Indiancowboy
(POD): Take Over 228.5 between Golden State Warriors @ Denver Nuggets (sat @ 9pm est).
The Magic can flat out play and keep in mind this team has a mission to prove this year and that is to win the Eastern Conference. But, more importantly, we don't care about that. We want to see this game go over. In fact, today should be called over day with respect to our NBA Card as we are pending on 3 overs throughout the day. The Magic will likely be without the services of Howard and the Jazz are still likely without the servies of Boozer. Now, why is this important? Well, yes, it does take away some offense. But, it also takes away defense and post-presence play. These two teams will rely on the perimeter and I will leave it up to both teams to raise the bar in scoring so each will have to keep up pace with the other. Thus, R. Lewis and Hedo will be taking the scoring load from shootin behind the arc along with Nelson and you better believe ol' boy Williams, Brewer, Okur and sharp shooting Korver will all take the scoring load on their shoulders and tee it up from behind the arc as well. Thus, with limited post presence I expect less defense, less post play and more offense and more perimeter shooting. The over is 4-1 for the Magic when they are road dogs as well as the fact the over is 5-1 for the Jazz when they play winning teams at home which in turn pushes their active dog status higher and conequently games push over.
Take Over 186.5 between Cleveland Cavs @ Atlanta Hawks
You want to know something interesting? There is a trend with incredible consistency that has been hitting. The trend is the 186-188 rule. I want you to notice that this year, games that have totaled around 186-188 has hit at a tune of over 66%. Incredible right - that is the advantage of keeping up with statistics. Now, grantd, this game could very well go below the posted total. However, I like several things and you should too. For one, the Hawks will be an active dog this game. While the Cavs are the hottest team in the league right now ATS as they are 19-4 ATS and covered over 10 straight, it is suicide to bet against this team. But, this is a Saturday night game in Hotlanta. You better believe things will be rocking here and I would not be a bit surprised to see the Hawks win outright. Why not? Hawks have renvge, the public supports the Cavs of over 75% and the Hawks will be an active dog and Cleveland will continue to make a statement to the Eastern Conference. Either way, I am not going aginst the Cavs. In that same token, I can take the over in an indirect way as I expect the Hawks to put up at leas 90 points here and the Cavs to match pace. The over is 5-0 for the Hawks when they face teams with a road winning record of over 60% and the Cavs are 4-1 to the over when they face teams with a home winning % of greater than 60% - meaning that when these teams play the better teams in the league, games are competitive and consequently they go over.
Take Long Beach State +17.5 over Syracuse
I'm actually am a fan of Long Beach State. This team just lost a tough game at Weber State but note that was a revenge game for Weber State who Long Beach State beat earlier this year. LB comes off back to back losses including a tough road loss to San Fran as well in overtime. Don't forget that LB lost by just 10 to BYU 65-75 and they were dogged by 19.5 points in that game. Then LB went on the road to play Wisconsin and lost by 7 points by a score of 61-68 and they were dogged by 22.5 points in that game. I think this is a game that LB can do very well in this game. After all, Syracuse only defeated Cornell by about 10 points at home and how do you get up for a team like LB State? I look for a strong start from LB State as by no means is this team intimidated bythe better teams in the nation including BYU, Wisconsin and playing Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament a few years ago. LB has sound scoring and I think they hang very tough here all day and hit the cover. The Orange are 0-4 ATS in their last four home games and I think they lose another home cover here as well.
Take Indiana Hoosiers +16.5 over the Kentucky Wildcats
Indiana just defeated TCU at home and frankly, that was a big win for this program – this year. They have very few scholarship players and have covered back to back games. Why are they showing improvement? Well, despite all the hell this program has gone through, they have a great coach from Marquette. They recently lost to Gonzaga by just 16 points and easily covered the 22.5 point spread. Heck, they only lost to a team like Wake Forest by 25 points and did cover against Cornell as well winning by 15 points. Now, this might seem nuts to say that a team only lost to another team by 25 points this year. But, keep in mind that Kentucky should not be within the same realm of a Wake Forest this year. Kentucky comes off a big win against MSVAS but even that team they only defeated by 20 points. I think Indiana hangs very tough here as they have shown vast improvement over the last few games. Besides, this is likely to be a half court game with defense taking precedent and I have Kentucky winning by 12 points as compared to a line of 17 here which I think is too much value for the Wildcats. The Hoosiers are 5-1 ATS as an underdog of 13 points or more and the Wildcats are 0-6 ATS coming off a win of 20 points or more.
Take Texas A&M Aggies +3.5 over Alabama
You know, I was really tempted to take the ML here. We have it at +147 and putting up 3 units on it would actually help us yield a total of about 4.5 units. But, you know, our luck would lead to the Tide winning by a last second shot. Besides, this is likely to be a game within the mid 60's for both teams and consequently the 3 points could be significant here. Look, the Aggies are good. In fact, they are an early surprise this year given how well they have played. You want to know who else is a surprise? Alabama. But, Bama is a surprise for the wrong reasons. This team had a wealth of talent coming back but even with all this talent, it has only put Mark G. on the hot seat as early on they lost to the Mercer Bears (my alma mater) and they lost to Oregon by nearly 30 in the Maui Classic. This was an embarassment to this program. The Aggies have great defense and solid scoring all the way around. The Aggies have the edge in points per game, field goal %, fewer turnovers and a stronger bench. The Aggies just beat Arizona at home and four players including Carter, Davis, Sloan and Holmes all scored in double-digits. Look for the Aggies to continue play strong basketball as they lost the last road game they took part in and I see a stronger effort on thier part today. Bama has not done well against the better teams in the nation and the Aggies are 4-0 ATS as road underdogs of late.
The Consensus Group Guaranteed Selections
6000* NHL LATE STEAM MONEY LINE WINNER
New Jersey -160
ATS Financial Package
4 Utah +13
4 Georgetown -5
3 Alabama -3.5
Should be caught up now guys
Had to take some time and enjoy our xmas lunch at work 😀
Jeffersonsports
East Carolina -13.5
Akmens
NHL
New Jersey
Youngstown Connection
Cleveland -4
AKMENS
CBB
10* Crieghton over 144.5
10* Memohis under 139
10* St Marys under any total
10* Eastern Kentucky +4
NBA
10* Houston -5
10* Dallas over 205
NHL
10* New Jersey -115
10* Rangers -145
10* Montreal -140
10* Ottowa -155
10* detroit -145
Youngstown Connection
Texas A&M +3.5
Ben Burns
MILWAUKEE
I'm laying the points with MILWAUKEE. The situation favors the home team in this one. The Bucks haven't played since Wednesday while the Pacers played last night. Note that Indiana is a money-burning 5-10-1 ATS the last 16 times that it played the second of back to back games and an ugly 66-90-6 ATS its last 162 in that situation. Last night's game was particularly gruelling, too. That's because the Pacers were behind by double-digits in the second half but battled all the way back to take the lead only to come up just short. They even had the ball in the final 10 seconds, down by just two points. That type of loss can be very difficult to bounce back from, particularly when playing the very next day. The Bucks have struggled on the road but they've been much better at home, where they boast a winning record and have gone 6-3 ATS. They're already 4-1 SU/ATS as favorites and 3-0 SU/ATS as home favorites in the -3.5 to -6 range. Overall, they're an impressive 6-1 SU/ATS against teams with a losing record. Look for the Bucks to be the fresher team as they continue their strong homecourt play by earning the win and cover. *6 Personal Favorite
Wizards/76ers OVER
I'm playing on Philadelphia and Washington to finish OVER the total. These teams both just faced an elite defense in their last game. The 76ers come off back to back games vs. Cleveland, currently the #1 defense in the NBA, and were held to a mere 72 last night. Meanwhile, Washington hosted Boston, currently the #2 defense, on Thursday and managed only 88 points. Note that the Wizards, who have seen the OVER go 5-2-1 after allowing 105 or more points, did give up a whopping 122 points themselves in that game. Anyway, my point about both teams having faced top defenses is that they should be much happier to see a lesser defense today. The 76ers don't always run as much as they'd like to but they would definitely prefer an up-tempo game. That typically suits the Wizards just fine, too. Indeed, the Wizards have seen their road games average 205.3 points this season. As mentioned, the 76ers played last night. Different teams tend to react differently when playing the second of back to back games and its important to know each team's tendencies in that situation. Philadelphia has been a team which has shown a tendency to play games which are higher-scoring than expected, when on the backend of a back to back spot. In fact, the OVER is 4-1 the last five times that the 76ers played the second of back to back games and a profitable 14-6 the last 20 times that they were in that situation. Looking at the history between these teams and we find the OVER at 4-1 the last five series meetings and 14-5 the last 19. I look for a fast-paced game and for those numbers to improve with the final combined score finishing above the relatively low number. * Blue Chip