Daily Sports Roundup
Sunday, December 6
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Colts play host to the Titans, the Saints try to pick up a win in Washington, and the Cardinals try to knock off the Vikings.
Colliding on the gridiron . . .
Two teams that have combined for 16 consecutive victories will take the field on Sunday afternoon when Indianapolis hosts Tennessee. The Colts (11-0 SU, 7-4 ATS) remained perfect on the season with a 35-27 win at Houston last week. Peyton Manning threw for 244 yards and three scores in that win, with the Colts scoring three TDs in the fourth quarter. The Titans (5-6 SU, 5-6 ATS) won their fifth straight last week, topping Arizona 20-17 behind 387 yards and a TD from Vince Young. Indy has been pegged as the 6.5-point favorite for Sunday's game.
The league's other unbeaten team, the Saints (11-0 SU, 8-3 ATS) will be looking to cruise to their 12th straight win on Sunday when they play the Redskins (3-8 SU, 4-6-1 ATS) in Washington. New Orleans had no trouble with the Patriots on Monday night, getting five touchdown strikes from Drew Brees in a 38-17 home win. Washington fell 27-24 in Philadelphia in their Week 12 matchup. Oddsmakers have the Saints set as 9.5-point favorites on the road this weekend.
Also on the NFL schedule for Sunday: St. Louis at Chicago (-9.5), Tampa Bay at Carolina (-5.5), Houston at Jacksonville (pick'em), Denver (-5) at Kansas City, Philadelphia (-5.5) at Atlanta, Oakland at Pittsburgh (-14.5), Detroit at Cincinnati (-13), New England (-4) at Miami, San Diego (-13.5) at Cleveland, Dallas (-2.5) at the Giants, and San Francisco at Seattle (pick'em). As well, the Cardinals will host the Vikings on Sunday Night Football, with Minnesota a 3-point road favorite.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
There are five games on the NBA's Sunday slate, with New Jersey at New York, Cleveland at Milwaukee, Washington at Detroit, Miami at Sacramento, and Phoenix at the Lakers. The Suns and Lakers last met in Los Angeles on November 12, with Kobe Bryant and company pulling out a 121-102 home victory. Bryant had a game-high 29 points for the Lakers in that win, while Andrew Bynum had 26 points. Steve Nash tossed in 13 points for the losing Suns.
As well, two of the top three teams in college hoops are in action on Sunday, with No. 3 Villanova at Maryland, and No. 1 Kansas at UCLA. The top-ranked Jayhawks (6-0 SU, 2-1 ATS) rolled over Alcorn State in their last contest, getting 18 points from Xavier Henry in a 98-31 win. The Bruins (2-4 SU, 2-3 ATS) were knocked off 79-68 by Long Beach State in their most recent matchup at the 76 Classic. Michael Roll tossed in a team-high 23 points for the Bruins in that defeat.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, there are just two games on the National Hockey League schedule for Sunday, with the Rangers hosting the Wings and Ottawa on the road in Anaheim. The Ducks won't have forward Teemu Selanne in the lineup for the Sunday matchup; the veteran, who had 14 goals and 21 points in 27 games, is out indefinitely after breaking his hand in Thursday night's road loss in Dallas. The Senators are still without goalie Pascal Leclaire, who has a fractured cheekbone.
Today's Helpful Tips
Sunday, December 6
Looking for Moore
Jake Delhomme will miss Sunday’s game against the Bucs because of a broken finger on his throwing hand. Matt Moore will take over under center and many have claimed the backup will actually boost the Panthers offense. The former Oregon State signal-caller has started in three games during this three-year NFL career with all of them coming in his rookie season of 2007. Moore led Carolina to a 2-1 record as a starter and the team went 3-0 ATS in those games.
The Panthers opened as a 6.5-point favorite but the news of Delhomme’s injury has dropped the line to 5. The total has fallen from an opener of 42 to 40.
Feeling the Heat
The Kings enter into their fourth back-to-back situation of the season after coming off a 115-107 loss to the Suns in Phoenix on Saturday. Sacramento is 1-2 straight up and 2-1 ATS in the second of back-to-back games this season. One of those ATS wins came on a Sunday where the Kings are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 Sabbath games.
The Kings will have to deal with D-Wade and the Heat who are 9-1 ATS during the last 10 games of this series.
Cinco de Pass-o
Cedric Benson will return as the starting tailback for the Bengals who have been a run-oriented team this season. In Cincinnati’s past two games against the Raiders and Browns, the team ran the ball 88 times compared to 46 pass attempts. But given Chad Ocho Cinco’s “notable quotable” remark below, you might see the Bengals look to revive the air attack against the Lions. Detroit ranks last in the league in pass defense, giving up 281 ypg and 27 touchdowns on the season.
Cincy has gone 5-1 ATS in the last six games of this matchup.
Oddsmakers installed the Bengals as a 13-point favorite with a total of 42.
Bruins in ruins
The mighty Bruins are experiencing a down year on the hardcourt. The team is 2-3 on the season with losses to CS Fullerton, Long Beach State and Portland, with the latter being a 27-point blowout. UCLA was dealt a huge blow when starting center Drew Gordon announced last Tuesday he would be leaving the team. Gordon was averaging 11.2 ppg and 5.3 rpg.
UCLA faces the No. 1-ranked Jayhawks on Sunday. Kansas is a 14.5-point favorite with a game total of 139. The last three games in this series have gone under.
Redman a method man
Chris Redman will start at quarterback for the Falcons in place of an injured Matt Ryan. The seven-year veteran out of Louisville took over during Atlanta’s win over Tampa Bay, efficiently guiding his team behind a 243-yard, two-touchdown performance. Redman’s career completion percentage is 56.2 percent while holding a 19-10 touchdown-to-interception ratio. In 10 career starts with the Falcons and Ravens, Redman is 5-5 straight up and 6-4 ATS.
When Ryan and Michael Turner were officially listed as doubtful, this line moved from the Falcons being a 6-point favorite to a 5-point favorite.
The Eagles have gone 7-2-1 ATS in the last 10 meeting of this series.
Notable quotable
"I'm not going to let them treat us like that for three straight games. We won the game. We had a wonderful day on the ground. I asked for us to run the ball. This basically solidifies us being able to run the ball right now. Now [on Sunday] things are going to have to change. The roles need to be reversed. I'm speaking on behalf of myself and the receiving corps. We would like to throw the ball 50 times. I just want to relay that message."
-- Bengals wide receiver Chad Ocho Cinco outlining the fact that Cincinnati has predominately run the ball the last two games.