Hollywood Sports
Detroit Pistons at Utah Jazz
Prediction: Detroit Pistons
Detroit (11-22) come off a rough 92-75 loss in Phoenix where the Suns decision to trap Tracy McGrady at point guard stymied a Pistons team that could not successfully adapt to this tactic until the 3rd quarter. With two days off as well as the return of starting point guard Rodney Stuckey, Detroit should play better tonight. The Pistons have covered 4 straight games after a loss. They also have covered 6 of their last 7 games as an underdog. Utah (23-11) comes off a 98-92 win over Memphis but they have failed to cover the spread in 6 of their last 7 games coming off a win. They will be shorthanded tonight as center Mehmet Okur is out with a lower back injury while 6th man C.J. Miles will likely not play due to the flu. The Pistons should play with better energy and keep this one close. Take the points with Detroit.
Nick “The BookieKiller” Parsons
Islanders @ Flames
PICK: Under 5.5
For a number of different reasons I believe the value in this contest is on the "under":
The Isles have seen the total go "under" the number in 17 of 34 to start the year, with two "pushes", including in 9 of 18 on the road; on the 31st they beat Detroit on the road 4-3 in OT.
After an extended period of losing, New York has won six of its last eight overall.
Significant to note that the Isles have seen the total go "under" the number in three of four this year when playing with two-days of rest.
On the other side of the ice are the Calgary Flames who have seen the total go "under" the number in 21 of 37, with two "pushes"; on New Years day they won on the road in Edmonton 2-1.
The Flames are hot right now, having won their last four games, including tough ones at Dallas, vs. Buffalo and Colorado.
Calgary has seen the total go "under" the number in five of nine non-conference games.
Bottom line: Both teams are playing extremely well right now.
New York has won two if its last three visits to Calgary, and will be backstopped by Rick DiPietro who has won his last two starts, in stopping 67 of 70 shots; he's 2-0 with a 2.88 GAA vs. the Flames.
Expect a hard hitting, closely checked, tight affair; consider a second look at the "under" in this situation.
OC Dooley
St. Johns +2.5
For those not aware this is the initial season of Steve Lavin has St. Johns head coach. This is the same Lavin that back in 1995 led UCLA to a national title and was eventually forced out of the job becoming an ESPN analyst. For the moment Lavin has done a solid job with the Red Storm (9-3) who are off to their best start in league play (2-0) in a solid decade. It was two years ago when St. Johns actually hosted Georgetown twice in the month of March at Madison Square Garden and defeated them twice on the scoreboard, which helped the Hoyas get shut out of an NCAA Tournament appearance. The location of tonight’s game is important for the Red Storm who are playing 3 of their initial 4 Big East Conference games on the highway. St. John’s has already traveled to the states of California and Alaska for pre-season tournaments, so they have not had all that many opportunities to play at Madison Square Garden which will be wired for a visit tonight from a highly-ranked opponent. Tonight marks the first time St. John’s will be up against a Top-25 ranked opponent and will use this as a measuring-stick so to speak. On New Years Day the Hoyas of Georgetown failed to cover the spread as a 22-point favorite and are now on an 0-2 “spread slide” after completing a massive 8-1 ATS tear. As for St. John’s the Red Storm have COVERED 3 games in a row after starting this season 1-6 ATS. Keep an eye tonight on St. John’s senior guard Dwight Hardy who is averaging more than 20 points in a pair of contests against Big East conference opponents