Wednesday’s 6-pack
Six top prospects for the Arizona Diamondbacks:
1) Corbin Carroll, OF
2) Jordan Lawlar, SS
3) Druw Jones, OF
4) Brandon Pfaadt, P
5) Deyvison de los Santos, 3B
6) Ryne Nelson, P
Quote of the Day
“People have gotten used to going from Sunday afternoon to Sunday night; that doesn’t mean that they like it. This year, we could be flexed to Monday night, which I think is really inconsiderate to our ticket holders. To flex a game back to Thursday night, to me, is just abusive. I am adamantly opposed to it. Fortunately, it didn’t get enough votes today, but it will probably be revisited in May.”
New Jersey Giants’ owner John Mara
Wednesday’s quiz
Nolan Ryan pitched for 27 years in the big leagues; who did he start his major league career with?
Tuesday’s quiz
Tony Gwynn was once the point guard for San Diego State’s basketball team.
Monday’s quiz
In the movie Rounders, John Malkovich played Russian mobster Teddy KGB
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Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings……..
NIT semifinals
— North Texas 56, Wisconsin 54
Wisconsin didn’t score in last 9:08 of this game.
Badgers led 41-29 at half; they scored 13 points in 2nd half.
Two guards on North Texas played all 40:00 (61 possessions, slow pace)
— UAB 88, Utah Valley 86 OT
UAB won despite its best player shooting 5-23 from the floor.
Ty Brewer scored 30 points, had 12 rebounds, five steals.
— Conference USA is now 17-1 in postseason games this month; Charlotte won the CBI, FAU is in the Final Four, and the NIT final is two C-USA teams. 17-1 is freakin’ impressive.
— NIT Final Four has traditionally been in Madison Square Garden, but this year it is in the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas and next year, it is at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indiana, where they shot the finale scenes in Hoosiers.
— College coaching stuff:
Penn State hired VCU coach Mike Rhoades
VCU then hired Utah State coach Ryan Odom
— Happy 79th birthday this week to Rick Barry, one of the best basketball players of all-time; he was Larry Bird before Larry Bird. Famous for shooting free throws underhanded, Barry led the Warriors to the 1975 NBA title. He also has five sons who all played pro basketball.
Had Barry played during the ESPN era, he would get a lot more credit for how great he was.
— Baseball’s new rules this season are giving umpires a lot of discretion, especially where the pitch clock is concerned. Hopefully at the end of close games, they’ll let players decide the outcomes. We’ll see what happens.
By the way, after last season, 12 umpires retired, which seems like an awful lot for one season, so in a year when umpires have more discretion, there will be 12 new umpires.
— Cleveland Guardians signed 2B Andres Gimenez a 7-year, $106.5M contract extension; 24-year old Gimenez hit .297 last year, with 17 home runs.
— Cleveland P Tristan McKenzie is out 6-8 weeks with a strained back.
— Cubs signed 2B Nico Hoerner to a 3-year, $35M contract extension; Hoerner hit ,281 last year with 60 runs scored, 55 RBI.
— Where do various major league teams get their top prospects from? My book came in the mail Tuesday, which lists each team’s top 30 prospects.
18 of the Astros’ top 30 prospects played college baseball, more than any team; Cardinals/Giants have 16 college players in their top 30.
Reds, Mets, Red Sox have only six college players in their top 30 prospects.
Rangers have 13 high school players in their top 30, Red Sox 10, Pirates 9. Bronx has only one high school player in their top 30; Dodgers have only three.
Bronx (15), Mets (14), White Sox/Toronto (13 each) have the most international players in their top 30; Orioles/Rays have only four each.
Cincinnati acquired 11 of its top 30 prospects via trade; A’s/Rays acquired 10. White Sox are only team in major leagues whose top 30 prospects are all home grown.
— Atlanta Falcons named Desmond Ridder their starting QB for the coming season, probably so people will stop asking them about Lamar Jackson. Ridder split four games as Atlanta’s starting QB during his rookie season last year.
— Was watching the XFL game Monday night when I was reminded of something from 40 years ago, the night I was part of the chain gang at a semi-pro football game here in Albany.
Metro Mallers played at Bleecker Stadium in Albany for a long time; it was pretty good football, a fun night out. I went to the game but didn’t feel like paying to get in; saw a friend of mine’s dad who worked for the Mallers, asked him to get me in for free.
He smiled and said “I’ve got just the job for you”
I’m 22-23 years old, just out of college; lot of the guys on the Mallers played ball at UAlbany— my work study job in college was doing stats for football/basketball games, so when I went out on the field for a measurement in the first quarter, Donnie Hyde, who was a really good linebacker, looked at me and said “What the hell are you doing here?”
I laughed and said “Just like college; you’re playing and I’m watching”
The other team had uniforms just like the Cowboys; I’m standing on their sidelines with the chains, and during the third quarter of a close game, I’m standing next to their head coach.
He has his play chart in his left hand, and is sending plays in via messenger; then I realized he has a freakin’ can of beer in his right hand- the guy is drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon while he is coaching the game, calling plays.
That was the epitome of semi-pro football; guys playing because they loved to play, just having fun on a Saturday night. Think I did OK with the chains too; no one complained.
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Completed Picks
Past Completed Picks03/28/2023 9-11-0 45.00% -425 Detail 03/27/2023 4-4-4 50.00% -125 Detail 03/26/2023 7-3-0 70.00% +1900 Detail 03/25/2023 14-16-0 46.67% -2670 Detail 03/24/2023 3-3-0 50.00% -100 Detail 03/23/2023 8-16-0 33.33% -5300 Detail 03/22/2023 0-1-1 25.00% -500 Detail 03/21/2023 11-15-0 42.31% -4950 Detail 03/20/2023 4-6-0 40.00% -1425 Detail 03/19/2023 8-6-0 57.14% +600 Detail 03/18/2023 14-11-1 55.77% +790 Detail 03/17/2023 5-3-0 62.50% +450 Detail 03/16/2023 10-12-0 45.45% -650 Detail 03/15/2023 6-2-0 75.00% +1725 Detail 03/14/2023 12-12-0 50.00% -3150 Detail 03/13/2023 3-2-1 58.33% +1050 Detail 03/12/2023 7-9-0 43.75% -1975 Detail 03/11/2023 16-14-0 53.33% +275 Detail 03/10/2023 4-0-0 100.00% +3100 Detail 03/09/2023 7-15-0 31.82% -5450 Detail 03/08/2023 4-2-0 66.67% +775 Detail 03/07/2023 11-9-0 55.00% +725 Detail 03/06/2023 3-9-0 25.00% -4575 Detail 03/05/2023 4-5-1 45.00% -450 Detail 03/04/2023 11-12-1 47.92% -2200 Detail 03/03/2023 3-7-0 30.00% -2275 Detail 03/02/2023 9-11-0 45.00% -2350 Detail 03/01/2023 6-4-2 58.33% +1025 Detail Leave a comment:
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TUESDAY, MARCH 28
PIT at DET 07:00 PM PIT -185
O 6.5+500 +500 CLB at NYR 07:00 PM CLB +325
O 6.5+500 +500 NAS at BOS 07:00 PM NAS +275
O 6.0+500 +500 MON at PHI 07:00 PM PHI -170
O 6.5+500 +500 TB at CAR 07:00 PM TB +120
O 6.0+500 +500 VAN at STL 08:00 PM STL -105
U 6.5+500 +500 DAL at CHI 08:30 PM CHI +245
O 5.5+500 +500 LA at CAL 09:00 PM LA +115
U 6.0+500 +500 EDM at VEG 10:00 PM VEG -105
O 7.0+500 +500 WIN at SJ 10:30 PM SJ +170
O 6.5+500 +500 Leave a comment:
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NHL
Tuesday, March 28
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Trend Report
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Nashville @ Boston
Nashville
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Nashville's last 5 games when playing on the road against Boston
Nashville is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Boston
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games at home
Tampa Bay @ Carolina
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Carolina
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games when playing on the road against Carolina
Carolina
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Carolina's last 5 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay
Carolina is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay
Columbus @ NY Rangers
Columbus
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Columbus's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Columbus's last 9 games on the road
NY Rangers
NY Rangers is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games
NY Rangers is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Montreal @ Philadelphia
Montreal
Montreal is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Montreal is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Philadelphia is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Pittsburgh @ Detroit
Pittsburgh
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit's last 6 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Detroit's last 11 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh
Vancouver @ St. Louis
Vancouver
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Vancouver's last 5 games on the road
Vancouver is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games when playing on the road against St. Louis
St. Louis
St. Louis is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
St. Louis is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Vancouver
Dallas @ Chicago
Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Dallas's last 12 games when playing Chicago
Dallas is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Chicago
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Chicago's last 12 games when playing Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Chicago's last 7 games when playing at home against Dallas
Los Angeles @ Calgary
Los Angeles
Los Angeles is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Calgary
Los Angeles is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Calgary
Calgary
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Calgary's last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Calgary's last 7 games at home
Edmonton @ Vegas
Edmonton
Edmonton is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Edmonton's last 11 games on the road
Vegas
Vegas is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games
Vegas is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home
Winnipeg @ San Jose
Winnipeg
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Winnipeg's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Winnipeg's last 7 games when playing San Jose
San Jose
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of San Jose's last 7 games when playing Winnipeg
San Jose is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Winnipeg
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COLUMBUS are 15-12 ATS (1.8 Units) after allowing 6 goals or more in the last 3 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 8-1 Over (6.9 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game in the current season.
NASHVILLE is 42-27 ATS (12.3 Units) after allowing 3 goals or more 2 straight games in the last 3 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 7-2 ATS (4.8 Units) after scoring 3 goals or more in 4 straight games in the current season.
PITTSBURGH is 3-13 ATS (-11.3 Units) in road games after 5 straight games with 30 or more shots on goal in the last 3 seasons.
VANCOUVER is 11-1 Over (9.9 Units) on Tuesday nights in the current season.
DALLAS are 20-37 ATS (-20.7 Units) on the road when the total is 5.5 in the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES are 11-3 Under (7.7 Units) after a game where both teams scored 4 goals or more over the last 2 seasons.
VEGAS are 9-1 Over (7.9 Units) off 2 or more consecutive road wins in the current season.
SAN JOSE is 15-50 ATS (-40 Units) at home when the total is >=6 in the last 3 seasons.Leave a comment:
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Tuesday’s 6-pack
Since 2010-11, college hoop teams with the best winning %age:
.865 — Gonzaga
.811 — Kansas
.786 — Duke
.768 — Arizona
.762 — Kentucky
.761 — San Diego State
Quote of the Day
“It’s an ongoing process. I’m following it very closely, just like everybody else is here and looking forward to a resolution. I’m excited. Thinking about Lamar all the time. Thinking about him as our quarterback. We’re building our offense around that idea. I’m just looking forward to getting back to football and I’m confident that’s going to happen.”
Ravens’ coach John Harbaugh
Tuesday’s quiz
Which baseball Hall of Famer once played point guard for San Diego State’s basketball team?
Monday’s quiz
In the movie Rounders, John Malkovich played Russian mobster Teddy KGB.
Sunday’s quiz
Cal-Santa Barbara’s basketball team is known as the Gauchos.
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Tuesday’s Den: XFL trends, and other football stuff in March……..
— Opening Day of baseball season is Thursday, so of course the NFL owns the headlines today, because the NFL doesn’t have much of an offseason anymore.
— I’m told that quarterback is an important position in football; right now the Baltimore Ravens have a QB who wants a boatload of guaranteed $$$, the Ravens don’t want to guarantee a whole lot of that money and since the QB is acting as his own agent, things have gotten personal.
Lamar Jackson has a career W-L record of 45-16 in the regular season, which is really good; in the playoffs, he is 1-3, with Baltimore scoring 13.5 ppg in those games. Not so good.
Here’s the thing: Jackson didn’t play in the Ravens’ last six games last year, he didn’t play in their last four games the year before. Leg injuries for a running QB aren’t good. Ravens are 18-17 the last two years; expectations are higher than that.
One of the best abilities is availability/dependability; good QB’s make $35-$40M a year in the NFL, with the expectation that he is your leader, the face of your franchise. He is expected to play and play very well, not to mention being a leader.
Schedule comes out in a few weeks; would be a lot easier to sell those season tickets if your quarterback/leader isn’t at odds with the team.
So there is a standoff; this is bad for the NFL, bad for the Ravens, bad for Jackson.
Ravens can come out of this smelling like a rose if they trade Jackson for a couple of first round picks and then land another QB (Carson Wentz, Teddy Bridgewater, Matt Ryan???) to back up Tyler Huntley, who has a 3-6 record in nine NFL starts.
If the Ravens trade Jackson to the Colts, they could use the Colts’ draft pick they’ll get back to draft their QB of the future, which buys them time with their fans.
What happens if Jackson refuses to budge on his contract demands? Does he simply not play? How is this good for him? Who is advising him? Do you want to put your entire franchise in the hands of someone who may be being advised by sketchy people?
— NFL schedule comes out in a month or so; there is a lot of $$$ involved with which games are on in primetime. Would be nice to know who each team’s quarterback is going to be.
Indianapolis Colts, who used to call Baltimore home, visit the Ravens this season; if Jackson is traded to the Colts, guaranteed that is either a Monday night game or a Thursday Amazon game.
— Jets/Packers are still at odds over the Aaron Rodgers trade. Just let me know when they make a decision. This whole debacle has become exhausting.
Jets by the way, have nine home games this year (all AFC teams have 9, NFC teams 8) plus one of their “road” games is against the Giants in the stadium they share, so the Jets really only have seven road games this coming season.
If/when Rodgers becomes a Jet, Jets will gain 2-3 more primetime slots, you can bet on that.
— Detroit Lions’ over/under win total this season is 9.5, the highest it has been in the last 30 years.
Let me say right here that I think it is foolish to bet on season win totals before the schedules come out. As the great Bud Grant used to say, “Its not who you play, it is when you play them”
— Texas Longhorns did the right thing Monday and signed basketball coach Rodney Terry to a 5-year, $15.3M contract. Good for everyone; for once, sanity prevails.
— North Carolina’s leading scorer Caleb Love is in the transfer portal, will bolt Chapel Hill after UNC went 20-13 this season, turning down a chance to play in the NIT. When you see a team choose to end their season like that, you can assume they had internal issues, and Love’s going into the transfer portal seems to confirm that.
— Here are trends for all eight XFL teams, six weeks into a 10-game regular season.
Arlington Renegades (3-3)
Last five games stayed under the total.
All three wins were by 6 or less points.
Allowed 15 or fewer points in three of last four games.
0-3 ATS as a favorite.
DC Defenders (6-0)
Won/covered all six games.
Five of those six games went over the total.
Last four games, Defenders scored 32.8 ppg.
Houston Renegades (4-2)
Lost last two games, after a 4-0 start.
3-0 SU/ATS at home, winning by 21-9-9 points.
Favorite covered five of their six games.
Las Vegas Vipers (1-5)
Only win was 35-32 over 0-6 Orlando.
Vipers are 0-5 ATS in their last five games.
Last four games, Las Vegas allowed 30.8 ppg.
Three of their last four games went over total.
Orlando Guardians (0-6)
Orlando beat spread in three of last four games.
Five of their six games went over total.
Guardians are giving up 29.7 ppg.
St Louis Battlehawks (4-2)
Both their losses are to 6-0 Defenders (34-28/28-20)
St Louis allowed 18 or less points in its wins
Battlehawks covered both times they were favored.
San Antonio Brahmas (2-4)
Brahmas were held to 15 or less points in five of six games.
Five of their six games stayed under the total.
Average total in their last three games: 22.3.
Seattle Sea Dragons (4-2)
Seattle won its last four games, after an 0-2 start.
Their three road games all went over the total.
Last three games, they allowed only 13 ppg.
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Completed Picks
Past Completed Picks03/27/2023 4-4-4 50.00% -125 Detail 03/26/2023 7-3-0 70.00% +1900 Detail 03/25/2023 14-16-0 46.67% -2670 Detail 03/24/2023 3-3-0 50.00% -100 Detail 03/23/2023 8-16-0 33.33% -5300 Detail 03/22/2023 0-1-1 25.00% -500 Detail 03/21/2023 11-15-0 42.31% -4950 Detail 03/20/2023 4-6-0 40.00% -1425 Detail 03/19/2023 8-6-0 57.14% +600 Detail 03/18/2023 14-11-1 55.77% +790 Detail 03/17/2023 5-3-0 62.50% +450 Detail 03/16/2023 10-12-0 45.45% -650 Detail 03/15/2023 6-2-0 75.00% +1725 Detail 03/14/2023 12-12-0 50.00% -3150 Detail 03/13/2023 3-2-1 58.33% +1050 Detail 03/12/2023 7-9-0 43.75% -1975 Detail 03/11/2023 16-14-0 53.33% +275 Detail 03/10/2023 4-0-0 100.00% +3100 Detail 03/09/2023 7-15-0 31.82% -5450 Detail 03/08/2023 4-2-0 66.67% +775 Detail 03/07/2023 11-9-0 55.00% +725 Detail 03/06/2023 3-9-0 25.00% -4575 Detail 03/05/2023 4-5-1 45.00% -450 Detail 03/04/2023 11-12-1 47.92% -2200 Detail 03/03/2023 3-7-0 30.00% -2275 Detail 03/02/2023 9-11-0 45.00% -2350 Detail 03/01/2023 6-4-2 58.33% +1025 Detail Leave a comment:
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MONDAY, MARCH 27
MON at BUF 07:00 PM MON +155
O 7.0+500 +500 FLA at OTT 07:00 PM FLA -150
U 7.0+500 +500 NJ at NYI 07:30 PM NJ -130
O 6.0+500 +500 SEA at MIN 08:00 PM MIN -115
O 6.0+500 +500 COL at ANA 10:00 PM ANA +230
U 6.5+500 +500 EDM at ARI 10:00 PM ARI +260
O 7.0+500 +500 Leave a comment:
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OTTAWA is 9-1 ATS (7.9 Units) in home games vs. division opponents in the current season.
MONTREAL is 9-4 ATS (4.6 Units) revenging a home blowout loss vs opponent of 4 goals or more in the last 3 seasons.
NY ISLANDERS are 10-2 Under (7.8 Units) in home games after failing to cover 2 of their last 3 against the spread in the current s...
SEATTLE is 9-1 ATS (7.9 Units) in road games off a road win by 2 goals or more in the current season.
COLORADO is 13-1 ATS (11.9 Units) in road games when playing their 4th game in 7 days in the current season.
ARIZONA is 7-1 ATS (5.9 Units) in home games after a close loss by 1 goal in their previous game in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Monday, March 27
NHL
Monday, March 27
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Trend Report
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Montreal @ Buffalo
Montreal
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Montreal's last 5 games on the road
Montreal is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games when playing on the road against Buffalo
Buffalo
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Buffalo's last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Buffalo's last 11 games at home
Florida @ Ottawa
Florida
Florida is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Ottawa
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Florida's last 8 games
Ottawa
Ottawa is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Ottawa's last 5 games at home
New Jersey @ NY Islanders
New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of New Jersey's last 19 games when playing on the road against NY Islanders
New Jersey is 12-5 ATS in its last 17 games when playing NY Islanders
NY Islanders
NY Islanders is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing New Jersey
NY Islanders is 15-4 SU in its last 19 games when playing at home against New Jersey
Seattle @ Minnesota
Seattle
Seattle is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Seattle's last 9 games
Minnesota
The total has gone UNDER in 15 of Minnesota's last 19 games at home
Minnesota is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home
Colorado @ Anaheim
Colorado
Colorado is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Colorado's last 5 games when playing on the road against Anaheim
Anaheim
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Anaheim's last 5 games when playing at home against Colorado
Anaheim is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games
Edmonton @ Arizona
Edmonton
Edmonton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Arizona
Edmonton is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Arizona
Arizona is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Arizona is 11-1 ATS in its last 12 games
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Leave a comment:
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Armadillo Sports
Monday’s 6-pack
Jets’ QB’s and their records during their 12-year playoff drought:
14-17— Mark Sanchez
13-14— Ryan Fitzpatrick
13-25— Sam Darnold
12-18— Geno Smith
8-14— Zach Wilson
5-11— Josh McCown
2-5— Mike White
1-2— Michael Vick
1-6— Bryce Petty
1-8— Joe Flacco
0-2— Luke Falk
0-1— Greg McElroy, Trevor Siemian
Quote of the Day
“My best skill was that I was coachable. I was a sponge and aggressive to learn.”
Michael Jordan
Monday’s quiz
In the movie Rounders, what famous actor played Russian mobster Teddy KGB?
Sunday’s quiz
Cal-Santa Barbara’s basketball team is known as the Gauchos.
Saturday’s quiz
2018 was the last time a Big East team won a national title in college basketball, when Villanova beat Michigan for the title.
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Monday’s Den: Random thoughts with the Final Four set
— 18 years ago, 11-seed George Mason (+8) upset #1-seed UConn 86-84 to get to an unlikely Final Four; coach of that team was Jim Larranaga. Then yesterday………
— Miami 88, Texas 81— Larranaga is back in the Final Four, in his 12th season at Miami; his Hurricanes tied for first place in the ACC this season, still only got a #5-seed.
Texas led 64-51 with 12:51 left in the game.
Miami’s Jordan Miller was 7-7 from floor, 11-11 on foul line.
Miami was 28-32 on foul line, Longhorns 11-15.
Larranaga is 73 years old; he was an assistant to Terry Holland at Virginia during the Ralph Sampson era in the early 80’s. This is the cherry on top of a freakin’ great career.
— Texas needs to do the right thing now and make interim coach Rodney Terry the full-time coach. Terry did a great job this year; I’m trying to remember why he left Fresno State for UTEP five years ago, after going 66-34 his last three years in Fresno.
Terry went 37-48 in three years at UTEP, then signed on to be Chris Beard’s assistant at Texas. When Beard got fired in November for off-court reasons, Terry took over and now he deserves to be the full-time coach. This is a no brainer.
— San Diego State 57, Creighton 56
Creighton shot 35.4% on the arc this year;; they were 2-17 in this game
Bluejays led 41-34 with 13:14 left to play.
Coming into this month, Mountain West teams were 0-8 in the last three NCAA Tournaments; now they have a team in the Final Four.
— Early lines for the Final Four games:
UConn -5 vs Miami
San Diego State -1.5 vs Florida Atlantic
— This is the first time ever the Final Four won’t have any #1, #2 or #3 seeds in it.
— Final Four teams have earned $8,330,000; the teams get half that amount, their leagues split the rest of the money. FAU gets $4,165,000; other ten teams in Conference USA get $416,500 apiece. Big payday for those schools, especially the mid-major teams.
This past season, Florida Atlantic’s entire operating budget for basketball was $1,627,839.
— Back in December, a gutsy gambler wagered $500 on Florida Atlantic to get to the Final Four, at 400-1 odds; dude cashed the ticket for $200,000 Saturday.
— VCU’s Mike Rhoades is expected to bolt for the Penn State job, at $3.5M a year; I’m really doubting if Penn State is a better basketball job than VCU. Penn State is obviously a football school; they had the most experienced team in the country this year. VCU is a basketball school, close to an East Coast version of Gonzaga.
— New Mexico State hired Sam Houston coach Jason Hooten this weekend; Aggies had an awful season, cancelling it after starting 2-10 in the WAC- there were numerous off-court issues with a first-year coach, but New Mexico State also has a winning tradition— they’ve been in eight of the last 11 NCAA Tournaments.
Hooten was at Sam Houston State for 13 years, going 26-8 this past season.
— In case you were wondering, Boise State has the most appearances in an NCAA Tournament without ever winning a game (0-9).
— Cincinnati Reds are paying 53-year old Ken Griffey Jr $3.59M this season, a deferred payment on a contract he signed in 2000. Only three Reds this season will earn more than Griffey.
— 49ers acquired kicker Zane Gonzalez from Carolina; their last kicker Robbie Gould is a free agent. Gonzalez was hurt last year, didn’t kick; he is 91-113 one field goals in a six-year career with the Browns, Cardinals and Panthers.
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Completed Picks
Past Completed Picks03/26/2023 7-3-0 70.00% +1900 Detail 03/25/2023 14-16-0 46.67% -2670 Detail 03/24/2023 3-3-0 50.00% -100 Detail 03/23/2023 8-16-0 33.33% -5300 Detail 03/22/2023 0-1-1 25.00% -500 Detail 03/21/2023 11-15-0 42.31% -4950 Detail 03/20/2023 4-6-0 40.00% -1425 Detail 03/19/2023 8-6-0 57.14% +600 Detail 03/18/2023 14-11-1 55.77% +790 Detail 03/17/2023 5-3-0 62.50% +450 Detail 03/16/2023 10-12-0 45.45% -650 Detail 03/15/2023 6-2-0 75.00% +1725 Detail 03/14/2023 12-12-0 50.00% -3150 Detail 03/13/2023 3-2-1 58.33% +1050 Detail 03/12/2023 7-9-0 43.75% -1975 Detail 03/11/2023 16-14-0 53.33% +275 Detail 03/10/2023 4-0-0 100.00% +3100 Detail 03/09/2023 7-15-0 31.82% -5450 Detail 03/08/2023 4-2-0 66.67% +775 Detail 03/07/2023 11-9-0 55.00% +725 Detail 03/06/2023 3-9-0 25.00% -4575 Detail 03/05/2023 4-5-1 45.00% -450 Detail 03/04/2023 11-12-1 47.92% -2200 Detail 03/03/2023 3-7-0 30.00% -2275 Detail 03/02/2023 9-11-0 45.00% -2350 Detail 03/01/2023 6-4-2 58.33% +1025 Detail Leave a comment:
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SUNDAY, MARCH 26
COL at ARI 03:00 PM ARI +260
O 6.5+500 +500 BOS at CAR 05:00 PM BOS +100
O 6.0+500 +500 VAN at CHI 06:00 PM VAN -170
O 6.5+500 +500 TOR at NAS 06:00 PM TOR -180
O 6.5+500 +500 STL at LA 10:30 PM LA -225
O 6.5+500 +500 Leave a comment:
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ARIZONA is 8-2 ATS (5.8 Units) in home games off a road loss in the current season.
BOSTON is 7-1 Over (5.9 Units) in road games revenging a loss where team scored 1 or less goals over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 13-1 ATS (11.9 Units) after failing to cover 2 of their last 3 against the spread in the current season.
CHICAGO is 23-28 ATS (-7.8 Units) revenging a blowout loss vs opponent of 3 goals or more in the last 3 seasons.
ST LOUIS are 6-0 Over (6 Units) in road games in March games in the current season.
NHL
Dunkel
Sunday, March 26
NHL
Sunday, March 26
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Trend Report
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Colorado @ Arizona
Colorado
Colorado is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games on the road
Colorado is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
Arizona
Arizona is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Arizona is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Boston @ Carolina
Boston
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Boston is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games on the road
Carolina
Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
Carolina is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Boston
Vancouver @ Chicago
Vancouver
Vancouver is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Vancouver is 12-2 ATS in its last 14 games when playing Chicago
Chicago
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Chicago's last 5 games when playing Vancouver
Chicago is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Toronto @ Nashville
Toronto
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Toronto's last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Toronto's last 5 games
Nashville
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Nashville's last 6 games at home
Nashville is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Toronto
St. Louis @ Los Angeles
St. Louis
The total has gone OVER in 5 of St. Louis's last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of St. Louis's last 8 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles
Los Angeles
Los Angeles is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against St. Louis
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Los Angeles's last 8 games when playing at home against St. Louis
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