Mr. Vegas Wins
Lakers at Cavaliers
Defending champs aren’t always as hungry as good teams trying to take the next step. As good as the Lakers are, they are only 9-6 on the road. They have the best record in the league largely because they have played more home games than anyone else. The Cavaliers are hungry after getting upset in the Eastern Conference Finals last year, currently with the top mark in the East. LeBron James and Shaq will be fired up with Kobe Bryant and the defending champs in town and so will the home crowd. Play the Lakers!
Jimmy Boyd
1 Unit on Denver Nuggets -10
I believe Denver, who has now won 4 straight and 6 of its last 7, has what it takes to post a double digit win tonight. After all, the Nuggets are 18-3 at home this season with a 10.1-point average margin of victory in those games. It's tough enough to play back-to-back, as both of these teams will be asked to do tonight, but it's even tougher when you must do so on the road with a banged up squad. The Clippers could be without both Eric Gordon and Sebastian Telfair tonight. Telfair is currently listed as doubtful and Gordon as questionable. If Gordon can't go it will be a big blow as the Clippers will dearly miss his 17 ppg, but it will be a blow regardless if he isn't at 100 percent. The Clippers are just 17-35 ATS in their last 52 games as an underdog of 5.0-10.5 points while the Nuggets are 45-18-2 ATS in their last 65 games as a favorite of 5.0-10.5 points. Plus, the home team is a perfect 4-0 ATS the last 4 meetings. Take Denver at home tonight for 1 unit.
Sean Higgs
Loyola Marymount vs. Portland U
Play: Over 149.5
Going to go OVER in this match-up tonight as your FREE PLAY. These two have gone over in 5 of the last 7 and 4 of 5 in Portland. Loyala Marymount is on over runs of 6-1 their last 7, 5-1 last 6 as dogs, and 4-1 in their last 5 road games. The Pilots have gone over in 7 of their last 10 at home, and 10 of 14 vs the WCC.
Wunderdog
Buffalo Sabres vs. Los Angeles Kings
Play: Los Angeles Kings
Despite allowing 5 goals in their last home game to San Jose, who is just punishing everyone, the Kings have allowed just 19 goals at home in their previous nine, or just about 2 per game. The home team has delivered the winner in 12 of the last 14 in this series, and the Sabres have won here just once in their last six trips. The Kings’ 11-2 mark after a big loss by 3 goals or more says that they tighten things up here. The Kings are 10-5 this season vs. teams at .600 or better and 10-4 vs. good defensive teams since last season (teams allowing fewer than 2.5 goals per game). I like LA here.
Oregon State vs. Stanford
Play: Oregon State +6.5
The Pac-10 is a very interesting conference this season. The end of the season results will be as equally interesting as all 10 teams are currently with either two or three losses in the conference. The conference is in a very down year and from what we have seen so far, anyone can beat anyone. The Beavers are in that group with a win at Oregon already, and Stanford is far from unbeatable. The Cardinal somehow managed to lose at home to Oral Roberts, and was taken to the wire by James Madison, so there is no reason to believe that they are justified in this spot in a conference game. I'll go with Oregon State here.
Alex Smart
Florida @ Arkansas
PICK: Arkansas
Once upon a time in '09-'10, the Gators were a nationally ranked team and appeared to be set to get back to the NCAA Tournament after two years in the NIT. However, losses to Syracuse, Richmond, South Alabama, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky amongst their L/9 games didn't help their cause any. Truth be told, since beating Michigan State and Florida State in back-to-back games over Thanksgiving weekend, Florida hasn't really beaten any quality opponents; save perhaps for NC State (and that took a 3/4 court heave at the buzzer to happen). HC Billy Donovan will try to press the living daylights out of his opponents, and the reason for that is to try to create some easy baskets for a team that is challenged offensively at times. Beyond the starting five, all of which are averaging double digits in scoring, there really isn't a lot of depth at Donovan's disposal, and it's starting to really show in these critical SEC battles.
Arkansas will at least try to play a rotation of 10-11 players, but it largely has the same problem as UF does. G Rotnei Clarke is the heart and soul of this team, as he is averaging 18.4 points per game this season. He has received some help now that G Courtney Fortson is back in the lineup. Fortson has averaged 17.0 points per game in his three starts. Keep an eye on both Fs Marshawn Powell and Michael Washington on the inside, as the duo is combining to average 12.7 rebounds per game. Both must put up strong post games for the Hogs to contain the Gators.
Of late, this series has belonged to the home team both SU and ATS. The hosts have captured eight straight meetings SU and are 6-1-1 ATS in those eight games. The favorite is also 6-1-1 ATS in the L/8 clashes. In terms of recent form, the Gators are only 2-5 ATS in their L/7, while Arkansas is a red hot 5-1 ATS in its L/6.
Hollywood Sports
Murray St. at Eastern Illinois
Prediction: Eastern Illinois
Murray State (16-3) is cruising through the Ohio Valley Conference but now they must travel on the road to visit Eastern Illinois after enjoying a three-game home stand. While the Racers defeated the Panthers by a 75-59 score on January 11th, they are now a double-digit favorite to repeat once-again defeat this Eastern Illinois team. But the Panthers are 5-3 on their home court this season and Murray State is just 1-4-1 ATS on the road against teams with a winning record at home. Eastern Illinois has experienced three straight losses on the road in Ohio Valley Conference play culminating in a disappointing 73-51 loss at Morehead State. However, the Panthers have covered in their last seven outings coming off a loss of at least 20 points. Eastern Illinois (10-8) had won their previous three games at home before this troublesome road stint. Look for the Panthers to play this one closer than expected against the conference leader. Take the points with Eastern Illinois.
Black Widow
1* on L.A. Clippers +10
Both teams played last night, with the Clippers taking care of the Bulls and the Nuggets needing overtime to beat the Warriors. Denver will come in the more tired team after having to go to an extra session, and they won't win this game by double-digits against a much-improved Clippers' team. L.A. is 7-5 S.U. & 10-2 ATS in their last 12 games overall, playing their best ball of the season over the last few weeks. Denver is 10-23 ATS (-15.3 Units) after playing a game as a road favorite over the last 2 seasons. The Clippers have been underrated all season and are looking to make a statement tonight on National TV with a big road win. Take the Clippers and the points.
SPORTS WAGERS
Louisville/SETON HALL Over 159
If you get a chance to watch this one do so because it’s going to feature two teams who are going to push the tempo and have legitimate NBA prospects. Seton Hall ranks 31st in offensive efficiency and plays at the second fastest tempo in the Big East and 16th overall nationally, all while shooting 50% on inside shots. They have two players are likely to be NBA rotation players next season in guard Jeremy Hazell and forward Herb Pope, both of who carry Seton Hall night in and night out. Hazell averages over 23 points a game while Pope rings up double-doubles that creates matchup problems and tonight is no exception. Rick Pitino’s Cardinal are virtually tied statistically with Seton Hall in the offensive efficiency metric and as a team are absolute beasts on the glass, gathering up 42.3% of their misses while shooting 52.9% on inside shots. They get great guard play from Samardo Samuels and Edgar Sosa and while it hasn’t translated into big wins like last season it would be foolish to dismiss their chances as a tournament threat. When teams that already play at high paces square off against each other with legitimate talent on both squads the end result is usually points on the scoreboard. These teams know their strengths and weaknesses and especially in Seton Hall’s case they aren’t suddenly going to start slowing the game down. They will push the tempo and Louisville will happily oblige with the result being an exciting, high-scoring affair.Play: Louisville/Seton Hall over 159 (Risking 2.16 units to win 2).