Tom Freese
Cleveland Cavaliers at Minnesota Timberwolves
Prediction: Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland is 20-6 ATS off a straight up loss and they are 4-0 ATS their last 4 games as favorites of 11.0 or greater. The Cavaliers are 20-9 ATS vs. Western Conference teams and they are 4-0 ATS their last 4 meetings with Minnesota. The Timberwolves 32-66-1 ATS their last 99 home games and they are 5-12 ATS with one day of rest. Minnesota is 2-11-1 ATS their last 14 home games vs. a team with a road win percentage of less than 40% and they are 1-6 ATS off an ATS win. 10* PLAY ON CLEVELAND -
WAYNE ROOT
2009 Football Upset Club
3* So Florida (+3) over West Virginia
NorthCoast
Marquee - South Fla +3
Karl Garrett
20 DIMER - SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS
10 DIMER - ORLANDO MAGIC
20 DIMER - SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS
My feeling with these 2 teams is to take the underdog, as you simply can't trust the favorite to cover the spread.
This is especially true with West Virginia, as the are just 2-4 against the spread this season, failing 3 of 5 as the favorite. The Mountaineers have also lost 2 of the last 3 to the Bulls, failing ALL 3 against the spread.
I know South Florida has been a bust, especially coming off back-to-back conference losses in which they were blasted, but that makes them quite a dangerous home dog here, as I would think that the Bulls would want to show both themselves and the Mountaineers they are better than their recent results have shown.
South Florida is 7-4 against the spread their last 11 as an underdog, and I like them to make it 8-4 after tonight's cover.
Take the Bulls plus the points.
10 DIMER - ORLANDO MAGIC
Orlando sure looked sharp in dumping the 76ers the other night, now it is Vince Carter's return to New Jersey that will be front-and-center for this game, and expect the Magic and Carter to get the better of the young, and rebuilding Nets.
Orlando is 6-2 straight up the last 8 series meetings, and the favorite is 8-3 against the spread the last 11 tilts between the teams.
Magic feel that have some "unfinished business" after falling the NBA Finals last season, and I expect them to be some tough customers early in this season.
Lay the points here
Trace Adams
1000* - South Florida Bulls
500* - Washington Wizards
Tonight's football game is a question of who do you trust more?
South Florida is coming off back-to-back Big East double-digit blowout losses to Cincinnati and at Pittsburgh. The Cincy game was a home Thursday nighter on ESPN!
Obviously Jim Leavitt's team could pack it in tonight, and were they on the road, I would believe they would pack it in, but with this game in their backyard, I have a feeling we are going to see a prideful effort from the Bulls. The Bulls do possess the speed on defense to contain the Mountaineers speedburners, and SoFla has been a money-maker in the dog role of late, covering 7 of their last 11 when catching points.
As for West Virginia, I have NEVER been a fan of Bill Stewart in the head coaching spot!
The Mountaineers did prevail in an emotional game versus UConn last week, but they didn't cover. In fact, the Mounties are only 2-4 against the spread in lined games this year, and just 6-12 their last 18 on line.
South Florida had a 2 game series winning streak snapped last season in Morgantown in a 13-7 loss, but the Bulls have covered in the last 3 series gatherings, and will cover here.
Take the home dog Bulls.
1000♦ - South Florida Bulls
In the NBA, grab the points with the Wizards.
Flip Saunders is the perfect fit for this team, and Washington did stun Dallas on Tuesday outright, and with the team in relative good health - especially Gilbert Arenas - I will take a shot with the Wizz plus the points tonight.
Atlanta is no slouch to be sure, but the numbers here support the road team, and underdog, as the visitor is on an 8-1 spread run the last 9, while the dog has covered 10 of the last 13 series meetings.
The Hawks swept ALL 4 of the Wizards last season, and have won 5 in a row overall against Washington.
Look for the 'Zards to come out and show some passion.
Take the points.
500♦ - Washington Wizards
Fantasy Sports Gametime
100* Play South Florida (+3) over West Virginia
South Florida has won 5 of the last 6 games as a home underdog and they have also won 17 of the last 23 games coming off a loss by 17 points or more. South Florida has covered the spread in 6 of the last 7 games after scoring 17 points or less in two consecutive games and they are averaging over 38 points a game at home this season.
Anthony Redd
40 - Dime Wizards
10 - Dime South Florida
Bryan Leonard
NBA Super Play
Chicago at Boston
We couldn't have been more impressed with the Bulls last night as they took on what we feel is the second best team in the Western Conference. They didn't shoot well at all but they showed the far superior athletes in quickness and athleticism. Now Chicago turns around and heads to Boston to avenge a playoff defeat.
Boston has looked especially good early on but they did so against a Cleveland team incorporating Shaq, and a Charlotte team without any offensive talent. Now they face a Boston team who took them to seven games last season. If you remember that series the teams were virtually equal all the way through with home court advantage deciding the outcome. Even with a somewhat healthy Garnett and the addition of Wallace we can't see Boston being a double digit favorite against this team.
Even off a back to back situation for the Bulls we expect this young team to respond to a game I'm sure they had circled all off-season.
PLAY CHICAGO
Michael Cannon
40 Dime - WEST VIRGINIA (Buy the ½ point if your line is -3 or -3½)
Take West Virginia as the small road chalk over South Florida.
The Bulls have given the Mountaineers trouble over the past few years, but this year’s edition won’t be able to keep that trend going.
That’s because South Florida lost its soul offensively when Matt Grothe went down with a season-ending injury. His replacement, redshirt freshman B. J. Daniels, is an incredible athlete with great speed but he is seriously lacking in the passing game.
Daniels loves to scramble around and extend the play, then just chuck it downfield looking for the big play. The problem with that strategy is it has produced nothing except incompletions and interceptions and the Bulls have struggled to score points as a result.
West Virginia should be plenty motivated for this game since South Florida has given them so much trouble over the past three years. Add to that the presence of Cincinnati and Pitt atop the Big East and the Mountaineers know they cannot afford a slipup here if they want to win the conference.
South Florida is known for its athletic defense, especially on the line. But teams have gashed them on the ground this year and that plays right into what West Virginia wants to do.
The Bulls gave up 189 yards to Cincinnati in a 34-17 home loss Oct. 15 and 214 yards to Pitt in last Saturday’s 41-14 road loss.
West Virginia just needs to take care of the football and they’ll get the job done here. Quarterback Jarrett Brown didn’t look particularly good last week, but he was coming off a concussion and should be better tonight. But if he struggles again, the Mountaineers can lean on Noel Devine, who rushed for 171 of his 178 yards in the second half against UConn last Saturday.
Take West Virginia as the small road chalk and remember to buy the ½ point if your line is -3 or -3½.
JASON JOHNSON
Thunder at Pistons
Pick: Pistons -5.5
You had to be impressed with Detroit's opening night 22 point win in Memphis. Four players scored in double digits and a stingy defense held the Grizzlies to just 36.1% shooting from the field. I also liked what I saw from a "team" perspective as the Pistons registered 20 assists.
Detroit has topped Oklahoma City in eight of the last nine meetings. They'll have no problem winning and covering the number tonight.
Ben Burns
Friday GOM - S Fla
NHL 3 Pack - S Jose, Anaheim, Minnesota
Doc's Sports
5 Units - Clippers +9
3 Units - Oklahoma +5
2 Units - Dallas +9
Tim Trushel
Featured Play: South Florida +3
Featured Play: Detroit Over 193
Charlotte -2.5
igz1 sports
3* Dallas +9
Jeff Benton
15 Dime: SOUTH FLORIDA (plus the points vs. West Virginia)
South Florida
I’m willing to give South Florida a bit of a pass for their performances in their last two games. Two weeks ago, the Bulls were unbeaten and ranked 21st nationally when they got blitzed at home by eighth-ranked Cincinnati 34-17 as a one-point home underdog. No shame in that, as the Bearcats are a legitimate Top 5 team (which is why I backed Cincinnati with a 20 Dime play against South Florida in that one). Then last week, South Florida went to Pitt and got creamed 41-14 as a 6½-point underdog, and while I don’t believe Pitt is THAT good, the fact is the Panthers were ranked 20th last week and they were playing on their home field. More than that, though, I believe the Bulls fell into a classic trap that a lot of college football teams fall into: Those teams that are undefeated well into October and lose their first game often have a “letdown” effect the next game. To me, last week was South Florida’s “letdown” game.
Now that they’re back home, back on national TV and hosting another Top 25 team, I expect the Bulls to be very much rejuvenated and eager to prove to the world that A) their 5-0 start, which including a 17-7 win at then-No. 18 Florida State, was not a fluke, and B) they’re much better than they’ve shown the last two weeks.
I do acknowledge that South Florida freshman QB B.J. Daniels is going to have to step up his game, as he’s clearly regressed the last two weeks. But the kid does have skills, and I trust that underrated USF coach Jim Leavitt will get him fixed. This much is known: He’s got the kind of speed and athleticism that can give West Virginia’s defense fits.
As for the Mountaineers, I not so sure they’re not a fraud. They got pushed around by UConn last week, with the Huskies’ pedestrian offense putting up 501 yards. If not for a big second half by talented West Virginia’s talented running back Noel Devine – whose 56-yard TD run with 2:10 to play erased a 24-21 deficit and gave the Mountaineers a 28-24 win – UConn would’ve won that game as a 7½-point underdog. West Virginia also struggled to put away the likes of East Carolina, Colorado and Marshall, and the best team they faced to this point – Auburn – beat the Mountaineers 41-30 (and Auburn has since proven to be a fraud, too).
South Florida has been a tough matchup for West Virginia since joining the Big East, with the teams splitting four meetings and the Bulls cashing in the last three (all as a ‘dog). That includes a 21-13 home win as a 7-point ‘dog in 2007 when West Virginia was ranked fifth in the nation.
Bottom line: The Bulls have the team speed, especially on defense, to give West Virginia trouble all year. And with the way they force turnovers (and with the Mountaineers give up the football), we could see some easy scores for the home team. South Florida is 13-6 ATS in its last 19 home games, while West Virginia has failed to cover in seven of its last nine overall (1-4 ATS last five), going 2-6 ATS as a favorite. Look for South Florida to take the field with a chip on its shoulder and win this game outright (though we’ll take the points just to be safe).