Free Picks for Friday, February 10th, 2017, from some of the nations best and worst handicappers
DAVE COKIN
BLACKHAWKS -110 & OVER 5.5
Chicago finally solved its Minnesota dilemma on Wednesday evening, winning in OT against the Wild. That was the first win for the Blackhawks in nine tries against one of their recent nemesis opponents.
They face another problem team tonight. Chicago is clearly superior to the Jets, but Winnipeg is inexplicably 4-0 this year in the season series. You know what they say about how hard it is to beat the same team five times in a row in the same season (actually, I’ve never heard anyone say that, but it sounds good).
The matchup favors the Blackhawks. They’re in better current form with three straight wins, while the Jets have dropped two in a row. Not that Chicago has been sizzling defensively lately, but the Jets are not stopping anyone. They’ve surrendered three or more goals in a remarkable 13 straight games. Plus, while he wasn’t in great form rather obviously, starting goalie Pavelec got hurt last start and he’s out for the next week or two.
Look for lots of offense here and expect the Blackhawks to get the win in a game that also goes Over the 5.5.
Scott Spreitzer
Pelicans vs. Wolves
Play: Pelicans +3½
Both the Pelicans and the T-Wolves rank in the bottom-third in points allowed per game, but New Orleans plays a better brand of defense, ranked 8th in the NBA in FG percentage allowed (44.9%), while Minnesota ranks 27th in the league, allowing teams to make nearly 48% of their FGA. New Orleans is much better in defensive efficiency and I do believe that'll make the difference tonight. Having said that, the Pelicans were embarrassed in their most recent game, losing 127-94 to Utah, allowing the Jazz to make more than 54% of their FGA. The Jazz also put the wraps on Anthony Davis, but Utah is 3rd in the league in defensive efficiency, while Minnesota is 24th. After attempting just 12 FG's last time out I expect Davis to bounce back and look for his shot tonight. The T-Wolves have covered just eight of their last 25 as chalk and we'll go against them here.
Mike Lundin
Spurs vs. Pistons
Play: Spurs -4½
The Detroit Pistons have won four of their last five games, but considering the schedule it's not all the impressive. The Pistons have beaten up on New Orleans, Minnesota, Philly and the Lakers during that stretch, while losing 105-84 at Indiana.
Tonight they'll take on one of the elite teams in the league as the San Antonio Spurs will pay a visit to The Palace, and the Spurs are 4-0 ATS in the last four in the series. The Pistons are 2-6 ATS in their last eight games vs. a team with a winning straight up record, and although they're coming off a 121-102 rout of the Lakers we can note that they're 2-5 ATS in their last seven games following a straight up win of more than 10 points.
Let's go with the Spurs to get the job done in Motor City Friday night.
Marc Lawrence
Cornell vs. Princeton
Play: Cornell +16
Edges - Big Red: 3-1 SUATS in this series with revenge from a pair of losses the previous season. Tigers: 2-6 ATS before facing Penn when facing a foe off a SUATS loss. With Princeton 3-8 ATS in this series when Cornell sports a sub .360 win percentage, including 1-5 ATS the last six, we recommend a 1* play on Cornell.
Rob Vinciletti
Harvard vs. Brown
Play: Harvard -4
Harvard has covered in all 9 times in their lined wins and has won 14 straight in the series against Brown. They are 7-1 this season vs teams ranked outside the top 200 in the RPI Scale. The Crimson are 5-0 with 4 covers as a road favorite in this range. Brown is 4-26 vs winning teams and 0-2 vs teams ranked 100 to 200 in the RPI Scale. Harvard has covered 8 of 9 in conference. Look for the Crimson to get the cover.
Zack Cimini
Akron vs. Eastern Michigan
Pick: Eastern Michigan
Eastern Michigan comes into the contest having lost five of six. Offense has sputtered as Eastern Michigan's patented 2-3 zone defense has stopped turning turnovers into points. Yet, this is a game where Eastern Michigan can gain some confidence back against the MAC's best in Akron. Grab Eastern Michigan to improve upon the miscues of their road loss to Akron on January 20th.
Jim Feist
Monmouth at Manhattan
Pick: Under
Monmouth has already reads 20 wins, a strong defensive team that is 27-12-1 under the total after a spread loss. They face a rival Manhattan squad that is 4-1 under the total at home. The under is also 12-5 in the Jaspers last 17 home games vs. a team with a winning road record. And when these rivals clash the Under is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings.
Vernon Croy
Golden State (-7.5) over Memphis
This pick falls into one of my top NBA systems and the Warriors are hands down the superior team here Friday night. The Warriors have averaged 118.2 points per game this season, which ranks #1 in the NBA, and they also have the #1 shooting percentage in the NBA at 49.9%, and #2 shooting percentage from beyond the arc, shooting 38.7% as a team. The Warriors have held opponents to shooting just 32.2% from beyond the arc this season, which ranks #1 in the NBA, and they have outscored their opponents by an average of 12.6 ppg this season. Memphis is a very good defensive team. However, the Warriors are just too much for them to handle, and the Grizzlies have averaged just 100.5 ppg this season, which ranks 26th in the NBA, so I don't see them keeping up Friday night. Play Golden State ATS with confidence and make sure you get on my dominant all sports top play run that continues this week.
Wunderdog
New Orleans @ Minnesota
Pick: New Orleans +3.5
The New Orleans pelicans got off to the worst start of any NBA team, but have at least stabilized since their 0-8 start. That leaves them even with a 20-33 Minnesota team that has had top draft picks for a decade yet can't seem to turn the corner. Since their last winning season in 2004, Minnesota has been 305-634 straight-up and 419-504-16 ATS, and are six games below .500 ATS this year. They certainly have not raised the bar in their last 10 games where they are 2-8 ATS, and for this franchise some things just never change. New Orleans has been the better team since starting 0-8, and have a shot for a win or at the least a close one.
GoodFella
Pacers / Wizards Over 213.5
We have two of the higher scoring teams and up-tempo teams in the NBA squaring off here. These two clubs have played to the OVER in both meetings this season, In fact, the OVER is 8-1 the last 9 times these two clubs have squared off, including 4 of the last 5 when they play at Washington. I fully expect another fast paced, high scoring affair here, and I have this game landing between 215-218 after 4 Q of play.
Eric Schroeder
Tonight I'm taking you ice skating for a complimentary winner in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. I love the Minnesota Wild over the Tampa Bay Lightning. It's Friday night in the Twin Cities, and the crowd will be heated and rocking, while the snow lay on the ground and temperatures outside remain in the teens.
The Wild should be rested and prepared for Tampa Bay, as they took practice off to rest both mentally and physically, acoording to local reports.
The Lightning are opening a four-game road, and could suffer from the loss of star forward Steven Stamkos to a knee injury. I know Tampa Bay has won its last two games, including a 5-0 win over the L.A. Kings earlier this week, but traveling to Minneapolis this time of year is never easy.
And remember, the Lightning are sitting in the cellar of the Atlantic Division, and aren't exactly a legit threat for the playoff-bound Wild.
Take Minnesota on the puck line tonight.
2* WILD -1.5
Chris Jordan
After hitting the Iona Gaels on Friday with my free play, I'm ready to improve on this 47-31-1 run with free picks, as I deliver a fifth-straight complimentary Pro Hoops winner.
My free play for Friday night is back in the NBA, where I'm banking on the San Antonio Spurs to win and cover in Motown against the Detroit Pistons.
San Antonio (40-12) is in the middle of its rodeo trip, which this year means an eight-game road trip. After losing to Memphis on Monday on the first leg of this annual journey, the Spurs bounced back with a 111-103 victory over Philadelphia on Wednesday.
Tonight, with the toughest game of the week on tap, the Spurs will be at their best to post a confidence-building win.
The Spurs have won the last four meetings with the Pistons, including a 96-86 victory at San Antonio on Nov. 11. Tonight they'll win this by at least a half dozen.
3* SPURS
Jack Brayman
Short and sweet: After winning six of seven games, the West-leading Ball State has lost two in a row. Ohio, which resides in second place in the East, is in after losing to Central Michigan, and will play four of its next five on the road.
Now about this complimentary winner
My free play for tonight is on the Washington Wizards, who rebounded from losing in overtime to the reigning NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers, to earning an ugly victory against the lowly Brooklyn Nets.
It's a wash.
Now the Wizards get a much more balanced matchup against the Indiana Pacers, who are creeping back up the Eastern Conference standings. The Wizards (31-21) are a couple games ahead of the Pacers (29-23), as the two meet for the third time this season and the first of two head-to-head battles in the last week before the All-Star Game.
Despite spliiting its last two, Washington has won eight of nine. Even further, Washington has won 18 of 23 games overall since Dec. 26, including a 111-105 home victory over Indiana.
Take the home team here.
4* WIZARDS
SCOTT RICKENBACH
Lakers vs. Bucks
Play: Lakers +5
The Lakers have an ugly SU road record on the season but there is a reason they are priced as such a short dog here. For one thing Los Angeles is off of loss and non-cover but this was on the heels of a 7-1 ATS run. In other words the Lakers have been playing quite competitive of late. For another thing this is the last game of a 5 game road trip for LA as they don't play again until Tuesday at home so they want to make the most of this opportunity to wrap up this road swing back east on a positive note. The other reason this line has been held low is because the Bucks situation is in stark contrast to that of the Lakers. Coming into this match-up Milwaukee has gone 2-11 ATS in their last 13 games. Also, they certainly don't have a break coming up as, actually, the Bucks have just the opposite with a big match-up at division rival Indiana on deck for tomorrow night. The Bucks are off of an upset loss as a home fave over Miami so you might expect a bounce back here. However, Milwaukee is actually an ugly 2-6 SU and ATS this season (and 7-16 SU the L3 seasons combined) when they are off of an upset loss as a favorite. As for the Lakers, they gave up 121 points at Detroit Wednesday and LA has gone 6-1 ATS in 2017 when they are off of a game where they allowed more than 113 points. Look for the Lakers to, as they have been, once again respond in a big way here.