Daily Sports Roundup
March 27
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Rockets play host to the Lakers, while the Elite Eight offers up Butler vs. Kansas State, and West Virginia vs. Kentucky.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA has just five games on tap for Saturday, with Utah at Washington, Portland at New Orleans, New Jersey at Chicago, Dallas at Golden State, and the Lakers at Houston. The Rockets will be trying to shake off a three-game losing streak when they take to the hardwood against Los Angeles on Saturday; Houston fell 99-93 to the Clippers in their last game on Thursday night. The Rockets are just 1-2 against the Lakers so far this season, and they lost 88-79 in Los Angeles as a 7-point 'dog when the teams last met January 5. Kobe Bryant had 22 points for the Lakers that day. Carl Landry scored 19 points for Houston.
As well, the NCAA Tournament hits the Elite Eight round on Saturday, starting with No. 5 Butler vs. No. 2 Kansas State in a 4:30pm ET West Region matchup. Butler knocked off top-seeded Syracuse 63-59 in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night, while Kansas State is coming off a 101-96 double-OT win over Xavier. Oddsmakers have Kansas State as the 4.5-point favorite, with the total at 137.5. The second game then has No. 2 West Virginia taking on No. 1 Kentucky to decide the East Region. West Virginia beat Washington 69-56 on Thursday, while Kentucky cruised past Cornell in a 62-45 victory. The Wildcats are pegged as the 4-point favorites by the oddsmakers in that one, with the total set at 133.5.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, there are a dozen games on the busy National Hockey League schedule for Saturday, including a matinee matchup between the Flyers and Penguins in Philadelphia. The 37-31-6 Flyers are riding a four-game losing streak heading into Saturday's contest, and they were beaten 4-3 by the Wild in overtime in their last game on Thursday. The 42-25-7 Penguins have lost three straight games, as the Capitals beat them 4-3 in a shootout on Wednesday. Pittsburgh, though, has had Philadelphia's number this season, as they're 4-1 in five games vs. their rival.
Also on the ice on Saturday: Calgary at Boston, Atlanta at Carolina, the Rangers at Toronto, the Islanders at Columbus, Tampa Bay at Buffalo, Florida at Ottawa, New Jersey at Montreal, Detroit at Nashville, Colorado at Phoenix, Dallas at Los Angeles, and Vancouver at San Jose. The 45-25-4 Canucks got past the Ducks 4-1 in their last game on Wednesday night, with backup goalie Andrew Raycroft stopping 30 of 31 Anaheim shots. The 45-19-10 Sharks blanked the Stars 3-0 in their last game on Thursday, with Evgeni Nabokov stopping 27 shots in that win.
Saturday's Wagering Tips
Lines off the board
Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets – Kevin Martin (shoulder) missed the team’s last game and is questionable.
Lines to keep an eye on
The Blazers-Hornets total opened at 194.5 and has been bet down to 193.5 at most shops. Portland has played to three straight unders and 7-of-10 games in this series have gone under the posted total.
The opening total of 232.5 in the Mavs-Warriors game got hammered upward after opening. It now sits at 234.5 at most shops. Golden State has played to the over in eight of its last 10 games.
Carolina opened as a -150 favorite over Atlanta but now that moneyline can be found as low as -135. The Canes have won two straight over the Thrashers.
Weather report
Rain wiped out qualifying Friday for NASCAR's Sprint Cup race at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia, according to NASCAR.com.
With the field determined by the series point standings, Kevin Harvick was awarded the pole position for Sunday's race. He'll be joined up front by Matt Kenseth. Four-time defending Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson will be on the second row with Greg Biffle.
Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch will be on the third row while Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. comprise row four.
Who’s hot
The Wizards have played to six straight unders and the under is 25-7 in their last 32 games.
Utah has covered in three straight and is 5-1 SU and ATS in its last five games.
Butler has won 23 consecutive games.
Who’s not
New Orleans is 3-7 SU and ATS in its last 10 games.
The Flyers have dropped four straight, losing 5.8 units on the moneyline.
West Virginia has played to seven consecutive unders.
Key stat
9.96 – Player efficiency rating of Indiana’s guard Brandon Rush. According to John Hollinger, this is the lowest PER for any player in league history that leads his team in minutes played. The only other players to have a single-digit rating and play the most minutes on a team were Bruce Bowen and Jason Collins.
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
Kevin Martin did not play in Houston’s loss to the Clippers on Thursday due to a sore left shoulder. Martin’s status for Saturday is unclear. With Martin out of the lineup, Houston went 6-for-20 from the field in the fourth quarter during the home loss. Chase Budinger started in place of Martin at the two-guard and scored 14 points.
Games of the Day
New York Rangers at Toronto Maple Leafs (-115, 5.5)
Vancouver Canucks at San Jose Sharks (-145, 5.5)
Notable quotable
"I got real good at it and used to steal about four a day. You have to move slow in the store, otherwise they know you're stealing. It prepared me for the league."
-- Lakers forward Ron Artest said about stealing Little Debbie cakes from a convenient store when he was a kid which in turn helped him become an elite stealer in the NBA. Artest is averaging 2.6 steals a night over his last 11 games.
Tips and notes
- Jason Terry returned to the Mavericks five games ago and the team has gone 2-3 SU and 1-4 ATS. Terry said this week the team’s “rhythm may have been thrown off a slight bit by me coming back.” Dallas has the fortunate problem of too many star players and finding the right chemistry with all getting action could be a problem.
- Kansas State could be affected by fatigue in Saturday’s game with Butler. The Wildcats were taken to double overtime against Xavier and three starters played 40 minutes or more – Denis Clemente played all 48. K-State’s rotation goes nine deep but coach Frank Martin still gave the team a light practice on Friday and said he will have to prepare his players in “their minds.”
- Phil Mickelson shot a 58 in a practice round on Monday at a course he said had similar greens to Bay Hill – the course where the Arnold Palmer Invitational is being held. Mickelson shot a 67 Friday in the tournament, using just 23 putts (six below his 2010 average) to climb within one stroke of the lead. Lefty said it was his best putting performance of the year and has a ton of confidence heading into the weekend. Mickelson is getting +345 odds to win the event.