Daily Sports Roundup April 11
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Masters wraps up in Augusta, while the Raptors play host to the Bulls, and the Rangers gun for a victory in Philadelphia.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA offers up seven games on Sunday, with Orlando at Cleveland, Portland at the Lakers, Miami at New York, Minnesota at New Orleans, Oklahoma City at Golden State, Houston at Phoenix, and Chicago at Toronto. The Bulls and Raptors are tied for eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings at 38-41 after both teams lost on Friday night. Toronto (minus Chris Bosh) was defeated 107-101 on the road by the Hawks on Friday despite Amir Johnson's 18 points and 13 rebounds. The Bulls fell 127-116 in double overtime to the Nets on the road Friday; Derrick Rose had 25 points and six assists for Chicago in the defeat.
Meeting up on the diamond . . .
The American League slate for Sunday has Cleveland at Detroit, Toronto at Baltimore, the Yankees at Tampa Bay, Boston at Kansas City, Seattle at Texas, Oakland at the Angels, and Minnesota at the White Sox. The Twins will send Nick Blackburn to the mound for Sunday's contest; righthander Blackburn won his season debut against the Angels, allowing three earned runs on eight hits over his 6 2-3 innings of work. The White Sox will counter with Mark Buehrle; lefthander Buehrle dazzled the Indians in his first start of 2010, tossing seven shutout innings while giving up just three hits. Buehrle also fanned three batters.
Over in the National League on Sunday it'll be the Cubs at Cincinnati, the Dodgers at Florida, Washington at the Mets, San Diego at Colorado, Atlanta at San Francisco, Pittsburgh at Arizona, St. Louis at Milwaukee, and Philadelphia at Houston. Roy Halladay will make his second start for the Phillies on Sunday afternoon; righthander Halladay had no problem in his NL debut earlier in the week, surrendering just one earned run on six hits over seven innings in a win over the Nationals. The Astros will go with Roy Oswalt on Sunday; righthander Oswalt gave up three runs over six innings in a loss to San Francisco on Monday.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
There are eight games on the NHL's schedule for Sunday as the league closes out its regular season: Boston at Washington, Detroit at Chicago, Los Angeles at Colorado, Buffalo at New Jersey, Pittsburgh at the Islanders, Tampa Bay at Florida, Edmonton at Anaheim, and the Rangers at Philadelphia. New York kept its playoff hopes alive with a 4-3 home win over the Flyers on Friday night; Marian Gaborik had the game-winning goal (his 42nd of the year) in that contest, while Henrik Lundqvist made 24 saves. The Rangers and the Flyers are tied for eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings with 86 points on the season.
Rounding out the Roundup . . .
Finally, the 2010 edition of The Masters wraps up on Sunday, with Lee Westwood holding a one-stroke lead on Phil Mickelson after three days of play; Westwood sits at 12-under for the tournament after shooting a 4-under 68 on Saturday, while Mickelson is at 11-under after going 5-under on Saturday. K.J. Choi and Tiger Woods are tied for third place at 8-under heading into the final day of the major tournament, while Fred Couples is alone in fifth place at 7-under.
Sunday's Wagering Tips
Lines off the board
Orlando Magic at Cleveland Cavaliers: With home-court advantage secured through the playoffs, the Cavs are considering rest LeBron James.
Portland Trail Blazers at Los Angeles Lakers: With the top seed in the West secured, the Lakers may rest Kobe Bryant (finger).
Minnesota Timberwolves at New Orleans Hornets: T-wolves center Al Jefferson (personal) is questionable.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden State Warriors: Thunder center Nenad Krstic (knee) and Warriors guard Monta Ellis (flu) are doubtful.
Boston Bruins at Washington Capitals: Capitals defenseman Milan Jurcina (hernia) is questionable.
Lines to keep an eye on
Chicago Bulls at Toronto Raptors: The Bulls opened as 1-point picks over the Raptors and leaped to 2.5-point favorites at most shops.
Miami Heat at New York Knicks: The Heat opened as 4.5-point favorites and quickly jumped to 5-point picks at some books.
Who's hot
The Raptors have won five in a row over the Bulls by an average margin of 13 points per game.
Miami Heat are 9-1 SU in their last 10.
Orlando Magic are 6-1 SU in their last seven.
Chicago Blackhawks have won six in a row.
Washington Capitals have won five in a row.
Who's not
Minnesota Timberwolves are 1-20 SU in their last 21.
New Orleans Hornets are 1-7 SU in their last eight.
Houston Astros were MLB's only winless team (0-4) entering Saturday night's game.
Key stat
6 inches - The distance Phil Mickelson came from making his third consecutive eagle on Saturday, which would have been a first at the Masters.
Injury that shouldn't be overlooked
Golden State guard Monta Ellis will likely miss his seventh straight game with the flu and the Warriors have managed to win some without his 25.8 points per game in the lineup. However, the Warriors will have a hard time hanging with the streaking Oklahoma City Thunder's Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook without their best guard in the game. The Thunder should be able to run and shoot at will.
Game of the day
Cardinals at Brewers
Notable quotable
"There's a long way to go. It's only Saturday."
Tiger Woods, showing the confidence he's gained from past Masters' comebacks, said heading into Sunday's final round with a four-stroke deficit to Lee Westwood.
Tips and notes
If Dwyane Wade really is "Michael Jackson playing with a bunch of Titos," as Charles Barkley suggests, then at least one Tito has worked his way up to Janet status. Mario Chalmers has become Wade's primary replacement, a much-needed sub as the Heat get ready for the playoffs. Chalmers has picked up his scoring, assists and minutes during the Heat's 9-1 SU run and should continue to do so as the postseason approaches.
The Raptors and Bulls are battling for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and all signs seem to point to Toronto, which has won five straight over Chicago. But today's game has a few big differences: Toronto's Chris Bosh is out this time, Chicago's Joakim Noah is back in the lineup and red hot late in the year, and the Raptors are playing at home, which has been bad news for Toronto (2-11 ATS in their last 13 at home).
The Penguins appear ready to rest goalkeeper Marc-Andre Fleury for today's game against the New York Islanders to get him ready for the playoffs, but that leaves the Pens thin with backup options between the pipes. While Fleury is 37-20-4-2 on the season, the other three netminders are a combined 9-7-1-0, not exactly bringing confidence in the reserves. Look for the Islanders to have a big scoring day no matter who the Pens put between the pipes.