Daily Sports Roundup
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Cavaliers play host to the Raptors, the Capitals meet the Penguins, and the Yankees and BoSox battle at Fenway Park.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
After a one-day break the NBA returns with nine games on Tuesday: Detroit at Philadelphia, Golden State at Washington, Atlanta at Charlotte, Boston at New York, Milwaukee at Chicago, Houston at Memphis, Oklahoma City at Utah, San Antonio at Sacramento, and Toronto at Cleveland. The Raptors (38-38 SU, 36-40 ATS) are still clinging to the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference, and they didn't help their cause with a 113-112 loss to Golden State on Sunday. The Cavs (60-17 SU, 35-40-2 ATS) fell 117-113 in Boston in their Sunday outing, but they're 2-1 this season against a Raptors team they might meet in the first round.
Meeting up on the diamond . . .
There are just four games on the American League schedule for Tuesday, with Baltimore at Tampa Bay, Minnesota at the Angels, Seattle at Oakland, and the Yankees at Boston. The Red Sox won their season opener against the Yankees on Sunday night, rallying in the final three innings for a 9-7 victory. Boston's Jon Lester will take on New York's A.J. Burnett on Tuesday as the teams get back to business following a day off. Lefthander Lester went 15-8 for the BoSox last season, posting a 3.41 and 225 strikeouts in 203.1 innings. Righthander Burnett was 13-9 last year, compiling a 4.04 ERA and 195 strikeouts over his 207 innings.
Meanwhile, there are just three games on the National League slate for Tuesday, with Colorado at Milwaukee, San Diego at Arizona, and San Francisco at Houston. The Giants will hand the ball to Barry Zito on Tuesday night; lefthander Zito had a 10-13 record for San Francisco last season, with a 4.03 ERA and 154 strikeouts over his 192 innings of work. The Astros will counter Zito with Wandy Rodriguez; lefthander Rodriguez was 14-12 for Houston last year with a 3.02 ERA. Rodriguez also struck out 193 batters over 205.2 innings in the '09 season.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, the National Hockey League offers up an 11-game slate for Tuesday, including a marquee matchup between the Capitals and Penguins in Pittsburgh. The 45-26-7 Penguins got back into the win column last time out, knocking off Atlanta by a score of 4-3 on Saturday. Evgeni Malkin, Sergei Gonchar, Tyler Kennedy, and Jordan Leopold (in overtime) scored for Pittsburgh in that comeback win. The Penguins, though, are 0-3 in three games so far this season against a Capitals team that has now wrapped up the Eastern Conference title.
Also on the ice on Tuesday: the Rangers at Buffalo, Ottawa at Florida, Philadelphia at Toronto, New Jersey at Atlanta, Montreal at the Islanders, Carolina at Tampa Bay, Chicago at Dallas, Los Angeles at Anaheim, San Jose at Calgary, and Colorado at Vancouver. The 40-30-9 Flames and 42-29-7 Avalanche continue to battle for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference; Calgary fell 4-1 in Chicago in their last game on Sunday, while Colorado beat San Jose 5-4 the same day. The Avalanche have a two-point lead on the Flames.
Tuesday's Wagering Tips
Lines off the board
Detroit Pistons at Philadelphia 76ers – Richard Hamilton (ankle) has missed the team’s last three games and is questionable. Samuel Dalembert (hip) and Andre Iguodala (foot) are expected to play.
Atlanta Hawks at Charlotte Bobcats – Joe Johnson (thumb) will not play in Tuesday’s game. Stephen Jackson (hamstring) removed himself from Sunday’s game but is expected to play.
Houston Rockets at Memphis Grizzlies – Rudy Gay (back) experienced stiffness in his back after Sunday’s game and is probable.
Washington Capitals at Pittsburgh Penguins – Brendan Morrison (groin) has missed the last four games and is doubtful.
Colorado Avalanche at Vancouver Canucks – Peter Mueller (head) is out indefinitely after sustaining a head injury in the last game.
Lines to keep an eye on
The spread in the Raptors-Cavs game has plummeted from an opener of 9 points down to 6.5 in favor of Cleveland. Toronto is in a must-win situation and there is speculation that LeBron James could be out for the game because of rest.
The Knicks have moved from 5- to 6-point underdogs at home versus the Celtics. Boston is 2-5 ATS in its last six games.
The total in the Thunder-Jazz game opened at 208.5 and has been bet up to 210.5. Oklahoma City has played to four straight overs.
The Diamondbacks opened as -175 favorites over San Diego for Tuesday’s game but that number can be found as low as -158 now.
Some sportsbooks are offering the total of the Twins-Angels game at 9.5 after opening at 9.
The A’s opened as -150 favorites against the Mariners but that number has dropped to -130 in some markets.
Weather report
There is a 60 percent chance of rain during the Rockies-Brewers game in Milwaukee on Tuesday.
Scattered thunderstorms are expected to bring a 60 percent chance of precipitation during the Indians-White Sox game. Wind will be blowing at 15 mph across the diamond.
Who’s hot
Oklahoma City is 3-0 ATS in its last three games as an underdog.
The Ducks are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games.
Who’s not
Houston is 3-7 SU and 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games.
The Lightning are 3-7 SU in their last 10 outings.
Key stat
21-1 – Road record for the Boston Celtics in games versus Atlantic Division opponents since the 2007-08 season. The last road division defeat for the Celtics came against New York on Jan. 4 of last season and the team has won 12 straight since.
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
The Milwaukee Bucks will be without their center Andrew Bogut for the remainder of the season. Bogut suffered multiple injuries in a gruesome fall during Saturday night's game against the Phoenix Suns. Along with a broken hand, Bogut dislocated his right elbow when he crashed to the floor. Bogut is the team’s leading rebounder (10.2 rpg) and second-leading scorer (15.9 ppg). This loss could greatly affect the Bucks heading into the playoffs. Kurt Thomas and Ersan Ilyasova are expected to eat up Bogut’s minutes.
Game of the Day
Oklahoma City Thunder at Utah Jazz (-5.5, 210.5)
Notable quotable
"Tonight they wouldn't let Ron play the way he played prior to [the technical foul call]. [Ginobili] could hook Ron; [Artest] didn't get what was going on and ended up getting too many fouls on him. The way we ended up the half I think turned the referees against us and when you do that, that's an unfortunate thing.”
Lakers coach Phil Jackson said after Sunday’s home loss versus the Spurs. Jackson’s tirade cost him a $35,000 league fine.
Tips and notes
The Jazz are very concerned about gaining home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs. Utah is 31-8 at home this season (26-11-2 ATS) and currently sits in a four-way tie for second place in the Western Conference. Carlos Boozer said last week the “the biggest thing for our team is being able to play at home” because the Jazz are “an average road team”. Utah plays two of its final five games in Salt Lake City.
The elderly Spurs will be playing their sixth game in nine days on Tuesday. San Antonio will also be a man short as starting point guard George Hill is expected to miss the team’s next two games. Manu Ginobili has been as hot as any player in the league recently but he has also missed time with back problems. The young and energetic Kings might be able to stay inside the 6-point spread in Sacramento in a game that might not mean too much for San Antonio.
With Boston having lost three of its last four games (1-3 ATS) and nearly blowing a huge lead against the Cavs on Sunday, coach Doc Rivers is making some changes. He told the media that Nate Robinson and Marquis Daniels will be out of the regular rotation and Tony Allen and Michael Finley will fill their minutes. Rivers said Daniels and Robinson will have to play their way back into the lineup. Finley and Allen combined for nine points Sunday.