Friday’s best WNBA bets
By Covers.com
Washington Mystics at Atlanta Dream
The WNBA’s only perfect team – in the standings and against the spread – is the Washington Mystics, who visit the Atlanta Dream on Friday night.
The surprising Mystics are 3-0 straight up and ATS, with two of the wins in road games at Connecticut and defending champion Detroit. New coach. Under bettors are loving that new coach Julie plank has the Mystics ranked third in the Dub in points against. They’ve cashed their wagers in all three Washington games this season.
The Mystics also lead the league in scoring margin at 8.0 but with scoring rookie Marissa Coleman out at least four weeks with an ankle injury, Washington may be leaning on its defense even more.
The Dream also have been a bit of a surprise, getting off to a 2-2 start (2-2 ATS). In its inaugural season a year ago, Atlanta lost its first 17 games before winning two in a row.
The Dream are next-to-last in 3-point shooting at under 23 percent.
Pick: Under
Chicago Sky at Connecticut Sun
Sylvia Fowles goes for her third straight double-double Friday as the Chicago Sky visit the Connecticut Sun in the back end of a home-and-home series.
Chicago (3-1) improved to 3-0 at home (2-1 ATS) with Tuesday’s 78-75 win over Connecticut as Fowles had 17 points and 10 rebounds. She had 12 points and 15 boards in Sunday’s win over Seattle.
But Fowles had a season-low four rebounds in a season-opening 102-85 loss at Minnesota. This is Chicago’s first trip since.
The Sun (1-3) are 0-2 at home, averaging just 65 points at Mohegan Sun Arena. They were under the total in their first three games before Tuesday’s season-high output.
Pick: Chicago
CHICAGO (3 - 1) at CONNECTICUT (1 - 3)
Top Trends for this game.
CHICAGO is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) on Friday over the last 3 seasons.
CHICAGO is 15-6 ATS (+8.4 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 7-19 ATS (-13.9 Units) as a favorite over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 5-16 ATS (-12.6 Units) in home games over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 3-11 ATS (-9.1 Units) in home games in June games over the last 3 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 9-20 ATS (-13.0 Units) in home games in May, June, or July games over the last 3 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 8-18 ATS (-11.8 Units) vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 2-11 ATS (-10.1 Units) in home games after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 4-14 ATS (-11.4 Units) in home games after scoring 75 points or more over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 5-3 against the spread versus CONNECTICUT over the last 3 seasons
CONNECTICUT is 6-3 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
5 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
SAN ANTONIO (1 - 1) at NEW YORK (0 - 3)
Top Trends for this game.
NEW YORK is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 113-82 ATS (+22.8 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent since 1997.
SAN ANTONIO is 12-2 ATS (+9.8 Units) in road games against Eastern conference opponents over the last 3 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 12-2 ATS (+9.8 Units) in road games in non-conference games over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
SAN ANTONIO is 3-2 against the spread versus NEW YORK over the last 3 seasons
SAN ANTONIO is 5-0 straight up against NEW YORK over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
INDIANA (2 - 2) at DETROIT (1 - 2)
Top Trends for this game.
INDIANA is 62-92 ATS (-39.2 Units) as an underdog since 1997.
INDIANA is 18-42 ATS (-28.2 Units) as a road underdog of 3.5 to 6 points since 1997.
INDIANA is 64-94 ATS (-39.4 Units) in road games since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
DETROIT is 7-6 against the spread versus INDIANA over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 9-4 straight up against INDIANA over the last 3 seasons
7 of 12 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON (3 - 0) at ATLANTA (2 - 2)
Top Trends for this game.
WASHINGTON is 161-209 ATS (-68.9 Units) in all games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 98-133 ATS (-48.3 Units) as an underdog since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 23-46 ATS (-27.6 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 102-133 ATS (-44.3 Units) vs. division opponents since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 100-132 ATS (-45.2 Units) after a division game since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 13-28 ATS (-17.8 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 26-44 ATS (-22.4 Units) off an upset win as an underdog since 1997.
ATLANTA is 5-13 ATS (-9.3 Units) in home games over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 2-1 against the spread versus ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON is 4-0 straight up against ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
2 of 4 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
LOS ANGELES (1 - 3) at PHOENIX (4 - 1)
Top Trends for this game.
LOS ANGELES is 7-17 ATS (-11.7 Units) in road games vs. division opponents over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 8-20 ATS (-14.0 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 7-17 ATS (-11.7 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game over the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 110-81 ATS (+20.9 Units) as a favorite since 1997.
PHOENIX is 118-83 ATS (+26.7 Units) in home games since 1997.
PHOENIX is 76-50 ATS (+21.0 Units) in home games vs. division opponents since 1997.
PHOENIX is 48-29 ATS (+16.1 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a losing record since 1997.
Head-to-Head Series History
LOS ANGELES is 4-3 against the spread versus PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX is 4-3 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
4 of 7 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA (4 - 2) at SEATTLE (3 - 2)
Top Trends for this game.
MINNESOTA is 42-67 ATS (-31.7 Units) in road games vs. division opponents since 1997.
SEATTLE is 29-17 ATS (+10.3 Units) as a favorite over the last 3 seasons.
SEATTLE is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) as a home favorite of 6.5 to 9 points over the last 3 seasons.
SEATTLE is 15-5 ATS (+9.5 Units) in home games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 12-3 ATS (+8.7 Units) in home games in May, June, or July games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 6-0 ATS (+6.0 Units) in home games when playing with 3 or more days rest over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 11-2 ATS (+8.8 Units) in home games vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 7-0 ATS (+7.0 Units) in home games after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
SEATTLE is 6-2 against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
SEATTLE is 6-2 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
Augustus out for the year
The Minnesota Lynx announced that forward Seimone Augustus will miss the remainder of the 2009 WNBA season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee. A Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) study done yesterday revealed the extent of the injury, which occurred in the second quarter of Minnesota's game on Wednesday at Phoenix. The date for surgery has yet to be determined.
"This is an unfortunate situation for Seimone and we wish her a full recovery," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. "Seimone has been playing at an MVP level to start the season and has been our leader on the court. Knowing Seimone, she will work hard in her rehab efforts to get back on the court as soon as possible. In the interim, we have a tremendous amount of talent on this team and I am confident that the other players on our roster will step up and continue our early season success."
Augustus has appeared in all six Lynx games this season, averaging a team-high 21.0 ppg (third in the WNBA) and 4.2 rpg. In 105 career games with Minnesota, Augustus holds averages of 21.2 ppg and 3.9 rpg.