TJ Pemberton
Milwaukee Bucks +4.5
The Milwaukee Bucks (26-25, 12-13 away) which seats precariously at the 8th spot in the Eastern Conference, will try to salvage a big win against the current fourth-best team in the East, which is the Brooklyn Nets (31-22, 19-10 home) at Barclays Center.
Both teams were hampered by losing streak recently but both won their last game to get back into the winning column once again.
The Milwaukee Bucks snapped a 6-game losing streak by sneaking past the Philadelphia 76ers 94-92 at home as Monta Ellis summoned his fiery form en route to a superb 27 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists performance. The Brooklyn Nets meanwhile trounced the visiting Denver Nuggets 119-108 as Joe Johnson led the rout by scoring 26 points and dishing out 9 assists.
The Bucks is just 4-7 on its last 11 games and 1-4 on its last 5 games at road, but already won two straight games over the Nets this season. The Bucks prevailed over the Nets last December 9, 2012, 108-93 and last December 26, 2012 97-88 at road. The Bucks’ mastery of the Nets is evident as it won 13 straight times already.
The Nets on the other hand, is 5-6 on its last 7 games and has an even 3-3 mark at home on its last 6 games.
The deadly quartet of Brandon Jennings, Monta Ellis, Mike Dunleavy and Ersan Ilyasova of the Milwaukee Bucks will be in full sway again, though they will surely be greeted by a hostile welcome from the fans and the trio of Brook Lopez, Joe Johnson and Deron Williams.
Bucks’ center Larry Sanders might skip the game while Nets star Williams will finally suit up for the Nets.
The Bucks will bring to the battle a 23-27-1 ATS as opposed the Nets’ slightly superior mark of 24-27-2.
The Bucks is 0-5 ATS on its last 5 outings and just 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road. The Nets is just 1-4 ATS on its last 5 outings at home and 0-5 on its last 5 games when pitted against the Bucks.
David Banks
Memphis Grizzlies -2
Tuesday marks the first night of NBA action following the All-Star break, and one matchup is this non-conference affair as the Memphis Grizzlies (33-18, 29-21-1 ATS) visit the Detroit Pistons (21-33, 26-28 ATS) at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Detroit at 7:35 ET. It certainly seems fair to say that "The West is the Best" this season based on the pre-All-Star Game results, as Western Conference favorites have gone 104-80-1, 56.5 percent ATS vs. Eastern Conference counterparts, and the West's Grizzlies will almost certainly be the favorites here.
That makes this a prime opportunity for the West to continue its success in non-conference games as the Grizzlies are a perfect 6-0 both straight up and ATS in their last six head-to-head meetings with the Pistons including an easy 90-78 win over Detroit back home in Memphis this season. At 33-18, the Grizzlies currently own the fourth best record in the Western Conference and the fifth best in the entire NBA, with their success keyed by have the second best scoring defense in the league allowing a measly 90.2 points per game. The Grizzlies struggled slightly in the first few games after trading away then leading scorer Rudy Gay, a role now taken over by All-Star Zach Randolph, but they regrouped nicely rather quickly and ended the first half of the season on a three-game winning streak, and perhaps most importantly they have bee scoring more points since Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye came over in that trade involving Gay. Memphis is still ranked just 26th in the NBA with 93.7 points per game, but that average has soared to 104.0 points during the three-game win streak with the Grizzlies eclipsing 100 points twice and scoring 99 points in the other game. Memphis is also 14-5 straight up and 13-6 ATS vs. Eastern foes this season.
The Pistons did win three of their last four games going into the break including an upset of the San Antonio Spurs, but they did not beat much otherwise in fellow Eastern bottom-feeders Washington and Milwaukee and the one loss in that stretch came at home to a New Orleans team out of the West that is in last place in the Southwest Division and 15 games behind the Grizzlies. Another concern for the Pistons here is that while the Memphis offense seems to be getting better, the Detroit defense seems to be getting worse allowing 99.8 points per game in the last four contests while allowing over 100 points three times despite going 3-1 in those games. That could set up their old friend Prince to have a big game in his first game back in Detroit as a visiting player after spending his entire NBA career with the Pistons before the trade.
The Grizzlies are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games vs. the Central Division while the Pistons are 11-29 ATS in their last 40 games following a straight up win by at least 10 points. Detroit is also 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games vs. the Western Conference.
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Southern Illinois + over CreightonFREE SERVICE PLAYS VISIT THESPREAD.COM
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Creighton managed to get back in the win column on Saturday with a narrow 3-point win over Evansville, delivering a great second half comeback. All is not well for the Blue Jays who had lost three in a row prior to that win and now trailing Wichita State in the Missouri Valley Conference standings. An absolutely huge Bracket Buster game with St. Mary's is on deck this weekend for the Blue Jays and they may overlook a Southern Illinois team they defeated by 30 points less than a month ago. Southern Illinois is just 4-11 in conference play but three of those wins have come in the last four games including beating conference leader Wichita State. While all three wins came at home the Salukis nearly took out a very good Indiana State team on the road in this recent stretch, falling by just a single point. Many recent road games have been very competitive for Southern Illinois and the Salukis should be motivated to take on one of the marquee teams in the conference and redeem one of their worst performances of the season. The road team has covered in 20 of the last 26 meetings between these teams and this is a huge spread for a struggling Creighton team to give in this spot. Creighton has lost S/U twice at home this season and has been a losing ATS team at home and this is not a team playing well right now.
Wunderdog
Phoenix at Portland
Pick: Portland -6.5
The Portland Trailblazers were humiliated in their last game, as they scored just 63 points in a 36-point loss at the hands of the New Orleans Hornets. That was on the road and they are poised for redemption here tonight. They fit a huge bounce-back system that plays on certain teams that scored less than 66 points in their previous game. This is a powerful bounce-back system that has seen it go 27-5 ATS the last 32 times it has come up. Play on Portland.
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Bobcats / Magic Over 197FREE SERVICE PLAYS VISIT THESPREAD.COM
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Although Both teams have trended UNDER in recent weeks this matchup lends itself to a higher than expected scoring game. In fact, the first two meetings of these teams went OVER, producing 205 and 206 total points. Both teams are among the weakest in the NBA and thus neither is at the usual talent disadvantage when facing each other than when facing better teams. Charlotte games overall have averaged 196.5 total points. In 8 games against Class D teams that average increases to 209.0 total points. The stats for Orlando are similar. Magic games overall have averaged 193.3 total points. In 9 games against Class D teams that total increases to 203.7 per game. Neither team is strong defensively and both teams are more inclined to push the pace when playing to win rather than playing not to lose. Be sure to take advantage of the last day to sign up for my second half of the season NBA package. My numbers and situational analysis are at their strongest over the final two months of the season and I'm looking forward to a strong finish to the NBA season as teams have roughly 30 games left before the Playoffs begin.
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Northern Iowa -6FREE SERVICE PLAYS VISIT THESPREAD.COM
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There are 18 lined college basketball games today. In eight of those games, the road team is posted as the favorite. In the last eight days, CBKB home dogs are 52-31 ATS (63%). Will that continue today or is it time for the return to the norm, in which home dogs cover 50% of the time? Though three of my selections today involve home underdogs, my top three plays on the card are from other categories. These top rated plays are an absolute must for your wagering portfolio this evening. I invite you to be a part of the winning action tonight so you have the good feelings of going to bed a winner when the final buzzer sounds. In this game, a cursory glance of the coaching profiles show that seventh year N. Iowa HC Jacobson has a record of 11-21 ATS as road favorite. Conversely, Missouri St is 5-1 ATS as conference home dog this year. But current form speaks otherwise in this game. Under second year HC Lusk, Missouri St entered conference play at 2-10 SU, 1-6 ATS. Once the bell rang for league play, however, they bolted from the gate at 3-1 SU, 4-0 ATS. It looked for all the world as if Lusk was playing possum in the early going. But as the league season grinded on it has become evident that the Black Bears are a pretender, at 6-9 SU in the league. The Black Bear's offense has scored 54 or less in 3/ 4 recent games, including Feb 5th loss at N. Iowa, 48-37. Those fundamentals don't figure to improve against an NIU defense that allows just 60 PPG on 42% from the field. Particularly considering year to date averages of the home team which find Missouri St averaging just 60/40/31 with only 10 assists per game. The Panthers are headed in the opposite direction. Today they enter on a 5-0 SU streak, climbing to a tie for #3 in league, at 9-6 SU. Jacobson has been a coach whose teams play with momentum, as his Panthers are 38-21 ATS following three or more consecutive victories. With a balanced offense featuring five double digit scorers, look for the Panthers to methodically beat down the Black Bears again, as the respective momentum of each of these teams continues.
Jeff Scott Sports
4 UNIT PLAY
Virginia/ Miami Over 116.5: I see this line rising buy game time, so I will grab it now. Virginia was mired in many low scoring games earlier in the year, but now that their offense has come to life their games have been higher scoring of late. Virginia has average 74.4 ppg in their last 5 games and those games have averaged 139.2 ppg. Cav's road games have averaged 128.4 ppg and their defense has struggled away from home, allowing 64.6 ppg on 46.3% shooting. They have also allowed 38.2% from long range away from home, and Miami hits 42.4% from downtown at home. The Miami offense did struggle in their last game vs Clemson, but they are back home for this one, where they have averaged 75.5 ppg overall, including 80 ppg in their last 4 games at home. Miami home games have averaged 132.8 ppg, while their last 4 ACC home games have put up 135.3 ppg. I would not at all be surprised to see 135+ points scored in this one, but I will call this one to played in the 120's.
3 UNIT PLAYS
North Carolina -3.5 over GEORGIA TECH: I know at the end of the day I will be kicking myself for not making this play higher rated, but because it looks so easy to me, I will play it safe and make it a 3 unit play. The Heels have struggled on the road this year, but they still have been playing much better and I feel that down the stretch they will start to dominate teams like they know how to. When you put up 91 points on a Virginia defense you know your doing something right. Carolina's last 3 road losses were to Duke, Miami and NC State and there is no shame in that, as those teams are all very tough. Carolina's 2 ACC road wins this year were vs FSU and Boston College and Tech is more in the class of those teams. Georgia Tech has alternated wins and losses for a couple of wees and they are off a win, so this is a loss spot. they lost to Carolina by 16 earlier in the year and I feel the Tar Heels are a better now then at that point in the season and they should win this one by nearly DD.
LSU +8 Over TENNESSEE: Nice letdown spot here for the Vols as they are off a 30 point win over Kentucky. LSU has been playing much better of late as they have won 6 of their last 8 games and while both losses were on the road they were by a combined 8 points. LSU is just 2-5 in their alst 7 road games and just one of those loses have been by more than 8, and that was a 9 point loss at Georgia. This team is in just about every game they have played within the SEC and they should be able to keep this one close vs a Tennessee squad that may be just a bit flat.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAY
NY Isles/ Ottawa Over 5.5: Yes the Sens are having problems scoring right now, but that's okay because the Isles can't stop anyone right now. New York allowed the Flyers 7 goals yesterday and that gives them a run of having allowed 3 or more goals in 8 of their last 9 games, allowing 35 total goals over that stretch. Ottawa should be good for a few off them here, especially since the Isles also allow 3.5 gpg on the road for the year. Offensively, New York has been pretty solid, averaging 3.71 gpg away from home this year and they should be good for a few off a Senators squad that has allowed just 1.38 gpg at home. Both teams played yesterday so the legs may not be there on defense, giving these offenses plenty of chances to score some goals. An d they will score some.
Jeff Scott Sports
3 UNIT PLAYS
Charlotte/ Orlando Under 197.5: I know that both defenses are pretty bad, but these offenses are worse and coming off the break it should take them a bit ti get their shooting back. Prior to the break, the Bobcats had averaged 87.4 ppg in their last 9 games, scoring no more than 95 points in that stretch. On the road this year they have shot just 41.1% from the field and have put up just 91.2 ppg. The Magic also struggled on offense before the break as they had averaged jut 87.4 ppg in their 9 games pre-break. At home they have averaged just 95.3 ppg on the year. Yes both defenses are bad, but because of shitty offensive production we still see that Orlando's last 5 games have averaged 185.2 ppg, while Charlotte's last 5 have averaged just 187.2 ppg. This will be an ugly game with neither team making it past 95 points.
Milwaukee/ Brooklyn Under 195: Two more teams that went into the break struggling on offense should lead to another low scoring game. Milwaukee went into the break averaging just 92.5 ppg in their last 4 games and they have put up just 86 points in two of their last 3 road games. They do average 96.6 ppg on the road, but shoot only 43.5% away from home. The Nets do allow teams to shoot 47.3% at home, but Brooklyn plays at a slow pace at home, so teams score just 94.8 ppg vs them there. Offensively the Nets wen't into the break having averaged just 92.2 ppg in their last 5 games and they have averaged just 90.7 ppg in their last 3 home games in this series. Milwaukee has struggled on defense of late, but I just don't expect the Nets to be able to take advantage, especially coming off the break Another game where I see both teams being held to 95 points or less.
WASHINGTON -3 over Toronto: The Wizards have been hot of late, as they have won 4 of their last 5 games. At home they have been very surprising of late as they have gone 8-1 in their last 9 at home, with their last 4 home wins being vs Brooklyn, New York, the Clippers and Chicago. They also have home wins over Atlanta and Oklahoma City in their last 9 at home. Now they get a Toronto team that is just 7-19 on the road this year in their own backyard. Certainly the Raptors are not close in talent to some of the teams that Washington has beat in their current stretch of home games. Toronto has won three of their last 4 overall and they are 6-1 ATS the last 7 in this series, but Washington is just playing too well at home and would like to start of the second half of the season hot, just like they ended the first half.
SPORTS WAGERS
Montreal +137 over N.Y. RANGERS
OT included. The Rangers have picked up nine out of a possible 10 points in their last five games but two of those contests were against the Islanders and one against Washington. The Rangers rarely dominate games and often, the action is mostly being played in their own end. In New York’s 4-3 OT win over Boston, NY was outshot 40-29. New York’s only real impressive outing over that stretch was a 5-1 victory over the Lightning.
Montreal is playing too well to ignore a price like this one. With Carey Price sidelined the past two games, the Canadiens held Philadelphia and Carolina to one goal combined. Carolina is leading the NHL in shots on goal per game and Montreal held the rested ‘Canes to 19 last night. They have not allowed more than 26 shots on net in four straight games, winning them all. Price returns tonight and with Montreal scoring more goals than the Rangers and allowing less, there’s nothing suggesting they can’t come in here and run its winning streak to five.
Hollywood Sports
Maryland at Boston College
Prediction: Boston College
Maryland (18-7) will be playing their first game after their upset 83-81 win at home versus Duke on Saturday. We had the Terrapins in that one for our ACC Game of the Year -- but we expect a major letdown for this team in this spot. As it is, Maryland is just 7-18-1 ATS following a victory. Now the Terrapins go on the road where they are just 2-4 with an average losing margin of -2.4 PPG. Additionally, Maryland is just 5-15-1 ATS in their last 21 games on the road against teams with a winning record at home. Boston College (11-14) is 9-6 on their home court this season. They have also covered the point spread in 6 of their last 8 games at home. And in their last 10 games against teams with a winning percentage over 60%, the Eagles have covered the point spread in 7 of these contests. Take the points with Boston College in this one.
Ross Benjamin
Wichita State vs. Indiana State
Play: Indiana State
The Indiana St. Sycamores are a very good 10-1at home this season automatically giving this selection home underdog value. The Sycamores are an excellent 14-2 ATS versus teams with a winning record this season. Although the Shockers will be playing with revenge they can't help being mentally affected knowing they were beaten at home by 13 points at home in the first meetings between these two clubs this season. Any team that's coming off 2 road favorite straight up losses, versus an opponent playing with same season revenge in which they scored 60 points or less is 26-4 ATS (86.4%) since the start of the 1997 season. Play on Indiana St. Plus the small number.
Andre Gomes
Boston Celtics +8.5
Denver ended the first half of the season banged up and beaten up by losing their last three games. It was a brutal span for them that ended up in Brooklyn with the Nuggets playing their fourth game in five nights, having played a triple overtime game at Boston in the middle of that span. To make things worse for them, Andre Iguodala and Danilo Gallinari didn't play the last two games and even though Denver was competitive, they couldn't win the two games down the stretch. For today, Denver finally had some rest and Iguodala and Gallinari will be back for tonight's contest, where Denver is coming back home where they have a 22-3 record so far on this season.
The game between these two teams at Boston two weeks ago was one of the best games of the season so far. Boston should had won in regulation, but then they should have lost in the first overtimes. The Celtics have been losing players almost every single week, but they keep remaining competitive due to a great team chemistry that they hadn't shown early on the season. Paul Pierce and Jason Terry are rested for tonight's game, while Kevin Garnett only played six minutes in the All Star game, so the Celtics's veteran players won't have to deal with dead legs for tonight's showdown. The Celtics were obviously outrebounded by Denver in the first game between the two teams, but they managed to compensate that by forcing turnovers, while being more assertive at the free throw line. They will need to do the same thing tonight if they want to be competitive on this contest, as Denver will surely be ready for some payback tonight.
Just because the Nuggets are playing at home, this doesn't mean that they will crush every single team that they face in Denver! Before going on their recent road trip, the Nuggets had a series of games where they crushed their opponents at home, but where they also had some favorable matchups. We know that Denver crushes their opponents in transitions, especially at home, and they faced Sacramento (#26 on transition defense), Houston (#27), New Orleans (#28), Milwaukee (#21) and Chicago (#29)! Boston is still ranked #30 on transition defense, but since their game against Miami where they lost Rajon Rondo for the season, they received a huge boost on this area by starting Avery Bradley and Courtney Lee together in the backcourt. Boston is allowing 1.23 PPP this season on transition plays, but since that game, they have allowed just 1.07 PPP! Boston's defense has been an elite team on defending pick and roll ball handler plays and in forcing turnovers, so I like the Celtics on this matchup and this is why I took them with a -2 line in the game played at Boston two Sundays ago.
Of course that Denver will be playing at home, but we aren't talking about one of those bad physical spots where the Celtics are crushed due to their lack of physical ability. I expect Boston to be competitive tonight, with their offense taking advantage of the fact that Denver's defense is a weak team in closing out on the shooters. This is why in the first game Boston had more success on the outside with 13-30 (43.3%) 3pts than on 2pts shots, where they shot 30-78 (38.6%) FG! I believe the Celtics will be a competitive underdog tonight, so I'll be taking them in here.
Dave Price
Missouri State +5.5
The Northern Iowa Panthers have caught a little fire. They have won each of their last five games. However, they are just 4-9 in games played outside Cedar Falls this season, and recent history suggests they can't be trusted laying points on the road. The Panthers are a poor 4-13 ATS as a road favorite or pickem over the last 3 seasons and 8-18 ATS in road games against conference opponents over the last 3 seasons. Missouri State is 12-3 ATS versus conference opponents this season and 7-1 ATS when checking in off a loss against a conference rival this season. Northern Iowa won the season's first meeting by 11 at home but that victory isn't all that impressive consider the Bears were 15 of 55 from the field and 3 of 21 from three. They won't shoot that poorly in their own building. Missouri State won by 12 in last season's home meeting. Prior to that, these two played four consecutive 1-point games. Take the points in what should be another tight one.
Joseph D'Amico
NC State -7½
FSU is 4-6 SU and 1-9 ATS their L10 including a 1-3 mark on the road. In the first meeting, NC State shot 29% and committed 17 TOs, leading to their 76-62 defeat. The Wolf Pack won their L2 games . Certainly, the return of Brown rounds-out five starters that all average 11 or more PPG. Leslie and Howell own the boards (18.6 RPG combined), while the "O" leads the Conference , ranking 5th nationally in FGs with a 49.9% rate. The Wolf Pack wants payback in this one, not to mention improving their shot at the Big Dance. Take NC State.