Wunderdog
Dallas at Columbus
Pick: Columbus
The Columbus Blue Jackets have yet to record a home win in three tries, but did win their opener in a shootout. They then faced Chicago and Detroit here, two very solid clubs, and now get a winnable game at home against Dallas. Dallas has to be a bit down after squandering leads in their last two games, only to fall victim in the end. The Stars have not been defending the back side of the ice in the early going as they have allowed a league worst 37 shots on goal per game. Sooner or later, that is going to come back and bite them. Going back to last year, the stars are now just 2-8 overall in their last ten games. Play on Columbus.
John Ryan
Orlando at Brooklyn
Prediction: Over
The simulator shows a high probability that 196 or more points will be scored in this game. Sim shows a high probability that Brooklyn will score between 99 and 104 points, will have 12 or fewer turnovers, will make 43 to 47% of their shots. In past games, Orlando is 30-4 OVER (+25.6 Units) when they allow 99 to 104 points in a game over the last 3 seasons; 18-7 OVER (+10.3 Units) in games where they force 12 or fewer turnovers this season. Brooklyn is 25-5 OVER (+19.5 Units) when they score 99 to 104 points in a game over the last 3 seasons; 27-14 OVER (+11.6 Units) in home games in games where they commit 12 or fewer turnovers over the last 3 seasons. Brooklyn is a solid team, but to not get called for an inordinately high amount of fouls. They play solid well-disciplined defense and this plays to Orlando?s abilities to score points above their season average. In fact they are 19-7 OVER (+11.3 Units) versus teams who are called for 21 or less fouls/game this season. Take the OVER.
Kyle Hunter
Houston Rockets vs. Utah Jazz
Play: Utah Jazz
The Houston Rockets failed to cover in 9 straight games before covering in their last two. Houston has had a brutal schedule of late, and it seems that has finally caught up with them. Their isn't a tougher court for visitor's to play on than Energy Solutions Arena in Utah. The fans are raucous and the Jazz almost never lose here (15-4 this year). Houston is likely to be worn out, and that could equal an ugly performance. Look for the Jazz to win by a comfortable margin. The Jazz are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 home games. Take Utah.
Jack Jones
Denver Nuggets -5.5
The Denver Nuggets are one of the best home teams in the league. They should be more than a 5.5-point home favorite over the Indiana Pacers tonight. I'll side with the Nuggets at a great price in this one.
Denver is 17-3 SU & 13-7 ATS at home this season. It is putting up 107.8 points/game, outscoring opponents by 9.3 points/game at home this year. Indiana is just 10-15 on the road, scoring a mere 88.0 points/game away from home this season.
The Nuggets are 5-1 SU & 4-2 ATS in their last six meetings with Indiana dating back to 2009. In fact, Denver is 3-0 SU in its last three home meetings with the Pacers, winning those three contests by 8, 14 and 20 points. The Nuggets are 12-4 ATS in the last 16 meetings in this series overall.
Indiana is 6-21 ATS when playing against a good team (Win Pct. 60% to 70%) over the last 3 seasons. The Pacers are 2-10 ATS in road games when playing against a team with a winning record this season. The Pacers are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 road games vs. a team with a winning home record. The Nuggets are 14-3 ATS in their last 17 vs. NBA Central division opponents. Bet Denver Monday.
John Martin
Washington Wizards -7.5
I'll continue backing the most underrated team in the league over the past month of the season. The Washington Wizards are a perfect 10-0 ATS in their last 10 games overall, and 14-2 ATS in their last 16 games dating back to December 28th. They have actually won seven of their last 10 games outright, including wins over the likes of the Thunder, Hawks, Nuggets, Blazers and Bulls, which are five playoff teams. They did lose 94-95 at Sacramento on January 16th during this stretch, but that loss puts them in revenge mode tonight as they get the Kings at home this time around. Sacramento is just 4-17 on the road this season, getting outscored by 9.9 points/game. I look for the Wizards to win this one by double-digits tonight folks as they continue playing their best basketball of the season.
Dave Price
South Florida +11
Motivated by back-to-back losses to Seton Hall and Notre Dame and further fueled by three consecutive losses to Marquette, expect South Florida to leave it all out on the floor tonight. Doing so will give the Bulls an excellent opportunity to keep this one within the number. South Florida typically plays the Golden Eagles tough. In fact, it has won or lost by 11 points or less in 11 of the last 13 meetings. Also, the underdog has covered the spread in five of the last seven meetings. In addition, road underdogs of 10 points or more that have failed to cover the spread in five or six of their last seven games and are matched up against an opponent that has covered the number in three of its last four games are 126-73 (63.3%) the last five seasons. This system is already 4-1 ATS this season. Take the points.
Jeff Alexander
Golden State Warriors -1.5
Off back-to-back defeats, the Warriors will have no trouble getting up for this one. They are an impressive 21-9 ATS following 2 or more consecutive losses since Mark Jackson took over. They are also 13-3 ATS in road games following a road loss under Jackson's watch. Plus, the Raptors are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games vs. a team with a winning percentage above .600 and 21-44-1 ATS in their last 66 home games vs. a team with a winning road record. Bet Golden State.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAY
Nashville/ Phoenix Under 5.5: The Coyote's first 5 games have all score m6 goals ore more, but I say it comes to an end tonight. The Preds are not an offensive minded team, as they average just 2 gpg so far, while defensively they have allowed just 2.2 gpg. This is a slow paced team that likes to grind it out on offense and play good defense. Teams get just 28.6 spg off of them, which is 10th in the league, while they put up just 23.6 spg, which is 30th in the league. Phoenix is 3rd in spg (35.8), but a decent 13th in spg allowed (29.8). Let's also note that the last 3 between these teams put up a TOTAL of 6 goals combined. This has the feel of a 2-1 final.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAYS
Pittsburgh/ Louisville Over 123.5: This should be a physical game and I see plenty of FT’s in it, which will really help in the end. Both teams play good defense, But Louisville has allowed 70+ points in 2 of their last 3 games and they will be facing a Pitt team hat has averaged 71 ppg in their last 5 games and 65.2 ppg on the road overall. Louisville’s offense has struggled of late, but 3 of their last 5 games have been on the road And they have averaged 77.8 ppg at home. Pitt’s defense is one of the best in the Country, by they have allowed 60+ in 2 of heir last 3 games and I expect a desperate Louisville team to find away t get their offense going vs this team. Should be a close game throughout out and those FT’s at the end should net us at least 130 points in this one.
Marquette/ South Florida Over 121.5: The last 5 in this series has put no more than 117 points on the board, but I feel we can get at least 10 more than that in this one. South Florida plays a slow down pace, but at home I don't expect Marquette to play in their hands. The Bulls were sped up at Rutgers and at home vs Notre Dame and those games put up 137 and 138 points respectively. South Florida is a team that is known for defense, but they have allowed 64 ppg in their last 5 games and Marquette puts up 72.5 ppg at home on the year. Defensively the Golden Eagles have been solid (60.5 ppg at home), and South Florid Struggles to score on the road, But in a faster paced game they should be able to ntch at least 60 in this one. Both teams can hit at least 60 in this one and I will call for the game to flirt with 130 points.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAYS
Orlando/ Brooklyn Under 195: The last 4 in this series has put up no more than 175 points and I see this one in the same mold. Oh they should put up more than 175, but shouldn't really come all that close to 195 points. The Magic have struggled to score on the road as they average just 94.2 pg away from home, and are taking on a Brooklyn team that has allowed just 94.3 ppg at home this year. The Nets put up 106 points in their last game, but that was in Houston where teams score from the bus, hotel and halftime. Prior to that the Nets had averaged just 91.5 ppg in their last 5 games and they averaged a modest 98.4 ppg at home. Orlando Has problems on defense, but just not sure the Nets can take advantage in this one. Even if Brooklyn notches 98 points, I just don't expect Orlando to get out of the 80's. Look for the mid 180's in this one.
Golden State -1.5 over TORONTO: The Warriors have won 5 of the last 6 straight up and 9 of the last 10 ATS in this series and this edition is far better than those teams they put out there. Golden State is a decent road team at 12-11 away from home, while Toronto is a mediocre 11-10 at home. Toronto is also a bit banged up here and could be without one of their better bench plays, as Lowry (15 ppg) is dealing with back spasms. The Warriors are the better team here and should bounce back after two bad road losses. Look for the Warriors to pull away in the 4th.
NHL Predictions
Carolina Hurricanes +116
The Bruins enter tonight's game 3-0-1 and coming off a 4-2 victory over the Islanders on Friday night. Their lone loss of the season came in their only road game in New York against the Rangers. They now head to Carolina to take on the Hurricanes who are 2-2 on the year. Carolina dropped their first two games, but then swept Buffalo in a home and home series winning 6-3 at home and 3-1 in Buffalo. Carolina won all four meetings between these two teams last year with margins of victory of 3, 2, 3, and 1. The Hurricanes are expected to be a playoff team this year, and are on a roll right now winning their first two games of the season against a solid Sabres team. I like Carolina as underdogs here at home against the Bruins who look for their first road win of the season.
Phoenix Coyotes -104
Neither of these two Western Conference playoff teams from a year ago have had the starts to the season they were looking for. The Predators are 1-1-3 on the year with those three extra time losses coming via the shootout. The Coyotes are 1-4 on the year with their lone win a 5-1 victory over Columbus at home. Other home games were a 6-4 loss against Chicago and a 4-2 loss against the Kings. Phoenix has had their chances in all games they've played this year, with 29+ shots in each and 3+ goals in 4 of their 5 games. The Predators on the other hand haven't shown much offense, averaging 2 goals per game and just 24 shots per game. Phoenix beat the Predators 4-1 in a playoff series last season winning all three games in Phoenix. They split their 4 regular season meetings last year, but the Coyotes are 11-5 in their last 16 meetings in Phoenix. At pretty much a pick'em price I like the Coyotes at home.
Charlie Sports
Houston Rockets at Utah Jazz
Play: Houston Rockets
The (24-22) Houston Rockets of the Western Conference Southwest division will take on the (24-20) Utah Jazz of the Western Conference Northwest division in 2013 NBA action. The teams are 1-1 head to head so far this season with Houston winning the last meeting 124-116. The Rockets are only 2-8 Against The spread their last 10, but have covered their last 2. The under is 4-1 the last 5 meetings between the teams. Utah is 5-1 their last 6 straight up. Houston gets the road cover.
Ian Cameron
Vancouver at Los Angeles
Play: Vancouver
The Vancouver Canucks are worth a shot as road underdogs tonight as they travel to Los Angeles to battle the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings in a playoff revenge spot.
Vancouver didn’t play a great game in their 4-1 loss at San Jose last night but it is worth noting they went 0-fer on the power play and also hit multiple goal posts in the loss making the score a little bit more lopsided than it could have been. The Canucks aren’t in the greatest travel situation here playing their second of back-to-back games but we finally saw some improvement (3-1) on Sunday with teams playing in that situation. However, the major revenge angle and chip on the collective shoulders of the Canucks should negate some of the concerns of the travel spot.
Los Angeles has been suffering from the usual Stanley Cup hangover with a 1-2-1 start to the season. The Kings have had problems scoring goals, averaging just 2 per game and putting less than 30 shots on goal per game. LA finally nabbed its first win of the season on the weekend in Phoenix by a score of 4-2 but the Kings failed to cash in on four power play opportunities which make them a stunningly awful 0-for-23 on the power play year-to-date – the only team in the league without a power play goal entering Monday’s action. Having such a woeful lack of production with the man advantage tells me that laying a price with LA right now isn’t a prudent thing to do.
Vancouver is a terrific 25-13-5 on the road since the start of last year and the Canucks are usually better to support on the road as dogs or small favorites as opposed to laying the big -150 or higher prices on their home ice. I definitely see value with Vancouver at +120.
Hollywood Sports
Houston Rockets at Utah Jazz
Prediction: Utah Jazz
The favorite has covered the point spread in 4 of the last 5 meetings between these two teams. Utah (24-20) has won four of their last five games after their 114-110 win in overtime versus Indiana on Saturday. The Jazz have covered the point spread in 4 of their last 5 games after allowing at least 100 points in their last game. Additionally, Utah has covered the spread in 6 of their last 7 games on their home court. Houston (24-22) enters this game coming off their 119-106 win versus Brooklyn on Saturday -- but they have the failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 6 games after scoring at least 100 points in their last game. The Rockets have also failed to cover the spread in 6 of their last 7 games after allowing at least 100 points in their last game. And in Houston's latest 8 games on the road, they have failed to cover the spread in 7 of these contests. Take the Jazz minus the points in this one.
Don Best Consensus
Golden State Warriors at Toronto Raptors
Pick: Golden State Warriors
Golden State (26-17) looks to rebound off two straight losses both SU & ATS against Toronto (16-28) on Monday. The Raptors aren't really any good, having lost SU to Cleveland at home at 7-point favorites just two days prior. Warriors are 13-9-1 ATS coming off 1 day of rest, while the Raptors hold a 10-13-1 record ATS off 1 day of rest. Golden State is also 13-3 ATS in the last 16 meetings between these two teams, and with this extremely light spread, we expect the Warriors to rebound nicely off their last 2 losses. Play Golden State.