Daily Sports Roundup
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Sprint Cup Series hits Martinsville, while the Nuggets meet the Magic, and March Madness wraps up its second weekend.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA has 10 games on its schedule for Sunday, with Sacramento at Cleveland, Memphis at Milwaukee, Indiana at Atlanta, Toronto at Miami, Chicago at Detroit, Phoenix at Minnesota, Portland at Oklahoma City, San Antonio at Boston, Golden State at the Clippers, and Denver at Orlando. The Nuggets and Magic met in Denver back on January 13, with Carmelo Anthony and company rolling to a 115-97 home win as a 6-point favorite. Anthony led the way with 27 points in that win for Denver, while Chauncey Billups was good for 24 points on the day. Matt Barnes scored a game-high 28 points in a losing cause for Orlando.
As well, the NCAA Tournament clears up its Final Four picture on Sunday with its last two Elite Eight matchups: No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 5 Michigan State in the Midwest Region, and No. 3 Baylor vs. No. 1 Duke in the South Region. Duke, which cruised past Purdue 70-57 in the Sweet 16 on Friday, is pegged as the 4.5-point favorite at Houston's Reliant Stadium on Sunday. Baylor beat St. Mary's 72-49 in their Friday outing. Over at St. Louis' Edward Jones Dome the Spartans knocked off Cinderella Northern Iowa 59-52 in the Sweet 16, while Tennessee got past Ohio State by a final score of 76-73 last round. The oddsmakers are going with the Volunteers for Sunday, as they're 2-point faves.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
The National Hockey League has six games on tap for Sunday, with Calgary at Washington, Toronto at Pittsburgh, Edmonton at St. Louis, New Jersey at Philadelphia, Colorado at San Jose, and Columbus at Chicago. The Blackhawks will be looking to bounce back from the 8-3 pounding they took from the Blue Jackets on the road on Thursday night; Hawks netminder Cristobal Huet was yanked after allowing seven goals on 27 shots in that defeat. Kristian Huselius and Antoine Vermette each picked up a pair of goals in that victory for Columbus.
Roaring around the track . . .
Finally, race fans get two events on Sunday, as the Sprint Cup Series stages the Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway and Formula 1 offers up the Australian Grand Prix. Jimmie Johnson, who has won three of the five Sprint Cup events so far this season, is pegged as the 9/4 Vegas favorite to visit victory lane at Martinsville, with Jeff Gordon (51/10) and Denny Hamlin (7/1) behind him on that odds list. Tony Stewart (17/2) and Kevin Harvick (11/1) round out the top tier of contenders. Meanwhile, Fernando Alonso will be gunning for his second straight win in the F1 race; Alonso won the season opener in Bahrain March 14, and he's at 5/2 to get the win on Sunday. Sebastian Vettel sits at 2/1 odds to win.
Sunday's Wagering Tips
Lines off the board
Memphis Grizzlies at Milwaukee Bucks – Andrew Bogut (back) missed the last game and is questionable. Carlos Delfino (neck) was carted off the floor in the team’s last game and is doubtful. Ersan Ilyasova (illness) missed the last game with the flu and is questionable.
Toronto Raptors at Miami Heat – Hedo Turkoglu (illness) is questionable with a stomach virus. Jermaine O’Neal (knee) only played seven minutes in the team’s last game and is doubtful.
Lines to keep an eye on
The Blazers-Thunder total opened at 190.5 and can be found as high as 192 now. Portland has played to three straight unders and nine of the last 10 games in this series have gone under the posted total.
The total in the Warriors-Clippers game has elevated from an opener of 229 to 230 at most shops. Golden State has played to the over in 8-of-10 games.
Who’s hot
The Pacers are 8-0 ATS in their last eight games.
Jonas Gustavsson has won six straight games behind a 1.92 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage.
Duke has won seven straight and is 3-0 ATS in its last three outings.
Who’s not
The Blackhawks have lost six of their last nine games, dropping 5.10 units on the moneyline.
Denver is 0-7 ATS in its last seven games.
Key stat
13-3 – Portland Trail Blazers record in the second leg of back-to-back games – the best record in the NBA. The Blazers are getting 4.5 points on Sunday.
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
Andrew Bogut missed the Bucks last game and the majority of the previous game with a back injury. Milwaukee was only been able to muster 80.0 ppg without Bogut in those two games and got out-rebounded by seven and 10 boards. Kurt Thomas started in place of Bogut on Friday and posted four points and four rebounds.
Games of the Day
Baylor Bears vs. Duke Blue Devils (-5, 139.5)
Tennessee Volunteers vs. Michigan State Spartans (+1.5, 136.5)
Notable quotable
"We can't let up because of the situation we're in. There is no sense of feeling the pressure here. You lose a couple of games with so few left, you're done. You have to just go out and play."
-- New York coach John Tortorella said as the Rangers are five points out of the final playoff spot with eight games remaining.
Tips and notes
- The homecourt advantage for Baylor has been a debated topic. The South regional is played at Houston – a two and half hour drive from the school’s campus in Waco, Texas. Some bettors believe there isn’t any edge because they are shooting at different baskets. Others account for the 2.5 or 3 points for homecourt because of the fans. LaceDarius Dunn apparently thinks the large contingent of Bears fans in the arena is beneficial saying to CBS in an interview, “it helps us pick up our intensity on the court.”
- Both South regional games in Reliant Stadium went under the posted total in the Sweet 16 round. Shooting sight lines for the players can be affected by the depth of a football stadium. The two totals from those games dropped significantly after opening and the Duke-Baylor total has been bet down two points at some shops.
- They love him and then they hate him – such is the relationship between the Magic players and head coach Stan Van Gundy. After Orlando’s last-second loss to Atlanta on Wednesday, Rashard Lewis was heard mumbling about Van Gundy’s offense in the locker room. Matt Barnes was pulled off the court in the fourth quarter and said, “[Van Gundy] obviously doesn't trust me down the stretch.”
- Covers interviewed Pete Korner of the Sports Club earlier this week and he said if the Spartans won their Sweet 16 game, he didn’t “give them much of a chance in the next round.” Korner mentioned that when a team loses a star player, like Kalin Lucas, they come out motivated in its first game but then the missed talent catches up with them in the second. The spread in the Tennessee-MSU game opened as a pick ‘em and now Tennessee is favored by 2.