Yankee Capper
NHL
Pittsburgh/Carolina o6
New Jersey/Buffalo o5.5
NBA
Toronto Raptors +3
Memphis Grizzlies +6.5
NCAA HOOPS
Villanova/UNC Under 159
Tony Karpinski
Memphis Grizzlies vs. Milwaukee Bucks
Play: Milwaukee Bucks -6.5
The Memphis Grizzlies are coming off a home game vs Dallas on Thurs and have to travel to Milwaukee where the Bucks are well rested and are 20-17 at home averaging 102.5 ppg led by F's Richard Jefferson and Charlie Villanueva, while the defense allows 99.9 ppg. Memphis just 7-30 on the road scoring only 92.5 ppg and have packed it in for the year. Take the MILWAUKEE BUCKS at home to get a Double-Digit Victory!
Charlie Scott
Villanova vs. North Carolina
Play: Under 159
Each time I play this game over in my head, the UNDER looks like a better play. Villanova can adapt to any pace fast or slow, but the more I think about it, Jay Wright must know that they can't run with North Carolina, and running with North Carolina plays right into the Tar Heels game plan just ask Gonzaga. However, Villanova does play good defense and if they want to win, they must slow NC down. Kenny White was just on Sports Book Radio and stated that in order to go Over 160, You have to have everything go right. Well tonight we have a big game (nerves and jitters) and we're playing the big game in a huge arena that will effect the outside shooting depth perception. PLAY UNDER !
FairWay Jay
Atlanta Hawks +2.0
We’ll continue to analyze some of our technical and situational proven profiles that have historically provided profits in late-season NBA action. Orlando was outstanding last night in their route of Cleveland 116-97. The Magic now travel to Atlanta in a division revenge game for the Hawks. Orlando beat Atlanta in back-to-back nights in early January. Atlanta was bounced at Boston last night 104-92 and the road struggles continue. But the Hawks are 29-9 at home and late season division teams playing with revenge off a loss is a solid base profile. If our division revenger is playing a class ‘A’ team (> .664) like Orlando, then our profitable profile hits at better than 62%. Despite Orlando’s outstanding play last night and an Eastern Conference best road record (26-11), the situation and percentage play supports Atlanta.
Dave Price
1 Unit on Grizzlies/Bucks UNDER 200.5
Milwaukee has gone under in 7 of its last 10 as injuries have really taken a toll on the offense. I look for Memphis' scoring production to really go down the tubes tonight playing back-to-back off a big win over Dallas and on the road. Here's the key: Plays under on all teams where the total opens between 190 and 199.5 points (MEMPHIS) off an upset win as an underdog, in April games are 50-19 over the last 5 seasons. The Public is all over the Over and that has given us additional value as the line continues to climb. Bet the Under!
Dwayne Bryant
MEM +7 vs MIL
By the time this game tips off, Milwaukee's playoff hopes may already be dashed. If the Bulls win at home in their afternoon matchup against the Nets, which is very likely, the Bucks will be eliminated from playoff contention. And I'm sure any motivation they may have will go down as well.Even if the Nets do beat the Bulls, Milwaukee should not be laying this many points right now. The Bucks have lost 7 of their last 8 games and 6 of their last 7 at home. The Bucks are 3-12 ATS in their last 15 games overall, and 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games vs. a team with a losing SU record.Meanwhile, the Grizzlies have decided to "let it all hang out" and they've had great success. Memphis has won three straight including a huge win over Dallas last night. The Grizzlies are 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games as a road underdog, and 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games vs. a team with a losing SU record.Memphis is hot, the Bucks are not, and Milwaukee may very well have no motivation when this game tips off. I'll grab the points with Memphis.
Greg Shaker
Michigan State Spartans at Connecticut Huskies - Over 133.5 (Total of Year)
I have been pouring over this game all night and have come to a large decision that we are going to see a lot of points scored in this contest in Detroit this evening. I know that I am not on the popular opinion for this one, and in fact have changed mine overnight. There are two major reasons why I like the OVER and why I like it as much as I do. The first one is the fact that even though these squads both play very good defense, they also have very, very good offensive efficiency. In fact, they are the #23 and #12 best teams in the NCAA this year. In addition, we might think that Michigan State likes to walk the court, but they are within the Top 40% of all Top Tempo Squads, and they have shown me all year, that they will run the court when given the chance. While they have played 2 consecutive Unders the last 2 times on the court, they have have done so while leading throughout the contest. That means of course, that second half scoring has been less than average as the Spartans milked the clock throughout. Certainly in their last contest verses Louisville, we saw a Cardinal Squad that got and shot a lot of good looks on the court, but was unable to hit them with any accuracy. The frustration level got worse and worse for Pitino's Bunch and the Spartans coasted and walked to an easy win. Is that going to happen today? Is UConn going to have shooting concerns? Probably not. Is UConn going to be manhandled by Michigan State? Probably not. The Huskies have been lights out during this Tourney and they do have plenty of offensive talent to put some baskets in the net. They are going to work very hard to up-pace this one and as long as they are in the game, they will have some success doing so.
The second, and most important reason why I like this game to go OVER is the rebounding skills and overall style of play by each squad. These two might very well be the best of the best in grabbing balls off the rim. The Huskies have an amazing +11.3 RPG verses their opponents this year and even a more amazing +14 RPG over the last 5 played. The Spartans have an amazing +10.4 RPG Edge over their opponents as well. These stats are amazing. Have I mentioned that yet? What does that mean for us? It means that we are going to see some physical activity around the basket and it means that we are going to see many Spartans and Huskies at the Free Throw Stripe making points as the Clock sits still. Verses teams like USC and Ohio State, Michigan State contests saw 57 and 46 Shots from this line. UConn shot 32 verses Mizzu, 27 verses Texas A&M and in the crazy Syracuse Contest we saw 93 by both teams. There are plenty of other examples but hopefully you get the idea. This game is going to be about who controls the boards and who can win the physical battle in the paint. That is going to give us what we want many more times than not. I would play this one up to 139 but it is not going anywhere near that number and is currently dropping.
WUNDERDOG
Michigan State vs. Connecticut
Pick: Connecticut -4
The Huskies and the Spartans will open Final Four action this evening. The Huskies have two reasons why they are 31-4, and why they are in the Final Four. In their four tournament games, the Huskies are out rebounding opponents by an unimaginable 17 per game, and at the same time are getting to the line 20 times more per game. Those are going to be huge hurdles for the Spartans to get over. The Huskies also have an answer for everything. The four games have seen four different leading scorers in Price, Walker, Austrie and Robinson. Robinson has been the X-factor for the Huskies with his play over the past month, as he has become a scorer, tenacious rebounder, and shot blocker. Michigan St. just doesn't have all the answers the Huskies do and right now, UConn looks to be peaking at the right time. UConn gets the call.
JACK JONES
North Carolina -7 over Villanova
I don't think that Villanova has any way to matchup with Tyler Hansbrough down low and that should mean a big win for North Carolina tonight. Ty Lawson is also incredible, but he's only slightly better than Scottie Reynolds so the key matchup here comes in the front court. The Tar Heels have won their four tournament games by an average of 28 points and destroyed the Sooners in the Elite 8. The Wildcats are also not going to be able to run up and down the floor with the Tar Heels and I think Carolina sets the pace here like they have done nearly all season. I'll lay the points here as this Tar Heels team has the experience and I can't see them being denied a national title game appearance.