Sports Games to Bet on – November 18th Edition
Scratch one more sport off the betting list. Jimmie Johnson has won NASCAR’s top prize for the third year in a row, taking the Sprint Cup in somewhat anticlimactic fashion by finishing 15th at Sunday’s Ford 400. Johnson only needed to place 36th or better to clinch the title. Cale Yarborough (1976-77-78) is the only other driver to pull off the three-peat.
We suspect handicappers will make it through NASCAR’s offseason. This is only the start of the busiest time of year in sports gambling, with both college and pro football and hoops leading the way. These are our Top 5 betting games of the week (all times Eastern; for current lines, visit Bodog Sportsbook).
1. NCAAF: No. 2 Texas Tech at No. 5 Oklahoma (Saturday, 8:00 p.m.)
College football retakes center stage with three weeks left to sort out who’s going bowling where. The biggest matchup is this Big 12 tilt between the Red Raiders (10-0 SU, 5-2-1 ATS) and the Sooners (9-1 SU, 7-2 ATS). Oklahoma will be the favorite; a win would put the Sooners one giant step closer to the national championship game. A loss would put OU in grave danger of not even making it into a BCS bowl, while Texas Tech would likely move up to No. 1 in the polls. The home team is 4-0 SU and 2-2 ATS over the past four years.
College football lines in Bodog’s online sportsbook.
2. NFL: N.Y. Jets at Tennessee (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.)
The Titans continue to roll over the rest of the NFL at 10-0 SU and 9-1 ATS. The Jets, meanwhile, have wrested control of the AFC East from the Patriots at 7-3 SU and 6-4 ATS. Tennessee is a 6-point chalk (-105) at home; when the Titans last played at LP Field, they dropped the cash for the first time this season in a 19-16 overtime win over Green Bay (+3.5). New York is on a three-game winning streak SU and ATS, with QB Brett Favre going pick-free in his last two contests.
NFL odds in the Bodog Sportsbook.
3. NCAAF: No. 17 Michigan State at No. 7 Penn State (Saturday, 3:30 p.m.)
The Big Ten has turned into a three-way battle featuring the Spartans, the Nittany Lions and No. 10 Ohio State all at 6-1 in conference play. Penn State (10-1 SU, 6-3-1 ATS) lost its chance at the national title by dropping a game at Iowa (+7.5) two weeks ago, but a spot in the Rose Bowl is within the Lions’ grasp with a victory over the Spartans. Michigan State needs a win Saturday and for the Buckeyes to slip up. The over is 9-2-1 in the last 12 games between PSU and MSU.
4. NBA: Detroit at Boston (Thursday, 8:00 p.m.)
The Pistons (7-3 SU, 5-5 ATS) and the Celtics (9-2 SU, 4-7 ATS) are both doing very well once again in the Eastern Conference, but they aren’t meeting the high expectations of the betting public. Detroit is 3-3 SU and ATS since Allen Iverson joined the team, including an 88-76 loss at home to the Celtics (+1). The defending champions haven’t cashed in since then, going 3-1 SU and 0-4 ATS. Kevin Garnett will be itching to play after missing Tuesday’s matchup with the Knicks; he’s been suspended for Saturday’s incident with Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut. This is the first game of Thursday’s always-popular TNT doubleheader.
NBA betting in the Bodog Sportsbook.
5. NCAAB: Kentucky at No. 1 North Carolina (Tuesday, 9:00 p.m.)
Doubleheader? How about a nonupleheader? ESPN is gorging on college hoops; Tuesday’s matchup between the Wildcats and Tar Heels wraps up nearly 24 hours of continuous coverage. North Carolina is 2-5 to win the very tough ACC and 2-1 to take the national championship in March. Kentucky is 3-1 to win the SEC East and 30-1 for the title, but the Wildcats are coming off a 111-103 loss to the Big South’s Virginia Military Institute. At least UK won’t have to worry about the injured Tyler Hansbrough (shin) and Marcus Ginyard (foot).
College basketball lines in the Bodog Sportsbook.
Honorable Mentions
NFL: Indianapolis at San Diego (Sunday, 8:15 p.m.)
NCAAF: No. 16 Brigham Young at No. 8 Utah (Saturday, 3:30 p.m.)
NBA: New York at San Antonio (Tuesday, 8:30 p.m.)
NCAAB: Southern Illinois vs. No. 5 Duke (Thursday, 7:00 p.m.)
NHL: Boston at Montreal (Saturday, 7:30 p.m.)
Boxing: Ricky Hatton vs. Paulie Malignaggi (Saturday, 10:00 p.m.)
