Sports Gambling Hotline
Atlanta at BOSTON -11'
For Sunday just call us the "lumberjacks", as we put on our plaid shirts, and lay the wood with the Celtics at home over the Hawks.
Atlanta did beat New York at home on Friday for their second straight win, but we hold no illusions that the Hawks are going to stay close in this contest.
On the road, Atlanta has lost 9 of their last 10 straight up, and the points haven't helped much either, as they are just 3-7 against the spread in those 10 games.
Boston has won their last 4, and although they are just 2-2 against the spread in those 4, the C's do sport a 16-12-1 spread mark on the parquet floor this year.
The Celtics dominated the Hawks in the first meeting this year, 106-83, and we see a similar final in this one.
Play on Boston big!
3* BOSTON
Computer Sports
UCLA at Arizona
Two annual Pac-10 west coast superpowers of college hoops tangle once again in the desert on Sunday. UCLA (24-4 su) (12-2 conf) is on a tear, winning eight of nine, the extremely talented Bruins are poised on the brink of a deep tourney run. Led by super-frosh big man Kevin Love (17.1 ppg), the Bruins feature a line-up with four players over 12 ppg. On top of that, their bench is very talented and runs deep.
Arizona (17-7 su) (7-7 conf) is tetering on the tourney bubble. A monster home win this Sunday, coupled with a huge road at Wash St. last week and a March conference tourney run, should get the Cats into the dance. Led by monster Freshman guard Jerryd Bayless (21 ppg) and Chris Budinger's long range bombs, the Cats can play with anybody.
Arizona is a tough place to play, and the young Cats are certainly a fiesty group, but UCLA is far superior athlete-wise. In January's meeting the Wildcats were declawed in LA, 82-60. We look for more of the same here.
Free winner from Computer Sports: Take UCLA laying any number of 6 points or less on the road!
Totals 4 U
Indiana at Michigan State
Indiana (23-4, 13-2 Big 10) cut ties last Friday with former Head Coach Kelvin Sampson, whose recruiting violations at Oklahoma - that left him scurrying from Norman - followed him to Bloomington and earned him a $750,000 parting gift from the university and private donors. Taking over on the bench on an interim basis is alumnus and former Indiana Director of Basketball Operations Dan Dakich (2-0 in first season), who is most famous for shutting down Michael Jordan in the Hoosiers' upset of the Tar Heels in the 1984 NCAA Tournament. In Dakich's second game on the sidelines, his crew banked an emotional 72-69 home win over Ohio State at Assembly Hall on Tuesday night, edging the Buckeyes 19-6 from the charity stripe, to remain deadlocked with Purdue and Wisconsin at the top of the Big 10 Conference standings.
Most of the Indiana roster supported Sampson, including former Alabama Player of the Year 6'9" 251 senior F D. J. White (17.1p, 10.4r, 3.1a) and reigning Indiana "Mr. Basketball" 6'4" freshman G Eric Gordon (21.4p, 3.3r, 2.5a, 36 steals, 65 of 171 from 3-point), each of whom protested by missing practice the day after Sampson was fired, and considered sitting out Dakich's first game, an 85-82 squeaker over Northwestern. While the Indiana glitterati sulked, it was 6'1" sophomore G Armon Bassett (11.3p, 2.4r, 3.1a, 55 of 117 from 3-point) who shined, piling up 45 points over the last two games, leading the Hoosiers in scoring each contest. Along with Gordon, the deadly shooter Bassett is joined in the back court by 6'5" versatile junior Jamarcus Ellis (7.1p, 7.1r, 3.7a, 40 steals, 20 blocks) and 6'4" freshman backup Jordan Crawford (10.3p, 3.2r, 2.4a,) to run an offense that has scored 76.4 points per game in 2007-2008 and commits a very respectable 14.0 turnovers per game. Rounding out Indiana's starting five is former soccer player 6'8" 210 F Lance Stemler (4.7p, 3.1r, 26 of 78 from 3-point), who is more of a perimeter player, but has fallen off from his junior season in which he nailed 45 of 110 attempts from downtown. Defensively, the Hoosiers are extremely sound, allowing just 63.8 points per game on .406 shooting from the field and .333 behind the arc, and hold a sizeable 38.2-30.5 rebounding edge with Ellis and White both being serious scrappers on the glass. Bench players 6'9" 295 junior DeAndre Thomas (3.8p, 1.7r) and 6'7" 226 junior F Kyle Taber (1.1p, 2.3r) have been superb on the offensive glass in relief, earning 35 second chances for their team in limited minutes.
Sending Sampson packing was the right thing to do, but it puts in jeopardy Indiana's hidden strength - chemistry. Thomas and Ellis played together at both Chipola Junior College and Westinghouse High School in Chicago, while Bassett and Crawford played prep ball together at Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia. Coach Dakich's biggest task may be to remind his players why they came to play together in Bloomington, reasons that trump their allegiance to Sampson, who got what he deserved... plus $750,000.
Michigan State (22-5, 10-4 Big 10) opened up with a 20-1 run, won the game's turnover battle 5-16, and crushed Iowa 66-52 Saturday in East Lansing to improve their mark to a flawless 16-0 at the Breslin Center this season. Leading the way for the Spartans was the 6'7" 220 sophomore F Raymar Morgan (15.2p, 6.3r, 1.9a), who posted a perfect shooting mark at 6 of 6 from the field and 4 of 4 from the stripe. Morgan is an extraordinary slasher through the paint and is joined on the blocks by the twin centers, 6'10" 245 junior Goran Sutton and 6'10" 245 senior Drew Naymick, who have been the key to State's 37.9-30.0 rebounding advantage this season. Sutton (8.3p, 7.8r, 1.9a, 27 blocks), who started playing on the Bosnian National Team at the age of 14, is equally adept posting up, facing the rim, or stepping out, where he is proficient from 18-20 feet. While Naymick (4.1p, 4.1r, 49 blocks) is more of a stationary player and Head Coach Tom Izzo's (300-126 in 13th season at East Lansing, 180-22 at home) top post defender.
The Spartans love to push the ball and have the guards to do so efficiently (18.3 assists per game). 6'0" freshman G Kalin Lucas (10.0p, 1.4r, 3.8a) gives opponents fits with his penetration through the lane, while co-captain 6'0" senior G Drew Neitzel (13.8p, 2.7r, 4.3a, 30 steals) presents a flat-out nightmare. Former Michigan "Mr. Basketball" and 2007 USA Pan Am Games Team member, Neitzel pushes the pace with remarkable court vision and is a deadly shooter from behind the arc, nailing 244 triples in his career including 68 this season in 171 tries. In the interests of full disclosure, we must remind you that we are Wisconsin Badger fans, and this kid has absolutely eviscerated us over the years. We will not be sad to see him go. With so much size in the starting lineup, Coach Izzo calls on his bench early and often. Nine-deep is the regular rotation, with guards 6'3" freshman Chris Allen (6.0p, 1.1r, 25 of 71 from 3-point), 6'2" junior co-captain Travis Walton (3.7p, 2.0r, 4.5a), 6'5" freshman Durrell Summers (5.7p, 2.9r), and 6'8" 235 junior F Marquise Gray (5.3p, 4.2r) each getting as much playing time as starters on some teams.
By the numbers, Michigan State has averaged 72.8 points per game on .487 shooting from the field, .360 from behind the arc, and .725 from the line while holding opponents to just 62.1 points per game on .396 shooting from the field and .321 from downtown. The pundits have conceded the Big 10 Conference Championship to either the Boilermakers, Hoosiers, or Badgers, but the teams that have faced Michigan States' impenetrable Slavic Slabs in the paint and the relentless bombing from Neitzel at the perimeter will tell you that the Spartans are one of the most underrated squads in all of college basketball, and a force to deal with in March.
Free winner from Totals 4 U: The highway is brutal in the Big 10, and the Hoosiers just aren't 100% focused right now, as they were when they thumped the Spartans 80-61 in Bloomington back on February 16th. Take Michigan State to improve their home mark to 17-0 at the Breslin on Sunday.
Michigan State
Platinum Plays
Villanova at Louisville
Jay Wright's Villanova Wildcats are going to have a hard time making the NCAA tournament, and the task doesn't get any easier this Sunday when they make the trip to the "Bluegrass State" to take on Rick Pitino's Louisville Cardinals. Because the Big East has a plethora of quality basketball teams, Villanova's best chance to make the NCAA Tournament may rest upon a strong showing in the Big East Postseason Tournament, although, a victory over #13 ranked Cardinals would make a strong statement to the selection committee. Louisville is a lock to make the tournament and will be fine tuning their play for the postseason. They would like to finish strong to earn the highest seed possible in the tournament.
The Villanova Wildcats' (7-8/17-10) season has been one best termed as inconsistent. We can attribute some of the Wildcats' problems to inexperience, as four freshmen have received significant playing time. However, in this day and age, few college basketball teams have the luxury of their players fulfilling their entire scholarship committment. The fact of the matter is Villanova has a hard time recruting top notch talent, and Coach Jay Wright probably steals a couple of wins during the season that other coaches wouldn't.
The Wildcats are led in scoring by Soph. G Scottie Reynolds (16.3 ppg) and Jr F Dante Cunningham (10.4 ppg), who also leads the team in rebounding, gathering in 6.7 rebounds per contest. The Wildcats' lack of size is apparent, as they rank in the bottom half of the league in rebounds and aren't quite talented enough to make up for it in other areas of the game.
The Louisville Cardinals (12-3/22-6) are currently tied for first in the Big East, and are a team that could make a very deep run in the NCAA Tournament. Coach Pitino's Cardinals play all 40 minutes of each game with very high intensity at both ends of the court. In order to play high this hard, Pitino has eleven players seeing significant playing time. The Cardinals have four players averaging double digits scoring offensively, and are led in scoring by Jr F Terrence Williams (11.3 ppg), closely followed by Sr F/C David Padgett (11.2 ppg), Soph G Jerry Smith (10.9 ppg) and Soph G/F Earl Clark (10.4 ppg).
Louisville finishes the season with home games against Notre Dame and Villanova, and the final game of the season will be against Georgetown, the team they are currently tied with at the top of the Big East. I think Pitino and his Cardinals are primed for a big run in the NCAA Tournament, and right now have the luxury of flying under the radar as a team to be reckoned with come tournament time.
Free winner from Platinum Plays: The advanced line for this game is Louisville favored by 11, which is probably too high for this game. Platinum's prediction for this game is take Villanova +11 over Louisville.
TV HOTLINE
LSU 3-
VEGAS STEAMLINE
Louisville
MIKE WYNN
Cincinnati -4½
#1 SPORTS
MINNESOTA - 5 1/2
THE SHARPSHOOTER
ARIZONA +5
HUDDLE UP SPORTS
Indiana -5 (NBA)
RAZOR SHARP SPORTS
PORTLAND +5½
DARK HORSE SPORTS
San Antonio -5
EASY MONEY SPORTS
GEORGIA +3½
Dr. VEGAS
St. Joe's -6.5
Mighty Quinn
Michigan State
Cappersaccess
Cincinnati
Notre Dame
Rocketman Sports
NHL
4* Detroit +100
Bob Akmens
Columbus Destroyers +6.0 / 3 units
JEFF BENTON
Marquette failed to get it done against Georgetown on Saturday, dropping the free-pick run to 26-16-3. We’ll get back on track on Sunday by heading over to SEC country and playing Tennessee minus the points against Kentucky.
Huge impost to lay here, without a doubt, but there are quite a few factors that favor the Vols here. First and foremost, they’re coming off Tuesday’s extremely disappointing 72-69 loss at Vanderbilt as a two-point road favorite, which came right on the heels of the school’s huge 66-62 upset win in Memphis, a victory that vaulted the Vols to the No. 1 ranking for the first time ever. So you have to believe that Bruce Pearl’s boys – playing their first home game in 11 days – will have a little something to prove to the masses who doubt their credentials as a worthy No. 1 seed and NCAA title contender.
There’s an additional reason to think that Tennessee will be a little more motivated than usual today: It lost to Kentucky 72-66 as a 5½-point road favorite back on Jan. 22 – a defeat that precipitated the Vols’ nine-game winning streak that ended with the loss at Vandy the other night. So you could say revenge will be in play here – big time!
Meanwhile, even though the victory over Tennessee sparked Kentucky’s current 9-1 run (7-3 ATS), I question where the Wildcats will be emotionally here, having just learned Friday that super freshman Patrick Patterson (16.4 points, 7.7 rebounds per game) has a stress fracture in his ankle and is done for the season. Patterson had team highs of 20 points and eight rebounds in the Wildcats’ upset of Tennessee six weeks ago, and I don’t see how they replace that production.
Finally, Tennessee is unbeaten through 14 home games this season (9-2 ATS) and hasn’t had back-to-back non-covers in SEC play all season. Don’t see that changing here. Lay the wood and don’t be surprised if the Vols whip Kentucky the way Vanderbilt did in its gym (93-52 win) 2½ weeks ago.
10* TENNESSEE VOLS
(Based on a 1* to 10* rating system)
Brandon Lang
25 Dime - UCLA
5 Dime - Indiana
5 Dime - Mavs
Free Picks - Villanova and Rockets
Vegas Experts
UCLA Bruins at Arizona Wildcats
Arizona with an extra day to prepare for this one. It hosts USC Thursday then the Bruins here while UCLA plays at Arizona State Thursday then either hangs around for an extra day or goes home and comes back. Either way the Bruins would probably prefer to play Saturday so that should work in the Wildcats favor. They have enough incentive to beat the Bruins with their 82-60 February 2 loss at UCLA being their sixth in the series. They also lost here to the Bruins last year 81-66 but find themselves on the NCAA Tournament bubble as this week begins. A home upset win over a ranked opponent would catch the eye of the Tournament committee.Good Luck - Robert Ross
Play on: Arizona
GOLD SHEET LATE TELEPHONE SERVICE
CBB
LSU
MARYLAND
NBA
LA LAKERS
HOUSTON
THE GOLD SHEET
SACRAMENTO by 18 over Miami
POINTWISE
NBA
CLEVELAND CAVS 115 - Chicago Bulls 90 (ABC)
LOS ANGELES LAKERS 117 - Dallas 115 (ABC)
BOSTON CELTICS 108 - Atlanta Hawks 100
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS 94 - Toronto Raptors 93
INDIANA PACERS 104 - Milwaukee Bucks 100
San Antonio Spurs 96 - NEW JERSEY NETS 90
New Orleans Hornets 109 - WASHINGTON 97
Seattle Supersonics 98 - MINNESOTA 'WOLVES 91
HOUSTON ROCKETS 101 - Denver 98 (ESPN)
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS 101 - Portland 92
SACRAMENTO KINGS 100 - Miami Heat 95
BEST BETS: CLEVELAND (2), NEW ORLEANS (1)
COLLEGE HOOPS
CINCINNATI 64 - Providence 57 (ESPNU)
TENNESSEE 85 - Kentucky 60
DEPAUL 78 - Notre Dame 77
MICHIGAN STATE 71 - Indiana 66 (CBS)
LSU 65 - Georgia 59
NC-CHARLOTTE 74 - Duquesne 70
Ucla 77 - ARIZONA 65 (FSN)
LOUISVILLE 80 - Villanova 72 (CBS)
ST JOSEPHS 69 - Temple 67
MARYLAND 86 - Clemson 83 (FSN)
Oregon 74 - OREGON STATE 57 (FSN)
BEST BETS: TENNESSEE, LSU, UCLA, VILLANOVA, TEMPLE
LT'S LOCK
Clemson +1'
MIGHTY QUINN
Michigan State
Scott Spreitzer
Notre Dame
Joe Wiz
Nuggets
Bucks
Cappers Access
Cincy
Notre Dame
Redzone Sports
UCLA
Glen Mcgrew
Tennessee
Priceless Picks
1 Unit on Oregon -10
I know this is an in-state rivalry game, but I can't see the Beavers keeping it close, even on their home floor. Oregon State has completely fallen apart, losing 17 straight games. They've been beaten by 13 or more points in 5 straight games. They are only 4-10 ATS in their last 14 contests. Matchups with Washington State, USC, and UCLA have caused a 3-game slide for the Ducks, but this talented team will bounce back big here. Oregon won by 16 points in the first meeting this season. Oregon State is 0-6 ATS in home games revenging a loss vs. an opponent this season, 0-8 ATS in home games after 1 or more consecutive losses this season, and 2-10 ATS in home lined games this season. Take the Ducks here.
Paul Stone
Cincinnati -4.5
These are two teams headed in opposite directions and I like the upstart Cincinnati Bearcats to bring home the money today in this Big East matchup.
While Providence showed signs of promise in non-conference play, the Friars have floundered down the stretch, losing five straight decisions ATS.
The Bearcats, meanwhile, have covered seven of their past nine home games and 15 of 20 overall.
Additionally, Cincinnati has covered its last 11 games off of a straightup loss.
SportsKingz
HOUSTON -4.5
UCLA -6
Mr. A's
Cleveland Cavaliers - 6
Boston Celtics - 10½
San Antonio Spurs -5½