’t see the Preds losing by more than a goal. It wouldn’t be at all shocking if they won. Play on NASHVILLE +1.5 AAA |
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05-27-21 | Bucks v. Heat +2 | Top | 113-84 | Loss | -114 | 11 h 46 m | Show |
This is an 8* on MIAMI The Heat find themselves desperately needing to win Game 3, otherwise this series will be just about over. They lost both games in Milwaukee, the first one being close (109-107 in overtime) and the second one being a blowout (132-98). Given that the Heat are down 0-2, we were a bit surprised to see this line “jump the fence” as the Bucks are now favored. It was record-setting shooting for Milwaukee on Monday as they made 22 three-pointers, the most ever by the franchise in a single playoff game. They scored 46 points in the first quarter, 78 in the first half and were ahead at one point by 36. But now the series heads to Miami and the Heat have yet to shoot well. We think they will tonight in Game 3. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo are averaging just 26 points/game - combined. In the regular season, the duo averaged just over 40 points/game. The Bucks were just 20-16 straight up on the road in the regular season as opposed to 26-10 at home. They are 5-10 against the spread coming off a game where they scored at least 130 points. Miami can’t afford to go down 0-3 as no one has ever come back from that series deficit in the history of the NBA. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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05-25-21 | Mavs +6 v. Clippers | Top | 127-121 | Win | 102 | 30 h 13 m | Show |
This is a 10* on DALLAS The Mavs seized home court advantage by “stealing” Game 1 in LA, 113-103 as six-point underdogs. Luka Doncic scored 31 points and the key was the Clippers, the league’s top three point shooting team, making only 27.5% from behind the arc. Dallas led most of the game and shot well. While most will be thinking “zig zag theory” here, the gap between the teams simply isn’t as wide as the spread suggests. The Clippers have not won a game in 10 days and are just 3-9 ATS their previous 12 games. They’ve lost three of the four games to Dallas this year including the infamous 51-point loss two days after Christmas. All three Mavericks wins have been by 10 or more points. The Clippers have a lot of pressure on them heading into this postseason and we’re not convinced they are capable of living up to the hype. Dallas is a good team that has lost just three times in its last 13 games, one of those the inconsequential final regular season game. Grab the points in this one. Play on DALLAS AAA |
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05-24-21 | Heat +5 v. Bucks | Top | 98-132 | Loss | -115 | 12 h 1 m | Show |
This is an 8* on MIAMI Both the Heat and Bucks hope for improved shooting in Game 2. From the Heat point of view, that may sound a little strange seeing as they connected on a franchise record 20 three-pointers in Game 1. But they were just 32.7% from the floor inside the arc and both Bam Adebayo (4 of 15) and Jimmy Butler (4 of 22) were not sharp. Miami was our 10* Game of the Month in Game 1, so we were quite happy with the final result. We’ll take them again here as they never trailed by more than eight points on Saturday and there’s no reason to believe they will again tonight. Remember that they eliminated the Bucks from last year’s playoffs. They seem to know how to defend Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was only 10 of 27 in Game 1. The Heat are 16-5 ATS their previous 21 playoff games including 5-0 ATS in the first round. They’ve won 8 of their last 11 overall and while two of the losses were to Milwaukee, one of them didn’t matter and the other went to overtime. The Bucks are now 1-7 ATS their last eight games. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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05-23-21 | Grizzlies +9 v. Jazz | Top | 112-109 | Win | 100 | 13 h 1 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MEMPHIS Not many are giving Memphis a chance in Game 1, let alone the series. But coming off two wins in the first ever play-in tournament, maybe they should. The Grizzlies’ narrow wins over San Antonio and Golden State are a little misleading in the sense they led most of the way in both games. Not saying it’s going to be a wire to wire win here in Salt Lake City, but we do like the Grizzlies to keep it close. It will be interesting to observe the “rest vs. rust” for the Jazz, who have not played in a week. The fact Memphis had to win twice to get here isn’t that big of a disadvantage as teams normally play more than twice in a six day span. Of the three times these teams played in the regular season, two were decided by four points or less. The exception was the second game, which was a back to back on the road. Utah has had three or more days rest for only one game all season and they didn’t cover the spread in it. Memphis is 23-14 ATS in road games and is a top six team defensively in points per possessions allowed. Grab the points. Play on MEMPHIS AAA |
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05-22-21 | Heat +5 v. Bucks | Top | 107-109 | Win | 100 | 67 h 8 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MIAMI Milwaukee will obviously be motivated based on last year’s playoff exit at the hands of Miami. But the Bucks sure chose a tough potential path to make it to the NBA Finals. They may have to go through the Heat, Nets and Sixers to get there. They’ve infamously flamed out of the playoffs earlier than expected the last two years. There’s a lot of pressure on star player Giannis Antetokounmpo coming into this series. The Heat are once again peaking at the right time. They won 12 of their final 16 regular season games to move up to the six seed. Yes, one of the losses did come to the Bucks. But now it’s the playoffs and that’s what this team (meaning the Heat) are built for. They have a top 10 defense and held Milwaukee to 32.7% shooting on three-point attempts in last year’s series. They also have a blueprint to stop Giannis. Eric Spoelstra really outcoached Mike Budenholzer last year. Miami is 15-5 ATS L20 playoff games. The reason they got off to the slow start this year was likely to do to such a short period of time off between seasons. Jimmy Butler’s numbers ended up being here this year compared to last. He and Bam Adebayo are the keys, but we also think some of the Heat’s perimeter shooters are going to knock down more threes than usual. Tyler Herro has been cold since returning from injury. That can change in a hurry. The Bucks have only covered one of their last seven games. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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05-21-21 | Capitals +1.5 v. Bruins | Top | 1-4 | Loss | -185 | 10 h 32 m | Show |
This is a 7* on WASH +1.5 The Capitals are down two games to one in their series against the Bruins. So we’ll take them getting an added goal and a half for Game 4. Not only have the first three games all been decided by one goal margins, but they all went into overtime. Game 3 went to double overtime with Boston getting the game winner 5:43 into that period. It was a game the Bruins never led until the moment they won it. That comes on the heels of Game 2 where the Caps gave up the game-tying goal in the final three minutes of regulation. We had the Under in Game and then the Over in Game 2, for the record. While the goaltending situation is in flux for Washington right now, Ilya Samsonov made 40 saves in the last game. It’s a bit shocking that we’re being afforded this opportunity to get the Capitals +1.5 at a relatively decent price. They’ve won the last four times after a game where they scored two goals or fewer. They are also 22-8 L30 vs. Boston. Play on WASHINGTON +1.5 AAA |
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05-19-21 | Warriors +5.5 v. Lakers | Top | 100-103 | Win | 100 | 14 h 48 m | Show |
This is an 8* on GOLDEN STATE This is too many points for Golden State. Not only have they won six in a row, they’ve covered six straight as well. The Lakers have the worst ATS record among playoff teams (31-40-1). They aren’t going to just automatically “gel” now that LeBron and Davis are back. James is still hobbled by his injured ankle. Not hobbled is Steph Curry. He went for 46 in the last game and is #1 in the league in scoring. Over his past 24 games, Curry has scored 30 or more 21 times while averaging 36.9 points. HIs shooting alone can propel the Warriors to victory here. The five-game win streak by the Lakers includes two wins by two points. They are off a 110-98 win at New Orleans on the season’s final day. Bad news: the Lakers are 6-15 ATS off a double digit win this year. They are only 2-12 ATS after their last 14 straight up wins. We’re grabbing the points. Play on GOLDEN STATE AAA |
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05-15-21 | Heat +2 v. Bucks | Top | 108-122 | Loss | -110 | 12 h 4 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MIAMI Each has two games left in the regular season, but this may not be the last time the Bucks run into the Heat. There’s a chance these two teams could be first round playoff opponents. Milwaukee will finish in the top three, maybe as high as second depending on what the Nets do this weekend. Miami can finish anywhere from fourth to sixth depending on the next two games. What we do know is the Heat would much rather finish in the top five, and match up with either the Hawks or Knicks, as opposed to finishing sixth and facing either the Bucks or Nets. Miami seems to be peaking at the right time as they’ve won four in a row and seven of eight. Their last win was against the East’s #1 seed, Philadelphia, whom they held to 94 points. Remember that the Heat peaked at the right time last year and made it all the way to the NBA Finals, a run that included them eliminating the Bucks from the postseason. The teams haven’t met since December when Miami was in a lot rougher shape. Milwaukee is off a big 142-133 win at Indiana Thursday. They are 4-10 ATS this season if they scored 130 or more points in their last game. Also, in four of their past five games, the Bucks have surrendered at least 133 points. That’s pretty bad. Grab the points. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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05-14-21 | Cavs v. Wizards -7.5 | Top | 105-120 | Win | 100 | 12 h 37 m | Show |
This is a 10* on WASHINGTON There’s still one spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament up for grabs. It will likely go to Washington. All the Wizards need to do is beat Cleveland tonight and the spot is theirs. They have a two-game lead over Chicago with two games to play. Beating the Cavaliers should not be difficult. The Cavs are one of the worst teams in the league and are coming off a rare win. Before defeating Boston 102-94 two days ago, Cleveland had lost 11 in a row. Seven of those losses were by double digits and only two were by less than nine. The only teams in the league with a worse point differential (than the Cavs) are Orlando and Oklahoma City. Washington let one slip away in Atlanta Wednesday, so they should come out angry. Even without Bradley Beal, the Wizards averaged 120 points/game in the two losses to the Hawks. Scoring shouldn’t be an issue here either. Washington is 26-12 ATS after scoring 115 or more points in their last game and they finished with 116 on Wednesday. Since April 12th, the Wizards are 13-5 and every loss was by four points or less, three of them by one point. So they are one of the hottest teams in the league over the last month. On the road, Cleveland does not even average 100 points/game and they are 10-24 ATS. Play on WASHINGTON AAA |
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05-13-21 | Clippers v. Hornets +9 | Top | 113-90 | Loss | -115 | 8 h 25 m | Show |
This is a 10* on CHARLOTTE The Clippers, who have gone Under the total in nine consecutive games, are just 5-4 straight up during the same stretch. They did defeat undermanned Toronto 115-96 on Tuesday, but look for the Hornets to be a taller order on Thursday. Playing at home, Charlotte will be looking to cement its status as a top eight team in the Eastern Conference. Finishing in the top eight should be the Hornets goal at this point as they’d only have to win once to escape the play-in round and would also get a mea culpa (second game) if they were to lose their first play-in game. The Clippers are pretty much locked into a top four seed out West and don’t have a ton to play for in the next three games, all of which will be on the road. This is the Hornets’ last regular season home game, so expect there to be some level of motivation, or at least more motivation than the Clippers will have. Charlotte has lost two in a row and three of four - all those games coming at home. Not saying they’re going to win tonight, but taking the points is the correct call. Play on CHARLOTTE AAA |
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05-12-21 | Wizards v. Hawks -5.5 | Top | 116-120 | Loss | -110 | 20 h 47 m | Show |
This is a 10* on ATLANTA The Hawks beat the Wizards Monday, 125-124, but did not cover the number (-8). It was an interesting game in that the Wizards led 62-61 at halftime, but then Atlanta came storming out of the break to take a 17 point lead after three quarters. But the fourth belonged to Washington as they outscored the Hawks 45-29. Still, Atlanta won despite shooting only 33.3 percent from three (compared to 50% for Washington). The number is a little bit shorter for tonight’s rematch and we will lay the points in this one as Washington isn’t liable to shoot the ball as well as they did Monday. Bradley Beal, who is the NBA’s second leading scorer, has again been ruled out. That the Wizards scored 124 without him on Monday was a surprise. Atlanta has won four of five and is trying to lock down home court advantage for the first round of the playoffs. They are 22-11 SU at home this season, so home court advantage is important to them. Monday was their eighth straight win here. They are 14-2 ATS L16 as a home favorite. Play on ATLANTA AAA |
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05-11-21 | Heat -1.5 v. Celtics | Top | 129-121 | Win | 100 | 12 h 44 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MIAMI This is a really important game in the race for the six seed in the Eastern Conference. Miami has a two-game lead over Boston after beating them (the Celtics) on Sunday 130-124 here in Beantown. The six seed, as a reminder, avoids the play-in tournament. So it’s very significant to finish in the top six in your conference. The Heat have been the hotter team of late with wins in 9 of their last 12 games. The Celtics have dropped six of nine and actually trailed by 30 points in one of those three victories. We’re going with Miami to make it two in a row in Boston tonight on TNT. The Heat led by 26 at halftime Sunday after shooting 65 percent. Boston got some really bad news yesterday when it was announced that Jaylen Brown, who is having a career year, is done for the season because of a wrist injury. Before getting beaten by the Heat 48 hours ago, the Celtics lost by 22 at Chicago. They’ve now used 34 different starting lineups this season, fourth most in the league, and there’s just not a lot of positives for this team right now. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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05-09-21 | Pelicans +5 v. Hornets | Top | 112-110 | Win | 100 | 10 h 29 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NEW ORLEANS The Pelicans desperately need to win Sunday. They are two back of San Antonio, who lost yesterday, for 10th place and the last play-in spot. They’ll head to a place the fans know well, Charlotte, as that’s the franchise’s former home. Neither Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram will make the trip though as both are injured at the most inopportune time. But without either, New Orleans almost defeated Philadelphia on Friday. They lost that game by only two. Charlotte doesn’t scare us as they too have an injury-depleted roster. The Hornets have won back to back games only one time since April 10th. They are off a win over Orlando on Friday. New Orleans hasn’t dropped consecutive games since a four-game losing streak in mid-April. They are 4-0 ATS off a loss since then. They are 21-9 ATS vs. the Hornets and won the last two times they’ve come to Charlotte. The Hornets are 5-11 ATS their last 16 games. New Orleans is 5-0 ATS its last five road games and 4-0 ATS its last four as an underdog. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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05-09-21 | Wolves v. Magic +7 | Top | 128-96 | Loss | -110 | 10 h 29 m | Show |
This is an 8* on ORLANDO Minnesota laying seven points on the road seems a bit excessive. They’ve won only eight times on the road all season and have the third worst overall win percentage in the entire NBA. We know the Magic have been struggling recently, but they are still a game better than the Timberwolves. And recent Orlando efforts - except the one vs. Boston - have been competitive. They beat Memphis and Detroit last weekend and were neck and neck with Charlotte most of the way Friday. In January, they rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit to win 97-96 at Minnesota. This will be only the fourth time the T’wolves have been favored to win a road game in 2020-21. They are 2-1 SU/ATS in the other three, but the scoring margin is just +2.0 PPG. Play on ORLANDO AAA |
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05-08-21 | Spurs v. Blazers -5 | Top | 102-124 | Win | 100 | 15 h 41 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PORTLAND Both teams won last night. San Antonio got a much needed win in Sacramento, 113-104, ending a five-game losing streak in the process. Portland won for the sixth time in seven games, beating the Lakers 106-101, but did not cover the spread. We think the Blazers will cover Saturday night as they continue their pursuit of a top six spot in the Western Conference. The win over the Lakers did help as it moved them a game ahead. The difference between finishing sixth and seventh is huge because of the new play-in round. The Spurs can only hope for a play-in round appearance as they are 10th, 2.5 games up on New Orleans. (Ten teams make the playoffs, including the play-in round). The best San Antonio can probably hope for is 8th, but that’s still the play-in round and honestly they don’t want to face the Lakers or Blazers in that situation. (Although the winner of the 7th vs. 8th place game is guaranteed a first round playoff series). But the bottom line is Portland is 7-1 ATS its last eight vs. teams with losing records and going to stop an 0-5 ATS skid as home favorites. Play on PORTLAND AAA |
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05-07-21 | Knicks v. Suns -7 | Top | 105-128 | Win | 100 | 11 h 18 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PHOENIX The Knicks have been so successful ATS that they’ve even caught the eye of “mainstream” outlets like ESPN. Coming into tonight’s game with Phoenix, New York has gone 43-23 against the spread this season, a cover rate of 65.1%. Per the ESPN report, only two other teams in the past 30 years have covered 65% of their games in a given season. That’s pretty good for a team that opened the year tied with Cleveland and Detroit as the biggest long-shot to win the NBA Finals (500-1!). But now that they’re getting this kind of recognition, it’s probably a choice time to start fading. Just 48 hours ago, the Knicks got their doors blown off in Denver 113-97, a bad call by us. But we’ve learned our lesson and now are going to fade as the Knicks’ toughest road trip of the season continues tonight in the desert. The Suns have been just as surprising as the Knicks this year, maybe even moreso, as they have the league’s second best overall record. After a shocking 32-point loss to Atlanta on Wednesday, they should be surly. The Suns have won and covered all five matchups with the Knicks the past three seasons including a 118-110 win in Madison Square Garden last month. That ended what was a nine-game Knicks win streak at the time. Phoenix has been great off a loss this year, going 14-4 ATS, so lay the points with confidence. Play on PHOENIX AAA |
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05-06-21 | Lakers +8 v. Clippers | Top | 94-118 | Loss | -105 | 14 h 39 m | Show |
This is a 10* on the LAKERS Betting either the Lakers or the Clippers recently has been hazardous to one’s bankroll. The Lakers are just 1-7 ATS their last eight games, though they did just upset Denver - as a 3.5 point underdog - on Monday. They did so without the services of LeBron James. James returned on 4/30 against the Kings and also played on 5/2 vs Toronto, but those were both Lakers’ losses. They are 2-6 SU those last eight games and have fallen into a tie with Dallas for 5th in the West. Seventh place Portland is lurking just a half game back, so there’s a chance the defending NBA champs could end up in the play-in round. James is not playing tonight, but we’ll still take the points with the Lakers as the league’s “other LA team” has not covered in five straight and should not be laying so many points. The Clippers have lost three of the last five games outright and the two wins - both of which were against non-playoff teams - were by just five points each. They trailed much of the way against Toronto in their last game. Remember the Lakers still have Anthony Davis and are #1 in the league in points allowed per possession. Play on LA LAKERS AAA |
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05-06-21 | Devils v. Islanders -1.5 | Top | 2-1 | Loss | -100 | 11 h 36 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NYI -1.5 We know who the four playoff teams from the East Division will be (Capitals, Penguins, Bruins, Islanders). This is arguably the toughest division in this year’s realigned NHL. The Islanders have spent a lot of time in first place, so for them to be currently fourth has to be disappointing. Since clinching a playoff spot, they’ve lost two in a row to last place Buffalo. But there's still only a five point gap between them and first and a win today could vault them ahead of Boston (who hosts the Rangers) into third. Beating the Devils shouldn’t be hard. After all, they’ve won five of this season’s six meetings including all four that took place in March. They’ve won 10 of their last 12 against New Jersey. This game is in Uniondale and nobody has suffered fewer losses on home ice than the Isles. They’ve been beaten just six times at home all season, only three of those coming in regulation. Both those numbers are tied for league bests. The Devils are out of it and had lost 10 in a row before winning four of the last five. They are 8-21 against teams with a winning record and 4-10 after a game with four or more goals. Not only will the Islanders win tonight, they’ll do so by at least two goals. Play on NY ISLANDERS (-1.5) AAA |
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05-05-21 | Knicks +3 v. Nuggets | Top | 97-113 | Loss | -109 | 13 h 17 m | Show |
This is a 10* on the KNICKS Two hot teams meet in Denver Wednesday night. The Knicks are the hotter of the two and arguably the hottest team in the league currently. They’ve won 12 of the last 13 games, including three straight by double digits. Equally as impressive is the fact they are on a 15-1 ATS run! That goes back to April 3rd. Nine of the last 10 wins have been by 10 or more points. The only game the Knicks have lost since April 8th was to Phoenix, who has the best record in the NBA. New York will visit Phoenix on Friday. But first they are in Denver. Tonight is the beginning of a tough four-game stretch, all of them on the road. In addition to visits to Denver and Phoenix, the Knicks go to LA to face the Lakers and the Clippers. We’re taking the points here as they just won in Memphis 118-104 as a 3.5-point dog Monday. That same night, Denver lost to the Lakers 93-89 in a game where LeBron James rested. The Nuggets had won five in a row and nine of 10 before suffering that loss, but remember PG Jamal Murray is out for the year and that absence will be felt moving forward. The Knicks have covered two-thirds of their games this season, easily the best ATS record in the league. Denver lost another guard (PJ Dozier) to injury on Monday. Play on NEW YORK AAA |
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05-04-21 | Oilers v. Canucks +1.5 | Top | 4-1 | Loss | -141 | 14 h 50 m | Show |
This is an 8* on VANCOUVER +1.5 Edmonton has already clinched a playoff spot. Connor McDavid is going to be the MVP. Barring something unforeseen, the Oilers are finishing second in the North Division. Vancouver, after losing its last five games, must now win out AND get help just to make the playoffs. While this may seem like a mismatch on paper, we believe the Canucks could steal this game or at the very least lose it by only one goal. Last night, they did get within one of the Oilers before McDavid’s empty net goal made it a 5-3 final. COVID-19 may have ravaged the Canucks season, but they won’t go down without a fight. The players know that one more loss and the season is over. So look for maximum effort tonight while the Oilers could very well “phone it in.” Play on VANCOUVER +1.5 AAA |
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05-01-21 | Pelicans -4 v. Wolves | Top | 140-136 | Push | 0 | 9 h 16 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NEW ORLEANS Minnesota is on a season-best four game win streak. Two of the wins were against Utah. Look for that streak to end tonight though against a somewhat desperate Pelicans team. New Orleans is on a 3-0 ATS run with one SU loss coming by two points. They are 11th in the West, needing to make up a three-game gap to catch Golden State for the final play-in spot. Golden State is who Minnesota just beat, so that helped the Pelicans out. It’s impressive that New Orleans won so comfortably in Oklahoma City as they only shot 5 of 29 from behind the three-point arc. They’ll certainly be better tonight against a T’wolves team that lets opponents hit over 39% from three. Minnesota is still just 2-13 straight up when coming off an upset win as an underdog. The Pelicans have double revenge as they are one of two teams that Minnesota has multiple wins against this season without a loss. New Orleans' last two losses were by two points each, so they could easily be on a five game win streak heading into tonight. This is pretty close to “must win” and they are 27-11 ATS their last 38 road games vs. teams with a home win percentage of .400 or worse. Minnesota is 12-19 at home. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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04-30-21 | Blazers -1 v. Nets | Top | 128-109 | Win | 100 | 9 h 47 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PORTLAND Second time in a row we’re going with Portland. They won big for us in their last game, a 130-109 pummeling of Memphis. They were up 33 at one point. It was the Blazers second straight emphatic victory. They also beat Indiana 133-112 earlier in the week. So coming off back-to-back 130+ point efforts, they look to win their third straight game tonight in Brooklyn. The Nets won’t have Durant or Harden and Irving is listed as questionable. They hope to have Irving back, but it’s a gametime decision. The Nets are 4-0 straight up and against the spread their last four games, but Portland comes in more desperate for a win. They are now one game back of Dallas for the six seed and finishing sixth or higher means you avoid the play-in round. Brooklyn is first out East, even though Philadelphia and Milwaukee have better scoring differentials. The Blazers are a good road team (18-12) and can easily beat the Nets when they don’t have two, or maybe all three of their stars. Play on PORTLAND AAA |
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04-29-21 | Warriors -5.5 v. Wolves | Top | 114-126 | Loss | -110 | 12 h 8 m | Show |
This is a 10* on GOLDEN STATE For the first time in 2020-21, Minnesota finds itself on a three-game win streak. The only previous time they’d even won two in a row was when they started the season 2-0. Oddly, two of those wins came against the Jazz, the team with the best record in all of basketball. They are 3-0 vs. Utah this season and just 16-44 against everyone else. The third straight win came on Tuesday against a Houston team that is simply playing out the string at this point. We don’t see the Timberwolves extending this improbable win streak tonight though as they face a Golden State team that’s off an incredibly embarrassing 30 point defeat at the hands of Dallas. The Warriors trailed 62-29 at halftime despite the Mavs coming into the game short-handed and it was at HOME. The loss leaves them 31-31 on the year and clinging on to the last available spot for the play-in round. We expect a big time bounce back performance here from Steph Curry as Golden State has already beaten Minnesota by double digits two different times this year. Coach Steve Kerr ripped his team pretty bad after the Dallas loss and said every game from here on out needed to be treated like a playoff game. Lay a really short number in this one. Play on GOLDEN STATE AAA |
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04-28-21 | Blazers +2.5 v. Grizzlies | Top | 130-109 | Win | 100 | 24 h 18 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PORTLAND Big-time revenge game for the Blazers tonight. They’ve lost twice at home to Memphis in the last seven days. This time they face the Grizzlies on the road. They do so on the second night of a back to back. Last night probably could not have gone any better as they boat raced Indiana 133-112. They were 50 of 106 from the field and 20 of 35 from three-point range and took control by outscoring the Pacers 40-16 in the third. They were up 35 at that point, which means key players were able to rest. This race for sixth in the West has gotten quite interesting as Portland lost five in a row, four of them at home, before last night’s win. But they are still 1.5 games up on the Grizzlies and 17-12 SU/ATS on the road. Memphis has a losing home record (13-16 SU) and was blown out in Denver two nights ago. This is their first home game in two weeks. A 24-point loss is not the way you want to end a seven-game road trip and look for that to have an effect on the Grizzlies tonight. They shot really well both games in Portland, but were 4 of 32 from behind the arc in Denver. Play on PORTLAND AAA |
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04-25-21 | Kings v. Warriors -9.5 | Top | 113-117 | Loss | -110 | 14 h 55 m | Show |
This is a 10* on GOLDEN STATE Golden State should really “give it” to Sacramento Sunday night. We had the Warriors in a most impressive 118-97 win against Denver on Friday night. That was their sixth win in the last eight games as they continue their push to the playoffs. The two losses were both close games on the road. All six wins have been nine points or greater and this matchup should continue the trend as the Kings won’t have De’Aaron Fox, who is out due to COVID. The Warriors are winning by an average of 9.5 points in the games where they were favored this year. Steph Curry has scored 30 or more in 12 of his last 13 games and should exceed that number again tonight seeing as the Kings are the worst defensive team in the league. The Kings are also 2-10 in their last 12 games with one of the two wins coming earlier this week, by only three points, against last place Minnesota. Seven of those ten losses have been by double digits. Play on GOLDEN STATE AAA |
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04-24-21 | Bulls v. Heat -5 | Top | 101-106 | Push | 0 | 12 h 50 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MIAMI The Heat’s three-game run (win streak) ended Friday with a 118-113 loss in Atlanta. Now they host Chicago for a couple games. These games will have an effect on the Eastern Conference playoff race as the Heat (31-29) sit in seventh place while the Bulls (25-34) are one game back of 10th, which is where they need to be to make the new play-in round. Although we took them on Thursday and they beat Charlotte 108-91, the Bulls aren’t a very good team. Leading scorer Zach LaVine is still out indefinitely (quarantine). The Bulls last road game resulted in a 16-point loss at Cleveland, who isn’t very good. Miami wasn’t very good defensively on Friday, allowing a shorthanded Hawks team to shoot 53.8% and make 15 threes. They were also outrebounded and -13 in fast break points. They can’t afford to lose a second straight game to a team playing without its leading scorer. Several key players had bad shooting nights in Atlanta and we expect them to bounce back and deliver at home. The Heat won by 11 in Chicago last month. Play on MIAMI AAA |
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04-24-21 | Avalanche v. Blues +1.5 | Top | 3-5 | Win | 100 | 7 h 47 m | Show |
This is an 8* on ST. LOUIS +1.5 (PUCK LINE) After an eight-day pause, Colorado made a successful return to the ice Thursday night in St. Louis, winning here by a score of 4-2. The Avalanche have already clinched a playoff berth and obviously have their eyes on winning the division. But we don’t think Saturday’s rematch with the Blues will be that easy. St. Louis has its own motivation, that being just getting into the postseason. A win today could potentially allow them to leapfrog Arizona for fourth place. (The Coyotes play in LA tonight). At the very worst, a win will keep them just one point behind the ‘Yotes. We like the puck line quite a bit here. For those who have no knowledge of Thursday’s game, it was 3-2 before the Avs added an empty-netter in the final two minutes. Due to COVID-19 protocols, Colorado will still be without number one goalie Philipp Grubauer and two of their top forwards (Donskoi, Rantanen). Won’t deny how good the Avs have been the last month or so, but they’re probably due to slip up. Play on ST. LOUIS +1.5 (PUCK LINE) AAA |
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04-23-21 | Nuggets v. Warriors +3 | Top | 97-118 | Win | 100 | 13 h 1 m | Show |
This is a 10* on GOLDEN STATE Denver enters Friday at 38-20 overall and in 4th place in the Western Conference. They’ve won four straight, but the last two have been by a total of three points and they didn’t cover either of those. Golden State is 29-30 SU this season and coming off a heartbreaking 118-114 loss at Washington Wednesday night. The Warriors are 10th in the West, just barely holding on to a spot for the play-in tournament. So this game would seem more important to them and they’ve got to love the fact it’s at home. Steph Curry and the boys haven’t played a home game in 11 days. The last one was against the Nuggets and they won 116-107 as 5.5-point underdogs. They just completed a successful road trip (3-2) and are 6-3 SU the last nine games overall. In that last meeting, Denver lost point guard Jamal Murray for the season to an ACL injury. We’re surprised they’ve done so well without him. Steph Curry had 53 points in that last meeting and after having an 11-game run of 30+ point games snapped Wednesday, look for him to have another big game tonight. The Warriors are 6-1 ATS the last 7 games vs. Denver. Play on GOLDEN STATE AAA |
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04-22-21 | Hornets v. Bulls -1.5 | Top | 91-108 | Win | 100 | 11 h 54 m | Show |
This is an 8* on CHICAGO The race for the four play-in spots in the NBA’s Eastern Conference is intensifying. Washington has gotten hot and there are four teams separated by three games gunning for the last two playoff berths. Charlotte is a little bit ahead of those four teams, in eighth place, but fading rapidly as a rash of injuries have hurt literally and figuratively. Just 1-5 the last six games, the Hornets are without LaMelo Ball, Malik Monk and Gordon Hayward. Without three of their top five scorers, the team has failed to even hit 100 points in five of the past 11 games. Really, we didn’t think this team was all that great BEFORE the injuries and this slide should continue tonight in Chicago. The Bulls are desperate after losing in Cleveland last night 121-105. They are one game back of 10th place as they’ve won just twice in their past eight games. Their leading scorer (Zach LaVine) is also out, but they are still a better offensive team than Charlotte. They also held Cleveland and Boston both to just 96 points in recent wins. We just see Charlotte as a team in a free-fall and it's unlikely to end with so many key players still missing. Play on CHICAGO AAA |
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04-21-21 | Warriors -2 v. Wizards | Top | 114-118 | Loss | -107 | 21 h 9 m | Show |
This is a 10* on GSW Thanks to the latest virtuoso effort from Steph Curry (49 points), the Warriors were able to defeat Philadelphia Monday night 107-96. They are now 3-1 on the current road trip with Curry averaging 42.8 points/game on 55 percent shooting. Their next game is tonight in the Nation’s Capital against a Wizards team that has been surging of late with five straight wins. That win streak has them tied with Chicago for 10th place, the last available spot for the play-in round of the postseason. Golden State, who has won five of its last six overall, is 9th in the West. So this one is every bit as important to them. We don’t see how you can fade Curry right now, especially in this matchup against the team that gives up the second highest number of points/game in the league. The Warriors have revenge for a three-point home loss 12 days ago. The Wizards have a losing record at home. Golden State is 16-6 SU and 14-8 ATS when favored this season. Washington did snap Utah’s long home win streak earlier in the month, but their last four wins have all been against non-playoff teams, the last two vs. Detroit and Oklahoma City, who might be the worst teams in each conference. Play on GOLDEN STATE AAA |
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04-20-21 | Rangers v. Angels -1.5 | Top | 2-6 | Win | 100 | 13 h 33 m | Show |
This is a 10* on LA ANGELS -1.5 The Angels were upset yesterday by the Rangers, losing 6-4 in a game where they were big favorites. They actually had more hits than Texas, but sloppy defense (three errors) contributed to them falling into a 6-0 hole. Five of those six runs for the Rangers came in one inning (the sixth) and that equaled their entire offensive output from the previous 32 innings combined. So we’re not sold on them being able to duplicate last night’s result. In fact, we think this should be such an easy win for the home team that you should lay the -1.5 on the run line. Ohtani is starting tonight for the Angels. The first start of the year for the two-way player did bring about control issues (five walks) but he only allowed two hits and the Angels won 7-4. The Angels also average 5.9 runs/game at home. Jordan Lyles, who won just one game for Texas last year, has already matched that win total in 2021 as he won his first start. But the last two have seen him give up three home runs and six runs total. He now has a 4.70 ERA. He has a 5.40 ERA in six career starts vs. LA. Play on LA ANGELS (-1.5) AAA |
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04-18-21 | Kings v. Mavs -8 | Top | 121-107 | Loss | -109 | 9 h 47 m | Show |
This is a 10* on DALLAS Dallas is not only off a 117-109 loss to the Knicks (were 6.5-point favorites), but has also failed to cover four in a row. They have a golden opportunity to turn things around Sunday when they host the Kings, losers of nine straight. Sacramento was at least competitive in its last game, but they still lost by eight in Phoenix. They hadn’t covered in five straight before that. No Marvin Bagley III for tonight either. Very bad defense has been the Kings problem all season. They give up the most points per game in the league. This feels like it should be a big offensive night for Dallas, who has struggled at home, They badly want to move up into sixth place in the Western Conference and thus avoid the play-in round for the postseason. They are two games back of sixth place Portland right now. Off their last 10 straight up losses, the Mavs are 7-3 against the spread. This is a mismatch and the Kings haven’t stayed within seven points of anybody in their past six games. Play on DALLAS AAA |
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04-16-21 | Golden Knights -1.5 v. Ducks | Top | 4-0 | Win | 111 | 13 h 59 m | Show |
This is a 9* on VEGAS -1.5 Vegas is in second place in the West Division, four points behind Colorado. They have won four in a row and perhaps even more impressive is that they’ve scored six or more goals in three of the last six games. We expect it to be another easy two points tonight for the Golden Knights as they visit last place Anaheim, a team they are already 4-1 against this season. The Ducks did just take two games in San Jose and scored four goals in both victories. But they have lost their last five games that weren’t against the Sharks. They’ve been outshot pretty badly the last five games. They are allowing 36.2 shots per game, so it’s lucky they’ve allowed only 1.6 goals. Vegas is just the reverse as they’ve allowed just 25.0 shots per game their last five and an average of 2.2 goals. We’re so confident in the Golden Knights here that we’ll lay the -1.5 on the puck line. Play on VEGAS -1.5. AAA |
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04-16-21 | Blazers -1.5 v. Spurs | Top | 107-106 | Loss | -118 | 12 h 31 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PORTLAND With just one month left in the regular season, Portland and San Antonio are both struggling at an inopportune time. The Trail Blazers have lost four of five, the most recent loss coming by one point to Boston on Tuesday. The Spurs have lost six of eight and were beaten 117-112 by Toronto on Wednesday. In sixth place as opposed to 10th, the Blazers are in a much better spot than San Antonio right now and we like them to be the ones to bounce back tonight. Compared to a lot of the teams Portland has faced recently, the Spurs are a weak opponent. The Blazers’ SU record vs. sub .500 teams this year is 23-7 and that includes 5-0 in the second half. The Blazers also have a winning record on the road. San Antonio is 12-17 SU at home and is coming off a week-long road trip. They have to head back out on the road for two more (starting tomorrow) and thus will have “less in the tank” here compared to the Blazers, who have been off for two days. Play on PORTLAND AAA |
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04-14-21 | Knicks v. Pelicans -2.5 | Top | 116-106 | Loss | -105 | 12 h 41 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NEW ORLEANS Both the Knicks and Pelicans are on three-game win streaks coming into tonight. Only one of those streaks can obviously continue and we think it will be the Pelicans. They’ve beaten Philadelphia, Cleveland and Sacramento. The Knicks have beaten Memphis, Toronto and the Lakers. New York is 6-0 ATS its last six games, but those last three wins all came at home. The Knicks are 8th in the East, but could move as high as 6th with a win here tonight. New Orleans is more desperate as they are a game behind Golden State for the last play-in spot. We expect them to assert themselves here as they led Sacramento by as much as 23 the other night before letting things get a little too close for comfort at the end. Zion Williamson has averaged 35 points/game during the win streak. But the big key here is the Knicks’ 0-5 record, both straight up and against the spread, when they are on a three-game win streak this season. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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04-13-21 | Heat v. Suns -3 | Top | 86-106 | Win | 100 | 15 h 41 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PHOENIX Over their past two games, the Suns have scored a total of 260 points. They had 81 by halftime last night against Houston as they set a new NBA record with 18 threes made in a single half. Don’t be fooled by that final score from last night either. While it ended up being 126-120, Phoenix was up big much of the way. Tonight they play host to Miami and covering a large spread isn’t something they’ll have to concern themselves with. Winners of nine of their last ten games, the Suns can get within one game of Utah for first place in the West. They are 16-6 ATS this season vs. teams that have a winning record. Miami is 6-1 its last seven games, but isn’t in Phoenix’s league. The Heat lost by 10 at home to the Suns last month and also lost by seven to them in last season’s bubble. They are 6-14 straight up and 7-13 against the spread vs. teams that have a winning record. Play on PHOENIX AAA |
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04-12-21 | Marlins +1.5 v. Braves | Top | 5-3 | Win | 100 | 9 h 40 m | Show |
This is an 8* on MIAMI +1.5 This is a tough spot for Atlanta as they are off a controversial 7-6 loss on Sunday Night Baseball. A play at the plate (bad call) determined the outcome of the game and the Braves were rightly hot that things went against them. Now they have to turn around and host a Miami team that’s off a 3-0 win over the Mets on Sunday and looking for revenge. The revenge stems from the end of last year when the Braves swept the Marlins out of the playoffs. We’ll grab the +1.5 with Miami here as Sandy Alcantara has pitched very well in his two starts despite having an 0-2 TSR. He had 10 strikeouts in his last start and has allowed only three runs and six hits so far. There hasn’t been much run support, but that will come. Atlanta goes with Huascar Ynoa, who has only two starts of longer than three innings in his career. One was Wednesday when he shut Washington out for five innings. But we don’t think he’s better than Alcantara. This should be a low-scoring game where 1.5 runs in our back pocket will come in handy. Play on MIAMI +1.5 AAA |
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04-11-21 | Pelicans -6.5 v. Cavs | Top | 116-109 | Win | 100 | 10 h 13 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NEW ORLEANS Rough situation here for Cleveland, who is playing without rest against a New Orleans team that lambasted them 116-82 last month. Here at home, the Cavs gave up 135 points last night to a Toronto team that was severely short-handed. Gary Trent Jr scored 44 for the Raptors! So Zion Williamson has to be “licking his chops” heading into this Sunday night matchup as the Pelicans look to make it two straight wins. On Friday, they defeated Philadelphia 101-94 as a five-point home underdog. Now they are a road favorite, a big difference, but they also go from facing one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference to one of the worst. New Orleans really needs to win this game as they are 1.5 games behind Golden State (who was victorious last night) for the last playoff spot. There were two times earlier in the season where the Cavs suffered an outright loss when they were favored to win. After both of those losses, they failed to cover the next game. They’re in that situation again here, a situation they are 3-7 ATS L10. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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04-11-21 | Nationals +1.5 v. Dodgers | Top | 0-3 | Loss | -130 | 7 h 13 m | Show |
This is a 10* on WASHINGTON +1.5 It’s rare you get Max Scherzer +1.5 runs, let alone with this kind of minimal price tag attached. So you’ve got to figure that the opponent can only be one team and if you guessed “the Dodgers,” then go ahead and pat yourself on the back. Los Angeles is going for the sweep Sunday afternoon as they’ve beaten Washington 1-0 and 9-5 the last two days. But we give the Nats a shot at winning today and don’t think they’ll do any worse than a one-run loss. Scherzer allowed four solo home runs in his first start. But other than those, he gave up just one other hit. He had nine strikeouts and zero walks and the Nationals wound up beating the Braves 6-5. Kershaw was similarly impressive in his last outing, but not so much in the first (allowed six runs), which could be chalked up to being in Colorado. We realize that LA has lost just one time since Opening Day and Washington is on a four-game losing streak. But two of those four losses were by one run. Even in yesterday’s loss, the Nationals had 15 hits to the Dodgers’ nine. Play on WASHINGTON +1.5 (RUN LINE) AAA |
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04-10-21 | Kings +12.5 v. Jazz | Top | 112-128 | Loss | -110 | 12 h 18 m | Show |
This is a 10* on SACRAMENTO Back on Thursday, Utah avoided what would have been the first three-game losing streak of the season, defeating Portland 122-103. But they had to rally from a halftime deficit to do so. They used a 40-19 third quarter to seize control of the game and that was “all she wrote” as the Jazz won their 23rd straight home game. They’re at home again tonight and facing a Kings team that has lost five in a row. But predictably the number is large. Too large in our eyes as Sacramento hasn’t gotten this many points in a game all season. What’s strange about the Kings’ five game losing streak is that they were favored on three different occasions. They’d also WON five in a row before losing five straight. They’ve gone off as the favorite in six of their last ten games. The four times they’ve been underdogs, they are 3-1 ATS with two outright wins and one of the losses coming by just one point. We think the team comes in with a positive mindset after a poor effort at home vs. Detroit the other night. Utah is only 2-6 ATS coming off their previous eight wins by 10 or more points. Play on SACRAMENTO AAA |
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04-09-21 | Wolves +8.5 v. Celtics | Top | 136-145 | Loss | -103 | 11 h 29 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MINNESOTA This is the kind of game where everyone just assumes the Celtics will “roll,” but doing that is often easier said than done. Minnesota may not have a very good record, but they’ve covered five of the last eight games and the last one (which they did NOT cover) was only a four-point loss. Boston is off a two-point win against the Knicks, but has not been scoring a ton recently and failed to cover four of its last six games. They finished with just 101 points against the Knicks after being held to 96 in a loss to the Sixers. That’s just not enough offense to make us think they can cover this large spread. This Celtics team hasn’t been above .500 in almost a month and basically lives off reputation. They were down seven in the fourth quarter to the Knicks. Minnesota will be looking for a win here as it has not prevailed in Beantown since 2005. Nor have they beaten the Celtics anywhere going back to 2016. That’ll be on the minds of players tonight and Karl-Anthony Towns, who had 32-12 against Indiana, should keep them in this one. Grab the points. Play on MINNESOTA AAA |
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04-07-21 | Grizzlies v. Hawks -2 | Top | 131-113 | Loss | -110 | 13 h 57 m | Show |
This is a 10* on ATLANTA We rode the Hawks to an easy 123-106 win over New Orleans last night and will stick with them again tonight as they host Memphis in a matchup where both teams are in the second night of a back to back. The Grizzlies were also double digit winners Tuesday, although they had to go on the road to defeat 124-112. Winning back to back nights on the road is pretty tough in this league. The Grizzlies know this all too well as they are 0-3 straight up and against the spread when playing for a second straight night on the road. Those three losses have come by an average of 19 points/game. They’ve lost by 16 at Utah (3/27), 23 at Phoenix (3/15) and, 18 at Indiana (2/2). Twice they were coming in off a win. It doesn’t help them that Atlanta has won and covered seven consecutive home games, a streak that predates the All-Star Break. The Hawks have moved into 4th place in the Eastern Conference with a 4-0 (both SU/ATS) April where they’ve averaged 125 points/game. Memphis is 3-0 SU/ATS in April, but that inability to win back to back road games looms large in handicapping this one. The Hawks took the first meeting 122-112 in Memphis back in December. Play on ATLANTA AAA |
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04-06-21 | Pelicans v. Hawks -3.5 | Top | 107-123 | Win | 100 | 11 h 54 m | Show |
This is a 10* on ATLANTA These young Hawks are starting to spread their wings as they’ve won three straight, moving them into a fourth place tie with Miami in the East. Each of the three wins have seen Atlanta cover the spread. Only one of the three was a blowout, but it happened to be against the team they’ll face again tonight. New Orleans was without four starters for that game and both Zion Willamson/Brandon Ingram are listed as questionable for tonight’s rematch. We did take the Pelicans on Sunday, when they got Lonzo Ball and Steven Adams back, but they were also facing a horrible Houston team. The Pelicans don’t defend well (28th in points allowed per possession) and are 0-6 ATS the L6 meetings with Atlanta. The Hawks have injuries too, but showed off their depth in Sunday’s 117-111 win over Golden State where they were +36 in bench scoring. Trae Young didn’t even play in the blowout win over these Pelicans last week. The Hawks are 6-0 ATS their last six home games. Play on ATLANTA AAA |
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04-05-21 | Baylor +4.5 v. Gonzaga | Top | 86-70 | Win | 100 | 13 h 31 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BAYLOR We’ve ridden Baylor each of the last three rounds. They were our top Sweet 16 side (beat Villanova 62-51 as 7.5-point favorites), our top Elite 8 side (beat Arkansas 81-72 as 7.5-point favorites), then were our *10* NCAA GAME OF THE YEAR when they walloped Houston 78-59 (as 5-point favorites) in Saturday’s Final Four. Now the Bears are underdogs for the first time all season as they play undefeated Gonzaga for the National Championship. We saw Saturday that the Zags are not infallible. While UCLA may not have been your “normal 11-seed,” Gonzaga needed OT and an all-time buzzer beater to get by. This despite shooting 58.7% for the game. Baylor has basically led start to finish in four of their five tournament games (‘Nova was the exception to that). They’ve lost only two games this season and both came shortly after a three-week pause due to COVID-19. They are over that now. The five tournament wins have been by an average of 15.2 points/game. While the Bears haven’t been underdogs in any game in 2020-21, they are 16-6 ATS L22 times in that role. Can they win this game? Absolutely. So we’ll take the points as Baylor is #1 in the country in three-point shooting and should also have their way inside the paint. Play on BAYLOR AAA |
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04-05-21 | Cavs +9.5 v. Spurs | Top | 125-101 | Win | 100 | 10 h 6 m | Show |
This is an 8* on CLEVELAND Cleveland is a bit of a “tough sell” right now with five straight losses coming into tonight. Four of those losses have been by at least 12 points. Not a ton of offense to speak of either as they’ve gone seven games in a row without scoring more than 105. But at least they got into triple digits on Saturday (scored 101) after failing to do so each of the previous four games. The Cavs are in San Antonio tonight and we think this is a game that they can cover. Why? Well, the Spurs have dropped seven of their last nine games. They are coming off back to back losses in overtime, first to Atlanta (a 2OT game) and then to Indiana. Both losses came in San Antonio. This could end up being the most points the Spurs end up laying in any game all season. We think it’s too many. They are 6-10 ATS as home favorites and have been outscored in those games. They were favored in each of the last two games, including by 7 against Indiana, who was missing four key players and still found a way to score 139. That was the fourth time in the last seven games, all at home, that the Spurs gave up 132 points. Cleveland has a chance to win here. Take the points. Play on CLEVELAND AAA |
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04-04-21 | Pelicans -5 v. Rockets | Top | 122-115 | Win | 100 | 9 h 29 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NO We can’t believe this line is so low. Houston has lost 25 of its last 27 games. Now we know New Orleans, coming off back to back losses, has major injury concerns right now. Three starters, one of them Zion Williamson, missed both games of the back to back against Atlanta and Orlando. But no matter who is in the starting five Sunday night, we believe the Pelicans will be able to easily defeat the Rockets. For the record, Williamson is listed as questionable as is Brandon Ingram. Houston has not even been close in most of these losses. The last three have all been by 10 or more, meaning 15 of their last 19 games have resulted in a double digit defeat. The Rockets are 4-19 ATS at home this season. Still in the playoff race, New Orleans can’t afford to lose this game. We think they’ll pull the necessary pieces together to get the comfortable ‘W.’ Lay the points. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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04-03-21 | Bucks -6.5 v. Kings | Top | 129-128 | Loss | -110 | 14 h 37 m | Show |
This is a 10* on MILWAUKEE Milwaukee looked darn impressive last night in their decisive 127-109 win in Portland. Giannis Antetokounmpo, in particular, shined. He shot 85% and scored 47 points. From inside the 3-point arc, Antetokounmpo was 18 for 18, tying a record set by Wilt Chamberlain. The Bucks were up by 24 in the third quarter and thus were able to coast the rest of the way. That’s important when playing the second night of a back to back like they are here. Sacramento should not provide much resistance. The Kings allow the most points per possession in the league, so it should be another big offensive night from “The Greek Freak” and company. The Bucks beat the Kings by 13 in late February, 128-115 and in doing so put up 70 points by halftime. It should be mentioned that Sacramento is also in the second night of a back to back here. Only they lost at home to the Lakers last night by 21! That’s just awful when you consider LA doesn’t have either LeBron James or Anthony Davis right now. The Bucks have the best point differential among Eastern Conference teams and third best overall. We like them to roll to a 10th straight victory over the Kings, who are 0-6 ATS this season coming off an upset loss as a favorite. Play on MILWAUKEE AAA |
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04-03-21 | Houston v. Baylor -5 | Top | 59-78 | Win | 100 | 53 h 22 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BAYLOR Houston did not defeat a single team seeded higher than 10th in its region. They faced 15-seed Cleveland State first, whom they destroyed, but have had close calls with Rutgers and Oregon State, who were seeded 10th and 12th respectively. In between they did easily beat 11-seed Syracuse. Still, that’s an amazingly easy run of opponents. Now they face Baylor, who has been considered the second best team in America most of this College Basketball season. Baylor has won all four NCAA Tournament games by at least nine points. They had a big lead on Arkansas in the Elite Eight. Really, the only close call was vs. Villanova. The Bears are a far more dynamic offensive team than anybody Houston has previously faced, not just in the Tournament but the whole season. The Cougars have faced just one top 30 team all year (Texas Tech) and that was back in November. The fact Baylor leads the country in three-point shooting percentage is key. With Houston, it’s a concern that they have not shot better than 39% in any of the last three games. Unlike when they faced those past opponents, it will take a good number of points for Houston to cover here. We don’t think they’re up to it. It seems destined that we’re headed for a Gonzaga vs. Baylor final and we will lay the points here with a team that has lost only two games all season, despite facing significantly better competition than Houston. Play on BAYLOR AAA |
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04-01-21 | 76ers -8 v. Cavs | Top | 114-94 | Win | 100 | 11 h 18 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PHILLY Philadelphia has dropped two in a row, but they’ve got an ideal matchup here that should allow them to bounce back in a major way. Cleveland is the opposition as the Sixers wrap up a six-game road trip, which they began with three straight wins. The losses were to the Clippers and Nuggets and there is no shame losing to those teams, especially on the road. Cleveland has the worst point differential in the league, so there would be a lot of shame if the Sixers were to lose tonight. Fortunately, we know the Cavaliers are 7-19 against the spread against winning teams. They are also 0-4 ATS after being held to 85 points or less and are coming off a horrible 114-75 loss at Utah. That was the Cavs’ third straight loss and they were held under 100 points in all of them. The clincher here is that Philly is actually 0-2 vs. Cleveland this season, so they are going to be out for revenge. Having fallen behind Brooklyn in the race for the top spot in the Eastern Conference, the 76ers will have no mercy for their opponents tonight. They improve to 5-0-1 ATS their last six games as a road favorite. Play on PHILADELPHIA AAA |
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04-01-21 | Dodgers -1.5 v. Rockies | Top | 5-8 | Loss | -139 | 8 h 17 m | Show |
This is a 10* on LAD -1.5 Like everyone else, we favor the Dodgers to repeat as World Series Champions. When you factor in their postseason, they outscored their opponents by an average of 2.2 runs per game last season. Only three Yankees teams from the 20’s and 30’s ever produced a better per game run differential over the course of a season. Now that was only 78 games for the Dodgers last year, but they look even stronger this year and could set the National League record for single season wins. Their season win total of 104.5 is tied with the ‘99 Yankees for the highest of the past 30 years. Colorado is not going to challenge the Dodgers. Not today. Not this season. They could finish some 40 games back when the regular season is over. This is a total mismatch as Clayton Kershaw makes his 11th consecutive Opening Day start. Disregard Kershaw’s poor Spring Training; that’s happened before and it didn’t carry over to the regular season. His 24 wins against the Rockies are his most vs. any team and he’s 11-5 all-time at Coors Field. The Rockies traded away Nolen Arenado and Brendan Rodgers is out with a hamstring injury. German Marquez can not possibly carry his team to victory here and the home team will lose by at least two runs. Play on LA DODGERS (-1.5) AAA |
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03-31-21 | Kings +2.5 v. Spurs | Top | 106-120 | Loss | -103 | 12 h 21 m | Show |
This is an 8* on SACRAMENTO These teams just played Monday. We had the Kings, who won “going away,” 132-115 as 2.5-point underdogs. That was their fifth straight win, a season-high. This win streak has also seen the Kings go 4-1 against the spread. We are presented with the same spread tonight and won’t be deviating from the previous script. San Antonio has certainly struggled of late. They’ve lost five of six overall and are just 12-17 vs. the Western Conference this season. (The only win in the last six games was against Chicago). During its five game win streak, Sacramento is averaging 120.4 points/game while giving up only 109.0. They’ve gone over 130 in two of the previous three, their two highest scoring games of the season.. Every starter scored at least 14 on Monday. When the Kings are off an upset win as an underdog (as they are here), there tends to be a no letdown as they’ve gone 8-4 ATS the next game. The Spurs have a losing SU record at home (11-14) this season and going back further, they have covered just 12 of 40 as home favorites. Play on SACRAMENTO AAA |
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03-30-21 | Hawks v. Suns -7 | Top | 110-117 | Push | 0 | 13 h 11 m | Show |
This is a 10* on PHOENIX The Hawks very well may be tiring as they’re about to play their sixth straight game on the road. After tonight, they’ve got two more before the trip ends. They’ve lost three of last three four and Monday’s 126-102 loss in Denver was the worst showing yet. We don’t like Atlanta’s chances here as they take on a Phoenix team that has been playing as well as any in the league over the last month or so. The Suns have lost only three times this month and are off a 3-1 road trip where the only loss was by one point. Defensively, they’ve been locked in. They just held Charlotte to 97 points in an overtime win on Sunday. Before that, they held Toronto to 100 points. The Suns are better at both ends of the floor, are at home and the Hawks are road-weary. We see no reason why NOT to lay the points. Play on PHOENIX AAA |
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03-29-21 | Arkansas v. Baylor -7.5 | Top | 72-81 | Win | 100 | 14 h 18 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BAYLOR Two of the teams Arkansas has beaten to get here were seeded 14 or lower. That’s quite atypical for a team in the Elite 8. In fact, it’s happened only one other time in the Tournament’s history (Florida in 2013). Furthermore, the Razorbacks have won by the narrowest of margins the last two games, beating Texas Tech 68-66 and Oral Roberts 72-70. They trailed almost the whole way against Oral Roberts (a 15-seed) before Davonte Davis made the game-winner in the final three seconds. We anticipate the Hogs having lots of trouble here against a Baylor team that leads the country in three-point shooting. Arkansas was lucky that Oral Roberts uncharacteristically struggled from deep. Baylor has had the harder path to get here, yet has looked more impressive in wins over Wisconsin and Villanova. We used them as our top Sweet 16 selection and they rewarded us there. The Bears are the top three-point shooting team in the country, but were just 3 for 19 from behind the arc against ‘Nova. They should improve here as Arkansas is only 138th in 3-point defense. The last two teams Baylor faced liked to play at very slow tempos, very different from Arkansas, but the Bears still are averaging 72.3 points per game in the Tournament. Baylor is the better team here and should send Arkansas packing quite easily. The Razorbacks won’t have the rebounding edge they enjoyed vs. Oral Roberts. Play on BAYLOR AAA |
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03-29-21 | Kings +2.5 v. Spurs | Top | 132-115 | Win | 100 | 13 h 56 m | Show |
This is an 8* on SACRAMENTO Sacramento looks for a season-high fifth straight win tonight as they invade San Antonio. The Spurs had LOST four in a row before they easily defeated the Bulls on Saturday night. A huge first half (led by 26 at the break) was critical to San Antonio’s success there. We see no such fast start taking place tonight. The Spurs are far too inconsistent to be counted on to play well in back to back games. They actually have a losing record at home. The Kings are 6-1 since St. Patrick’s Day, which has them thinking playoffs for the first time in over a decade. Desperate to end the NBA’s longest postseason drought, we don’t see this team throwing in the towel any time soon. While three of their last six wins have been by two points, we don’t care how many the underdog wins by tonight. Grab the points. Play on SACRAMENTO AAA |
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03-28-21 | Ducks v. Blues -1.5 | Top | 3-2 | Loss | -100 | 8 h 34 m | Show |
This is a 9* on ST. LOUIS (-1.5) The top four teams in each division make the playoffs this year. Out in the West, you’ve got to figure Vegas, Colorado and Minnesota are locks. Somebody has to grab the 4th spot though and if St. Louis wants to be that team, then they need to turn things around ASAP. The Blues have lost three in a row coming into today and 8 of 10. Three of those losses came after regulation, but a turnaround is needed. The most embarrassing loss of this stretch came Friday when they lost 4-1 at home to last place Anaheim. The Ducks had lost seven of eight themselves going into that one and hadn’t experienced a regulation victory since February 11th! Anyway, look for the Blues to “repay” the Ducks here on Sunday as there have been only two times this year where Anaheim has won back to back games. They’ve yet to beat the same team twice in a row. We look for this to be a lopsided affair, so be sure to play St. Louis on the puck line (-1.5). The Ducks have scored the second fewest number of goals in the league. Play on ST. LOUIS -1.5 AAA |
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03-28-21 | Florida State +2.5 v. Michigan | Top | 58-76 | Loss | -110 | 73 h 48 m | Show |
This is an 8* on FSU Nine Big Ten teams made the NCAA Tournament. Eight bowed out in the first two rounds. The only one to make the Sweet 16 is top seed Michigan, who will play 4-seed Florida State. The Seminoles have looked pretty good so far in their two games, shooting 52% overall while holding the opposition right around 33%.. They never trailed against UNC Greensboro and were only briefly behind Colorado (early in the first half). All season long, the ‘Noles have defended well, allowing a 39.3 overall FG% which includes 32.3% from three. Michigan is a top 20 offense in FG% and top 10 in efficiency, but they’ll be missing second leading scorer Isaiah Livers and that is a significant loss. It’s not as if FSU isn’t impressive at the offensive end in its own right. They score 78 points per game, which is more than the Wolverines average for the year. Michigan trailed much of the way against LSU, a team with size and length similar to Florida State. FSU is better than LSU. Michigan doesn’t force many turnovers and that’s how you beat the Seminoles. The loss of Livers will loom large. Play on FLORIDA STATE AAA |
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03-28-21 | Suns -6 v. Hornets | Top | 101-97 | Loss | -110 | 4 h 57 m | Show |
This is an 8* on PHOENIX We’re all out of answers when it comes to the question of “how” the Hornets are in 4th place in the East. Picked to finish near the bottom of the conference, Charlotte has won three straight to get to 23-21. They’ve beaten San Antonio, Houston and Miami during the win streak, but now things get much harder when Phoenix comes to town. The Suns have been great this year. They are second in the West, ahead of the Clippers and Lakers, and have lost only three times in the last month while winning 10. We really like the Suns to “stick it” to the Hornets this afternoon. Even though they didn’t make a basket in the final 3:50 Friday, Phoenix still was able to win vs. Toronto. Remember that Charlotte doesn’t have LaMelo Bell (injured), which is a huge loss. It’s unlikely Malik Monk is going to offer a repeat of his 32-point performance we saw Friday vs. Miami. The Hornets are just 7-13 SU/ATS vs. .500 or better teams. The Suns are 15-4 SU/ATS. Play on PHOENIX AAA |
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03-27-21 | 76ers v. Clippers -3 | Top | 112-122 | Win | 100 | 14 h 55 m | Show |
This is an 8* on LA CLIPPERS The Sixers lead the Eastern Conference with a 32-13 overall record, however both the Nets and Bucks are hot on their heels (within 2.5 games). The Clippers’ 30-16 overall record has them third in the Western Conference and four games back of first place Utah. Both teams come into Saturday having won four in a row. After a furious rally to beat Atlanta to start the week, LA swept two games in San Antonio, first using an awesome offensive display (scored 134 in the first game) then an awesome defensive display (allowed 85 in the second game). That makes it three double digit wins in the last four games. Philly has been fortunate to face Golden State (no Curry) and the Lakers (no LeBron or Anthony Davis) on their current road trip. They are still without Joel Embiid. The Clippers may not have Kawhi Leonard tonight, but we still like them at home. They ended up not having Leonard when we took them Thursday in San Antonio. Paul George showed he can carry the load as he had 24 points and 13 rebounds. The Sixers are a dominant home team, but only 13-9 on the road and that’s with three straight wins. Play on LA CLIPPERS. AAA |
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03-27-21 | Syracuse +6.5 v. Houston | Top | 46-62 | Loss | -105 | 54 h 34 m | Show |
This is an 8* on SYRACUSE The last six games have seen Syracuse go 5-1 and the only loss was by three. They are 6-0 ATS in those six games. Now they have a Sweet 16 appointment with Houston, a team on a nine-game win streak. But the Cougars almost didn’t get here as they barely got by Rutgers in the second round. Syracuse also won its Round of 32 game by only three points, but they were in better control throughout. Led by Buddy Boeheim (Jim’s son) averaging 28 points his last four games, the Orange offense has been lights out. Boeheim is shooting 60% those last four games and 55% from three-point range. In the NCAA Tournament, Syracuse has shot 55.3% and 51.9%. But their zone defense has been just as important to the success as unfamiliar opponents aren’t used to facing it. Expect Houston to struggle to make shots against the zone. They shot 37% against Rutgers and that’s why they were down nine with five minutes to go. In their last four wins, Syracuse has allowed the following field goal percentages: 33.9, 36.2, 35.8, 37.1. Tough to lose when your opponents aren’t shooting well. Syracuse at least covers and we give them a shot at winning as well. Play on SYRACUSE AAA |
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03-27-21 | Villanova v. Baylor -7.5 | Top | 51-62 | Win | 100 | 49 h 54 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BAYLOR Baylor seems to be over his hangover from a 3-week (COVID-19) layoff, no? The Bears have beaten Hartford and Wisconsin pretty handily to get here and that win over Wisconsin was especially impressive. They basically led the whole way and were up by 18 at one point. They’ve shot the three well in both games, turned it over just four times vs. the Badgers and have played great defense throughout (59 points/game allowed). Villanova has only had to beat a 12 and a 13-seed to get here. They’ve been much better than people thought they’d be, but don’t forget Colin Gillespie is out. Our guess is this is where they miss their star point guard. The fact that the Wildcats play a similar style on offense compared to Wisconsin means Baylor won’t have to change the gameplan much. It’s all about forcing the opponent into taking jump shots and turning the ball over. Given ‘Nova doesn’t have Gillespie, turnovers are likely to be an issue in this one. By the way, Baylor is the best three-point shooting team in the country. Play on BAYLOR AAA |
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03-26-21 | Pacers v. Mavs -4.5 | Top | 109-94 | Loss | -102 | 12 h 47 m | Show |
This is an 8* on DALLAS Dallas has looked good of late in winning 14 of their last 19 contests. We had them Wednesday as they took out Minnesota 128-108. That was an easy cover as 8.5-point favorites and this should be as well as the Mavs are laying a short number at home to Indiana. The Pacers have struggled recently, losing 9 of 14 and they are an ugly 3-10-1 ATS in those games. They did beat Detroit 116-111 on Wednesday, but that is not something to brag about. They failed to cover the 7.5 point spread in that one. It’s difficult to see the Pacers keeping up with the Mavs tonight. Dallas has scored 260 points in its last two games. They are one blown lead in Portland away from coming into this game on a four-game win streak. Kristaps Porzingis looked dominant vs. the Timberwolves and Luka Doncic had another triple double. Indiana has covered only 3 of the last 14 times it’s been an underdog. Dallas is 5-1 ATS its last six home games. Play on DALLAS AAA |
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03-25-21 | Clippers -6 v. Spurs | Top | 98-85 | Win | 100 | 11 h 15 m | Show |
This is a 10* on LAC The Clippers have strung together three straight victories, the last one coming last night here at the Alamo. They crushed the Spurs 134-101, a game in which they never trailed and were up 12 after the first quarter. It was LA’s 11th win of the season by 20 points or more. With the Lakers reeling right now, there is no excuse for the Clippers to finish any worse than third in the Western Conference and on paper, you’d probably like them over the top two teams (Utah, Phoenix) come playoff time. The Spurs are headed in the opposite direction as last night was their third straight loss. A 24-hour turnaround isn’t going to allow for them to make things much better tonight. Making things even worse is the fact the Clippers are a perfect 7-0 against the spread in the second night of a back to back. They’ve won those seven games this season by an average of 16.4 points per game. Six Clippers scored at least 13 points in last night’s win and the team shot 55% overall. We see no reason why this shouldn’t be another easy win for the road team. Play on LA CLIPPERS AAA |
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03-24-21 | Mavs -8 v. Wolves | Top | 128-108 | Win | 100 | 12 h 53 m | Show |
This is an 8* on DALLAS Dallas has been inconsistent this year, but they have what we consider “a favorable stretch” over the next week or so. A 40-point win in Portland on Sunday showed what the Mavs are capable of doing. They should have won twice in Portland over the weekend, but blew an eight-point fourth quarter lead on Friday and lost 125-119. Had they held on there, they’d be on a three-game win streak coming into this game at Minnesota. The Timberwolves are bad. They have the worst straight up record in the league at 10-33. They’ve lost two in a row and 13 of 16. Karl-Anthony Towns being bothered by a wrist injury doesn’t help matters. Nor does facing Dallas, who is 28-14 ATS at Minnesota their previous 42 visits. The Mavericks are 13-5 overall since Feb 6th with Luka Doncic playing very well of late. Already averaging career highs in both points and assists this season, Doncic has gone for 39 points, 7.3 points and 7.3 assists over his last three games. We look for a big win by the road team. Play on DALLAS AAA |
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03-24-21 | Cavs v. Bulls -5.5 | Top | 103-94 | Loss | -110 | 12 h 53 m | Show |
This is a 10* on CHICAGO Chicago is a team desperate to make the playoffs this season. In the Eastern Conference, that shouldn’t be that difficult but here we are on March 24th and the Bulls are four games below .500. That’s still good enough for ninth place, which would mean being involved in the play-in scenario, but the Bulls would certainly like to get themselves on “steadier ground” over the next month. Beating a sorry team like Cleveland is imperative in achieving that. The Cavaliers are actually better, record-wise, than three teams in the East. But they have the worst point differential in the entire league. On the road, the Cavs have been terrible with a 5-15 record (SU and ATS) and they’re getting outscored by an average of 13.5 points per game. The Bulls have not yet had a chance to play Cleveland this year and hosting them should mean a very easy win. It was a 25-point home loss on Monday, but that was to the Jazz. Cleveland also lost at home Monday, by 14 to Sacramento. This spread should be much higher considering the Bulls are 17-5 ATS when facing losing teams. Play on CHICAGO AAA |
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03-22-21 | USC v. Kansas +1.5 | Top | 85-51 | Loss | -101 | 11 h 8 m | Show |
This is a 10* on KANSAS Kansas is the higher seed, but an underdog to USC. We like the Jayhawks to cover (and thus almost certainly win) this second round battle. They scored 93 points against Eastern Washington, so it’s going to be much different here for USC than it was playing Drake, who shot only 19 percent in the second half Saturday. Going back to the beginning of February, Kansas has really been one of the best teams in the whole country. They’re 9-1 in the L10 games with the one loss coming by three points at Texas. We are really a bit shocked that they are the underdogs here. USC was lucky in the first round as they were playing a team coming off an exhausting win in the “First Four” just 48 hours earlier. Prior to defeating Drake, USC had just two wins over NCAA Tournament teams in its last 11 games and one of those was a giant comeback (vs UCLA) that they won by a single point. Kansas had four wins over NCAA Tournament teams during that same stretch, one of which was against top seeded Baylor. Play on KANSAS AAA |
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03-22-21 | Ohio +5.5 v. Creighton | Top | 58-72 | Loss | -109 | 8 h 13 m | Show |
This is an 8* on OHIO Creighton was not particularly impressive in a 63-62 win over Cal Santa Barbara on Saturday. We faded them and got the cash as the Gauchos were 7.5 point underdogs. Really, the Bluejays never really threatened to cover the spread and we thought UCSB kind of threw the game away late. Now it’s a chance to take the points against Creighton again, this time with Ohio, an upset winner in the first round over defending National Champion Virginia. The Bobcats were able to win that game despite shooting only 7 of 23 from behind the arc. Save for an ugly home loss to Buffalo on Feb 27, Ohio has been excellent the last two months. They are 10-1 the last 11 games, both straight up and against the spread. They’ve got two quality players in Ben Vander Plas and Jason Preston. The Bobcats’ ATS record in neutral site games is 5-0 in 2021 and considering that Creighton’s last three games have produced two wins by a total of three points and a loss by 25, taking the points here is a no brainer. We give Ohio an excellent shot at winning this game straight up. Play on OHIO AAA |
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03-21-21 | Oral Roberts +8.5 v. Florida | Top | 81-78 | Win | 100 | 11 h 15 m | Show |
This is a 10* on ORAL ROBERTS Florida grinded out an OT victory against Virginia Tech in the first round. We had them on the money line, so that was a positive result for us. Oral Roberts still being alive is something very few could have predicted as they stunned 2-seed Ohio State, also in overtime. While the Eagles improbable run very well could come to an end on Sunday, we like them plus the points. Florida has major injury issues. Tyree Appleby left the Va Tech game with a facial laceration. Omar Payne got himself suspended (by the team) for dishing out a flagrant elbow in the SEC Tournament. Both are questionable for this game. Note this is all in addition to the team already playing without Keyontae Johnson, who collapsed on the court early in the season. Oral Roberts has the nation’s leading scorer in Max Abmas, who averages 24.2 points/game. He went for 29 against Ohio State. Florida isn’t as strong as Ohio State, even when at their healthiest, which they’re not right now. Oral Roberts has covered five straight games and this is too many points. Play on ORAL ROBERTS AAA |
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03-21-21 | Wizards v. Nets -8 | Top | 106-113 | Loss | -114 | 11 h 40 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BROOKLYN After losing to Orlando Friday night, Brooklyn should bounce back tonight at home vs. Washington. The Nets actually are seeking double revenge in this matchup after losing twice to the Wizards back in January. Both games saw them blow big leads. With Washington off a shocking upset over Utah, all signs point to a “return to normalcy” Sunday evening. No team allows more points per game than the Wiz. No team scores more points per game than Brooklyn. The Nets can probably name their point total here as the Wizards have allowed an average of 125.6 points over their previous five contests. The Nets are still winners of 14 of the last 16 games (12-4 ATS) and the last time they were off a loss, they bounced back with an 11-point win in San Antonio. This matchup is far more favorable. James Harden has missed 31 of his last 36 three-point attempts. Think he might be “due” to go “off?” There’s no better opponent for him to do so than this one. Play on BROOKLYN AAA |
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03-20-21 | Abilene Christian v. Texas -8.5 | Top | 53-52 | Loss | -110 | 120 h 15 m | Show |
This is an 8* on TEXAS We don’t see Texas, a 3-seed, having any difficulty getting by Abilene Christian in the first round of the NCAA Tourney and are quite shocked that this is a single digit spread. The Longhorns are 5-0 the last five games - both straight up and against the spread. They won the Big 12 Tournament, getting by the likes of Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, both of whom were winners yesterday. Abilene Christian hasn’t beaten anyone, well outside of the Southland Conference. They did play both Texas Tech and Arkansas relatively tough back in December, but the spotlight shines brighter this time of year. Every game during Texas’ current win streak was either on the road or at a neutral site. That’s impressive. Yes, we’re well aware of the fact the Longhorns have gone 0-9 ATS their previous nine Tournament appearances, seven of those coming as a favorite. But knowledge of that streak should have the players plenty motivated heading into the nightcap on Saturday. Look for the ‘Horns to win by double digits. Play on TEXAS AAA |
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03-20-21 | Missouri v. Oklahoma -2 | Top | 68-72 | Win | 100 | 118 h 30 m | Show |
This is a 10* on OKLAHOMA Oklahoma has not been good at the pay window for a while now. Boomer Sooner hasn’t covered a game since a 91-90 upset win in Morgantown (West Virginia) all the way back on February 13th. The ATS losing streak is now at seven, but we think the Sooners got a good first round draw here with Missouri, who also sputtered down the stretch. Mizzou went from being ranked to somewhat of an also-ran in the SEC by losing six of its last nine games straight up. Two of the three wins were by two and three points, so their record could be even worse. It is crazy to think that both of these teams were ranked in the top 10 at the same time a little over a month ago. OU is going to be without its second leading scorer Saturday. But we can’t discount a team that beat four Top 10 opponents this year, three of them consecutively, despite being short-handed at times. One of those Top 10 teams that they defeated was SEC Champion Alabama. Four of the Sooners’ last five losses came by five points or less, so if they had some better luck there they would have ended up with a much higher seed. We just don’t like Missouri (nothing personal!) and want to fade them. The Tigers are 0-5 ATS their L5 Tournament games. Play on OKLAHOMA AAA |
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03-20-21 | UC-Santa Barbara +7.5 v. Creighton | Top | 62-63 | Win | 100 | 114 h 37 m | Show |
This is an 8* on UCSB It’s been a bad month for Creighton. Their head coach had to take a leave for making an insensitive remark to his players and when he came back to coach, the Bluejays promptly got run out of the gym by Georgetown in the Big East Tournament Final. That 25-point loss very well could have a carryover effect here as Creighton faces Cal Santa Barbara, a dangerous 12-seed that has won 18 out of its last 19 games. In the month of March, the Gauchos won four of their five games by 14 or more points. It’s going to be very tough for Creighton to gain any real separation in this matchup as they aren’t very good defensively. The Bluejays’ NCAA Tournament history is not good. They are 4-12 ATS in all Tourney games and lost their last three straight up. UCSB has won 20 or more games the last four seasons. So they are used to winning. We already saw one 12-seed win in this year’s Tournament. Grab the points in this one. Play on CAL SANTA BARBARA AAA |
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03-20-21 | Eastern Washington +11 v. Kansas | Top | 84-93 | Win | 100 | 111 h 22 m | Show |
This is an 8* on EWU There is no denying the fact Kansas closed the season strong. The Jayhawks will arrive at the NCAA Tournament having won eight of their last nine games. The one loss was by three at Texas. But they were forced to withdraw from the Big 12 Tournament because of a positive COVID-19 test and that kind of disruption can certainly have an adverse effect on the team here. Eastern Washington is the first round opponent and this isn’t your typical 14-seed. The Eagles have lost just once since mid-January, a span of 14 games. That one loss was by only five points. During this 13-1 stretch, they have averaged over 80 points/game. Leading scorer Tanner Groves shoots the ball very well. Kansas was only 7-7 away from Allen Fieldhouse this year and it’s no guarantee they win this game, let alone by any kind of serious margin. Three of their last four wins were by single digit margins. In its last five games, Eastern Washington gave up an average of 59 points on 38.5% shooting. They’ll keep it close. Play on EASTERN WASHINGTON AAA |
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03-19-21 | Bulls v. Nuggets -7 | Top | 127-131 | Loss | -110 | 13 h 11 m | Show |
This is a 10* on DENVER Losses like the one the Bulls had Wednesday night are what could ultimately prevent this team from making the playoffs. Not making the postseason would be pretty bad considering how weak the East is this year and that 10 teams now get in because of the play-in scenario. So the bottom line is that the Bulls aren’t really a force to be reckoned with. Getting outscored 39-19 in the 4th quarter by the Spurs and losing 106-99 snapped a two-game win streak. Now the Bulls hit the road to face a Denver team that’s arguably playing its best basketball of the season. The Nuggets come in having won seven of eight. They’ve won by a combined 40 points in the last two games, beating both Indiana and Charlotte here at home. Chicago is pretty comparable to those teams, tbh, and while the Nuggets are now being asked to lay a larger spread, that shouldn’t be an issue considering they won by six in the Windy City earlier this month. Nikola Jokic had a monster game (39-14-9) against the Bulls, who are just 1-6 ATS their last seven trips to Denver. Play on DENVER AAA |
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03-19-21 | Utah State v. Texas Tech -4.5 | Top | 53-65 | Win | 100 | 88 h 53 m | Show |
This is an 8* on TEXAS TECH Texas Tech doesn’t have a very good ATS record, but they’ve suffered many tight losses to Big 12 teams. This is a short number against a team from the Mountain West, a conference that typically does not do well in the NCAA Tournament. The Red Raiders last two Tournament appearances have yielded runs to the Elite Eight and National Championship Game. The big problem for Utah State in this game is going to be turnovers. In three of their five losses, the Aggies turned it over an average of 17 times per game. Texas Tech is great at forcing TO’s, forcing the 29th most per game in the country at the eighth highest rate. Utah State topped 62 points once in its last four games. That’s not going to be enough to cover the spread Friday. The Aggies are just 1-5 ATS their last six NCAA Tournament games. Texas Tech is 5-1 ATS in its last six. Play on TEXAS TECH AAA |
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03-19-21 | Colgate +9 v. Arkansas | Top | 68-85 | Loss | -110 | 87 h 54 m | Show |
This is a 10* on COLGATE Colgate has played just 15 games this season, but the champions of the Patriot League have quickly become one of the “trendy underdogs” to pull an outright upset in the opening round. We concur with the public viewpoint. While the Raiders did not play a single non-conference game in the regular season, they are on a 13-game win streak since suffering their only loss, which was by two points against Army. They are second in the entire country, averaging 86.3 points/game, which trails only Gonzaga. Every one of their wins has been by at least eight points. Arkansas just had a 12-game conference win streak snapped in the SEC Tournament. While the Razorbacks had a great year and are getting a lot of fanfare themselves, this is a team that hasn’t played a NCAA Tournament game since 2018. It’s going to take a lot of points to cover the spread in this one and we don’t see the Hogs doing it. Colgate shoots the three very well (40%) and that should keep them in the game. Coming off their first loss in over a month, we expect the favorite to struggle in this matchup. Play on COLGATE AAA |
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03-19-21 | Virginia Tech v. Florida | Top | 70-75 | Win | 100 | 25 h 9 m | Show |
This is a 9* on FLORIDA (MONEY LINE) Look for Florida to advance out of this 7 vs. 10 matchup. The Gators are making their fourth Tournament appearance under coach Mike White and they are one of only 18 teams in the country to rank top 40 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. Tre Mann, who averaged 23 points over the team’s last four games, is the go-to scorer. Considering Florida lost three of those four games, Mann needs help. Look for him to get it from big man Colin Castleton. Virginia Tech, in addition to not having much Tournament experience, hasn’t been on the court much over the last month. COVID affected them about as much as any team in the Big Dance as the Hokies have played just three games since Feb 6th. Two of them were losses. They’ve lost three of their last five overall. The advanced metrics have simply not liked this team all year, despite some impressive non-conference wins. They are 1-4 ATS their last five games vs. teams with winning records and 6-13 ATS vs. teams with a win percentage of .600 or greater. Play on FLORIDA |
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03-18-21 | Drake v. Wichita State -1 | Top | 53-52 | Loss | -112 | 69 h 37 m | Show |
This is a 10* on WICHITA STATE When Wichita State left the Missouri Valley to join the American Conference in 2017, Drake was probably like “good riddance.” After all, the Bulldogs had lost 11 straight times to the Shockers. Little did they know - four years later - they’d be running into their old MVC rivals in the “First Four” of the NCAA Tournament. Though these were two of the last teams to make it into the field, both had solid arguments for inclusion. Drake started 18-0 and at the time was the only remaining unbeaten besides Gonzaga and Baylor. Wichita State was regular season champ of the conference that included Houston. But we clearly side with the Shockers on Thursday. Drake has been without two of its top three scorers the last month. We know Roman Penn won’t play and leading scorer ShanQuan Hemphill may not either. Even if Hemphill does play, it will have been over a month since he last saw the court after suffering a broken foot. The Bulldogs have been an ATS machine this year, but it ends Thursday. The Shockers are 15-3 their last 18 games with one of the losses coming by one point. With the line jumping the fence, that’s even more value. Play on WICHITA STATE AAA |
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03-16-21 | Pelicans +1.5 v. Blazers | Top | 124-125 | Win | 100 | 14 h 20 m | Show |
This is a 10* on NEW ORLEANS New Orleans has recorded two consecutive blowout wins. The first saw them beat Cleveland 116-82. Given the Cavs stature in the league, you may not be all that impressed by that one. But what about the Pelicans shooting 65% and blitzing the Clippers 135-115 Sunday night? We had the Over in that game and were loving it as NO was up by 33 at one point. Zion Williamson has scored at least 20 points in 17 consecutive games. By the way, the shooting percentage from the Pelicans on Sunday was a new NBA season-high. We like their chances tonight in Portland as they face a Blazers team that’s trending in a different direction right now. Portland lost in Minnesota the other night, which was also the fourth straight game they did not cover the spread. They are only 4-6 SU the L10 games. While the majority of their recent outings have been closely contested affairs, no team in the league has suffered more 20+ point losses. CJ McCollum is set to return tonight, but after a two-month absence, it’ll take awhile for him to return to his “old self.” The Pelicans are looking for revenge as they lost by two at home to the Blazers last month. Play on NEW ORLEANS AAA |
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03-13-21 | Raptors +2.5 v. Hornets | Top | 104-114 | Loss | -103 | 11 h 38 m | Show |
This is a 10* on TORONTO Toronto is a better team than Charlotte. They are a bit short-handed right now due to COVID protocol and that is why they are getting points Saturday. Home court doesn’t mean much this season. The Hornets are just 10-8 in home games this year and that’s after a three-point win over a bad Detroit team Thursday. That same night, the Raptors appeared headed for victory as well. They led the Hawks by 15 in the final six minutes, but ended up losing on a buzzer beater. That was their third straight loss and fifth in the last six games. But we’ll go with them to bounce back here against a team they beat twice earlier in the season. Both wins were by just three points, but we’d take that here. It’s fair to say that the Hornets being in the top eight in the conference standings is a MAJOR surprise. It’s not just that they weren’t expected to do much. They’ve also given up more points in 2020-21 than they’ve scored. There have been three previous times this season when the Raptors have been on a three-game losing streak. They’ve responded by going 3-0 SU/ATS in the next game. They are 6-0 SU/5-1 ATS in this situation the last three years. Play on TORONTO AAA |
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03-13-21 | Oklahoma State +2 v. Texas | Top | 86-91 | Loss | -110 | 10 h 44 m | Show |
This is a 10* on OKLAHOMA STATE Oklahoma State is just about as anybody in College Basketball right now. The 12th ranked Cowboys come into the Big 12 Championship Game having won eight of their last nine games. They just avenged the one loss by beating top seed Baylor 83-74 Friday. That was their eighth consecutive cover as well. Texas’ path to the Tournament Final has been much easier. The Longhorns didn’t even have to play yesterday as Kansas was knocked out by a positive COVID-19 test. That was after escaping with a one-point win against Texas Tech in the quarterfinals. OSU covered both times they played Texas in the regular season. They lost by three in Austin (but were +7.5 in that game) and then won 75-67 in Stillwater, a game that went to two overtimes. Right now, you’ve got to ride these Cowboys as they seemingly are doing everything right. Not sure how the unexpected bye will affect Texas. They were down by 10 in both halves vs. Texas Tech. OSU has never been in that kind of danger in the tournament. The Longhorns are 3-9-1 ATS L13 as a favorite. Play on OKLAHOMA STATE AAA |
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03-11-21 | Cal Poly v. Cal-Irvine -15 | Top | 51-58 | Loss | -110 | 11 h 55 m | Show |
This is a 10* on UC IRVINE UC Irvine is a big favorite to move on to the Big West semis as it caught a lucky break and will face last place Cal Poly today. Cal Poly was an upset winner on Tuesday, 87-82 against CS Fullerton. It was their first win of any kind since January 29th. There were nine straight losses in between. Then you’ve got the fact that the two times the Mustangs faced UC Irvine, they lost by 23 and 19 points. They are 0-6 vs. UC Irvine the last three seasons. UC Irvine has won four straight and six of its last seven coming into the tournament. While Cal Poly got one day off between tournament games, UC Irvine has been off since Saturday. This figures to be quite the lopsided affair. Cal Poly had not won a single game away from home all year before Tuesday and they average just 58.6 points/game on their travels. Look for the favorite to win very big in this one. Play on UC IRVINE AAA |
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03-11-21 | Northern Colorado v. Southern Utah -7 | Top | 83-91 | Win | 100 | 4 h 23 m | Show |
This is an 8* on SOUTHERN UTAH Southern Utah comes into the Big Sky Tournament as the top seed, having gone 12-2 SU in the regular season. The Thunderbirds were a little lucky in that they played one fewer game than both Eastern Washington and Weber State, who were each 12-3. But that’s something to possibly “worry about” later as today’s game vs. 8-seed Northern Colorado should be a “breeze.” Northern Colorado had to win yesterday just to get here. They beat Sacramento State 90-83 thanks to a career-high 30 points from Bodie Hume, who was 7 of 10 on three-point attempts. The 90 points were also a season-high for the Bears. Southern Utah has not lost a game since January 21st. They have won nine straight games, seven of them by 10 or more points. They only lost three times all season and one of them was the season opener. The other two were on the road to the Big Sky’s other top two teams. This would be a mismatch even without SUU having the bye. Play on SOUTHERN UTAH AAA |
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03-10-21 | Canadiens v. Canucks +1.5 | Top | 5-1 | Loss | -185 | 15 h 22 m | Show |
This is a 7* on VANCOUVER +1.5 (PUCK LINE) We’re playing the puck line here, which means Vancouver +1.5. It’s a little surprising that we are able to get the added goal and a half under -200 seeing as the Canucks have won three in a row and just beat Montreal, who they face here, 2-1 on Monday night. Prior to that win, they beat Toronto twice in a row. The Maple Leafs are the top team in the North Division and one of the best in the entire league. The Canadiens have just two wins in the last eight games as a coaching change has done little to turn around their fortune. Some of it has been bad luck (the team is 0-7 in overtime this year). But Vancouver has just three losses by more than one goal in the last month, so the puck line seems like a safe bet tonight. Montreal has lost five in a row when favored on the road. Play on VANCOUVER +1.5 AAA |
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03-10-21 | California v. Stanford -6 | Top | 76-58 | Loss | -106 | 14 h 20 m | Show |
This is a 10* on STANFORD California is quite bad. Save for a shocking upset over Colorado on February 13th, they have not won since January 16th. They finished last in the conference after dropping their final four regular season games. In three of those four losses, they were held to 57 points or fewer. Stanford is the Bears’ first round opposition and it’s likely to be a short run in the Pac 12 Tournament (for Cal). The Cardinal won both regular season matchups, 70-55 at home and 76-70 on the road. Those games took place at the start of February. Cal has not played in nearly two weeks. It’s really difficult to see them “showing up” in Vegas with any incentive as they went 3-18 SU in league play. Outside of the four games where they were a home favorite (went 4-0), the Bears were 4-19 SU this season. Stanford is also on a four-game losing streak, but had a better year than Cal and should have a longer run in Vegas this week. Maybe they don’t make it far, but the Cardinal should easily make it to tomorrow with a win and cover here. Play on STANFORD AAA |
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03-10-21 | Marquette v. Georgetown +3 | Top | 49-68 | Win | 100 | 7 h 21 m | Show |
This is an 8* on GEORGETOWN The Big East Tournament gets underway Wednesday and here we have the 9-seed Marquette taking on the 8-seed Georgetown in the very first matchup. The lower seed is actually favored, which is not all that strange (it is an 8-9 matchup), but we disagree with it. Marquette has won four of its last five, but so had G’town before losing at UConn Saturday. That blowout loss seems to have had a direct influence on this line. Now Marquette was a 4.5 point favorite when these teams played (at Georgetown) in the lone regular season battle. But those who watched that game will recall that the Hoyas led by 16 at half. They came back to win by four, but G’town remembers and is out for revenge. The Golden Eagles failed to cover 14 of their first 20 games this season, before a relatively strong finish. They are 3-8 ATS off a straight up win. Georgetown is 4-0 ATS off its last four ATS defeats. Play on GEORGETOWN AAA |
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03-09-21 | Long Beach State +2 v. CS-Northridge | Top | 85-63 | Win | 100 | 8 h 28 m | Show |
This is a 10* on LBSU The Big West Tournament gets going today and while neither Long Beach State nor Cal State Northridge is expected to do much this week, we see a nice edge with the underdog in this Opening Round matchup. While it’s true that LBSU’s regular season ended with a four-game losing skid, three of those defeats were by two or three points. Had any of those games gone the other way, the Beach would be a higher seed. Now you can say the same for CS Northridge, who lost two close ones to UC Riverside last weekend. But what’s unusual here is CS Northridge is the favorite, something that has happened only two times this year. The line is clearly very small, but this isn’t a team I’d want to bet on to actually win a game. Long Beach State has an incredible six losses by three points or less on its resume, so they are probably better than their record. Neither of these teams is very good defensively, but LBSU has held its opponents to a much lower field goal percentage. They are 7-2 ATS off an ATS loss as well. Play on LONG BEACH STATE AAA |
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03-09-21 | Pepperdine v. BYU -8.5 | Top | 77-82 | Loss | -104 | 15 h 27 m | Show |
This is a 10* on BYU Back on January 27th, BYU lost to Pepperdine. We don’t see them losing this time though. It should be more along the lines of their first meeting, which was four days before the second. BYU won that game by 11. The stakes are now higher as this is the semifinals of the West Coast Conference Tournament. A win here should solidify the Cougars as a NCAA Tournament team. They got the triple bye into the semis by virtue of fishing second and only behind Gonzaga in the regular season standings. Pepperdine finished third and so they had to beat Santa Clara on Saturday. That was a 78-70 win for the Waves as four-point favorites. They do a great job at defending the three-point line, but Pepperdine is pretty clearly the inferior side in this matchup. BYU has won four in a row by holding its opponents to a 39.2 FG%. Something to make note of is that Santa Clara was playing its third game in as many days when Pepperdine beat them. BYU is well rested coming into tonight and remembers the loss from two months ago. Their only other WCC losses (besides the one to Pepperdine) both were against Gonzaga. The majority of the wins came by double digits. Play on BYU AAA |
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03-07-21 | Oregon -5.5 v. Oregon State | Top | 80-67 | Win | 100 | 12 h 29 m | Show |
This is a 10* on OREGON There is no doubt that Oregon State has been a proverbial “thorn in the side” to the rest of the Pac 12. The Beavers are 13-1-1 ATS their last 15 games and 7-0 ATS the last 7. (They are 9-6 SU and 3-0 L3 during the same run). This run includes an upset of Oregon, in Eugene, back on January 23rd. But that 75-64 win as nine-point underdogs comes with an asterisk as the Ducks were not even close to full strength. They were down four starters because of COVID-19 and it was actually the only game they got in during all of January. Since getting back to full strength, Oregon has gotten on a roll. They’ve won 9 of 10, the only loss coming at USC. Wednesday’s 82-74 win over UCLA saw them shoot over 60% from the field and move into first place in the Pac 12. They can now clinch the 1-seed for the Pac 12 Tournament if they win tonight. Given the stakes and the revenge angle, the Ducks are a big play for us here. They are 10-1 ATS their L11 Sunday games. Play on OREGON AAA |
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03-07-21 | North Alabama v. Liberty -13.5 | Top | 75-79 | Loss | -110 | 6 h 28 m | Show |
This is an 8* on LIBERTY This is the Tournament Final in the Atlantic Sun. Liberty has clearly been the best team in the conference all season. This entire tourney has taken place in Jacksonville. Liberty won its first two games by 10 (against Kennesaw State) and 13 (against Stetson). Those were the two lowest seeds in the tournament. North Alabama, the 5 seed, has pulled two upsets to get here, beating North Florida 68-68 (were +3) and Fla Gulf Coast 96-81 (were +2.5). The teams had Saturday off. There was a point late in the season that North Alabama had dropped seven in a row. Then they won the regular season finale against Lipscomb. Three straight upsets and playing with “house money” make them an interesting dog here, but the reality is they’ve got no shot Sunday. Liberty crushed them twice in the regular season, winning by identical 74-54 scores each time. The Flames have not lost since January 15th. I’m aware that Liberty has already punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament as North Alabama is ineligible (transitioning to D-II). But they will want to head into the Big Dance off a convincing victory. Play on LIBERTY AAA |
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03-06-21 | Virginia -2 v. Louisville | Top | 68-58 | Win | 100 | 8 h 41 m | Show |
This is a 10* on VIRGINIA Virginia got a win earlier this week, thus snapping a rare three-game losing streak. But that win Monday wasn't enough to satisfy the oddsmakers. The Cavaliers.only won by 11 at Miami and they were 15.5-point favorites. So that makes it four straight games where they have not covered. It’s always tough going to Louisville, but we feel the Cavaliers are definitely the better team here and will gladly lay a short number with them. Louisville has not played since last Saturday when it upset Duke. Even with that win, the Cardinals are just 4-4 their last eight games. They played only four games in February and Wednesday’s game vs. Va Tech was called off due to COVID. Virginia has had the Cardinals number, winning 11 of 13 against them under Tony Bennett. Louisville has a double bye (in the ACC Tournament) at stake here, which is why the line is so short. They are being overvalued due to circumstance as we don’t think Virginia takes it easy on them Saturday. Louisville is just 1-3 ATS as an underdog this season. They are also 1-8-1 ATS L10 following an ATS win. Play on VIRGINIA AAAA |