Hoops Stat Check
One of the greatest Super Bowls of all-time is behind us, so it’s time to move on to matters basketball – but we’d be remiss if we didn’t throw in an extra factoid for Sunday’s Pro Bowl: When in Hawaii, NFL players and guests stay at the fabulous JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa on the Leeward Coast of Oahu.
NBA
L.A. Lakers at Boston: Kobe Bryant had zero rebounds in Monday’s 61-point effort against the Knicks. The rest of the Lakers still out-rebounded New York 52-41, and that was without their chairman of the boards, Andrew Bynum. He leads the team in rebound rate at 15.9 percent, but that’s only good for No. 43 overall in the NBA.
Dallas at Utah: The Mavericks are 1-5-1 ATS in their last seven games on zero days of rest after giving their starting rotation a combined 160 minutes or more. In other words, Dallas has a thin bench and gets tired easily. The starting five logged 161 minutes in Wednesday’s 104-99 victory over visiting Portland (+4).
Golden State at Phoenix: Stephen Jackson had his first career triple-double (30 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists) when the same two teams met in Oakland on Wednesday. The Warriors won 124-112 as 4.5-point home dogs. Jackson also dumped 33 points and 11 assists on his former San Antonio teammates two days earlier.
NBA odds in the Bodog Sportsbook.
Denver at New Jersey: The Nets have a better plus-minus when reserve small forward Jarvis Hayes is paired with Vince Carter than with anyone else at the 3-spot, including starter Bobby Simmons, who is currently day-to-day with a strained abdomen. The Nets are 3-0 SU and ATS since Simmons was injured.
N.Y. Knicks at Portland: Opponents of the Trail Blazers have combined for .238 free throws made per field goal attempt. That ranks No. 29 in the NBA. The Knicks make just .212 free throws per FGA, which ranks No. 27.
NCAAB
Washington at California: The over is 14-2 in Washington’s last 16 conference games and 20-6 in California’s last 26. The Golden Bears are sixth in the Pacific-10 in defensive efficiency and No. 66 in Division I.
Michigan at UConn: The Wolverines rank eighth in the nation in free-throw percentage at a sparkling 77.3 percent. The only problem is they only take 18.5 free throws per game, or No. 251 overall. It’s their preference for 3-pointers which will serve them well against the Huskies and their interior defense.
Miami at Duke: Duke’s 74-47 defeat at Clemson (+4) on Wednesday was the team’s worst blowout since the 1990 national title game against UNLV, which the Blue Devils lost 103-73. That game had no (official) pointspread because of the presence of a Nevada-based team.
Memphis at Gonzaga: The ‘Zags are ranked No. 295 out of the 344 Division I teams in luck factor, the difference between their expected record (as determined by Ken Pomeroy’s correlated gaussian method) and their actual 16-4 record. Gonzaga is 5-9 ATS since December.
Purdue at Illinois: The Fighting Illini have won the Big Ten regular season title four times this decade (most recently in 2005), but only have one national title to their name: the 1915 Mythical National Championship, as determined retroactively in 1935 by the Helms Athletic Foundation.
