Daily Sports Roundup
Sunday, March 7
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: Kentucky hosts Florida, the Lakers take on the Magic, and the drivers of the Sprint Cup Series race in the Kobalt Tools 500.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA offers up six games on Sunday, with Philadelphia at Toronto, Houston at Detroit, Washington at Boston, Oklahoma City at Sacramento, Portland at Denver, and the Lakers at Orlando. The Lakers and Magic have met just once since their NBA Finals matchup last season, with Los Angeles pulling out a 98-92 home win over Orlando on January 18 as a 6.5-point favorite. Shannon Brown had a team-high 22 points for Los Angeles off the bench in that game, while Kobe Bryant tossed in 11 points on the day. Dwight Howard led the Magic with a game-high 24 points in that loss, while Vince Carter was held to only nine points.
As well, there is one Top-10 team in action on the college basketball schedule for Sunday, with Florida at No. 3 Kentucky. The Wildcats (28-2 SU, 16-12 ATS) rolled to an 80-68 win over Georgia in their last game on Wednesday night; John Wall was good for 24 points in that contest for Kentucky. The Gators (20-10 SU, 13-12 ATS) were beaten 64-60 by Vanderbilt in their last game on Tuesday night, despite Vernon Macklin's 21 points. Florida and Kentucky faced off back on January 12, with the Wildcats picking up an 89-77 road victory in that matchup.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
There are nine games on the NHL's schedule for Sunday, with Boston at Pittsburgh, Vancouver at Nashville, Calgary at Minnesota, Carolina at Atlanta, Buffalo at the Rangers, Toronto at Philadelphia, New Jersey at Edmonton, Montreal at Anaheim, and Detroit at Chicago. The Red Wings and Blackhawks last met on the ice on January 17, with Chicago pulling out a 4-3 shootout win on the road. Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Troy Brouwer had the Hawks' goals in that win, while Antti Niemi made 35 saves. Nicklas Lidstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, and Patrick Eaves replied for Detroit, and Jimmy Howard was good for 26 stops.
Roaring around the track . . .
Finally, the Sprint Cup Series offers up the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday afternoon. Jimmie Johnson, who is coming off consecutive race wins in Fontana and Las Vegas, is the 9/5 Vegas favorite to take the checkered flag once again on Sunday. Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin are next on the odds list at 6/1 and 8/1, respectively, with Tony Stewart at 17/2, and Denny Hamlin at 11/1. Last year's Kobalt Tools 500 winner, Kurt Busch, is farther back at 28/1 odds to win on Sunday, with '08 champ Kyle Busch pegged at 13/1 odds.
Sunday's Wagering Tips
Lines off the board
Philadelphia 76ers at Toronto Raptors – Chris Bosh (ankle, stomach) has missed the last seven games but is expected to play on Sunday (see note below).
Buffalo Sabres at New York Rangers – Marian Gaborik returned to action on Saturday and is expected to play in the game. Henrik Lundqvist (rest) got the day off Saturday but should be back in the net on Sunday.
Lines to keep an eye on
The Lakers-Magic spread has dropped from an opener of 3 in favor of Orlando down to 2 at most shops. The Lakers have won the last three in this series and backers can’t fathom L.A. losing three games in a row.
The total in the Houston-Detroit game has plummeted a point from its opener to 196.5. The last three games between these teams have gone over.
Who’s hot
Boston College is 4-0 ATS and 3-1 SU in its last four games.
The Bruins have won five of their last six outings, earning 3.59 units on the moneyline.
Who’s not
Michigan State is 0-6 ATS in its last six home games and 4-11 ATS at home this season.
The 76ers have dropped five straight and are 1-4 ATS over that stretch.
The Red Wings have lost 5-of-8 games, dropping 3.05 units on the moneyline in that span.
Key stat
2-8 – Record for Michigan this season when Manny Harris is held under 18 points. The Wolverines are 1-3 ATS in the last four games Harris has failed to reach that number. In Harris’s three career games versus Michigan State, he’s scored 16, 7 and 11 points.
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
Portland Trail Blazers center Marcus Camby reinjured his ankle on Friday during practice. He had X-rays performed on his left ankle and fortunately for Portland, those came back negative. Camby missed practice on Saturday and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game in Denver. If Camby is unable to go, head coach Nate McMillan said Juwan Howard would start at center.
Games of the day
Los Angeles Lakers at Orlando Magic (-2.5, 195)
Detroit Red Wings at Chicago Blackhawks (-170, 5.5)
Notable quotable
“Oh yeah, man, he’s getting kind of old. I’m quicker than he is, so I just tried to take advantage of that.”
-- Toronto’s 23-year-old guard Sonny Weems said after scoring a career-high 20 points on Friday while matched up against Tracy McGrady, who is 30 years of age.
Tips and notes
- The injuries to Trevor Ariza and Kyle Lowry have allowed Kevin Martin to quickly find his role on the Rockets, but they have also created a tired backcourt. Coach Rick Adelman said those injuries have “made for long minutes for a number of guys and that's starting to show." Aaron Brooks is playing nearly every minute of every game and that caught up with him on Wednesday when he went 2-of-13 and the team only managed 81 points. A tired Houston squad will be in a back-to-back situation on Sunday.
- It appears Phil Jackson might begin to limit the minutes of his key players. After the Lakers lost to Charlotte on Friday, Jackson said Paul Gasol was “weak and sickly" and that he would have to monitor the center’s playing time. Gasol might not be the only one getting rest as Jackson said, “I'll start to work the bench a little more and see if I can't spell some minutes for these guys.”
- How do you feel a day and a half after having a stomach virus and being dehydrated? Probably not too well and definitely not well enough to play in a 48-minute NBA game. But that’s exactly what Chris Bosh will try to do Sunday. After spending time in a hospital on Friday night and being injected with intravenous fluids you can’t expect Bosh to be 100 percent versus Philadelphia. Andrea Bargnani got three staples in back of his neck on Friday too so the Toronto big men are hurting.