Daily Sports Roundup
Monday, January 11
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Wild play host to the Penguins, Villanova meets Louisville, and the Celtics look for a home win over the Hawks.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA has nine games on tap for Monday, with Toronto at Indiana, New Orleans at Philadelphia, Detroit at Chicago, New York at Oklahoma City, Minnesota at Denver, Milwaukee at Phoenix, Miami at Utah, Cleveland at Golden State, and Atlanta at Boston. The Hawks and Celtics also met on Friday night, with Atlanta pulling out a 93-85 home victory. Jamal Crawford had 18 points off the bench for the Hawks in that win, while Josh Smith had 15 points and 11 rebounds. Paul Pierce tossed in a game-high 21 points in the loss for the Celtics.
As well, the only ranked team in action on the college basketball schedule for Monday is Villanova, which will play on the road against Louisville. The Wildcats picked up a slim 78-76 win over Marquette in their last game on Saturday, with Corey Stokes scoring a team-high 16 points for Villanova in that contest. The Cardinals beat St. John's 75-68 on Saturday, as Jerry Smith poured in 16 points.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, the National Hockey League has four games on tap for Monday, with Colorado at Calgary, San Jose at Los Angeles, Nashville at Vancouver, and Pittsburgh at Minnesota. The Penguins had no trouble grabbing a road win in Toronto on Saturday night, as Sergei Gonchar scored twice in the 4-1 decision. Sidney Crosby potted his 27th goal of the year in the contest. The Wild, meanwhile, mounted a big rally against the Blackhawks on Saturday, storming back from a 5-1 deficit with four third-period goals, then winning in the shootout.
Today's Wagering Tips
Monday, January 11
Very good byes
While the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints spent the weekend on the couch, wild-card teams like the New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens became all the rage among NFL fans.
Almost forgotten are the top seeds’ quest for perfect seasons. The Jets and Ravens satisfy the age-old question ''What have you done for me lately?’’
The general public has short-attention spans and falls in love with the teams that have impressed them most recently. That trend bore out last week as the Green Bay Packers, who blistered the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17, flip-flopped from 2.5-point dogs to 2.5-point favorites in the playoffs. The people’s choice, indeed.
Or maybe it’s because of last season’s surge of the wild card. Three out of four wild-card teams went on to win in the divisional round for the first time in NFL history.
But look at the long-haul track record and you’ll see that a first-round bye and home-field advantage are still overwhelming advantages.
Before last year, the top two seeds in each conference were 57-17 SU against their wild-card visitors dating back to 1990, when the NFL went to the current 12-team playoff format.
So if you like the rested home teams this weekend you may want to wait until closer to kickoff to lay your money down. The lines general move in favor of the ''hot’’ teams, even though the ''cold’’ ones didn’t play.
Not-so Melo
Carmelo Anthony hasn’t played in the last five games for the Denver Nuggets but the team has held its own behind the hot hand of Chauncey Billups, going 2-2-1 ATS in that span.
Anthony (knee) and guard Ty Lawson (ankle) are listed as questionable but are leaning toward returning for Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, who have lost six of their last seven SU and allowed at least 106 points during that span.
Add a somewhat healthy Anthony to the increased scoring of Billups and the Nuggets should be able to score at will against the defenseless T’wolves.
Later, Sooners
The second biggest game in the state of Oklahoma tips off tonight, you know, besides the Oklahoma State-Oklahoma football game.
The basketball version has gotten just as big in recent years with both programs staking a claim on the college basketball map. However, they now appear to be programs heading in opposite directions.
The Cowboys have won seven of their last eight SU, winning and covering all but a close road loss at Rhode Island. They have been led by guard James Anderson, who has scored at least 25 points per game in five of the last six outings.
The Sooners have started to slump after big wins over Arizona, Utah and North Carolina. They have lost three out of their last four, getting blown out by Gonzaga, UTEP and Baylor.
The Cowboys are 11-1 ATS in their last 12 against Big 12 competition, including a one-point win here last year. Oklahoma State is -1 with a total of 147.
Notable quotable
''Whew, anyone else tired? Man, what a football game!’’
-- Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner in the postgame press conference following the Cardinals’ 51-45 overtime victory over the Green Bay Packers. The 96 total points were the most ever scored in a playoff game. Warner is rumored to be retiring at the end of the season.