COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Ohio State (17-10, 11-12 ATS) at (12) Indiana (23-4, 12-11-1 ATS)
Indiana plays its first game in Bloomington since coach Kelvin Sampson was forced to resign, hosting the slumping Buckeyes in a Big Ten battle.
Less than 24 hours after Sampson and the school reached a buyout settlement, the Hoosiers went to Northwestern and barely pulled out an 85-82 victory, falling way short as an 11½-point road favorite. Indiana, which has won three in a row and six of seven (4-3 ATS), is tied with Purdue for second place in the Big Ten standings at 12-2 (7-6-1 ATS), a half-game behind Wisconsin.
Ohio State’s NCAA Tournament hopes have taken a big hit lately as Thad Matta’s squad has dropped four of six (1-5 ATS), including consecutive losses to Michigan last Sunday (80-70 as a five-point road chalk) and to Wisconsin on Saturday (58-53 as a 1½-point home favorite). The Buckeyes, who have lost five of seven on the road (4-3 ATS), are 8-6 in conference (6-8 ATS).
These teams met at Ohio State just 16 days ago, with the Hoosiers pulling out a 59-53 victory as a 2½-point road underdog, ending the home team’s 4-0 SU run in this rivalry. Indiana has cashed in each of the last three meetings and seven of the last 10, and the underdog is 4-0 ATS in the last four, all decided by seven points or less.
Indiana is 15-2 inside Assembly Hall this year, but just 6-7-1 ATS in lined games. When hosting Big Ten foes, the Hoosiers are 6-1 SU and 3-3-1 ATS.
Ohio State is 3-5 in Big Ten road games (5-3 ATS).
The under is 9-2 in Ohio State’s last 11 overall, including 5-1 on the road. However, Indiana has topped the total in six of eight overall, four straight overall and four straight at home, all against Big Ten foes. Finally, the under is 6-3-1 in the last 10 series meetings.
ATS ADVANTAGE: INDIANA
(20) Drake (24-3, 17-5-1 ATS) at Missouri State (14-15, 8-17 ATS)
Coming off arguably the biggest victory in school history, Drake will try to avoid a letdown when it travels to face Missouri Valley Conference rival Missouri State, which has had a disappointing season overall but is very solid on its home court.
The Bulldogs went to Indiana on Saturday and upended then-10th-ranked Butler 71-64 as a 5½-point road underdog in a Bracket Buster Saturday showdown. It was the first time since 1982 that Drake beat a Top 10 program. The Bulldogs have already clinched the MVC regular-season title with a 14-2 record (10-5-1 ATS).
Missouri State has alternated SU and ATS wins and losses in its last six games, most recently beating Central Michigan 90-76 as an 11-point home favorite in a Bracket Buster Saturday contest. Still, the Bears are just 6-10 in Missouri Valley Conference action (5-11 ATS). Also, they’re just 8-20 ATS in their last 28 overall dating to the end of last season.
The SU winner is 15-1 ATS in Missouri State’s league games, including 9-0 ATS in the last nine.
Drake hammered the Bears 65-54 as a 6½-point home favorite on Jan. 12, ending a 10-game losing skid in the series. The Bulldogs also snapped an 0-4 ATS slide against Missouri State, as the favorite improved to 5-0 ATS in the last five head-to-head clashes.
Despite cashing against Butler on Saturday, Drake is only 2-2-1 ATS in its last five games after starting the season 15-3 against the number. On the road, the Bulldogs are 9-2-1 ATS this season, including 5-0-1 ATS in the last six. On the downside, they’re 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games on Tuesday.
Missouri State is 13-2 at home this year (7-5 ATS), including three straight wins and covers. Tonight marks the first time all year that the Bears will be an underdog on their own floor.
The over is 7-1 in Drake’s last eight overall, including 4-1 on the road. Also, for Missouri State, the over is on streaks of 8-3 overall, including 7-3 in conference. Finally, the over is 5-2 in the last seven series meetings, though last month’s battle barely stayed under the posted price.
ATS ADVANTAGE: DRAKE and OVER
(1) Tennessee (25-2, 14-9 ATS) at (18) Vanderbilt (23-4, 13-13 ATS)
Having ascended to the top spot in the rankings for the first time in school history after Saturday’s upset win at Memphis, the Volunteers now face the difficult task of remaining there when they face another instate rival on the road in streaking Vanderbilt, which is unbeaten at home.
Tennessee took the much-hyped No. 1 vs. No. 2 non-conference showdown on Saturday, rallying to defeat Memphis 66-62 as a 6½-point road underdog. The Vols have now won nine in a row (7-2 ATS), including eight straight SEC games (6-2 ATS). Tennessee owns the best record in the SEC at 11-1 (8-4 ATS).
With the Vols garnering much of the hype in the SEC, Vanderbilt has quietly ripped off six straight wins, including Saturday’s 86-74 rout of Georgia at home, improving to 17-0 this year at Memorial Gym in Nashville. The Commodores (8-4, 5-7 ATS in the SEC) cashed as a nine-point favorite in Saturday’s contest, improving to 4-1 ATS in their last five, all in conference.
Tennessee ripped the Commodores 80-60 back on Jan. 17, easily covering as an 11½-point home chalk. The Vols have won two in a row and four of the last five in this rivalry, and they’re 8-2 ATS in the last 10 series meetings and 6-1 ATS in their last seven trips to Nashville.
Although Vandy is perfect at home this year, it is just 7-9 ATS, including 3-3 ATS in SEC home games.
During its nine-game winning streak, Tennessee has won five straight road games (3-2 ATS), and Bruce Pearl’s squad is 5-1 in SEC road games, going 3-3 ATS, including two straight non-covers.
Both teams average better than 80 points per game on the season, but both offenses have cooled a bit lately with Tennessee netting 73.8 ppg on 42.4 percent shooting in its last five and the Commodores putting up 74.6 ppg on 47 percent shooting in their last five.
The under is 5-1 in the last six series meetings between these teams, 9-3 in Vandy’s last 12 overall (all in SEC action) and 9-4 in Tennessee’s 13 road/neutral-site games this season (4-0 in the last four). However, the over is 36-17 in Vandy’s last 53 home games, including 11-5 this season.
ATS ADVANTAGE: TENNESSEE
NBA
Orlando (36-22, 36-21-1 ATS) at New Jersey (25-31, 22-33-1 ATS)
The Magic shoot for their third consecutive victory when they head north to battle a Nets’ squad that’s clinging to a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.
Orlando is coming off back-to-back dominating home wins over the 76ers on Friday (115-99) and Kings on Saturday (112-93), easily covering the spread in both contests. The Magic are 4-1 SU and ATS in their last five games, and the straight-up winner has cashed in each of the team’s last 10 overall and each of its last seven on the highway.
Despite recently trading away All-Star point guard Jason Kidd, New Jersey is playing its best basketball in six weeks, winning five of its last seven (4-3 ATS). Most recently, the Nets avenged Friday’s 113-103 loss at Indiana as a 5½-point road underdog with Saturday’s 102-91 rout of the Pacers as a four-point home chalk. New Jersey is in seventh place in the Eastern Conference playoff standings, a half-game ahead of Philadelphia, which holds the eighth and final playoff spot.
These teams have met three times already this season, with the Magic winning 95-70 as a four-point road favorite on Nov. 16 and 100-84 as a 10½-point home chalk on Feb. 6, while New Jersey scored a 96-95 upset win as a six-point road underdog on Jan. 2. Going back to last year, the Magic are 3-1 SU and ATS against the Nets, and they’re 5-2 ATS in their last seven trips to New Jersey. Finally, the favorite is 6-1 ATS in the last seven series battles, and the SU winner has cashed in each of the past seven meetings.
The Nets are just 10-18-1 ATS at home this season, including 8-17-1 ATS in the last 26. They’re also stuck in ATS ruts of 1-6 on Tuesday, 1-5 when playing on two days’ rest and 2-6 following a spread-cover.
Orlando is tied with Detroit and Boston for the second-most road wins in the NBA at 20-11 (21-10 ATS), and going back to last year, Stan Van Gundy’s squad is 25-10-1 ATS on the highway. The Magic are on additional ATS streaks of 5-1 on Tuesdays, 8-2 on the road against teams with a losing home record and 4-1 when playing on one day of rest.
The over is 7-4 in Orlando’s last 11 overall, 4-1 in its last five on the road and 12-5 in its last 17 against the Atlantic Division. Also, New Jersey has topped the total in three of its last four. However, the under is 5-0 in the last five series meetings.
ATS ADVANTAGE: ORLANDO
Portland (29-27, 27-29 ATS) at L.A. Lakers (39-17, 36-18-1 ATS)
Two Western Conferences foes heading in completely opposite directions clash at the Staples Center, where the red-hot Lakers go for their ninth straight win when they host the slumping Blazers.
One night after blasting the cross-town rival Clippers 113-95 as a 10-point “road” favorite, Los Angeles went up to Seattle and crushed the Sonics 111-91 as an 11-point road chalk. The Lakers, who have the best record in the Western Conference are 8-0 ATS during their eight-game winning streak, averaging 115 points per game.
Going back to Jan. 29, the Lakers are 11-2 SU and 12-1 ATS, with the only two outright defeats coming by a combined four points at Detroit and Atlanta.
While L.A. has been soaring, the Blazers are in serious freefall mode, losing 11 of 15, including two in a row to the Sonics on Friday (99-87 as a two-point road favorite) and Celtics on Sunday (112-102 as a 5½-point home underdog). In the loss to Boston, Portland had a 32-16 lead after the first quarter, then got outscored 96-70 the rest of the way.
The Blazers are 4-17 ATS in their last 21 overall, including seven straight non-covers coming into tonight’s contest.
This is the first meeting of the season between these former Pacific Division rivals. Last year, Portland took two of three battles, and the Blazers are on a 17-5 ATS run in this rivalry, going 5-0 ATS in the last five. Also, the home team is 7-1 SU in the last eight clashes (4-4 ATS) and the underdog has cashed in 18 of the last 22 head-to-head matchups.
Including Saturday’s game against the Clippers in which they were the designated visitor, the Lakers have played 12 of their last 13 games on the road. Inside the Staples Center, L.A. is 19-7 SU and 16-10 ATS, including 9-2 in the last 11 (5-4 ATS). Also, Phil Jackson’s squad is on positive ATS streaks of 7-0 on Tuesday, 7-0 when playing on one day of rest, 6-1 versus the Northwest Division and 22-8 after a spread-cover.
Portland has lost six straight road games, going 1-5 ATS, including four consecutive non-covers. For the season, the Blazers are 8-19 on the highway (12-15 ATS). Portland is also on pointspread slumps of 0-8 against the Western Conference, 0-4 when playing on one day of rest and 1-12 after a non-cover.
For the Blazers, the under is on runs of 6-2 overall, 6-0 on the road and 23-6 against the Western Conference. For the Lakers, the under is on streaks of 5-2 at home, 10-3 after a SU win and 10-4 after a spread-cover.
ATS ADVANTAGE: L.A. LAKERS and
gametimepicks.com
Rockets Yao's could be out for season
February 26, 2008
HOUSTON (AP) -The Houston Rockets have scheduled a news conference to discuss center Yao Ming's injured left foot.
The Houston Chronicle and television station KRIV reported he has a stress fracture in his left foot and may be out for the season. The news conference is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
Yao is averaging 22 points and 10.8 rebounds for the Rockets, who have won 12 straight games.