Bruce Marshall
Indiana Pacers at Portland Trailblazers
Pick: Indiana Pacers
Who would have pegged this a matchup of the hottest teams in the league a month ago? Maybe Indiana's inclusion would have been no surprise, but Portland continues to excel, its win streak at 11 (9-2 vs. line in those game) prior to Nov. 27 tilt at Phoenix. Pacers will have to pay attention to LaMarcus Aldridge, who had totaled 48 points and 35 rebounds despite shooting 14 for 41 in his last two games thru Nov. 26. But not sure we want to buck the equally-hot Pacers, who, after ranking 10th with 94.4 ppg allowed in 2011-12 and second with 90.7 last season, have been better while giving up a league-best 87.4 this year. The Pacers also top the NBA with a 39.2 defensive field-goal percentage, well below last year's league-leading mark of 42.0. Indiana won 13 of 14 to open a season for the first time in franchise history, including its ABA days with Mel Daniels & Co.
Mid-Major Matt
Wright State at Morehead State
Pick: Morehead State -3
Morehead State hosts Wright State in an intriguing battle of mid major teams. The Eagles are 6-3 and are returning home after a weekend in Las Vegas at the Las Vegas Invitational. Morehead has won two of their last three and is 2-0 at home with wins over Mid-Continent and Marshall. They have been tested with games against Xavier and UCLA already this season. Angelo Warner leads four double digit scorers this season putting up 17.3 points per game. Wright State is 5-3 out of the Horizon League. The Raiders begin the first of four on the road. SO far they've lost away from home to Georgetown, DePaul and South Alabama. Wright State is led by AJ Pacher who scores 11.4 points per game. They have failed to cover in all five of their lined games this season. Meanwhile, Morehead State has covered in four of six. Last year, Wright State held to form at home beating Morehead 66-57. The Eagles get revenge and the win on Monday.
OC Dooley
Blazers +1.5
For those who follow the NBA visiting Indiana (16-1) has been an amazing story, but tonight’s line is near a pick-em due to the fact that Portland (14-3) on a much quieter level is off to an excellent start as well. The difference between these two sides comes on offense where the Pacers are averaging just 97 points per game and will have problems keeping up with a Blazers attack that is led by reigning rookie-of-the-year and sensational point guard Damien Lillard. Portland as a team are hitting more than 41% percent of their long range attempts from behind the three-point stripe. For the entire season to date after playing a game on the road, Portland has made investors (8-1 ATS) a fortune. I will admit that Indiana has also been sensational (7-1 against the spread on the road) where it counts, but they have faced only ONE team that currently has an above .500 record which makes “strength of schedule” the key with this particular pick.