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Date | Match Up | Rating | Score | Result | Profit | Lead Time | Analysis |
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03-31-21 | Blazers -7.5 v. Pistons | 124-101 | Win | 100 | 1 h 10 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units After completing the 3-0 sweep of the Toronto franchise that fired him the year before it won the NBA title, Pistons head coach Dwayne Casey probably won’t have the screws too tight for this next affair. It’s a young team with the East’s worst record and young teams tend to be the most volatile in their form, anyway. The Blazers attempt to sweep a four-game Eastern road trip in what amounts to a Men vs. Boys scenario and the men don’t have to win by much to accomplish the task for their backers as well as themselves. These were the types of match-ups that Portland needed to win to stay in a good playoff place before McCollum and Nurkic came back. Now that they’re both back, it’s a game in which they should cruise. |
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03-30-21 | Magic v. Clippers -11 | 103-96 | Loss | -109 | 11 h 20 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units It’s the second of back-to-backs for the host Clippers (vs. rested Magic) after they entertained a more lucrative opponent, Milwaukee. But L.A. head coach Tyronne Lue is on record as saying that back-to-backs test your manhood. His players have taken his words to heart: 8-0 SU and ATS with no rest. The Magic relieved themselves of 59 starting points in their recent trades. They are out West on a wing and some prayers as non-miracle working head coach Steve Clifford attempts to figure it all out, while by no means safe from becoming an eventual victim of the ol’ teardown process himself. |
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03-30-21 | UCLA v. Michigan -6.5 | 51-49 | Loss | -109 | 6 h 43 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units We didn’t think Michigan guards would ever get comfortable on the perimeter against Florida State. Apparently, neither did Wolverines’ head coach Juwan Howard, his coaching staff and the players, because they just went into the paint for 50 of their 76 points while Leonard (Zzzz) Hamilton took another one of his frequent bench naps on company time. With 50 points in the paint and 15 on free throws, Michigan needed to make only 3 of 11 three-point attempts for a comfy-cozy win in which they allowed Florida State to get to the free-throw line for only 6 attempts. But this is a tougher defensive prep for both sides with only one day between games. Both offenses are good with ball security. Michigan’s 2-point defense (42.7%) is the best UCLA has faced. The Bruins were 0-2 vs. USC, who ranked four spots lower than Michigan’s #8 national rank in that category. |
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03-30-21 | USC v. Gonzaga -8 | 66-85 | Win | 100 | 9 h 32 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Many teams have been flummoxed by USC’s length and zone defense this season, and that has carried the Trojans to the Elite 8. However, they’ll now have to deal with the most skilled and diverse offense in the nation when taking on the Zags. Gonzaga is making 37.3% of three-point attempts this season and have multiple options to cycle through the middle of the Trojans’ zone. Drew Timme serves as an excellent option to be a decision maker, while they can surround the big man with quality shooting. Gonzaga has simply looked like they’re on a different level than anyone this year, as even Oklahoma and Creighton played respectable games and still ended up on the losing side by 17 and 18 point margins. USC would need to be at their best again to have a chance of staying within single digits. |
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03-30-21 | Hornets -3.5 v. Wizards | 114-104 | Win | 100 | 8 h 18 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Washington had lost 8 of 10 before hosting the Pacers on Monday. Bradley Beal didn’t play Monday but Washington won a taxing game behind a monster game from Russell Westbrook. Charlotte had a pretty rough road trip starting a couple of weeks ago when they beat Spurs in their final road game of that stretch to avoid going 0 for 4 on the journey. They had won 3 in a row before losing to Phoenix in overtime on Sunday. When the Hornets beat this team last month they won the battle of the boards and got efficient games out of both Terry Rozier and Gordon Hayward. |
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03-29-21 | Arkansas v. Baylor -7.5 | 72-81 | Win | 100 | 6 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Arkansas has had a bad habit of falling behind early all season long. In fact, the last five Razorback wins have all come after trailing by double digits. However, if that trend continues, there will be no recovering from it against an elite Baylor team. The Bears have the ability to shut down a fairly uncreative Arkansas offense and take advantage in transition. Perhaps no duo of guards left in the country are as dangerous on both ends as Baylor’s Jared Butler and Davion Mitchell. Arkansas has had an advantage against most teams with their ability to go small, that will not be the case against the Bears. The Bears are in a position to thrive in a small-ball game. |
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03-29-21 | Mavs -11 v. Thunder | 127-106 | Win | 100 | 4 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units The Mavericks held the Thunder to 78 points on March 3. On March 11, at OKC, in the second of back-to-backs after having beaten San Antonio at home the prior night, head coach Rick Carlisle opted to rest both Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis. They trailed 35-19 after the first quarter and lost the game. Oopsie! Won’t do that again! Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was 11-for-22, game-high 32 points for OKC in their win. He’ll take a non-recorded 0 tonight. Meanwhile, there will be no rest for the non-weary dynamic Dallas duo as the Mavericks are off two losses, with a day between games, and every game has playoff-making implications for the West’s current #8 team until they don’t. |
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03-29-21 | Heat -4.5 v. Knicks | 98-88 | Win | 100 | 4 h 40 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units The Knicks’ outright win at Milwaukee would have been a tough one to ignore had Milwaukee actually been trying. But starters Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Donte DiVincenzo and Jrue Holiday sat, as did sixth man Bobby Portis. New York comes back home with a false sense of confidence off three straight wins, four in the last five, as Miami is desperate. The Heat have lost three games vs. Indiana and Charlotte in the last 10 days which triggered a drop in the standings into a #8 tie with the Pacers, 2 games behind the #4 Knicks. It didn’t help when Western Conference winners Phoenix and Portland were scheduled to hit their town in between those losses. They’ve lost six straight and are 5-14 against opponents with winning records. Let’s make it 6-14. |
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03-29-21 | Oregon State v. Houston -7.5 | Top | 61-67 | Loss | -110 | 3 h 23 m | Show |
Rating: 4 Unit Midwest Region Play of the Day Houston is likely to again face a bunch of zone defense when they take on the upstart Oregon State team. Houston has seen nearly every type of zone imaginable after having played in a zone heavy American Athletic Conference and having just taken down Syracuse’s 2-3 attack. The Cougars will again attack the offensive glass, where they’re elite, as the Beavers rank 228th in defensive rebound rate. Houston guard DeJon Jarreau is also a terrific candidate to shut down Oregon State leading scorer, Ethan Thompson. Jarreau frustrated and shut down Syracuse’s Buddy Boeheim on Saturday, and his leadership continues to lead the way for the Cougars. Along with Jarreau, Houston guards Marcus Sasser and Quentin Grimes have proven to give Houston enough perimeter ability to successfully create offense that is efficient enough given their prowess on defense and on the glass. |
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03-29-21 | Pacers -5 v. Wizards | 124-132 | Loss | -101 | 3 h 12 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Washington makes it hard on themselves because they don’t defend. They give up the most points in the Association. Bradley Beal was iffy for the win over Detroit on Saturday but he suffered a hip contusion, left the game, and didn’t return. Davis Bertans is out with calf issues. Davis is 38% from downtown this season. Beal has missed only 3 games for Washington this season and the Wizards have lost all of them. Indy has won 4 of 5 and the loss during this span came against the high-scoring Milwaukee club when the Pacers were playing the second of a back-to-back game. Caris LeVert will really help Indy in the second half of the season. |
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03-28-21 | Magic v. Lakers -6.5 | 93-96 | Loss | -110 | 11 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units One game prior to leaving for this first of a five-game Western trip, the Magic traded a good share of their points production away – Center Nikola Vucevic, forward Aaron Gordon, guard Evan Fournier. They were already missing three injured guys they’d been counting on to be key players in 2020-21, guards Markelle Fultz and Cole Anthony, forward Jonathan Isaac. Terrence Ross is now the “best” player on what appears to be a much worse team as Tankathon 2021 begins, an event the Lakers are not participating in. L.A. is, however, prepared to take out the violins and fiddle a sad tune for Orlando while using the Magic’s situation to help relieve some of the desperation within their own little issue, which is being Lebron- and Lebrowless. |
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03-28-21 | Oregon v. USC -2 | Top | 68-82 | Win | 100 | 32 h 14 m | Show |
Rating: 4 Unit West Region Play of the Day USC is proving to be too big and too athletic for many teams to contend |
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03-28-21 | Florida State +2.5 v. Michigan | 58-76 | Loss | -110 | 27 h 28 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Florida State head coach Leonard Hamilton maintained all season long that his team had another level to get to, and it appears the Seminoles are starting to do so. Florida State didn’t always bring defensive intensity throughout the year, but are doing so now. “That’s just kind of what we were supposed to do the whole year,” said center Balsa Koprivica. “It’s always our emphasis. But now everything is on the line, and it’s win or go home. We’re just all focused, talking to each other. And this is what we have to do to win these types of games. Because not every game is going to be a good shooting night.” Florida State’s overall length and athleticism will cause fits for Michigan’s more traditional lineup. |
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03-28-21 | Creighton v. Gonzaga -12.5 | 65-83 | Win | 100 | 3 h 24 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Gonzaga, 28-0, cruised through the season without being a serious participant in basketball’s mass movement towards being heavy on the three-point shot. They average 7.6 makes on 20.4 attempts per game, below average in volume (but an above-average 37.5% in accuracy). They’ve zeroed in from inside the arc, but not with the frowned-upon 2-point jumpers. At a high 75.1 possessions per game, the ’Zags have attempted 48.7% of their shots near the rim, sending an amazing 72.5% of them through the net with a top 30 free-throw rate attached. They’ll get their threes on hoop and harm and put opponents in foul trouble while doing it. 34.9% of their shots have come in transition, where their Effective Field Goal % (factoring both twos and threes) is a national-high 65.9%. Creighton isn’t built to slow down opponents into half-court games and if they were, there’s the matter of Gonzaga’s national-high 58.4% Effective Field Goal % in non-transition. |
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03-28-21 | Suns -6 v. Hornets | 101-97 | Loss | -114 | 2 h 10 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units When Charlotte beat this team last month LaMelo Ball had 20 points, 8 assists and a couple of steals. He is likely out for the season. Charlotte is in the bottom half of the league in scoring and allowing points and they allow clubs to shoot 47% from the floor, 23rd overall. Phoenix no longer sneaks up on anybody. They are the real deal. Chris Paul makes sure they take good shots and Devin Booker is liable to go off on any given night. The Suns have won 4 of 5 and the loss during this span came when they blew a fourth-quarter lead in Orlando after beating Miami 24 hours earlier. |
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03-28-21 | Mississippi State v. Memphis -4 | 64-77 | Win | 100 | 3 h 34 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Unit NIT Championship Cash Mississippi State is again expected to be without starting forward Tolu Smith, making the Bulldogs a bit smaller and without one main offensive option against a swarming Memphis defense. Memphis has put things together down the stretch this season, as their only two losses since February 1st have come in two narrow defeats against Houston. The Tigers defense is relentless, ranking 28th-best nationally in turnover rate. Their pressure will create a major |
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03-27-21 | Cavs +7.5 v. Kings | 98-100 | Win | 100 | 12 h 2 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Cavaliers lost 119-105 to the Kings at home on Monday. They take the floor with revenge in a second of back-to-backs coming out of Laker Land last night. Cleveland’s leading scorer for the loss vs. the Kings was Javale McGee, which should tell us all something, given that McGee was traded to Denver three days later – they were showcasing him. The guy scored 18 points in 19 minutes and Denver snapped him up. The Cavaliers aren’t good, but it’s hard to believe that the starters for that game – Larry Nance, Isaac Okoro, Jarrett Allen, Collin Sexton and Darius Garland, are truly as bad as their -25, -18, -24, -25 and -26 plus-minuses for that game, compared to their opposite numbers on Sacramento. |
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03-27-21 | Syracuse v. Houston -6.5 | 46-62 | Win | 100 | 12 h 15 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Houston will have a full week to prepare for Syracuse’s 2-3 zone, and the Cougars won’t be unfamiliar with such a look. Houston played against a bunch of zone this season in the American Athletic Conference, as there are several teams in that conference that opt to play such a style. Houston has capable guards and their frontcourt is relentless in attacking the offensive glass. Houston ranks 2nd-best nationally in offensive rebound rate, an area where Syracuse’s defense always struggles. Consider that Houston is 20-7 ATS in their last 27 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600. |
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03-27-21 | Celtics -9 v. Thunder | 111-94 | Win | 100 | 11 h 3 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Hamadou Diallo hadn’t been playing while injured for OKC, and then they traded him to Detroit. Their heart-and-soul motor, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, will be out for a while. With the absences and castoffs, Darius Bazley is now a top three scorer for them and he was out with an injury in their last game. The Celtics play with playoff-making urgency in just about every game, until they don’t anymore. They got a good reminder of how good they can be these last few days when, after 96 minutes at Milwaukee, they were +6 in points against a team with a 67% straight-up win percentage that’s 7.5 games ahead of them in the standings. If newly acquired Evan Fournier can step in and hit a few buckets, the fight would be even more unfair. |
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03-27-21 | Pistons v. Wizards -3.5 | 92-106 | Win | 100 | 10 h 5 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units The Pistons had lost 9 of 12 before facing Brooklyn on Friday. The wins in that span came against the 12 and 31 Rockets, the Raptors when three key Toronto players were 7 for 27 from the field and the Raptors again when Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam didn’t play. On Friday Detroit could not contain James Harden and the Pistons lost a heart breaker. The emphasis for Washington will be to play the entire 48 minutes. They were leading New York by 11 points Thursday night with 12 minutes to go but lost the last stanza by 15 and the game by 4 points. Look for both Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal to be pumped after going just a combined 11 for 38 from the floor Thursday. |
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03-27-21 | Oral Roberts +11.5 v. Arkansas | 70-72 | Win | 100 | 9 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Oral Roberts, a double digit underdog, have already shown once this season that they belong on the same floor as Arkansas. Oral Roberts held an early 12 point second half lead on the road at Arkansas back on December 20th. While the Golden Eagles did fall by an 11 point margin, they did so despite shooting 8-for-29 from long distance. Furthermore, star guard Max Abmas had an off game, playing just 32 minutes due to foul trouble and going 4-of-11 from the field. Consider that Oral Roberts is 19-7-1 ATS in their last 27 games vs. a team with a winning straight up record. |
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03-27-21 | Villanova v. Baylor -7.5 | Top | 51-62 | Win | 100 | 8 h 38 m | Show |
Rating: 4 Unit South Region Play of the Day This will be Villanova’s first real test without point guard Collin Gillepsie, and a terrific Bears backcourt is waiting to pounce. Baylor’s Davion Mitchell is one of the best defensive players in the country and will be ready to hound Villanova’s replacements at the guard spot. Baylor ranks 3rd-best nationally in turnover rate on the defensive end and has the ability to disrupt the Wildcats offense. The Bears backcourt is too good, too versatile and too experienced to not handle this mismatch. Villanova’s only chance will come from post player Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to dominate inside, but Baylor’s physicality will provide a strong test. |
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03-27-21 | Oregon State +7 v. Loyola-Chicago | 65-58 | Win | 100 | 4 h 15 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units In hindsight, Wayne Tinkle was always a good one-and-done NCAA Tournament underdog when he coached Montana. But he and his Eager Beavers have really outdone themselves recently. They enter the Sweet 16 with five straight wins as the outright underdog. What were the odds of such a run? Oh, less than 1%. If they advance to the Elite Eight, then they’ll have pulled off a greater than 1,000-1 shot of six straight outright wins taking two or three possessions worth of points. They are an over-the-top 16-4 ATS as the dog. |
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03-25-21 | 76ers -5.5 v. Lakers | 109-101 | Win | 100 | 11 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Obviously missing LeBron and Anthony Davis changes the entire Lakers structure but they also will be without the steadying force of Marc Gasol. Philly has won 9 of 10 and the loss in this time frame was by 4 points to Milwaukee when the Sixers were playing the second of a back-to-back game. They beat the Lakers in January after losing in Detroit 48 hours earlier. In that win over L.A. LeBron had 34 points and Davis chipped in with 23. That’s a lot of points for the Lakers to find for this game. |
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03-25-21 | Boise State v. Memphis -4.5 | Top | 56-59 | Loss | -110 | 4 h 35 m | Show |
NIT Game of the Week Memphis has improved considerably since the start of February, with their only two losses during the last seven weeks coming at the hands of Houston. Even then, the Tigers were competitive, covering both games against the Cougars. Penny Hardaway has stated that his defensive system is now fully installed, and it’s paid dividends for his Memphis team. The Tigers defense now ranks 2nd-best nationally in defensive efficiency rating. |
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03-25-21 | Mississippi State -2.5 v. Richmond | Top | 68-67 | Loss | -110 | 7 h 0 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit NIT Play of the Day Richmond will at least be without starting center Grant Golden, and starting guard Blake Francis remains as a game-time decision. The Spiders will have to deal with a physical and big Mississippi State team without Golden. The Bulldogs should own the rebounding battle as well as the paint. Mississippi State will be led on the offensive end by starting guard D.J. Stewart, who produced 20 points and six assists in an impressive six-point victory over Saint Louis in the opening round of the NIT. |
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03-24-21 | Grizzlies -4.5 v. Thunder | 116-107 | Win | 100 | 7 h 51 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units These teams split the 2 games this season but Memphis should have won both of them. In the Memphis loss 10 nights ago, the Grizzlies had a 10-point lead with 12 minutes to go but lost the game by 6. Memphis is sometimes challenged to score but they share the ball and they play solid defense holding teams to 111 a night, 12th overall. When Memphis can start Ja Morant, Grayson Allen, Dillion Brooks, Kyle Anderson and Jonas Valanciunas they are the best starters in the league allowing points per 100 possessions. |
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03-24-21 | Suns -9.5 v. Magic | 111-112 | Loss | -110 | 7 h 49 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units When Orlando lost to Phoenix in February the Magic were just 17% from beyond the arc. That is no fluke as Orlando is 20th in the league from downtown. Orlando hosted Denver on Tuesday in a game that Aaron Gordon played like a guy that wanted to get traded. He had a meaningless 13 points in the defeat. Phoenix is 7-1 this season in the second of back-to-back games including a win over Orlando last month 24 hours after beating the Sixers. Phoenix played last season’s Eastern Conference champs on Tuesday and in that game in Miami was down 15 in the first half and they could not rally. |
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03-24-21 | Cavs v. Bulls -6 | 103-94 | Loss | -110 | 7 h 47 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units When Orlando lost to Phoenix in February the Magic were just 17% from beyond the arc. That is no fluke as Orlando is 20th in the league from downtown. Orlando hosted Denver on Tuesday in a game that Aaron Gordon played like a guy that wanted to get traded. He had a meaningless 13 points in the defeat. Phoenix is 7-1 this season in the second of back-to-back games including a win over Orlando last month 24 hours after beating the Sixers. Phoenix played last season’s Eastern Conference champs on Tuesday and in that game in Miami was down 15 in the first half and they could not rally. |
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03-24-21 | Coastal Carolina v. Pepperdine -4 | 61-84 | Win | 100 | 7 h 45 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units It took a talented Pepperdine squad some time to come to life in both of their opening CBI games, but eventually their talent was able to take over in wins against Bellarmine and Longwood. Now situated in a title game, the Waves should be motivated from the start. Pepperdine big man Kessler Edwards has proven to be a mismatch this week, as the 6’8 junior has totaled 50 points in 65 minutes through two games. With the pair of Edwards and guard Colbey Ross, the Waves will have the two best players on the floor on Wednesday night. |
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03-24-21 | Nuggets -2.5 v. Raptors | 111-135 | Loss | -105 | 6 h 14 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units What the? They lost in Houston, these Raptors? In a blowout! They have all their guys back. They’re supposed to make a run towards the bottom rung of the Eastern Conference playoff ladder! Our initial impression of the Raptors early this season was “Fade the Raptors!” and it was a good take, for a while, until they started to win a few games. But now, we’re back to, “Fade the Raptors!” as their losing streak has hit nine. Some say they’ve “hit bottom” after losing to an opponent on a 20-game losing streak but after they lost to the worst team goin’, and haven’t won since Feb. 26, they’re probably still approaching bottom. |
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03-23-21 | Nets v. Blazers -3.5 | 116-112 | Loss | -102 | 10 h 34 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units The last Brooklyn trip out West went 5-0, including outright wins as the underdog at Phoenix, LA Lakers and LA Clippers, three teams above the Blazers in the Western Conference standings. That’s the all-too-logical approach for picking the Nets with the points tonight. It might still work. But, the Blazers’ big scorers all tanked vs. Dallas here in their last game, and the Nets will be without Kyrie Irving (of course!) and Kevin Durant (of course!). These two guys obviously don’t care about whether or not they finish first in the East. |
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03-23-21 | Suns -1.5 v. Heat | 110-100 | Win | 100 | 8 h 32 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Miami’s Goran Dragic has been nursing a bad back and is iffy for this game but don’t be shocked if he plays. He left the Phoenix organization with some bad blood. The Heat have lost 3 in a row. Before this losing streak Miami had won 5 in a row but none of the teams they beat during this time frame have winning records. The disturbing stat about Miami is that they are 29th in the league shooting the ball from downtown. That makes it a bit easier for opponents to scheme for the Heat. The Suns were unbeaten in the bubble last season and that momentum has carried on. They did get lucky on Sunday against the Lakers as L.A. missed their pair of superstars. Phoenix has won 8 of their last 10 games and they do it on both sides of the ball. They are just outside the top 10 in scoring and only 2 teams allow fewer points nightly. |
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03-23-21 | Pepperdine v. Bellarmine +4.5 | Top | 82-71 | Loss | -105 | 8 h 56 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit CBI Tournament Play of the Day Pepperdine didn’t show much excitement to be in the CBI Tournament |
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03-23-21 | Nuggets -7.5 v. Magic | 110-99 | Win | 100 | 7 h 36 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units From March 18-21 the Magic flew from Orlando to New York, then from New |
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03-22-21 | USC +1 v. Kansas | 85-51 | Win | 100 | 9 h 20 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Points will be hard to come by for the Jayhawks when they take on one of the nation’s best defenses. USC ranks 10th-best in defensive efficiency and 2nd-best when it comes to defending inside the arc. 7’0 star freshman Evan Mobley has been a difference maker this year and will own a sizable advantage against Kansas’ David McCormack. Kansas ranks 181st in finishing from two-point range, a major problem when going against Mobley and the Trojans. |
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03-22-21 | Raptors -8.5 v. Rockets | 99-117 | Loss | -109 | 5 h 12 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Once again, the piñata known as the Houston Rockets has been fastened to the tree branch, hanging low enough for the tall kids to have at it with their bats, bust it open and enjoy all the goodies that rain down upon them. The Raptors have pretty much been made whole again. And yet, they’ve lost eight straight. But they’ve arrived to play against a home underdog that has lost 20 straight, and has no strengths to speak off, just a lot of weaknesses. There’s always somebody in worse shape than you. But in the NBA, they don’t force you to feel sorry for them. They encourage you to beat them down again like everyone else has. |
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03-22-21 | Maryland +5.5 v. Alabama | 77-96 | Loss | -100 | 8 h 22 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Maryland, a two possession underdog, will lean on their defense to hang around during Monday’s contest against Alabama. The Terrapins are exceptional at making opposing offenses go deep into the shot clock, something Alabama would prefer not to do. Maryland’s defense ranks 20th in the average of length of defensive possessions, at 18.4 seconds. Forcing Alabama to execute in the half court should help the Terps chances. |
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03-22-21 | Hornets v. Spurs -5 | 100-97 | Loss | -109 | 10 h 12 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Charlotte’s Terry Rozier had to leave the Saturday game with a left hip contusion and never returned. Both Terry and LaMelo Ball are probable for this game. This has not been a good trip for Charlotte as they lost the first 3 on the road. Before the trip the Hornets had won 4 in a row but the opponents they beat are a combined 56 and 110. The Spurs just went 3 and 2 on the road and the losses came against Philly and Milwaukee. In the Saturday loss to the Bucks, the Spurs were only down by 4 with 12 minutes to go but could not pull off a win. They only had one poor quarter and they were missing Dejounte Murray, Trey Lyles and Paddy Mills. |
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03-22-21 | Bellarmine -1.5 v. Army | 77-67 | Win | 100 | 10 h 1 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Bellarmine was one of the better stories of the college basketball season before being tripped up late. The Knights lost in the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament to Stetson, but the Knights will still be motivated to play in their first Division I Tournament after moving up from Division II this season. The Knights offense is terrific, and their spacing and precision will be difficult for Army to prepare for. Army comes into the CBI Tournament struggling, having lost five of seven games. |
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03-22-21 | Colorado v. Florida State -1.5 | Top | 53-71 | Win | 100 | 32 h 45 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit CBB Play of the Day Florida State’s athleticism and versatility on the defensive end allows the Seminoles to switch constantly, creating a roadblock for Colorado’s motion offense. Georgetown proved not to be able to guard Colorado on Saturday, practically ignoring the three-point line. That won’t be the case against a Florida State defense better equipped to utilize their size and speed. Junior RaiQuan Gray continues to impress for Florida State, as the swiss army knife forward totaled 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists in an opening road win over UNC Greensboro. |
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03-22-21 | Ohio +6 v. Creighton | 58-72 | Loss | -109 | 30 h 12 m | Show | |
Rating: 4 Units Creighton hasn’t looked like the team they were for the majority of the season, as the Blue Jays were fortunate to advance out of round one. UC Santa Barbara let one get away against Creighton, failing to convert in the final seconds. Creighton is likely to get pushed to the limit again on Monday against underdog Ohio. The Bobcats have a point guard in Jason Preston who is fully capable of going toe to toe with Creighton’s Marcus Zegarowski. Ohio’s offense can hang with anyone, as the Bobcats rank 15th nationally in effective field goal percentage. |
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03-22-21 | Abilene Christian v. UCLA -4.5 | Top | 47-67 | Win | 100 | 5 h 60 m | Show |
Rating: 5 Unit CBB Game of the Week UCLA impressed on Saturday night, winning wire to wire against BYU. Mick Cronin’s group defended at a high level and former Kentucky transfer Johnny Juzang paced the offense with 27 points. The Bruins catch a bit of a break here as Texas failed miserably against Abilene Christian. The Wildcats pulled off the upset despite shooting 29.8% from the floor. That type of performance won’t be near good enough to advance again. |
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03-21-21 | Mavs -1.5 v. Blazers | 132-92 | Win | 100 | 12 h 53 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Friday's loss came in the first game of a stretch in which the Mavericks play eight of nine games on the road. Next Friday's game against the Indiana Pacers is the lone one at home during the span. Doncic looks ready to carry Dallas through the stretch after averaging 40 points over the past two games. But he will need some help on Sunday as the Mavericks try to slow Lillard and the now-revved-up McCollum. Consider that Dallas is 7-2 ATS in the last 9 meetings in Portland. |
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03-21-21 | Oregon State +6.5 v. Oklahoma State | 80-70 | Win | 100 | 12 h 49 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Oregon State, which won the Pacific-12 Conference tournament to earn an NCAA berth, never trailed in upsetting the Volunteers. Roman Silva scored a career-high 16 points for the Beavers, making all eight of his field-goal attempts. Jarod Lucas added 14 points, Ethan Thompson 13 and Zach Reichle 10. It was the Beavers' first NCAA Tournament victory since 1982. They're in the tournament for just the second time since 1990. It has been quite a run for Oregon State, which was picked to finish last in the Pac-12's preseason media poll. The Beavers shot 48.2 from the field percent in their first-round victory and registered 20 assists on 27 field goals. They built a 33-19 halftime lead, and Tennessee never got closer than 10 points in the second half. Consider that Oregon State is 14-3 ATS in their last 17 games as an underdog. |
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03-21-21 | Wizards v. Nets -8.5 | 106-113 | Loss | -105 | 8 h 5 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Orlando, with some pieces of the puzzle back, spread the floor against disinterested defense the other night, rained 52% three-pointers and prevented the Nets from claiming first place in the Eastern Conference. We shall make an anger play to get our money back, on good team returning home off that road loss, while the kind of bad team, Washington, hits the road off a home win against the team with the NBA’s best record Utah. It’s a zig-zag move. Blake Griffin’s Brooklyn debut is tonight, so they’ll have somebody who at least will give the Wizards’ driving duo something to think about as they propel themselves in penetration. A spread floor with Russell Westbrook shooting from the perimeter doesn’t have to be spread as much – just let him shoot from there. |
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03-21-21 | Bulls v. Pistons +3 | 100-86 | Loss | -108 | 8 h 2 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Road dog. Not road favorite. Road dog. Like Chicago was the other night at Denver, where the Bulls raised their pointspread performance to 11-2 ATS when taking points away from home, performing to expectations against a good host – competing well, hanging in there, failing to win outright. Because they lack the winning instinct, expecting Chicago to make enough of a margin against a lesser team away from home is not the right thing to do, in our estimation. |
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03-21-21 | Rutgers v. Houston -7.5 | Top | 60-63 | Loss | -112 | 9 h 13 m | Show |
Rating: 5 Unit Tournament Game of the Week It required less than one minute of game action for the second-seeded Houston Cougars to face their first measure of adversity in this NCAA Tournament. Senior DeJon Jarreau, unanimously described as the leader of the veteran Cougars, was lost to a right hip pointer and spent the remainder of the game rooting from the sideline with heating pads stuffed in his shorts. Without Jarreau spearheading their offense and defense -- Jarreau was named American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year -- the Cougars (25-3) appeared to be a rudderless ship for most of the first half against Cleveland State. Jarreau's status for Sunday is unclear. But what Houston received in his absence, notably from forwards Reggie Chaney, Justin Gorham, Brison Gresham and Fabian White Jr., eased any frayed nerves. Defensively, the Cougars limited Cleveland State to one field goal over the first 10 minutes of the second half. Houston also grabbed 16 offensive rebounds. Consider that Houston is 23-8 ATS in their last 31 Sunday games. |
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03-21-21 | Syracuse +4.5 v. West Virginia | Top | 75-72 | Win | 100 | 7 h 12 m | Show |
Rating: 4 Unit Mismatch of the Day When it comes to shooters and scorers, there might not be anyone hotter than Syracuse's Buddy Boeheim, the coach's son. Boeheim scored 30 points as Syracuse (now 17-9) beat San Diego State 78-62 on Friday, making 11 of 15 shots from the field, including 7 of 10 from 3-point range. He has back-to-back 30-point games -- he had 31 in an ACC tournament loss to Virginia -- and is averaging 26.2 points over his past five outings. Syracuse is trying to reach the Sweet 16 for the third time as a double-digit seed. The Orange made a Final Four run as a 10th seed in 2016 and won two games as a No. 11 seed in 2018. Consider that West Virginia is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall and 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games vs. a team with a winning straight up record. |
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03-21-21 | Wisconsin v. Baylor -6 | Top | 63-76 | Win | 100 | 26 h 34 m | Show |
Rating: 3 unit Play of the Day Baylor continues to move further away from their mid-Feb. program pause. The Bears have slowly shaken off the rust and clearly still do have another gear that they can hit this March. The Bears are exceptional on the perimeter, with Jared Butler leading the way on offense and Davion Mitchell doing so on defense. Mitchell is fully capable of shutting down Wisconsin guard D’Mitrik Trice, leaving the Badgers offense handicapped. If there’s a weakness for this Baylor team, it likely is their interior defense, which isn’t likely to be exploited by Wisconsin (#286, 46.5% two-pointers. |
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03-21-21 | Thunder +3.5 v. Rockets | 114-112 | Win | 100 | 4 h 58 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Roster attrition via injuries and defections robbed the Rockets of their potential, or at least of the opportunity to evaluate how those available pieces could mesh. That Houston has been unable to get a clear view of what that trio can accomplish together underscores why things have come undone, with the 113-100 loss to the Pistons extending the franchise-worst losing streak to 19 games. But some of what ails Houston, which is set to host the Thunder today, has little to do with who has or who hasn't been available for duty. As the losses mount, the Rockets have fought the urge to relent to this lost season, and truthfully, some yielding has come defensively. Consider that Houston is 8-22 ATS in their last 30 games as a favorite. |
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03-21-21 | Loyola-Chicago v. Illinois -7 | 71-58 | Loss | -105 | 23 h 1 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Illinois matches up favorably with Loyola Chicago, as 7’0 big man Kofi Cockburn will give the Ramblers’ Cameron Krutwig his toughest test yet. Krutwig, the Missouri Valley Player of the Year, has always had a size and talent advantage against opposing frontcourts but that is no longer the case. Cockburn’s presence paired with the Illini’s explosive scoring attack on the perimeter will likely be too much for the Ramblers to keep pace with. |
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03-20-21 | UCLA v. BYU -3.5 | 73-62 | Loss | -107 | 11 h 15 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units UCLA has stumbled down the stretch as the Bruins have made little progress on the defensive end in year two under Mick Cronin. The Bruins rank 198th in effective field goal percentage allowed, and that’s a bad mix when paired with BYU’s precision based offense. |
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03-20-21 | Kings v. 76ers -6 | 105-129 | Win | 100 | 11 h 39 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units In the 4 recent games that Joel Embiid has missed, Philly has won three of them. Tobias Harris has picked up his play with Embiid gone and Ben Simmons has been more engaged offensively. Ben had a triple/double in the overtime loss to Milwaukee 3 nights ago. Philly should be motivated here in the get-away game before a 6-game Western swing. Before Friday’s game vs. Boston, the Kings had lost 13 of 17 games and they only had one quality win during that span. Only one team gives up more points than the Sacramento. Sacramento will be missing starting power forward Marvin Bagley for this game and for several weeks. The Kings are 2 and 5 in back-to-back games this season. Against the Celts on Friday Sacramento stayed close and then they got a break when Boston could only score 15 points in the last 12 minutes. The 5 Kings starters played between 32 and 39 minutes. |
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03-20-21 | Missouri +1 v. Oklahoma | 68-72 | Loss | -110 | 51 h 46 m | Show | |
Rating: 5 Units Missouri is one of the most veteran laden teams in the tournament and that should bode well for the Tigers. One of their seniors, big man Jeremiah Tilmon, is a mismatch for an Oklahoma team that often prefers to play smaller. Tilmon will make the Sooners defense uncomfortable as they try to combat one of the SEC’s best post players. Oklahoma has also been weakened on the perimeter, as it was announced starting guard De’Vion Harmon will not be available this weekend. |
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03-20-21 | Maryland +4 v. Connecticut | 63-54 | Win | 100 | 2 h 18 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units It’s another “Escape from the Big Ten.” We’ll see how the conference’s second-tier teams like Wisconsin, Rutgers, these Terps, and yes, even Michigan State, do after going through their regular-season gauntlet of games against highly ranked opponents. Quicker than we thought he could after the Huskies spent some seasons tossing bricks in The American conference, UConn head coach Danny Hurley has wiped away some tarnish from the brand name. But the Huskies are pretty much a “defense-to-offense” team which, as the favorite, needs to prove it can do a better job at it than Maryland has been doing with the same approach. “We got some great length with Eric Ayala, Hakim Hart, Aaron Wiggins, Darryl Morsell, Donta Scott,” said head coach Mark Turgeon recently. It’ll be surprising if the Terps allow the Huskies to get into an open-floor flow, not surprising if UConn players stand around in the halfcourt waiting for James Bouknight to score. |
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03-20-21 | Hawks v. Lakers -4 | 99-94 | Loss | -108 | 6 h 7 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Hawks’ arrive off a set-up similar to how Charlotte entered Denver before getting crushed: a seven-game win streak to get over .500, the last six against opponents barely breathing. Reality bites. |
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03-20-21 | UC-Santa Barbara +7.5 v. Creighton | Top | 62-63 | Win | 100 | 47 h 48 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Play of the Day The Gauchos emphasis on the defensive end of the floor aligns well for an upset of the higher seeded Blue Jays. Santa Barbara ranks 15th-best in limiting three-point attempts and they have the ability to slow the game and keep Creighton in the half court. Creighton has not looked the same as the controversy surrounding head coach Greg McDermott continues to loom over the team. |
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03-20-21 | St Bonaventure +2 v. LSU | Top | 61-76 | Loss | -104 | 1 h 32 m | Show |
Rating: 4 Units While talent is on the side of LSU in this matchup, coaching and composure resides on the side of the Bonnies. St. Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt will look to slow the game down and force an impatient LSU team to execute in the half court. Schmidt has said if the score is in the 60’s, he likes his team’s chances. |
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03-20-21 | Eastern Washington +10.5 v. Kansas | 84-93 | Win | 100 | 3 h 11 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Eastern Washington is a sizable underdog with a chance to compete against a Kansas team that continues to have shuffling parts. The Jayhawks will be trying to integrate big man David McCormack back into the lineup after being away from the team due to COVID-19, while also now being without starting forward Jalen Wilson. |
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03-20-21 | Georgetown +6.5 v. Colorado | Top | 73-96 | Loss | -115 | 44 h 31 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Mismatch of the Day Georgetown has simply turned into a different team since Patrick Ewing changed his starting lineup following a program pause. The insertion of Chudier Bile has made the Hoyas bigger, more athletic and more tenacious on the defensive end. Since that move, Georgetown has compiled a record of 11-3 against the spread. The Hoyas run through the Big East Tournament was not a fluke, as they were playing solid basketball before that stretch. |
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03-19-21 | Winthrop +6.5 v. Villanova | Top | 63-73 | Loss | -109 | 29 h 28 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Upset of the Day Villanova has not looked nearly the same since losing starting point guard and leader, Collin Gillespie. The Wildcats have lost games to Providence and Georgetown, as they’re trying to reconfigure their offense on the fly. Wildcats head coach Jay Wright likened this Winthrop team to a Creighton team that they’ve struggled with. The Eagles will fly up and down the court and will not be at a size disadvantage that many smaller programs face this time of year. Winthrop owns one of the more unique players in the country in 6’7 guard Chandler Vaudrin, who ranks 8th nationally in assist rate. |
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03-19-21 | Syracuse +3 v. San Diego State | 78-62 | Win | 100 | 29 h 3 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Syracuse’s 2-3 zone defense can be difficult to prepare for in a tournament setting for teams who have seen limited amounts of zone during the course of the year. Said Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher, “We’ve seen very limited zone all year,” Dutcher said. “I think Air Force tried to zone and they played a matchup and some switching. We haven’t played against a 2-3 zone, the entire season.” |
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03-19-21 | Jazz -3.5 v. Raptors | 115-112 | Loss | -112 | 4 h 11 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Toronto got a couple of their best players back on Wednesday but they still could not muster and effort to beat Detroit as they lost by 4. Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam were the players returning but they were just 5 for 24 from the floor combined. The Raptors have lost 6 in a row, 8 of 9 and the win was against the 11 and 28 Rockets. Before Covid gripped the country and when Toronto played their home games in Canada, the Raptors were 23 and 9 at home last season. Now, playing in Tampa, they are a game under .500 at home. If the Raptors aren’t aggressive defending the perimeter, it will be a long night for Toronto. The Raptors are 24th in the league in defensive 3-point field goal percentage. Only the Clips and Brooklyn have shot it better from the 3-point line this season. Utah is 4 and 1 this season in the second of back-to-back games. The Jazz were in D.C. on Thursday and they come to this game in a very foul mood after the Wizards put a spell of them. Donovan Mitchell and Joe Ingles did their thing but the Jazz reserves were dismal and Utah allowed Bradley Beal to control the tempo. |
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03-19-21 | Nets -10 v. Magic | 113-121 | Loss | -110 | 4 h 10 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Home invasion situation for the Nets. The Brooklyn bunch, now tied for first place in the East, flew here on Wednesday night after winning at Indiana, before the Magic flew outta town yesterday morning with a round trip ticket to and from New York, where they hopped off, took the Knicks to the wire in defeat, re-boarded, flew home to go to bed before playing the better NYC squad tonight, taking only +8 after covering +7 (as we expected) at the Knicks, who played without guards Derrick Rose, Elfrid Payton, Immanuel Quickley and Austin Rivers. |
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03-19-21 | Pistons +1.5 v. Rockets | 113-100 | Win | 100 | 4 h 8 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Pistons proved themselves willing and able conquerors of an opponent in distress when they walloped absentee-laden Toronto in Tampa recently, then came back to win the re-hook when the Raptors were reinforced by Van Vleet and Siakim’s returns following extended layoffs (and Anunoby was still out). Houston, 0-17, but Christian Wood and Danuel House have returned. So what? |
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03-19-21 | Drexel v. Illinois -22.5 | 49-78 | Win | 100 | 21 h 41 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Drexel was a surprise winner of the Colonial Conference Tournament, prevailing after a regular season conference record of 4-5. The Dragons will take a major step up in weight class against the Illini now. Drexel relies on their interior play on the offensive end of the floor, but now will be matched with one of the most stout interiors across the country, as 7’0 sophomore Kofi Cockburn mans the interior for the Illini. |
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03-19-21 | Virginia Tech +1 v. Florida | Top | 70-75 | Loss | -112 | 20 h 43 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Play of the Day Virginia Tech and head coach Mike Young will put the brakes on the Gators, as the Hokies own one of the most stout transition defenses in the country. Young recently compared starting guard Wabissa Bede to a brick wall, and he’ll be responsible for slowing down Florida’s Tre Mann. When forced to operate in the half court, the Gators are not nearly as efficient. Virginia Tech’s advantage on the sideline will push them through to the second round. |
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03-18-21 | UCLA v. Michigan State -2 | 86-80 | Loss | -107 | 6 h 26 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units UCLA has fallen apart down the stretch, having lost four games in a row including an opening round loss to Oregon State in the Pac 12 Tournament. The Bruins and Mick Cronin now have to deal with Michigan State, which showed signs of life throughout the month February and March. The Spartans collected wins against Illinois, Ohio State and Michigan while competing in a strong Big 10. UCLA’s Cronin has not impressed in March, compiling a 4-9 record against the spread in the NCAA Tournament. |
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03-18-21 | Pelicans v. Blazers -1 | 93-101 | Win | 100 | 6 h 13 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Teams have to force New Orleans to settle for perimeter shots. They are 19th in offensive three-point field-goal percentage. The Pelicans faltered on Tuesday against the Blazers even though their best two players went 21 for 39 from the floor. Once again, Damian Lillard was efficient and carried Portland to victory on Tuesday with 50 and 10 dimes. He had the third fewest field-goal attempts on way to a 50-point game in the shot-clock era. He probably will not just rest on his laurels after the big night either. Last month he had 43 in a game and came back with 35 points in the next out. C.J. McCollum has a shot to have a better game here after getting some rust off on Tuesday |
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03-18-21 | Thunder v. Hawks -7 | 93-116 | Win | 100 | 4 h 40 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Hawks are 20-20, tied for #6 in the East with Boston, who failed in Cleveland last night. Charlotte is a half-game in front of them and playing better teams out West. OKC’s Luguentz Dort and Darius Bazley both had good games vs. the Hawks in their prior meeting but both are expected to be out as they go G-League-ish. It’s teed up for the home team, which has won six straight, the last five against the biggest collection of troubled bums in a row you could imagine: Orlando, Toronto, Sacramento, Cleveland, Houston |
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03-16-21 | Pelicans +2 v. Blazers | 124-125 | Win | 100 | 11 h 52 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Blazers went 1-1 in Minnesota, a 9-30 team, and were a mere +3 in points differential. The Pelicans are talented enough to be more than a handful for them. The nights we pick the Pelicans, however, tend to be the nights that Stan the Man can’t get them to do anything right. Over the last two weeks, only the Houston Rockets and Sacramento Kings are allowing more points per possession than the Blazers are. There has been a lot of losing among those two Western Conference standings anchors! Bad sign for the home favorite, considering that the Pelicans have unleashed some previously unrealized offensive potential in recent weeks. The Pelicans are 4 games out of the #8 seed in the West, but if they’re ever going to make one of their runs that perpetually get basketball writers to say, “New Orleans has arrived, and such a bright future!” only to have them slump and miss the playoffs, again, then a game like this – road, vs. a sixth-place host that barely made the playoffs last season, who could go either way from here – is the kind of game they need to win to start making up ground that will eventually be lost again. |
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03-16-21 | Knicks v. 76ers -6.5 | 96-99 | Loss | -110 | 9 h 49 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The 76ers may be taking over from Utah and Phoenix as the new "hottest team in the NBA." Sure, Miami has won 10 of 11 but Philly, in their last five games, is scoring 1.27 points per possession, allowing only 1.03, 5-0 SU and ATS while covering the spread by an average of +20.6 points per game. It’s not sustainable, of course. Utah, our "peak too soon" team, is an NBA-worst -11.8 per game ATS in this same span. This is how things work. The problem is in attempting to detect when the big, long, hot spells will cool down and level off. You know the dips are coming, but when? We’ll figure that against a visitor that is offensively suspect, doesn’t beat winning opposition on a regular basis (it’s called being a bottom-feeder) isn’t home, and who played home vs. the Nets last hight, the Embiid-less 76ers stay hot. |
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03-16-21 | Jazz -4 v. Celtics | 117-109 | Win | 100 | 8 h 23 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Boston goes from playing one of the worst teams in the league to one of the best. In Houston on Sunday the Celts took advantage of a team in total disarray. Boston has won 5 of 6 but the last win was too easy and they also beat a Toronto team that has had a bad stretch with the protocols. Boston was also life and death to beat the 14-23 Washington team by a point. The Jazz figure to be motivated after allowing the Warriors to destroy them from outside on Sunday. Rudy Gobert should be able to control the glass. In the game vs. the Warriors, Golden State had 40 rebounds while Gobert had 28 all by his lonesome. When Utah beat this team last month they won the battle of the boards and Utah starting guard Mike Conley didn’t play. |
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03-15-21 | Clippers -1.5 v. Mavs | 109-99 | Win | 100 | 9 h 59 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Second of back-to-backs for the Clippers, but they were blown out after three quarters in New Orleans last night. All of the obvious recent signs point in Dallas’ direction. The Mavericks are 7-2 since Feb. 15 with a +5.4 points differential. The Clippers are 5-7 in the same span, with a +0.8 margin. But when they got on the airplane headed for New Orleans, the Clippers knew they’d be playing two games in three days at Dallas immediately afterwards. The eighth-place Mavericks are only 3.5 games behind the fourth place Clippers today. Not only is there the matter of keeping at bay a team near them in the standings, there was a 124-73 home loss to the Mavericks in the third game of the season. That was an incredible 51-point losing margin, at home! Professional athletes who have attained certain levels of what is described as “success” aren’t always motivated to play their best emotionally and physically. But 51-point home losses (Kawhi Leonard didn’t play, and he and Paul George played only 29 and 23 minutes last night) tend to be remembered at payback time! L.A. is the #1 three-point shooting team (41.7%). |
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03-15-21 | Knicks v. Nets -8.5 | 112-117 | Loss | -103 | 8 h 57 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Nets won 116-109 at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 12, after they’d beaten Denver 122-116 the night before. The Knicks don’t beat winning opponents. Maybe once in a while they do. But when the opponent wants to get serious, they normally won’t. Playing good defense against lousy teams has helped New York to become 20-19, currently #7 in the East. Attempting to play good defense against one of the most potent offensive teams will probably be for naught. The Nets are a half-game behind Two Week Embiid-Less Philadelphia, have won nine of their last 10. They eased past Detroit in a sandwich game the other night, between beating real threat Boston and tipping it off here against real threat (to their neighborhood manhood) New York. No Durant, no Blake Griffin yet, no problem? |
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03-15-21 | Kings v. Hornets -3 | 116-122 | Win | 100 | 7 h 15 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Sacramento has dropped 12 of 15. Two of the wins came against Detroit and Houston and the other came against the Lakers when they were without LeBron and Anthony Davis. Charlotte beat this club the last night in February despite 3 starters for the Hornets shooting 6 for 18 from the floor. The Hornets have won 3 in a row, 4 of 5 and the loss was in Oregon to the pesky Blazers. Their rotation got deeper immediately after the break. |
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03-15-21 | Bucks v. Wizards +8.5 | 133-122 | Loss | -105 | 7 h 52 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Despite playing without All-Star and NBA leading scorer Bradley Beal, Washington took Milwaukee to the limit in Saturday's 125-119 Bucks win. Russell Westbrook, who recorded a triple-double of 42 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, made a 3-pointer that pulled the Wizards into a 119-119 tie before Milwaukee scored the game's final six points. Despite the output allowed on Saturday, Washington. Coach Scott Brooks praised the defensive effort in holding the Bucks below 44 percent shooting, and cited the interior defense of center Alex Len, who Brooks called "active." Consider that Washington is 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games overall while Milwaukee is 3-8 ATS in their last 11 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game. |
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03-14-21 | Jazz -6.5 v. Warriors | 119-131 | Loss | -110 | 6 h 32 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units A very telling scenario: For weeks, the Warriors had been going along steadily in the Western Conference’s top eight, not really threatening the top four but holding service in the group that was vying in the #5 to #8 range. But their last three games before the All-Star break were on the road against the Lakers, Blazers and Suns – winning Western Conference teams familiar with them. The results were L-L-L. They came out of the break to get killed on the road at the Clippers, another in the group of Western Conference opponents in the stratosphere above them. They have fallen to #9, possibly with a lead weight attached. Although they are finally back home, the opponent is the one team that’s been flying clearly above everybody else in the West, and the league in general, for the last seven weeks. Recent results suggest that the Warriors are outclassed in match-ups like this. |
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03-14-21 | Grizzlies -7 v. Thunder | Top | 122-128 | Loss | -108 | 3 h 58 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit NBA Play of the Day Second of back-to-backs for the host Thunder following yesterday’s crash and burn by our new least favorite basketball team. Hopefully they get what they deserve and lose ten more games consecutively. They are very excited that 7-footer Moses Brown, in his second career start, got a double-double in their 22-point home loss to a Knicks team with three guards out, and one on the floor who can’t score (Frank Nktilina). Good God. Rested Memphis can be a defensively harassing pest on any given night, especially when they didn’t play the night before and the other guys did. Actually, when both sides were playing second of back-to-backs in Memphis on Feb. 17, OKC turned it over 18 times and lost 122-113. |
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03-14-21 | VCU v. St Bonaventure -3 | Top | 65-74 | Win | 100 | 2 h 56 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit A-10 Play of the Day St. Bonaventure enters Sunday with an experienced team, prepared to handle the pressure of VCU. The Bonnies have stability in the backcourt with Kyle Lofton and Dominick Welch, who have helped the Bonnies rank 79th-best in turnover rate nationally. St. Bonaventure has a group of juniors and a bit more experience than VCU, fueled by past failures. “The whole entire time leading up to this game, I have been seeing stuff on TV about how Saint Louis won that game (2019),” Osun Osunniyi said. “That’s just giving us extra motivation.” The Bonnies will lead the way, having held four straight teams below 0.88 points per possession. |
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03-14-21 | LSU +6.5 v. Alabama | Top | 79-80 | Win | 100 | 2 h 51 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit SEC Play of the Day Following the blowout win against Mississippi State, the Crimson Tide covered by the hair of a rattled-in free throw in the final seconds vs. offensively challenged Tennessee yesterday. LSU is not offensively challenged. Quite the contrary. Although Alabama has put up big points in many blowout victories, LSU has been the more offensively efficient side, overall. The Tigers have won nearly 70% of their games straight-up and are taking two possessions worth of points – the kind of commodity that we are happy to pay our price for before the chips, er, shots, fall where they may. Sure, we see, “Alabama, 105-75” and “Alabama, 78-60” over LSU in the regular season. In the first, Alabama set an SEC record for three-pointers made in a game, 23. In the second, in the words of LSU head coach Will Wade: “We went 1-for-17 for a stretch there in the second half. We’re just not capable of overcoming that, especially on the road against a very good team.” Right. Re-set to 0-0, take the points with the double-revenge dog averaging 82.2 ppg |
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03-13-21 | Cal-Irvine v. UC-Santa Barbara -2.5 | Top | 63-79 | Win | 100 | 13 h 34 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Big West Play of the Day Let’s try this again. Get up off the mat and punch back. Last night’s embarrassing result in the Cal-Irvine game was triggered by six Riverside guards shooting a combined 9-for-33. Way to go. Way to be there. Way to show up in the big game. Geez. Leading 41-28 at the half, Irvine defense wasn’t going to allow a comeback. Double-revenge is a dish best served cold. Way back on Dec. 27-28, the Anteaters beat the Gauchos 75-56 and 73-69 in the first two games of Big West Conference season. That’s as cold as an in-season revenge dish can be served. UCSB has lost one (1) game since. As noted yesterday, Irvine’s most experienced players don’t handle the ball very much. Cal-Santa Barbara’s most experienced players are senior guards Jaquori McLaughlin and Devearl Ramsey, a couple of ball-security experts who combined for 9.0 assists per game on a team with a 16.4-11.1 Assist/Turnover rate. They may not be the world’s greatest-shooting three-point team, but 35.0% isn’t shabby and they can stretch the floor enough to create space for Amadou Sow to go to work inside. |
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03-13-21 | Mavs +2 v. Nuggets | 116-103 | Win | 100 | 11 h 5 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Mavericks lost the second of back-to-backs at Oklahoma City on Thursday after they’d beaten San Antonio at home the night before. They were in Denver yesterday, as the Nuggets were in Memphis, winning no less. It’s a home invasion situation for a Dallas team that’s been doing quite well in this match-up of late. In the last five meetings, the Mavericks have outscored the Nuggets by +21 points. That’s an average margin of +4.2 per game and the oddsmaker gives the rested road dog a head start here. |
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03-13-21 | North Texas +1.5 v. Western Kentucky | 61-57 | Win | 100 | 10 h 7 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Stansbury, for a championship? Well, maybe. But he’ll have to get through us to get it. “The toughest team always wins,” is what North Texas head coach Grant McCasland often tells his team. Being tougher than La. Tech yesterday was testament to the NoTex toughness because it was 40 minutes of contested baskets against an underrated defensive squad. There will be more open floor for the Mean Green in this game. Going 15 rounds with UAB yesterday may have taken a just enough out of Western Kentucky. In the end, Charles Bassey’s idea of rebounding was attempting to tip it to teammates, and being glad the big one that he couldn’t get to went out of bounds off a UAB player. The guy they want to play through looked a little gassed and off on his left leg. |
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03-13-21 | Georgia Tech v. Florida State -4.5 | 80-75 | Loss | -109 | 10 h 48 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Florida State’s size and depth will pose a major issue for a smaller Georgia Tech team that often is limited to just a six or seven man rotation. Florida State center Balsa Koprivica has rapidly improved, going for 17 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks against a stout North Carolina interior on Friday night. The Seminoles ability to disrupt smaller teams on the perimeter due to their athleticism will be a factor when taking on a pair of diminutive guards in Georgia Tech’s Jose Alvarado and Michel DeVoe. |
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03-13-21 | Raptors v. Hornets -2 | 104-114 | Win | 100 | 8 h 59 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units Toronto, who has several players dealing with health and safety protocols, hosted the Hawks on Thursday. The Raptors were beaten off the boards in the defeat and the game would not have been all that close if Chris Boucher didn’t have a huge game. Chris has 29 points and he has only reached that many points or more two other times this season. The Pistons visited North Carolina on Thursday in a game where Scary Terry Rozier dominated down the stretch. The Hornets lost back-toback games to Toronto in January but there were reasons. In the first loss, the Hornets rally fell short when Gordon Hayward didn’t play and LaMelo Ball was not even starting. In the second loss, the Charlotte bench just didn’t show up as they scored 11 fewer points than their average this season. Charlotte has won 4 of 6 including a win over Phoenix and in one of the losses during this time span Melo had a ‘glory days’ game for Portland. |
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03-13-21 | Georgetown +9 v. Creighton | 73-48 | Win | 100 | 8 h 50 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Georgetown, a three possession underdog, continued their run in New York on Friday, knocking off Seton Hall. The Hoyas’ defense continues to lead the way, a unit that grades out as one of the 15 best nationally since early February. Patrick Ewing noted that the change to move 6’8 forward Chudier Bile into the starting lineup once they returned from a program pause this season has changed the team. Bile has brought a physicality along with the size that Georgetown needed. The Hoyas were the last Big East school to get on campus this season and it’s taken time to gel, but it has all started to come together over the last few weeks. |
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03-13-21 | Utah State v. San Diego State -1.5 | Top | 57-68 | Win | 100 | 7 h 25 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Mountain West Play of the Day San Diego State will be out for payback, after falling to Utah State in a back-to-back series in January. The Aztecs did not have their best player, Matt Mitchell, available for the second meeting and that cost the Aztecs in a big way. With Mitchell on the floor along with sharpshooter Jordan Schakel, the Azetcs have the shooting to space out and take advantage of a bigger Utah State team that prefers to pack the paint. Schakel and Mitchell combined for 39 points and six mad threes on Friday night against Nevada. |
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03-13-21 | LSU v. Arkansas -3.5 | Top | 78-71 | Loss | -110 | 5 h 8 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit SEC Play of the Day Arkansas continues to roll through the SEC, having not lost a conference game since January 16th. The Hogs are clicking on both ends of the floor and have the versatility to slow down a potent LSU offense. Arkansas starting forward Justin Smith is an ideal matchup to go against LSU big man Trendon Watford. Eric Musselman’s ability to adjust on the fly with schemes should bode well for a quick turnaround into Saturday. In the last meeting against LSU, Arkansas limited LSU to 43.8% shooting from two-point range, as Watford shot 4-for-13 inside the arc. |
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03-13-21 | Knicks v. Thunder +4.5 | 119-97 | Loss | -105 | 3 h 56 m | Show | |
Rating: 3 Units What can the Knicks do for an encore following the expected 25-point loss at ***BEST BET Milwaukee on Thursday? The Knicks don’t beat many good teams. They have beaten enough losing teams to have a .500 record. OKC is a losing team. Since the Knicks acquired Derrick Rose from Detroit, they are 8-4 SU when he plays. But Rose didn’t play in Milwaukee and he won’t play today. Aha. The Thunder beat the Knicks 101-89 in New York on Jan. 9. Little-known fact: Mike Miller, former Knicks assistant and their interim coach last season after David Fizdale fizzled out and was sent packing, is top assistant for first-season OKC head coach Mark Daigneault. Double-aha! Ya’ think perhaps Miller and fellow former New York, now OKC assistant Royal Ivey – Harlem-born and Queens, NY high school champ -- had a little something to do with fashioning that prior win? Shea Gilgeous-Alexander out for OKC. Yeah, seen that movie before. |
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03-13-21 | Tennessee +4 v. Alabama | 68-73 | Loss | -108 | 2 h 14 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units With rest, Alabama rendered utter destruction upon unrested Mississippi State yesterday. Freshman guard Joshua Primo was injured in the game but they have guys. Tennessee is easy to knock for their inconsistency, but they were 5-5 in “Quad 1” games to Alabama’s 6-4, the difference having been the Tide’s 71-63 road win way back on Jan. 3. Vols’ head coach Rick Barnes pulled no punches with his senior forward John Fulkerson afterward, at least to the media: “We knew they were going to try to drive and make him play defense. Offensively, he never established what we needed to get done. We got the ball there, but he went three-for-eight from the free throw line. That is tough when you got a guy you’re counting on to give you something around the rim or get you there.” Tough love! Jaden Springer was unavailable due to injury for much of the game, questionable foul trouble took away Tennessee’s best defender Yves Pons for a while, and a ref on the other side of the floor hit Rick Barnes with a technical for the sin of Barnes correctly arguing a bad call against point guard Santi Vescovi, which left Tennessee without a true point guard for the last four minutes of the first half. |
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03-13-21 | Cal-Riverside +2 v. Cal-Irvine | Top | 61-78 | Loss | -109 | 10 h 17 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Big West Play of the Day The most experienced players on Irvine don’t handle the ball a whole heck of a lot. The Anteaters are a favorite that has scored less than 1.0 points per possession in conference play. After 4-19 Cal Poly was able to hang with them for 40 minutes last night, Irvine seems to be asking for somebody with better offensive capabilities to come along and beat them, kind of like Northeastern in the CAA when that team got beat by Drexel. Cal-Riverside is the Saint Mary’s of SoCal, with an infusion of Aussie and New Zealanders and, in fact, a former Saint Mary’s player, 7’1”, 250 center Jock Perry. Usually, every Highlander is a three-point shooter including Perry (and they all have percentages to respect), which can lure Anteater rim protector Brad Greene away from the hoop to begin an unraveling of their normally good defense. |
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03-12-21 | UCF v. Memphis -7 | Top | 62-70 | Win | 100 | 9 h 38 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit AAC Play of the Day Facing Memphis is a tall order for a Central Florida team that has proven to not be able to handle pressure this season. The Knights turned the ball over 33.3% and 29.6% of the time in two meetings against the Tigers this season. Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway has noted that his full defensive system is now installed, as a COVID-19 pause helped his team implement it, “The two long pauses gave us the time to do that. Now we’re definitely way more prepared to shut team downs.” Memphis appears highly motivated to find itself in a rematch with Houston on Saturday, as the Tigers lost on a buzzer beater finish against the Cougars last weekend. |
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03-12-21 | Ole Miss v. LSU -1 | 73-76 | Win | 100 | 8 h 6 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units LSU is a difficult matchup for Ole Miss, as the Tigers are plenty capable of dissecting the 1-3-1 zone defense of the Rebels. In the first meeting between the two teams, the Tigers produced 1.07 points per possession. Impressively, LSU did that without star guard Cam Thomas, who logged just four minutes before exiting due to injury. LSU’s offense displayed its depth in that outing, as the Tigers are the nation’s 5th-best offense nationally in efficiency. Tigers head coach Will Wade noted this week that his program is well aware of the struggles they’ve had in the SEC Tournament and it’s been a focus and a goal this year to correct that. |
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03-12-21 | Magic v. Spurs -7.5 | 77-104 | Win | 100 | 5 h 12 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units The Magic travel for a second of back-to-backs, against a rested home team that is coming off a loss. Shooting guards Evan Fournier and Terrance Ross were out last night. They tried to go big and hung in there for a while, but wilted badly in the fourth quarter. Good luck to them, and their backers, if those two are out again tonight. Fournier is definitely out, Ross questionable. Not to mention point guard Cole Anthony having been out since Feb. 9, and 6’6” small forward James Ennis III out since Feb. 25. Oy. Compared to what San Antonio had to deal with against Doncic and Porzingis the other night, this is quite the class drop. |
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03-12-21 | Connecticut +1 v. Creighton | Top | 56-59 | Loss | -109 | 8 h 34 m | Show |
Rating: 3 Unit Big East Play of the Day Huskies head coach Dan Hurley downplayed the status of James Bouknight on Thursday, saying it was only cramping and he’ll be ready for Friday. With Bouknight back in the fold, the Huskies are now 11-2 against the spread and UConn seems intent on sending a message to their new conference this week. Said starting wing Tyrese Martin, “We’re a different team. We’re at full strength. We’re probably one of the hottest teams in the country right now. So to beat us, you’re going to have to do a lot of things. And I don’t think that there’s a team right now that’s going to do that.” The physicality that the Huskies play with will be difficult for Creighton to match. |
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03-12-21 | Wisconsin v. Iowa -4 | 57-62 | Win | 100 | 8 h 38 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Iowa and Wisconsin just met on Sunday, which ended in a narrow 77-73 Iowa victory. The Hawkeyes should be encouraged that their next meeting on Friday results in a more comfortable margin. Iowa shot 65.6% from two-point range against the Badgers, but made only 7-of-23 three-point attempts. Wisconsin played a near perfect game, turning the ball over just seven times, while making each of their free throws and 37.5% of three-point attempts. It’s unlikely the Badgers can replicate such a performance, and even that was not good enough. |
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03-12-21 | North Carolina v. Florida State -2.5 | 66-69 | Win | 100 | 7 h 0 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Florida State remained idle on Thursday, and Seminoles leader Rai-Quan Gray said the additional time off was helpful. “I think it is a recharged group. ... We met a little bit, and had some good practices, and we got back to who we are, back to the basics.” The Seminoles’ size and athleticism will be a match for a North Carolina team that continues to simply lean on their size and physicality to get by. Florida State can match the Tar Heels in that department and force North Carolina to execute. |
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03-12-21 | Oregon State +8.5 v. Oregon | 75-64 | Win | 100 | 7 h 55 m | Show | |
Rating: 2 Units Eager Beavers get a second chance at the Ducks after Oregon rained a season-high 15 three-pointers against them in Sunday’s 80-67 win at Corvallis. Said OSU head coach Wayne Tinkle, “We got off to a slow start offensively. The whole objective was to pound it inside, and I think once they got a little bit of a lead, we thought we were going to just shoot our way back into it, rather than staying on plan.” Live and learn, baby. |
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