Daily Sports Roundup
Friday, November 27
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Cavaliers play in Charlotte, the Rockets host the Spurs, and three college football teams look to keep perfect marks intact.
Colliding on the gridiron . . .
There are three unbeaten teams in action around college football on Friday, with No. 5 Cincinnati (10-0 SU, 5-4 ATS) hosting Illinois, No. 6 Boise State (11-0 SU, 8-2 ATS) hosting Nevada, and No. 2 Alabama (11-0 SU, 7-4 ATS) playing on the road against Auburn. The Crimson Tide blanked Chattanooga 45-0 last week, with Mark Ingram rushing for 102 yards and two scores. Alabama has been listed as a 10-point favorite for Friday's contest, with the total for the game at 46 points.
Cincinnati is favored by 21 points in their Friday matchup, while Boise State is giving 14 points to the opposition. The other ranked team in action on Friday is No. 8 Pittsburgh (9-1 SU, 6-3 ATS), as they play on the road against conference rival West Virginia (7-3 SU, 3-6 ATS). The Panthers knocked off Notre Dame 27-22 in their last game two weeks ago, with Bill Stull throwing for 236 yards and a touchdown. The Panthers and Mountaineers will play out this game as a pick'em.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA offers up 10 games on Friday, including San Antonio at Houston in an all-Texas matchup. The Spurs improved to 8-6 on the season with a 118-104 home win over Golden State on Wednesday night, as Tony Parker poured in 32 points. Tim Duncan picked up 20 points and 10 boards in that win. The Rockets are 8-8 after falling 130-99 to Dallas at home on Wednesday. Carl Landry tossed in 24 points off the bench in that defeat, and Trevor Ariza was good for 20 points.
Also on the NBA schedule for Friday: Washington at Miami, Atlanta at Philadelphia, Toronto at Boston, Dallas at Indiana, the Clippers at Detroit, New York at Denver, Milwaukee at Oklahoma City, Phoenix at Minnesota, Memphis at Portland, New Jersey at Sacramento, and Cleveland at Charlotte. LeBron James and the Cavaliers are coming off a 98-88 road win over the Pistons on Wednesday night. James tossed in a game-high 34 points for Cleveland that day.
College basketball tournaments on the schedule for Friday include the Old Spice Classic, 76 Classic, Legends Classic, and Preseason NIT, which will stage its championship game between No. 13 Connecticut and No. 7 Duke. The Huskies got past LSU by a score of 81-55 in the semi-finals on Wednesday night, as Kemba Walker and Jerome Dyson each tossed in 20 points. The Blue Devils beat Arizona State 64-53 on Wednesday. Jon Scheyer had 16 points in that win.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, there are a dozen games on the NHL schedule for Friday, with New Jersey at Boston, Buffalo at Philadelphia, Colorado at Minnesota, Pittsburgh at the Islanders, Chicago at Anaheim, Calgary at Detroit, Toronto at Florida, the Rangers at Tampa Bay, St. Louis at Nashville, Dallas at Phoenix, San Jose at Edmonton, and Atlanta at Carolina. The Thrashers blanked the Red Wings 2-0 on Wednesday night, with Ondrej Pavelec making 40 saves in the shutout victory.
Friday's Wagering Tips
Last game in Louisville?
Steve Kragthorpe is likely on the outs in Louisville, but by the way his team is playing, you wouldn't think so.
The Cardinals are 15-20 in three seasons under Kragthorpe but have rallied lately going 3-1 ATS in their last four games and winning their last three games straight up at home.
Louisville will host Rutgers as a 3-point underdog Friday. The total is set at 44. The teams have split the last four meetings ATS, with the last three games going over the total.
Rangers roughed up
It is possible that the New York Rangers will have to visit the Tampa Bay Lightning without two of their key veteran players.
The Rangers are listed at -104, but could be without defenseman Wade Redden and right winger Ales Kotalik who are both battling injuries. Although Kotalik (strained ribcage) is officially listed as a game-time decision, he is unlikely to play unless he shows drastic improvement.
Redden will be out for up to a week with an upper body injury that is believed to be his right shoulder.
The total for this game is 5.5.
Injuries continue to mount for Pistons
It looks like Ben Gordon will be joining Tayshaun Prince and Richard Hamilton on the sidelines for at least the next few games.
Gordon suffered a sprained left ankle in Wednesday's 98-88 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers as 5.5-point underdogs and is unlikely to suit up to face the Los Angeles Clippers Friday night.
Gordon leads Detroit in scoring averaging 19.8 points per game and when asked about the extent of the injury, replied, "I have no idea."
The Pistons have lost six straight games, going 2-4 ATS during that span.
Tinsley the answer, not Iverson.
Veteran point guard Jamaal Tinsley is providing the type of play that Memphis was hoping to get from Allen Iverson this season.
In the last two games, Tinsley has seen his playing time increase from around five minutes per game to over 20 minutes as he gives starting guard Mike Conley some valuable rest.
It appears that the boost in minutes will be good for both player and team. Tinsley has scored 19 points and dished out five assists since the expanded role and has been perfect from the free-throw line. In those two games, the Grizzlies have seen their offensive output grow from 100 points per game to over 113.
Memphis has played over the total in four straight contests and will visit the Portland Trail Blazers as a 12-point underdog Friday, The total is 194.
Lidstrom to be limited
Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom averages 24:41 minutes this season but with Detroit playing seven times in 11 days starting Friday, look for the 39 year old to get his minutes reduced in an attempt to keep him from tiring out.
The six-time Norris Trophy winner has struggled offensively to start the season. Lidstrom, who has averaged over 58 points per season over his 18-year career has only one goal and seven points to date, but is fourth in the NHL at plus-11.
The Red Wings are listed at -130 as they host Calgary Friday, with the total at 5.5 goals.
Notable quotable
"Honestly, my thought on that is, I would like to petition Mr. Goodell and say, if a coach can talk to me like that, I should be able to fight him."
Steelers safety Ryan Clark, on Denver Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels' taunting of San Diego Chargers linebacker Shaun Phillips.