Daily Sports Roundup
Thursday, January 28
Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Sharks play host to the Blackhawks, Purdue meets Wisconsin, and the Celtics try for a road victory down in Orlando.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The NBA has three games on tap for Thursday, with Toronto at New York, Dallas at Phoenix, and Boston at Orlando. The Celtics (29-13 SU, 17-25 ATS) got past the Clippers 95-89 at home in their last game on Monday night. Paul Pierce led the way with 22 points for Boston in that contest, while Kevin Garnett scored 17 points and Rajon Rondo picked up 16 points and 12 assists. The Magic (29-16 SU, 22-21-2 ATS) fell 99-94 in Memphis in their last game on Monday. Dwight Howard had 27 points in that loss for Orlando, and Rashard Lewis had 19 points.
As well, there are six ranked teams in action around college basketball on Thursday, and two of them will be on the floor at Mackey Arena when No. 10 Purdue hosts No. 16 Wisconsin. The Boilermakers (16-3 SU, 8-10-1 ATS) are coming off a 69-59 win over Michigan last time out, with JaJuan Johnson pouring in 21 points. The Badgers (16-4 SU, 10-8 ATS) topped Penn State 79-71 in overtime in their last game, with Trevon Hughes scoring 22 points. Elsewhere on Thursday it'll be St. John's at No. 17 Pittsburgh, Wake Forest at No. 22 Georgia Tech, No. 18 Mississippi at Auburn, and finally No. 13 Gonzaga at Santa Clara.
Taking a trip around the rink . . .
Finally, there are eight games on the NHL's schedule for Thursday, with the Islanders at Carolina, Atlanta at Philadelphia, Ottawa at Pittsburgh, Los Angeles at Columbus, Minnesota at Colorado, Calgary at Phoenix, St. Louis at Edmonton, and Chicago at San Jose. The Blackhawks improved to 36-13-4 on the season with an easy 4-2 win in Edmonton on Tuesday night; Patrick Kane had a pair of assists for Chicago in that contest. The 35-10-8 Sharks have won five straight games, knocking off the Sabres by a score of 5-2 in their last outing on Saturday.
Today's Wagering Tips
Thursday, January 28
Lines to keep an eye on
The total of 186.5 jumped to 187.5 in the first few hours on the board in the Magic-Celtics game, bucking the recent trends. The last six games in this series have gone under.
The Mavericks-Suns total dropped a point from its opener of 216.5, also going against the trends. Both teams have played in two straight overs and the over has cashed in four of the last five in this series.
Who’s hot
The Raptors have gone 4-2 SU and ATS in their last six games, including home defeats of the Lakers and Mavericks.
Dwight Howard is averaging 22.4 points, 14.6 rebounds and 3.6 blocks per game over his last five.
The Sharks have won five straight (+5.0 units) and are 8-1-1 over their last 10 games.
Ottawa goaltender Brian Elliott is 5-0 in his last five starts with a 1.00 GAA and .965 save percentage.
Gonzaga forward Elias Harris is averaging 23.6 points and 10.8 rebounds over his last four games.
Who’s not
The Mavericks have not covered in consecutive games since Nov. 27 and are 4-9 ATS since the New Year.
David Legwand has registered three points (three assists) over the last 10 games with 18 shots on goal.
Arkansas-Little Rock has dropped nine of its last 10 games and gone 3-7 ATS over that stretch.
Key stat
545 – Number of consecutive games Gonzaga has made a 3-pointer. The last time the Bulldogs didn’t drain a bucket from downtown was Jan. 27, 1993. The Zags rank 101st in the nation in 3-point FG percentage (36.1), connecting on 117-of-324 attempts. UNLV owns the all-time record with 738 straight games with a 3-pointer.
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
Suns guard Leandro Barbosa could be sidelined up to six weeks after undergoing successful surgery on Tuesday to remove a cyst on his right wrist. Phoenix has lost two straight without Barbosa in the lineup. Grant Hill also missed the team’s Tuesday game versus Charlotte and with only 10 healthy players the Suns surrendered a six-point first half lead and only managed 15 fourth-quarter points behind tired bodies. It was the second straight game Phoenix sputtered in the second half, losing an 11-point halftime lead to Utah on Monday so the loss of depth Barbosa brought off the bench could be showing. The Suns are favored at home by 2 points over the Mavericks Thursday.
Game of the Day
Wisconsin Badgers at Purdue Boilermakers (-8, 126)
Notable quotable
“I lost to him at the U.S. Open in straight sets, so I'm looking for a little revenge. If I play like I did tonight, I have got a good chance. Obviously, nerves are going to be there with an opportunity to make a final of a Slam."
ATP player Andy Murray said of getting the chance to play Marin Cilic in the Australian Open semifinals.
Tips and notes
The Knicks were handed their worst home loss in franchise history by the Mavericks last Sunday, losing by 50 points in a 128-78 rout. New York returned the favor on Tuesday, crushing the Timberwolves 132-105. The 27-point win marked the largest by a team following a 50-point defeat. The 1992-93 76ers club got dropped by Sacramento by 56 and then defeated the Nets by 26 in the next game. In Philly’s following game at Washington, the Sixers won outright, 119-117, as 3.5-point underdogs. New York is favored by 3 points at home versus the Raptors Thursday with a total of 213.
When the Pitt Panthers lost to Georgetown at home on Jan. 20 it snapped a 31-game home winning streak and now the team will attempt to expand on a new 31-game streak. It’s been that many games since Pittsburgh has lost to an unranked team at the Peterson Events Center and will face the St. John’s Red Storm on Thursday. The Panthers held those unranked opponents to an average of 59.9 ppg over the 31-game span. Pitt has taken five straight from St. John’s at home (4-1 ATS), winning by an average margin of 20.6 points. The Red Storm are getting 9 points in the matchup with a total of 125 and are expected to get Justin Brownlee (7.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg) back in the lineup after he missed the team’s last game.
The Mavericks must be saying their prayers before every game. Dallas has won 10 consecutive one-point games, tying a league record, with three of those nailbiters coming this season. In the two games after one-point wins for the Mavericks this year, the team has failed to cover the spread and both contests have gone under. Bettors should be wary of throwing down on the Mavericks when they are short dogs or favorites and the game is expected to be close as Dallas is 13-4 straight up but 3-14 ATS this season in games decided by five points or less. The Mavs travel to Phoenix Thursday where they are 2-point dogs against the Suns.