Daily Sports Roundup
Thursday, December 17
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Trail Blazers play host to the Suns, the Ducks look for a win in San Jose, and the Colts and Jaguars meet in Jacksonville.
Colliding on the gridiron . . .
Still unbeaten, the Colts (13-0 SU, 9-4 ATS) will try to run their winning streak to 14 on the season (and avoid any injuries) when they play on the road against the Jaguars in Thursday night NFL action. Indianapolis roared out to a 21-0 lead and then hung on for a 28-16 win over the Broncos on Sunday, with Peyton Manning throwing four touchdown passes. Dallas Clark had three TD catches in that win.
The Jaguars (7-6 SU, 5-8 ATS) will try to improve their playoff chances with a win over the rival Colts on Thursday night. Jacksonville lost 14-10 at home to the Dolphins back in Week 14, as QB David Garrard went just 11-of-26 for 139 yards passing with no touchdowns. Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 59 yards and a score on 18 carries in that defeat, while Josh Scobee booted a 25-yard field goal.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA has three games on tap for Thursday, with Orlando at Miami, New York at Chicago, and Phoenix at Portland. The Suns (17-8 SU, 15-9-1 ATS) dispatched San Antonio 116-104 at home in their last game on Tuesday night; Amare Stoudemire was good for 28 points and 14 boards in that victory. The Blazers (15-11 SU, 12-14 ATS) are coming off a 95-88 win over Sacramento on Tuesday night. Brandon Roy picked up 25 points and 10 assists in that matchup.
On the college hardwood there are no ranked teams in action on Thursday, although UNLV will be looking to grab a few more votes for the polls when they play host to Weber State. Other games involving notable teams include Elon at N.C. State, Nicholls State at LSU, Wagner at BYU, and Auburn at Florida State. The Tigers (5-4 SU, 1-6 ATS) got past Virginia 68-67 in their most recent game last week, with DeWayne Reed tossing in 18 points for Auburn in that matchup.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
As well, there are nine games around the NHL on Thursday, with Minnesota at Montreal, the Rangers at the Islanders, Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, Dallas at Atlanta, Phoenix at Columbus, Tampa Bay at Detroit, Los Angeles at Calgary, Nashville at Edmonton, and Anaheim at San Jose. The Ducks fell 3-2 to the Sharks at home in their last matchup back on November 21. Joe Thornton picked up the game-winning goal for the Sharks, while Evgeni Nabokov made 28 saves.
Today's Helpful Tips
Thursday, December 17
Start me up
The million-dollar question on Thursday night is how long will the Colts starters play against Jacksonville, if at all.
All reports indicate that regulars such as Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Joseph Addai will be in action, but bettors should check inactives for the team prior to kickoff.
“That's kind of what I think most players wanted to hear,” said Manning in reaction to head coach Jim Caldwell’s statement on Monday. “That's kind of any competitive player's nature, is to go play. The plan is business as usual.”
Caldwell has again emphasized that this game will be treated like the previous 13 and only players that “are not able to go” will not play. A very ambiguous statement leaving bettors having to guess what type of injury could keep a player out.
Sportsbooks waited until Tuesday to release a line on the game because of the uncertainty of the Colts starters. Most shops are currently offering the game now with Indy listed as a 3-point favorite and a total of 43.
Short road trip
The Magic find themselves in a back-to-back situation on Thursday against the Heat. Normally a gruesome scenario for any team that is playing the second of two games in a row on the road, Orlando got off easy.
The Magic defeated the Raptors 118-99 at home on Wednesday as 11-point favorites and will labor through the half hour flight to Miami today.
Orlando is 10-4 on the road this season and 3-2 (3-2 ATS) in B2B situations. The only time they were at home for the first game and on the road for the second, the Magic defeated the Hawks in Atlanta, 93-76, as 3.5-point dogs.
The over has cashed in four consecutive games of this series and Miami has played to the over in five straight. The Magic opened as a 4-point favorite with a total of 202.
Quaker State collision
The Flyers lead the Penguins 132-80-30 in the intrastate rivalry series dating back to 1967. Although Philadelphia holds a commanding edge, it’s been Pittsburgh that has dominated the showdown as of late.
The two teams met on Tuesday with the Pens blasting the slumping Flyers in a 6-1 rout. The Wachovia Center crazies only hope to get a taste of the three fights witnessed in that game, but will look for a better outcome.
"In juniors I've seen that – back to back to back (fights) like that – but not up here," said Sidney Crosby. "It was pretty exciting for both teams. It lived up to the rivalry."
Crosby has nine goals and seven assists in his last seven games and the Penguins are 5-2 during that span.
The Flyers have dropped three straight against Pittsburgh and nine of the last 12 in the series. The team is 4-11 in its last 15 outings and is averaging 1.9 gpp in that timeframe.
"We're not playing with enough heart right now to win," Mike Richards said.
Philadelphia opened as a -110 favorite with a total of 6.
No ace in the hole
The Purple Aces will be without starting point guard Kevon Lacey for approximately four weeks after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery. The junior is Evansville’s court and locker room leader and is leading the team in assists (23) while averaging 5.9 ppg this season.
"Kavon is an important player for us, and fortunately this is just a minor setback," said Coach Marty Simmons. "He should be back to normal in a few weeks, and we look forward to having him back out there."
The Aces are coming of a 63-57 loss to Western Kentucky as 13-point favorites on Dec. 8 and will face a Georgia Southern that has dropped four in a row with a losing margin of 15.8 ppg during that slide.
Evansville is a 9-point favorite with a total of 141.