Daily Sports Roundup
Friday, November 13
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Nets try to get a win in Orlando, the Hawks meet the Celtics, and Cincinnati tries to stay perfect against West Virginia.
Colliding on the gridiron . . .
College football offers up a pair of games on Friday, with Temple at Akron and West Virginia at No. 5 Cincinnati. The unbeaten Bearcats (9-0 SU, 5-3 ATS) got past Connecticut 47-45 last week, with Zach Collaros going 29-of-37 for 480 yards and a touchdown strike in the win. The Mountaineers (7-2 SU, 2-6 ATS) beat Louisville 17-9 in their last contest. Cincinnati is listed as a 9-point home favorite for Friday's contest, and the total for the game has been set at 54 points.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
There are nine games on the NBA's schedule for Friday, including Atlanta at Boston. The Hawks (6-2 SU, 7-1 ATS) won 114-101 in New York in their last game, as Al Horford scored a game-high 25 points and Josh Smith picked up 22 points and 12 rebounds. The Celtics (8-1 SU, 5-4 ATS) had no trouble with Utah last time out, cruising to a 105-86 home win. Kevin Garnett led Boston's attack with 18 points in that victory, while Rajon Rondo added 14 points and 11 assists.
Elsewhere around the NBA on Friday it'll be Utah at Philadelphia, Golden State at New York, Portland at New Orleans, Dallas at Minnesota, Houston at Sacramento, the Lakers at Denver, Toronto at the Clippers, and New Jersey at Orlando. The Nets (0-8 SU, 3-4-1 ATS) remain the only winless team in the league. New Jersey lost 82-79 at home to Philadelphia last time out, with Brook Lopez scoring 23 points and adding 14 assists for the team in that losing cause.
As well, No. 1 Kansas hosts Hofstra on a busy night for college basketball on Friday. It'll also be Florida Gulf Coast at No. 2 Michigan State, Morehead State at No. 4 Kentucky, Fairleigh Dickinson at No. 5 Villanova, N.C. Greensboro at No. 9 Duke, Austin Peay at No. 10 Tennessee, and William & Mary at No. 12 UConn.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, there are six games in the National Hockey League on Friday, with the Islanders at Carolina, Minnesota at Washington, Anaheim at Columbus, Calgary at Buffalo, Los Angeles at Atlanta, and Toronto at Chicago. The Maple Leafs are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Wild on Tuesday night, with Jonas Gustavsson allowing four goals on 30 shots. The Hawks slipped past Colorado 3-2 in a shootout on Wednesday, with Patrick Kane and Cam Barker scoring in regulation.
Today's Helpful Tips
Friday, November 13
Big man will be missed
The 1-8 Minnesota Timberwolves will be without leading scorer Al Jefferson for at least the next two games as he has left the team to be with a family member that has fallen ill.
Although Jefferson has struggled in his return from offseason knee surgery, Minnesota will sorely miss his presence down low as it tries to halt an eight-game losing streak in which it went 3-5 ATS.
They will host Dallas as 11-point underdogs Friday. The total is set at 196.
Jazzing things up?
Deron Williams tweeted that, "We got to change something bc what we doing ain't working right now!" and coach Jerry Sloan might be ready to listen.
Starters Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur were benched in the second half of Utah's 105-86 loss to the Celtics Wednesday after combining for only 19 points and five rebounds.
When asked if there was a chance that Paul Milsap would replace Boozer in the starting lineup, Sloan replied, "I don't know. I don't know who it will be. But I'll have to make that decision when it comes down to it."
Oddsmakers have the Jazz favored by 1-point as they visit the 76ers. The total is set at 199.
Alex the Great on the way
Alexander Ovechkin participated in full practice Thursday and even fired slap shots, proving that his injured shoulder is on the mend. Coach Bruce Boudreau wouldn't rule out the star sniper's return against Minnesota Friday but Ovechkin sounded like it could be longer.
"I'm getting closer," he said. "I still need probably couple days."
The Capitals visit New Jersey Saturday. Oddsmakers have yet to post lines for those games.
Big boost for WVU
The Mountaineers are coming off their worst offensive showing of the season and will need all of their weapons if they are going to beat No. 5 Cincinnati and keep their BCS hopes alive.
Luckily, quarterback Jarrett Brown and running back Noel Devine have recovered from their ankle injuries that forced them to miss part of last week's 17-9 win over Louisville. The injury is still bothering Devine, and coach Bill Stewart will be planning to go to Jock Sanders if Devine struggles.
"He's gotten nicked up a little bit. He'll be OK," Stewart said. "If it's meant to be, it's meant to be."
Cincinnati is favored by 9.5-points with the total set at 55.5.
Blueline Blues
The Toronto Maple Leafs will be without All-star defenseman Mike Komisarek for at least three weeks after he suffered a tear of his quad muscle in a collision with Detroit's Todd Bertuzzi Saturday night.
“You don’t want an injury to somebody like Mike Komisarek,” coach Ron Wilson said.
The prize free agent acquisition was brought in to provide toughness and leadership to a team that is rebuilding around a core of young players.
Oddsmakers have Toronto listed at +178 for Friday's game at Chicago with the total set at 6.
Pike to make appearance
Zach Collaros will start for Cincinnati against West Virginia Friday, but coach Brian Kelly announced that Tony Pike will also see some snaps. Collaros was spectacular in place of Pike last Saturday throwing for 480 yards during a 47-45 win over Connecticut. Regardless of who is under center, Kelly is comfortable with his quarterback.
"The nice part about it is that our football team has absolutely no concerns over who's leading them, if it's Zach or Tony. That's a great thing to have.
The Bearcats are trying to get the injured quarterback some reps before their bye week and Pike's contribution will most likely be limited to handoffs and short passes as he heals from an injury to his non-throwing arm.
Cincinnati is favored by 9.5-points with the total set at 56.
Notable quotable
"I stay in Atlanta during the offseason, so if Mike Smith wants to see me, he can definitely find me."
Washington Redskins defensive back DeAngelo Hall, regarding Atlanta Falcons coach Mike Smith's comment that he would always have his players backs.