Wunderdog
Washington at Cleveland
Pick: Cleveland -1.5
Think DeShawn Stevenson is regretting his comment that LeBron was "overrated"? Think Gilbert Arenas is regretting saying that Washington "wanted Cleveland in the first round"? While they may not admit it, those comments were stupid. Why fire up your opponent? In game one, it became evident that the Cavs were fired up and probably remain so. James put up 32 and the Cavs held Washington to just 86 points. It was the Wizards' seventh straight playoff loss to Cleveland. If they couldn't back up their words in that game, why should things change here? We know about the zig-zag theory but in this one we see more of a zig-zig with Cleveland taking both of the first two. Washington is now 18-24 on the road while Cleveland is 28-14 at home, yet we see a line here that basically calls the game even. This line is a full basket less than the game one spread, after the Cavs won fairly decisively in that game. In the playoffs, as they showed last year, it appears the Cavs know what wins - defense. They clamped down and should do so again tonight. The reason Washington struggles vs. Cleveland during the playoffs is this. They aren't built for these low-scoring intense defensive-laden games. Under Eddie Jordan, this team is now 6-16 ATS on the road when the total is between 185 and 190. We see more of the same from a still motivated Cleveland team.
SportsKingz
MLB
DODGERS -145
FLORIDA -105
NBA
CLEVELAND -1.5
UTAH +1
ATS Basketball Lock Club
3 units Houston
ATS Hockey Lock Club
4 units Wash-Philly Over
Lenny Del Genio's MLB Triple Play
Play on Florida at 7:05 ET. Total pitching mismatch in favor of the Marlins here. They've won all of starter Mark Hendrickson's last three starts while the Pirates have lost each of their starter's, Matt Morris, last three. The Pirates looked horrible over the weekend, getting swept by the Cubs and giving up 26 runs in the last two games. Hendrickson has won all three career starts vs. Florida with an ERA of 2.76. Pirates have lost five straight while Florida, having won 8 pf 12, is off to its best start since 2005. Slugger Hanley Ramirez has a .533 batting average here at PNC Park his highest at any venue in the league. Take Florida.
Play on Los Angeles at 7:35 ET. Freed from having to pitch against Jake Peavy in every start, we should see Brad Penny quickly regain old form. His team has owned the Reds, winning 10 of the last 12 series meetings, and Cincy starter Matt Belisle owns a very poor 4-12 team start record at home. It was Penny that was on the mound for LA's last win. Neither team is off to a good start, so we side with the proven commodity in Penny, who has a TSR of 10-2 if he did not allow an earned run in his last outing. Take Los Angeles.
Play on Philadelphia at 8:35 ET. This is a revenge spot for the Phills, who were unceremoniously jettisoned from the postseason by Colorado a year ago. Rockies team ERA ranks next to last in the Senior Circuit, so the Philly offense even sans Jimmy Rollins should have little trouble getting on track here. Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick has always been solid in the role of favorite (12-5 TSR, including 4-1 on the road). Take Philadelphia.
Bob Balfe
NBA Basketball
Washington +2 over Cleveland
The final score of game one was alot bigger then the game really was. Washinton is a high powered offense and needs to win this game or they are done. The line in game one was -4.5 now today it is -2. Why would the oddsmakes make it easier to be the Cavs when the whole world is betting them anyway? Take the Wizards
Jazz/Rockets Over 183.5
This is a must win for the Rockets. They seemed like they were asleep offensively last game and their star TMac did nothing. You have to figure that McGrady plays better tonight and the Rockets shoot better than the 37% the other night. Utah still will get their points in the paint without Yao in the lineup. Both teams didn't shoot well from the charity stripe last game which would have sent it over the total. You are going to see a lot closer of a game tonight. The Rockets played as bad as they could the other night. Look for more points out of them this evening. Take the Over.
Major League Baseball
Cubs -135 over Mets
Zambrano/Maine
THE VEGAS BEARD
Braves under 9 -125
Astros under 9 -125
ROOT
Chairmain - Wizards
Millionaire - Rockets
Money Maker - Rockies
No Limit - Padres
Burns
Personal Favorite
Houston Astros
April MLB Blowout Game of the Month
Chicago Cubs
ASA
Rockets
Stan Sharp Triple Dime
Rockets
Lockline Sports
Houston
Wolkosky Milan
10* WASHINGTON +2
10* HOUSTON -1
5* NYM/CHC OVER 8½
5* STL/MIL OVER 9
GOLD SHEET
WASHINGTON +2
HOUSTON -1
The Duke's Sports
Utah +1for 2 Units
Utah/Houston 9:30: We know the high succes rate home teams have when coming off a loss in Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs, but we will fade that here. Houston was clearly overmatched in a few areas; most notably, at point guard where Deron Williams who blew by Bobby Jackson at will; and Boozer worked the painted area without much resistance. We don't see much improvement from the Rockets who clearly missed Alston (hamstring); after all, the Rockets grew dependent on him as a key scoring option during the season. BJ, as much as we liked him in Sacramento, has much rust directing the show here. Houston does have some hustle guys (Scola, Landry) who hold their own, but Utah's hustle guys (Millsap, Korver) are more versatile in their respective roles and contribute in a more collaborative way with the team. As for the top guns, McGrady shows flashes of brilliance but he's still unable to close consistently. With the Jazz now a confident road team and on the same page as a unit, we'll look for another strong effort from Utah here.
John Ryan
7* Capitols
Sports Lock
Washington Nationals vs. Atlanta Braves
The Washington Nationals come into tonight's game just 5-14 and winning only 2 out of their last 10 games. They will put Matt Chico on the mound with his 0-0 record and a 4.81 ERA. In his last outing against the Mets he pitched 5 innings and allowed 5 runs. The Braves have a record of 9-9 on the season and they have won 6 out of their last 10. They will send Tim Hudson to the mound with his 2-1 record and 3.38 ERA. In his last outing against the Florida Marlins he only pitched 3 innings and game up 4 runs. Washington is struggling to get wins and find an identity as a team this season. The Braves on the other hand are beginning to come together as a unit. Tim Hudson is one of the better pitchers in the league and should rebound nicely after his poor outing in Florida. Look for the Braves to rough up Matt Chico and his 4.81 ERA this evening.
LOCK = Atlanta Braves -210
Doc's NHL
4 Montreal -1.5 +160
4 Washington +130