Comps
Scott Rickenbach
San Jose SaberCats @ Chicago Rush
PICK: Chicago Rush
REASON FOR PICK: AFL 1* (regular play) Chicago Rush (+) vs San Jose Sabercats @ 9 ET - These teams have battled it out in the conference championship in three of the last four years to see who would win the right to go to the Arena Bowl. As a result, this has certainly developed into a huge rivalry and we have no doubt that Allstate Arena will be rocking tonight for Monday Night Football and the ESPN cameras. Although the Rush lost Bobby Sippio in the offseason, the pick-up of Damian Harrell from Chicago is a big addition. Also, getting veteran QB Shedrick Bonner was a huge pick-up as well. The Rush are very well-coached and now they have a future Hall of Fame quarterback on board and that certainly allows Chicago to open up their playbooks even more this season! The Rush are very confident heading into this season and they are loaded with playmakers on both sides of the ball. Note that the Rush defense has given the Sabercats offense some problems in the past as they force QB Mark Grieb into mistakes. We expect more of the same in this match-up.
Grieb leads a Sabercats team that is looking to repeat as Arena Bowl champions. However, it's always tough when you have the target on your back and every team will be 'gunning' for San Jose this season. Also, the Sabercats got off to a slow start last season and playing Game 1 of 2008 at Chicago and a rockin' Allstate Arena is not exactly the easy opportunity the Cats would have liked to have had to start this season. The Sabercats are very talented and they are well-coached. However, one of their other key strengths is not making many mistakes. That is a key today because the Rush has shown the ability in the past to force some turnovers against the Cats. Chicago has solid passrushing ability and they will be fired up for this home opener against the Champs. With no love lost between these teams we expect a physical game and, in that department, the Rush also rate an edge there. You won't be able to get the Rush at home with this type of line very often. Yes, they're facing the defending champs but the Rush are tough to beat here and they get their season off to a big start here with a 'statement win'. Play Chicago plus the points as a regular selection.
Big Al
At 9:05 pm, our complimentary selection is on the Golden State Warriors minus the points over Portland, as Don Nelson's crew falls into a 119-58 ATS system of mine that plays on certain rested teams vs. non-division foes off back-to-back upset wins. The Trail Blazers pulled off their 2nd straight upset on Friday when they snapped the Lakers long winning streak, and I look for a letdown in Oakland tonight. Take Golden State
Tom Freese
Philadelphia at La Clippers
Philadelphia is 24-10 ATS away when the Total is 180 to 189.5 and they are 29-16 ATS in the second half of the season the last year plus. The Sixers are 28-15 ATS after scoring 100 or more points in two straight games and they are 4-0 ATS their last 4 games vs. the Clippers. Los Angeles is in a 40-16 ATS Play Against System that says to go against home teams when the line is +3 to -3 if they are off 4 or more straight losses if they are playing their eighth game in fourteen days. The Clippers are 3-12 ATS as home dogs of 3 or less points. PLAY ON PHILADELPHIA
Paul Stone
Pittsburgh +5.5
Pittsburgh has covered seven of the past nine meetings in this intense series _ most of which came in the role of the favorite.
West Virginia is only 4-11-1 ATS against teams with a winning straightup record this season.
The Mountaineers' only ATS win against an NCAA Tournament caliber team was against Marquette.
Take the points in this Big East showdown which will solidify the winner's standing in the NCAA Tournament.
Stevie Y
Ottawa Senators vs. Anaheim Ducks
Play:Anaheim Ducks
We love the Anaheim Ducks to win on the $$ line over the Sens The Ducks are MONEY @ the Honda Center on Monday when they battle the Sens, The Ottawa Sens are struggling as the Sens are 2-6-2 last 10 overall and 1-5 in their last 6 road games. On the flip side Mighty Anaheim is playing well, going 4-0-1 in thier last 5 home games, and 9-1-1 in their last 11 overall! We also note that Anaheim is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Ottawa & A Smooth 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Ottawa!! DUCKS ROLL!!
Jimmy The Moose
Game: Boston Bruins at Washington Capitals
Prediction: under
Reason: The under is 35-27 for the Bruins this season. Washington has played the under in their last 4 games. The under is 7-0 in Washington's last 7 home games. The under is 5-1 in the Capitals last 6 games vs. Eastern Conference opponents. The under is 4-1 in Boston's last 5 trips to Washington. The under is a profitable 7-1 in the last 8 meetings between the clubs. Play the under.
James Patrick
New Orleans vs. New York
Back-to-back games have been no problem for the Hornets as they have flown out to an impressive 8-1 ATS mark in this situation. Hornets also making a Buzz on the NBA road as they are 18-9 ATS on the road to date. Our complimentary selection in the NBA is New Orleans Hornets.
Lou Diamond
My free pick of the day is the game between (715) St Marys and (716) Portland. Take "Under". Go 3-0 today for only $20! St. Mary's Under is 4-1 in Gaels last 5 games vs. a team with a winning % below .400. Under is 4-1 in Gaels last 5 vs. a team with a losing S.U. record. Under is 8-3 in Gaels last 11 overall. Under is 5-2 in Gaels last 7 games following a S.U. loss. Under is 10-4 in Gaels last 14 vs. West Coast. Under is 7-3-1 in Gaels last 11 road games. Portland Under is 6-0 in Pilots last 6 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600. Under is 7-0 in Pilots last 7 Monday games. Under is 4-1 in Pilots last 5 games following a S.U. win. Under is 6-2 in Pilots last 8 home games. Under is 9-3 in Pilots last 12 overall. Under is 9-3 in Pilots last 12 vs. West Coast. Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.
Jim Feist
My free pick of the day is the game between (705) PHI 76ers and (706) LA Clippers. Take "Under". A pair of certified masons meet here. Neither of these teams can shoot well, with both in the bottom 10 in scoring. The Clippers have been particularly inept all season shooting 43% as a team .5? only the Bulls are worse. They met once already, with LA scoring 80 points in a game that went under the total. The 76ers struggle to score on the road, while the Clippers are 20-11 under the total at home.
Play the 76ers/Clippers under the total!
Dave Cokin
Fresno State @ Utah State
Play: Utah State -8.5
Tough to ignore some pretty obvious facts here. Fresno is on a nasty 0-9 spread run. Utah State is perfect at home for the season and wants to stay that way. Aggies haven't forgotten they lost on this court to Fresno last March. The game is actually priced right about where it should be, but I think the situation favors the home team just enough to warrant a call that way. Utah State minus the points.
Alex Smart
New York Dragons -1.0
The NY Dragons behind one of the top Qbs in the history of the AFL Aaron Garcia , always have a chance to win when he is healthy. That was evident last season, when the team went 4-2 with him in the lineup and just 1-9 when he was injured. With the Dragons top gun Garcia ready to go, the transplanted Cleveland Gladiators look to extend a run that has seen them lose 14 of their L16. Yes, even despite of a upgrading in the off season with a veteran QB (Raymond Philyaw). Final notes & Key Trends: NY is is 12-3 ATS in their L15 road games with a total of between 100 and 104.5 PPG.Play on NY Dragons
Marc Lawrence
Philadelphia 76ers at Los Angeles Clippers
LA returns to the Clip Joint of an embarrassing 30-point home loss when they host the 76ers in this non-conference clash Monday night. The key to this contest is that not only are the Clippers red-faced, the Sixers are fat and sassy off an upset win at Phoenix. That's confirmed by the fact that Philadelphia is 0-16 SU and 3-13 ATS on the road off a SU road win. They are also 1-10 SU and 2-9 ATS away versus a non-confeence opponent after facing the Suns. The kicker is the fact that home teams, playing off a 30-plus point home loss, are 18-9 ATS from Game 28 out when facing an opponent off a win. Stay at home with the Clippers here tonight.Play on: Los Angeles
Matt Rivers
For Monday take the Jazz at home.
Dallas just had the tough overtime loss at Staples against the Lakers and now has an even harder task as playing the Jazz in Salt Lake City is as tough as they come.
Obviously Utah has not been too good on the road but when home they are as money as money could ever be. Jerry Sloan's team is extremely dominant at the Palace and never lose on their home floor. That obviously doesn't mean they will 100% cover the number but this price is cheap enough where a win should be a cover.
Carlos Boozer, Deron Williams, Andrei Kirilenko and the rest of this Utah team is so confident at home that it is beginning to get a little scary for any team they play in the playoffs as right there you are almost looking at three automatic Utah wins.
I'm sure Mark Cuban's Mavs will come with some game because they are an elite team for sure now with Jason Kidd running the show alongside Dirk, Jason Terry, Josh Howard and others but if there was ever a time that a team will run out of gas this is it!
Jake Timlin
In a make up game for an early rain out last month look for the Yellow Jackets to make it 2 straight over what is still a very bad Virginia team despite their recent surge. You see for the Yellow Jackets not only are they looking to make it two straight wins over all after their win over Wake Forest over the weekend, but Tech is looking series sweep after beating the Cavaliers in overtime by 10 on the road. In that first meeting is was the Yellow Jackets who used their advantage in the paint as well as slowing down Singletary who was harassed all game long for a poor shooting game. Well thanks to being at home and still with an advantage down low look for Tech to steam roll over a Virginia team that is making their second trip to Atlanta. All Georgia Tech minus the home chalk!
Tony Weston
We start that road to destruction in LaLa Land as the Los Angeles Clippers host the Philadelphia 76ers in a game the Sixers will dominate.
These two teams met not even a month ago in Philly when the Sixers destroyed the Clippers 101-80 as 6 1/2 point favorites.
Since then the Clippers have gone 3-6 SU and 4-5 ATS. Over their last five games the Clippers are 0-5 SU and 1-4 ATS. Over that 5-game stretch Los Angeles has been outscored on average 102.4-85.6.
The Sixers, on the other hand, are 6-3 SU and ATS since last beating the Clippers. Over that 9-game stretch Philadelphia has outscored its opponents by an average score of 101.6-98.3.
Philly is also 3-1 SU and ATS its last four games, three of which have come on the road.
Even though this has been an ugly season for the Sixers, they still find themselves in the playoff race out East. You can hardly say the same about the Clippers.
Take Philly on the road.
3 ♦SIXERS (1 to♦ 5♦Scale)
Jimmy Boyd
1 Unit on Mavs/Jazz UNDER 203
The last time these teams played in Utah, we had a similar situation where the number was set at 203.5 and neither team reached the century mark to cash under bets. After allowing the Kings to score 106 points and the Lakers to score 108 with Kobe going off, look for a much better defensive performance out of the Mavs tonight. 4 of the last 5 games in this series played at Utah have gone under the number. Utah is 10-2 UNDER against Southwest division opponents this season and Dallas is 47-19 UNDER against Northwest division opponents since 1996. Dallas is 23-10 UNDER in road games versus good shooting teams - making >=46% of their shots over the last 2 seasons and Utah is 104-67 UNDER versus good teams - outscoring their opponents by 3+ points/game - 2nd half of the season since 1996.
Take the UNDER.
Peter Loshak
The contest inside HP Pavilion tonight offers a double-decker of value. Cash out twice taking the Canadiens and the Under when Montreal heads west to San Jose to meet the Sharks.
On Monday in the NHL, the game between Montreal and San Jose presents two underdog overnight lines that are looking to me like they may have some value ? Montreal on the money line at +110, and the Under 5, also at +110.Canadiens +110 & Under 5 at Sharks
The Canadiens are the top team in the Northeast Division, and they are gearing up for a deep run in the playoffs, yet they decided to trade away their season-long starting goaltender, Cristobal Huet, prior to the trade deadline. This was not an accident, and it shows how much faith the team has in their new starter, 20-year-old rookie Carey Price. Price has certainly not disappointed in his new role, as he has yielded only four goals in his three games ? all wins ? since taking over the reins as the starter.
San Jose, for their part, is a top team defensively, but they have not fared well at home this year. Despite having a strong overall record, they are only slightly above .500 at home, and I think they will be vulnerable here returning from a long road trip, facing an energized and quality opponent in the Canadiens.
Still, the Sharks? impressive team defense may well be able to keep Montreal?s scoring to a minimum, which is why I am also looking at the under here. Montreal really shines offensively when they are on a power play, and they can be explosive when facing teams with average defensive capabilities. But San Jose runs a tight and effective ship on the defensive end, and it will not be easy for Montreal to run up the score as they often do against lesser teams.
Adding it all up, I see this as likely to be a low-scoring, intense and competitive game. Getting underdog odds on both the Canadiens to win and the Under looks good to me, so I?ll be on Montreal +110 and Under 5 (+110) on Monday evening.
LT Profits
Pittsburgh needed a last-second buzzer-beater to edge West Virginia last month, and they have now beaten the Mountaineers four straight times, so take the points tonight.
The Pittsburgh Panthers beat the West Virginia Mountaineers at the buzzer 55-54 when they met in Pittsburgh a month ago, and we look for another similarly tight game at Morgantown this evening.
That win marked the Panthers? fourth straight victory in this head-to-head series, with two of those victories coming here in West Virginia. Now granted, Pittsburgh is much better at home than on the road this season, but it is not as if they are totally incapable on the road, as they are 6-6 ATS away from home and they are coming off of an exhilarating come-from-behind victory at Syracuse on Saturday.
Now West Virginia is 20-9 on the year, but the Mounties rely heavily on their perimeter shooting, and Pittsburgh has already proven they can defend that well, limiting the Mountaineers to just 35.8 percent from the floor in that last meeting. We have already seen what happens to West Virginia when their shots are not falling, even at home where they were embarrassed 62-39 by Cincinnati earlier this year.
Now we do not expect the Mountaineers to shoot 35.8 percent again, but we do think that the stiff Pittsburgh defense will make enough stops to take this game down to the wire again.
Free Pick: Pittsburgh +5?
