John Martin
NCAAB Pittsburgh vs. West Virginia
Take West Virginia Moutaineers
1 Unit on West Virginia -5.5 West Virginia is 12-3 at home this season, scoring a blistering 80 points per game. They are allowing just 60 points per game at home, a point differential of 20 points per game. The Mountaineers are coming into this game with serious revenge on their minds following a tough 1-point loss at Pittsburgh earlier this season. They will get that revenge in a blowout home victory tonight. West Virginia is on the bubble right now and must win this game tonight to basically seal the deal on an Big Dance birth. West Virginia is 8-1 ATS in home games after 2 straight games committing 11 or less turnovers over the last 2 seasons. Pittsburgh is 10-22 ATS in road games after a win by 6 points or less since 1997. Cash in with West Virginia as the favorite.
Frank Rosenthal
NBA HOOPS
701 ORLEANS-6
OVER 198
704 JAZZ-6
UNDER 204
706 CLIPPERS+3
COLLEGE HOOPS
708 WEST VA-5.5
OVER 135
709 TEXASS TECH+20
UNDER 147
719 SANTA CLARA+15.5
UNDER 128.5
Stephen Nover
Pittsburgh @ West Virginia
PICK: West Virginia
REASON FOR PICK: With their upset come-from-behind road victory on Saturday against Syracuse, the Pitt Panthers probably locked up an NCAA Tourney bid. I see the Panthers not being motivated enough to go into Morgantown to pull off an upset against what should be an intense and fired-up West Virginia squad.
The Mountaineers need a victory here to greatly enhance their tournament bubble status. They have a strong revenge motive, too, after losing to Pittsburgh a month ago on the road, 55-54. The Panthers hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to pull the victory out. West Virginia blew the game by making just seven-of-17 free throws (41.2 percent).
West Virginia also hasn't forgotten how the Panthers stunned its football team costing them a shot at a possible national title. The fan base will be strong and noisy for West Virginia. Pitt is only 2-6 against the spread in its past eight games.
West Virginia has a strong home-court advantage. The Mountaineers have covered 68 percent of their past 33 home contests. They own blowout home wins this season against Seton Hall by 21 points, Syracuse by 20 and Marquette by 15.
I'm laying 5 1/2 with West Virginia on a one-unit play.
Tony Mathews
Matchup: Loyola Marymount vs. San Diego
Selection: San Diego -21
Explanation: We will lay the points with San Diego as they face-off against Loyola Marymount in Monday's College Basketball contest.
San Diego has the much superior defense. San Diego (at home) is allowing opponents to score an average of only 59.4 points per game, while Loyola Marymount (on the road) is allowing opponents to score an average of 82.5 points per game. As you can see, San Diego has the much superior defense.
Loyola Marymount is a very bad road team. In fact, Loyola Marymount is 17-35-2 ATS in their last 54 road games.
San Diego is 10-4 ATS in their last 14 meetings against Loyola Marymount, and should be able to get another against the spread win tonight!
Take San Diego -21
Kelso
Chairman Club 10 units Utah St -8.5 v. Fresno St
Best Bets
5 units Pitts+5.5 @ WV
4 units G Tech -4.5 v. Va
3 units NC Greensboro -14 v. W Carolina
Jason Firestone
Play the Gonzaga/Santa Clara OVER 127.5 for 7 units - NCAA Totals of the Year!!!!!
Ok so we tried this Overs thing with Gonzaga last week and it didn't work. However this one tonight should be no problem as they are playing a Santa Clara team who can score a lot more than Portland can. SC averages 64 on the season, 61 on the road, and 63 over their last 10 games. If they can put up anywhere close to 60 points in this game, it may be over by Halftime. Gonzaga is going to score. This team averages 77 on the season, 78 at home, and they have scored at least 73 points in 9 of their last 10 games. This Zags team is red hot, and is steamrolling their way to yet another Conference Championship. However, the main reason why I love this game is because these two always have amazing games when they play each other. Over the past 6 years it has been really fun seeing these two teams go after each other. 11 of the last 12 meetings have played Over, including the absolute Shootout we got a few weeks back in Santa Clara (87-82) Usually when I see a low total after a shootout in the previous meeting, I would lean to the Under. However there is just too much history between these two teams, and 128 is not too much to ask from two teams that can put up 60 easily night in and night out. In fact, each of the past 8 meetings have played to AT LEAST 145 points! WOW! One final thing we should look at here is that we have two very good free throw shooting teams in this game. If Santa Clara can keep it close, which they have been able to in the past, we could see an easy 10-15 points late I see a 79-70 type game here, easily going Over!
BONUS 1/2 unit on Santa Clara +14.5 - Reason for this is that I truly think they can score with Gonzaga, especially with the Zags off the emotional win Saturday vs St Mary's.
DO NOT PARLAY THIS....That would be incredibly STUPID! Just a bonus 1/2 unit play on the Dog.
Good luck to everyone on this HUGE play, and we'll talk tomorrow!
Brandon Lang
15 Dime - Utah State
5 Dime - Virginia
5 Dime - Santa Clara
Free Pick - 76ers
Gator's NBA/CBB 70% Report
CBB
Monday: Play Over CBB home teams against the total off a home win scoring 85 or more points, a team with a winning 20% to 40% of their games on the season
46-14 Over since 1997 (76.7%) PLAY: Pepperdine/San Francisco OVER
BEN BURNS
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
PORTLAND
Game: St. Marys vs. Portland U Game Time: 3/3/2008 10:00:00 PM Prediction: Portland U Reason: I'm taking the points with PORTLAND. The Gaels come in off the biggest loss of their season. In fact, it was arguably one of the biggest losses by any team in the 55 year history of the West Coast Conference. I say that as Saturday's game at Gonzaga marked the first time in the history of the WCC that two ranked teams faced each other. St. Mary's could have secured the WCC title with a victory. Instead the Gaels gave up a season-high 88 points en route to a double-digit defeat, their second loss in three games. Yes, with a victory tonight, the Gaels are still mathematically alive to "share" the title with Gonzaga. In order for that to happen, they need the Bulldogs need to lose at home tonight though. Stranger things have happened. However, considering that they're currently favored by -15.5 points, it's highly unlikely. Regardless of what they might say publicly, the Gaels' players are well aware that Gonzaga isn't really going to lose tonight and that they've blown their chance at the regular season title. Most people will probably feel that the Gaels are going to immediately bounce back and blow out the Pilots tonight. However, off that extremely tough loss and already looking ahead to a probable rematch in the Conference Tournament Finals, I expect the Gaels to be somewhat flat tonight and for them not to be fully focused on their lowly ranked hosts. Despite an admittedly ugly 9-20 overall record, Portland comes into this game with some momentum. Two games ago, the Pilots hosted Gonzaga. They'd been blown out at Gonzaga previously and were playing without their leading scorer, Nick Raivio. The scoreboard shows that the Pilots lost by 22 points, which they did. Howwever, a closer look shows that the Pilots actually had the lead with 11:27 left and that they were within two points with only 8:35 left. So, although the Bulldogs did pull away down the stretch, the Pilots gave them everything they could handle for a full 3/4 of the game. The Pilots got Raivio back for their most recent game. They didn't need much from him though as they got a dominant effort from the defense, holding Santa Clara to just 32.6 percent shooting from the field and 58 total points. That victory gives them some badly needed confidence. Playing their home finale and their last shot at a ranked team on their home floor, I expect the Pilots to be extremely motivated this evening. Look for the defense to be much better than it was for the first meeting and for the Pilots to hang within the generous number. *WCC GOM
NBA BASKETBALL
CLIPPERS
Game: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Los Angeles Clippers Game Time: 3/3/2008 10:35:00 PM Prediction: Los Angeles Clippers Reason: I'm taking the points with the LA CLIPPERS. Recent results have given us excellent value with the home underdog Clippers. These teams faced each other at Philadelphia a few weeks ago. The 76ers won that game convincingly and have continued to play well ever since. The Clippers, on the other hand, have struggled since the game at Philadelphia. However, a closer look shows that the schedule hasn't been very kind to them either. Since the previous meeting, the Clippers have played only three teams with losing records. They played well in those games too as they won outright at Milwaukee, lost by two vs. Washington and defeated Memphis by double-digits. The other games came against the likes of the Jazz, Lakers, Celtics, Nuggets (at Denver), and Pistons. Their recent improved play notwithstanding, the 76ers don't belong in that group and represent a step down in class from LA's recent opponents. Note that the Clippers had recently been playing without center Kris Kaman but got him back for their last game. While he was "rusty" vs. the Pistons, the Clippers' leading rebounder is a huge part of the team and his return is significant. He should be much better with a game under his belt. Despite failing to cover at Detroit, the Clippers remain a profitable 19-13-1 ATS the last 33 times they were coming off three or more consecutive losses, 8-6 ATS in that role this season. Meanwhile, the 76ers, who come off an "offensive explosion" at Phoenix, are just 2-5 ATS (1-6 SU) after scoring 105 or more points in their previous game. The 76ers are 0-4 their last four trips here and 2-11 their last 13. I expect their struggles here to continue and for them to fall to 1-7 ATS the last eight times that they were road favorites of three points or less. *Non-Conference GOW
HOCKEY
WASHINGTON
Game: Boston Bruins vs. Washington Capitals Game Time: 3/3/2008 7:05:00 PM Prediction: Washington Capitals Reason: I'm laying the price with WASHINGTON. The Bruins enter this game on a season-high six-game winning streak. However, this is a difficult scheduling spot. After playing five straight road games, the Bruins returned home for three games at Boston. Tonight marks the only game of a "road trip" before they return home for another three. Those kind of spots can be tricky and I won't be surprised if the Bruins come out a bit flat tonight. Note that Boston is a money-burning 1-7 (-6.4) on the season after playing three consecutive home games. The Capitals have been at their best against teams with a winning record (Boston is 35-29 vs. the moneyline, 35-23-6 in the standings) as they've gone a profitable 16-9 (+11.3) against winning teams for the season. Off a loss to the Leafs on Saturday night and with a pair of road games on deck, they know the importance of tonight's game. Although they came up short against the Leafs, the Capitals have been playing well lately. In fact, they won their previous two games by a combined score of 8-1. A positive sign in Saturday's loss to Toronto was that Ovechkin got a goal against Toronto, snapping a season-high, seven-game goal drought. Look for him to get #50 tonight and for the Caps to earn an extremely important two
Paul Leiner
10* CBB Over 135 Pitt/WV
5* CBB Gonzaga -14.5
5* NBA Over 188 Phi/LAC
Bob Balfe
West Virginia U 135
Tony Karpinski
Utah State
Montreal Canadiens
Will Cover
3* UTAH ST
Mr. A's
New Orleans Hornets - 6½
Utah Jazz - 6½
Gina's
Dallas Mavericks (39-21) at Utah Jazz (38-22)
Take the Utah Jazz tonight at EnergySolutions Arena to seize their 16th straight victory at home. Utah has won 17 of its last 18 games at home, 25-3 this season. Meanwhile, Dallas has dropped six of their last eight games away from home, 14-18 on the road this season and has lost six of its last 9 trips to Salt Lake City.
Utah is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games at home and went 4-0-1 ATS in the last five meetings against Dallas on their home court.
Utah Jazz
Johnny Guild
NBA Selection
Philadelphia 76ers (27-33) at L.A. Clippers Clippers (19-38)
The struggling Clippers have dropped five straight, shooting just 39.2 percent from the field, averaging just 93.9 points per game. Look for the hot 76ers to take a season series sweep against the Clippers. Philadelphia has covered the spread in five of the last 6 clashes versus the Clippers at the Staples Center. Los Angeles has lost four of their last five home games.
Philadelphia is 9-3 both straight-up and against the spread in its last 12 games.
Philadelphia 76ers - 3
St. Mary's Gaels -13
Gonzaga Bulldogs - 15
Purelock
CBB
Georgia Tech
NBA
Utah
Drew Gordon
1. 200,000* Santa Clara
2. 50,000* Pepperdine
3. 50,000* 76ers
1. Santa Clara- Several strong factors point to Santa Clara in this one, but let's start with their last meeting, an 87-82 Gonzaga OT win, but Broncos cover, back on February 2nd. First of all, for anyone who watched the game, you know the Zags were bailed out late in regulation by a bullshit foul, as the Broncos clearly should've won outright. Granted, it won't be as close tonight, but the Broncos gained a tremendous amount on confidence and motivation from that razor close home loss.
Second, another thing we learned from their last meeting, is that the Bulldogs don't have the personnel to match up with Broncos C John Bryant. Despite throwing both 6'11 Daye and 6'10 Heytvelt at Bryant in that game, the Broncos talented big man dropped in 22 points, going 12 of 13 from the free throw line. Not only that, but since that game Bryant has been on a tear, except in his last one against Portland... Look for him to bounce back BIG after scoring in single-digits (9 points) for only the second time all season against Portland.
Third, it's hard to ignore the situational factors in this one, as Gonzaga is coming off an emotional win against St. Mary's just two days ago, and very well could fall flat tonight against the 14-14 Broncos. The Zags know their in, so going "balls to the wall" tonight is not likely. Not only that, but for all the talk about the Broncos sub-par record, they've been solid ATS of late, going 8-4 ATS over their last 12 games, including their cover against Gonzaga.
Bottom line, while I expect the Bulldogs to win this game tonight, I couldn't disagree more with the margin. Santa Clara came razor close to beating the Zags at the Leavey Center in their last meeting, and tonight, they'll keep it well within the number once again. Revenge, a lack of energy from Gonzaga, plus big games from Bryant and G Brody Angley, help the Broncos grab the cash late Monday night!
Take Santa Clara plus the points over Gonzaga as your top-rated play of the day.
2. Pepperdine- To be perfectly honest, both of these teams are hard to watch. However, at the very least the Waves have shown some improvement, going 3-2 SU & 4-1 ATS over their last 5 games. While on the other hand, its clear the Dons could really care less, going 2-5 SU & 1-6 ATS over their last 7 games overall.
Guys, both these teams are average offensively, but lately, its been the Waves defense that has them keeping games competitive, allowing 72 ppg on 50% shooting over their last 5 games (3 of those 5 on the road). I know it looks bad, but when compared to the Dons recent play, its downright solid, as San Fran is allowing 76 ppg on 52% shooting over the same span, with 4 of those 5 games played at home, making it that much worse than Pepperdine.
Another factor to consider is revenge, as the Dons beat the Waves on their home floor 85-82 back on February 2nd, and will be looking for some payback tonight on the road. Speaking of the road, its been a good place to side with the Waves, as they've gone 10-3 ATS over their last 13 away! Not only that, but their offense remains potent when they travel, scoring 73 ppg (only a 1-point drop from their season average).
Finally, let's look over some trends, including the fact the road team AND the underdog are both 9-1 ATS over their last 10 meetings! Pepperdine falls under both, and when you couple that with the revenge factor, and their recent solid play, you've got all the makings of a Waves cover in this one. Take the points, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Pepperdine wins outright here... That's how poorly San Fran is playing right now!
Take Pepperdine plus the points over San Francisco in this WCC match up.
3. 76ers- Talk about two teams heading in opposite directions, as the 76ers are surging, while the Clippers are tail-spinning. Philly has been rolling over their last 16 games, going 11-5 SU & 12-3-1 ATS over that span! The Clippers meanwhile, have been garbage of late, losing 5 straight (1-4 ATS) and really struggling on offense over that span.
Speaking of the Clippers struggles, just how in the world do you expect this Clippers offense to keep pace with a red-hot Philly attack? LA is averaging just 85 ppg on a laughable 39% shooting over their last 5 games. It should come as no surprise that their scoring woes coincide with the loss Sam Cassell, their best and most experienced point guard.
So what has Philly rolling? It all starts with the other A.I., you know Andre Iguodala, who's been on a tear recently. Not only that, but unlike the Clippers, the 76ers are getting excellent point guard play from Andre Miller, who's playing some of his best basketball in recent years right now. Philly is running a very short rotation, but its worked, as their team chemistry is at an all-time high... If you don't believe me, just ask the Phoenix Suns, who lost outright 119-114 to Philly as 9'-point home favorites on Saturday!
Finally, let's look at the match ups, as the Clippers have been decimated by injuries, and besides Maggette and occasionally Kaman, they have very little true NBA talent on their roster, especially now that Tim Thomas is also hurting with a groin injury. Look guys, this Clippers team is a disaster right now, and until they get Elton Brand back, they'll continue to struggle, especially against a red-hot team like Philly! 76ers roll in this one!
Take the 76ers comfortably over the LA Clippers in late NBA action.
Nelly
Portland + over St. Mary's
St. Mary’s might have a tough time blowing out Portland on the road to close the regular season. Saturday's loss at Gonzaga took the conference title out of their hands and it won't be easy to play as a huge road favorite just two days later in a second straight road game. The Gaels have lost three consecutive games against the spread and Portland has been competitive in most home games despite the poor overall record. The Pilots were thrashed in the first meeting between these teams losing by 37-points but last year Portland beat St. Mary's at home as an underdog. St. Mary's has played somewhat questionably in the last two weeks and this is a very tough emotional spot to close the season with a big win.