Basketball Weekly Preview
We certainly hope you’ve enjoyed our weekly NFL previews this year. Now it’s time to make the full switch from the stadium to the arena and play some hoops. We’ve got the Top 10 basketball games of the week for your consideration – but first, let’s check in on the biggest moneymakers against the spread thus far in college and the NBA.
NCAAB
1. Princeton: 9-1
2. George Mason: 13-5-1
3. Denver: 13-5
3. Weber State: 13-5
5. Kansas: 12-5
6. San Diego State: 12-5-1
6. The Citadel: 12-5-1
8. Stanford: 14-6
9. Wisconsin-Green Bay: 14-6-1
10. Auburn: 11-5
NBA
1. Orlando: 33-16-1
2. Cleveland: 32-17
3. Oklahoma City: 32-19
4. New York: 29-21
5. Milwaukee: 30-22-2
6. Charlotte: 29-22
7. Denver: 28-22-1
8. Boston: 29-24
9. New Jersey: 28-24
10. L.A. Lakers: 27-23
NCAAB: North Carolina at Duke
Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, N.C.
Wednesday, 9:00 p.m. ET, ESPN
North Carolina: 21-2 SU, 9-12 ATS, Over 12-9
Duke: 20-3 SU, 11-10-1 ATS, Under 15-6-1
Not too many teams leave Durham with smiles on their faces, but the Tar Heels have won their last three games at Duke SU and ATS, twice as underdogs and twice cashing in the over. The Associated Press reports that Greg Paulus will start at point guard for Duke with Nolan Smith coming off the bench. Paulus should have a more difficult time guarding UNC’s Ty Lawson, but he should also score more – case in point, his 18 points against Miami, including 4-of-12 from long range as Duke managed to bust the Hurricanes zone. North Carolina allows 33.1 percent of shots from behind the arc, or No. 123 overall in Division I.
College basketball odds in the Bodog Sportsbook.
NBA: Miami at Chicago
United Center, Chicago
Thursday, 7:00 p.m. ET, TNT
Miami: 27-23 SU, 23-25-2 ATS, Over 27-23
Chicago: 22-29 SU, 24-26-1 ATS, Over 28-22-1
It’s a short week in the NBA with the All-Star Game coming up on Sunday, so we focus on Thursday’s ever-popular TNT doubleheader. The first matchup features the top two picks in the 2008 NBA Draft: Chicago’s Derrick Rose (18.2 points, 6.9 assists per 40 minutes) and Miami’s Michael Beasley (21.8 points, 8.7 rebounds/40). The Bulls are 4-3 SU and a red-hot 6-0-1 ATS in their last seven, all on a road trip through the Western Conference. Miami is 2-4 SU and ATS in its last six. Bulls center Drew Gooden is the only injury of note; he’s day-to-day with groin and abdominal issues.
NBA: Boston at Dallas
American Airlines Center, Dallas
Thursday, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Boston: 42-11 SU, 29-24 ATS, Under 27-25-1
Dallas: 30-20 SU, 23-27 ATS, Under 27-23
Thursday’s TNT nightcap gives us one of the deepest benches in the NBA against one of the thinnest. The Mavericks lost their sixth man on Monday, when guard Jason Terry had surgery on his broken left hand. That means more playing time for the defensively challenged Jose Juan Barea, who sports a minus-2.0 Roland Rating compared to Terry’s sparkling plus-6.4. Too bad for the Mavs; they were on a strong 7-3 SU and ATS run before Terry was injured in Saturday’s loss to the Bulls. Boston has just one payday in its last five games and will be trying to avoid a third straight defeat on national television, having lost at home to both the Lakers (+7) and Spurs (+6.5) this past week.
NBA basketball lines in the Bodog Sportsbook.
Don’t Miss
NBA: Phoenix at Cleveland (Wednesday, 7:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: Syracuse at Connecticut (Wednesday, 7:00 p.m.)
NBA: L.A. Lakers at Utah (Wednesday, 9:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: UCLA at Arizona State (Thursday, 9:00 p.m.)
NBA: Portland at Golden State (Thursday, 9:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: Villanova at West Virginia (Friday, 9:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: Cincinnati at Pittsburgh (Saturday, 4:00 p.m.)
