Announcement

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 02:57 AM

Warriors' Ezeli suspended for a game

February 28, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) - Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli was suspended for one game without pay Saturday for initiating an altercation with Toronto's Tyler Hansbrough on Friday night.

Ezeli pushed Hansbrough in the throat after they tangled under the basket late in the third quarter in Golden State's blowout victory in Toronto.

Hansbrough responded by chasing after Ezeli, shoving him and throwing a punch that failed to connect. Both players received double technical fouls and were ejected.

Ezeli will sit out the Warriors' game Sunday night in Boston.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 02:58 AM

Cavs' Irving out again with shoulder injury

February 28, 2015

CLEVELAND (AP) - Cavaliers All-Star guard Kyrie Irving will miss his second straight game with a strained left shoulder.

Irving injured his shoulder in the second half Thursday night in a home win over Golden State. He did not travel with the team for Friday night's game at Indiana and the Cavs said he will also sit out Sunday's game at Houston.

Irving received more treatment on his shoulder Saturday at the team's training complex in Independence, Ohio. His status will next be updated at the team's shootaround on Tuesday before the Cavs host the Boston Celtics.

Cleveland lost 93-86 to the Pacers without Irving and LeBron James, who was kept out with a sore back. James has missed 11 games this season with an assortment of injuries and the team has gone 2-9 without the four-time MVP.

Irving is averaging 21.7 points and 5.2 assists.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 02:59 AM

Bulls expect Rose back this season

February 27, 2015

CHICAGO (AP) - The Chicago Bulls can breathe a little easier. They expect Derrick Rose to return this season from his latest knee surgery.

General manager Gar Forman said the star point guard will miss 4-6 weeks after the operation Friday to fix a medial meniscus tear in his right knee. Forman described it as a quick outpatient procedure and said Rose was able to walk out of the hospital.

''I talked to Derrick a couple times this week and obviously, he was really disappointed about being injured,'' Forman said. ''But I think he's in a really good place and I think he's ready to attack this rehab the next several weeks and I know he's really anxious to get back out onto the floor with his teammates.''

Rose played in only 10 games last season before having surgery for a similar injury in November 2013, cutting short his long-awaited comeback from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

He had the meniscus reattached in that operation. Team physician Dr. Brian Cole, who operated on him last year and repaired the ACL in 2012, removed the damaged part this time. The procedure could lead to arthritis later in life, but Forman said it ''should eliminate'' the possibility of another tear, something the Bulls were told could happen after the operation last season.

The Bulls are not sure when the latest tear occurred. Rose had an MRI on Tuesday after complaining of pain in his knee.

''The way it's been explained to me is there may be a number of players in the league that have meniscus tears right now and don't even know it,'' Forman said. ''Until you start to have pain - that's when the MRI is taken and that's where the tear was found.''

It sounds as if Rose will be on some sort of minutes restriction when he gets back on the court. A return in about four weeks would give him eight to 10 games to tune up for the playoffs. The six-week mark would put him back on the court around the start of the postseason.

That's assuming no setbacks and that Rose and his advisers are on board with the timeframe.

Rose sat out the 2012-13 season even though he was cleared to return later in the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during the playoff opener the previous year.

''He never got to a point where he was comfortable enough to be out there,'' coach Tom Thibodeau said. ''You don't know how a player's body is going to respond. He did the best he could. He couldn't quite get there.''

The Bulls made it clear: They expect Rose to get there this year.

''I think Derrick's ready to attack it,'' Forman said. ''I do. Like I said, I think he's anxious to attack this rehab and to get back on the floor with his teammates.''

Rose, averaging 18.4 points and 5.0 assists, has been inconsistent this season. Yet the Bulls know they need him if they're going to make a serious run in the playoffs.

For now, they're simply trying to keep pace with Cleveland in the Central Division.

''For where we want to get to, we need Derrick back,'' Joakim Noah said. ''There's no question about that.''

Rose, the 2011 MVP, averaged 22.6 points over his final 14 games before the All-Star break. But he struggled in his three appearances after that, shooting 23.5 percent. He had eight points on 1-for-13 shooting in Monday's win over Milwaukee.

''Right before the break, I thought he was finally getting into a really good rhythm, and so, I think he's confident he'll get back to that,'' Thibodeau said before Chicago hosted Minnesota on Friday night. ''It may take a little bit of time, and obviously, you know he won't be playing the same amount of minutes when he does come back.

''But I think he knows he can get there, and that's the important thing.''

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 03:00 AM

NBA to release 'last 2 minutes' reports

February 27, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) - The NBA will begin revealing whether it determined referees' crunch-time calls to be right or wrong.

Starting Monday and continuing throughout the playoffs, the league will release play-by-play reports of all calls and relevant no-calls in the final minutes of close games. Such information had been shared only internally.

The assessments will be released by 5 p.m. the day after each game and will stand as the league's comment on whether the most-disputed calls were correct. The reports will focus on the last two minutes of games that were within five points at the two-minute mark and all of any overtime periods.

Each play is reviewed by a senior basketball operations manager or senior referee manager. The reports will say how the play was graded - correct or incorrect - and will be accompanied by a comment and video link. The reports will be posted at NBA.com/official and also on the league's media site.

''Our policy in the past was pretty much to wait until we had something that was controversial enough to really garner a lot of interest and we didn't think that that was a practical approach,'' NBA executive vice president of referee operations Mike Bantom said. ''And it also wasn't very fair because they always tended to be errors that were made, so we tried to come up with a system that would allow us to provide some insight into our process and set a criteria that would allow us to be more standardized and more consistent.''

Bantom said referees' input about the old policy was a factor in the development of the new one and they welcomed the change from the league announcing only when calls were incorrect.

''Our prior practice of commenting only about mistakes that they made was a bone for them, something we didn't feel that was fair to them and also something that they weren't happy about as well,'' Bantom said. ''So I think this is a solution that puts them in a much better light, doesn't hide the fact that they are human and will make mistakes, but also points out the fact that the overwhelming majority of the calls that they get correct.''

The referees union later released a statement on Twitter about its involvement.

''We did not participate in the elaboration of this process and we cannot evaluate its effect until after it has been implemented,'' said Lee Seham, the general counsel for the National Basketball Referees Association.

The NBA has expanded the information it made public in recent years, from announcing referee assignments to issuing to the media the point of emphasis memos it sends to teams. The league opened an instant replay center this season and posts online video of the replays used by officials during their reviews.

Clippers coach Doc Rivers said he liked the transparency releasing the reports provides the fans, but wonders if it will impact officials.

''They're not perfect,'' Rivers said. ''I'm going to tell them when they're not perfect. I tell them that all the time. I tell them enough, and they tell me to sit down.

''I just think they have a hard enough job. They're going to be scared to almost blow a whistle now.''

Bantom said he never foresaw releasing the ''last two minutes'' reports, but believes it will benefit both the fans and the officials.

''I think it goes back to our initiatives to try to be more transparent about what we do with our officials program. I think our fans have a lot of interest in understanding - or at least we have an interest, too, in helping them understand - how our rules are applied so that people don't have a misperception about a particular call or non-call,'' Bantom said. ''So we think if we are consistent in disclosing them, we will give them a greater appreciation for both how difficult the job is that our officials do and how good they are at it.''

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:00 PM

Armadillo: Sunday's six-pack

Six of the best minor league prospects for the Toronto Blue Jays

1) Daniel Norris, P-- Reached majors after only 23 IP in AAA

2) Aaron Sanchez, P-- Reached majors after only 34 IP in AAA.

4) Dalton Pompey, OF-- No relation to Gordon Bombay from The Mighty Ducks

6) Devon Travis 2B/OF-- Hit .323 in his first 993 minor league ABs.

14) Dwight Smith Jr OF-- His dad was a major league outfielder.

26) Juan Meza, P-- 17-year old Venezuelan makes pro debut this season.

**********

Armadillo: Sunday's List of 13: Wrapping up a sports Saturday.....

13) ESPN has gone overboard with "Joe Lunardi Week" this week, having the expert on Bracketology on live during every game to offer his astute observations on the Field of 68. Lunardi does a fine job, seems like a decent guy but his word isn't gospel and ESPN acts like it is. Interesting food for thought but thats all it is.

12) BYU 73, Gonzaga 70-- This probably means the Zags are out of a #1 seed and out of the West Region; also means headaches for the committee, since BYU can't play on Sunday so they have to be placed into a Thursday/Saturday bracket. BYU's RPI went up 20 sports after this win at Gonzaga.

11) Boise State 56, San Diego State 46-- Broncos are hot team in a down Mountain West this year. San Diego State cannot score and that'll be enough to send them packing early in the NCAAs.

10) Referee Brian O'Connell worked the Manhattan-Iona game in New Rochelle Friday night; less than 15 hours after that game emded, O'Connell was in Madison Square Garden, doing the Georgetown-St John's game. Refs make a ton of money but they also work very hard, as many as five or six games a week.

9) Boston College 79, NC State 63-- "you can buy Wolfpack/NiT ticket packages starting today in Raleigh"; this was a bad loss.

8) Clemson 70, Georgia Tech 63 OT-- Tigers raced out to a 20-2 lead, so if you laid 3.5 points in this one, what looked like an easy win became a nailbiter. Starting to look like Yellow Jackets will be coach-searching soon.

7) Fresno State 59, New Mexico 55-- Former Oregon State coach Craig Robinson, now a sub-par TV analyst, when this game was 26-8, Fresno: "I think the pace of play favors Frerno." Really? Ya think?

6) Sacramento State 73, Portland State 60-- Hornets are now game ahead in Big Sky standings, which means they would host the Big Sky tournament in a makeshift "gym" that has never been used for basketball before. Could be interesting.

5) Murray State 73, Tenn-Martin 67-- Racers finish OVC play 16-0; now comes the hard part; winning the OVC tournament, or else.......

4) St John's 81, Georgetown 70-- Steve Lavin's unpredictable team is taking its erratic act to the NCAA tournament. Good luck getting their bracket right.

3) Kentucky 84, Arkansas 67-- Razorbacks love to press, but they couldn't score enough in this game to set up their press enough- this one was over early.

2) UAB 100, Middle Tennessee 95, 3OT-- Blazers blew 12-point halftime lead befoe they won Saturday's game of the day.

1) I don't get too involved with which team gets which seed in the NCAA tournament; to me, the big thing is who gets in, thats what matters. The NCAA committee does a good job, for the most part, but is tough to do that job and keep everyone happy.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:00 PM

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Sunday, March 1

Hot Teams
-- Chicago won seven of its last nine games (3-5 last eight HF). Clippers won five of their last seven games (4-8 AU).
-- Houston won its last four games (9-3-1 last 13 HF). Cavaliers won six of their last eight games (1-6 last seven AU).
-- Portland won six of its last nine games (4-7-1 AF).
-- Pacers won seven of their last nine games (3-1 last four HF).
-- Warriors won ten of last thirteen games (1-5 last six AF). Celtics won their last three games (5-3 last eight HU).
-- Orlando is 7-2-1 against spread in its last ten games.
-- Lakers won their last three games (4-1 last five HU).
-- Pelicans won/covered their last four games (1-6 last seven AF).

Cold Teams
-- Kings lost seven of their last ten games (5-3 last eight HU).
-- 76ers lost five of their last six games (5-12 last 17 AU).
-- Charlotte lost six of its last seven games (2-2 AF).
-- Thunder lost last two games by total of seven points; no Westbrook or Durant today (5-2 last seven AF).
-- Denver lost 11 of its last 12 games (2-7 last nine HU).

Series Records
-- Clippers won four of last five games with Chicago.
-- Rockets won their last five games with Cleveland.
-- Blazers won five of last seven games with Sacramento.
-- 76ers lost five of last six games with Indiana.
-- Warriors won four of last five games with Boston.
-- Road team won all three Charlotte-Orlando games this season.
-- Lakers lost nine of last eleven games with Oklahoma City.
-- Nuggets won their last three games with New Orleans.

Totals
-- Eight of last ten Chicago games stayed under.
-- Last four Cleveland road games stayed under.
-- Nine of last thirteen Portland road games went over.
-- Five of last seven Indiana home games stayed under.
-- Six of last seven Golden State road games went under; nine of last 11 Boston games went over.
-- Six of last seven Orlando home games stayed under.
-- Last five Thunder road games went over the total.
-- Six of Pelicans' last eight road games stayed under.

Back-to-Backs
-- None

East vs West
SU: West 186-126 ATS: West 159-150-3
East teams HF vs West: 43-41
East teams HU vs West: 34-39
West teams HF vs East: 62-62-3
West teams HU vs East: 17-13

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:01 PM

NBA

Sunday, March 1

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Trend Report
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1:00 PM
LA CLIPPERS vs. CHICAGO
LA Clippers are 8-1 SU in their last 9 games when playing on the road against Chicago
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of the LA Clippers last 6 games
Chicago is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games when playing LA Clippers
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Chicago's last 8 games at home

3:30 PM
CLEVELAND vs. HOUSTON
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Cleveland's last 7 games when playing on the road against Houston
Cleveland is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Houston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Cleveland
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Houston's last 21 games when playing Cleveland

6:00 PM
PORTLAND vs. SACRAMENTO
Portland is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 7 games when playing on the road against Sacramento
Sacramento is 4-8 ATS in its last 12 games when playing at home against Portland
Sacramento is 8-16-1 ATS in its last 25 games at home

6:00 PM
GOLDEN STATE vs. BOSTON
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Golden State's last 8 games
Golden State is 19-6 SU in its last 25 games
Boston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Golden State
Boston is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games

6:00 PM
CHARLOTTE vs. ORLANDO
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Charlotte's last 7 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Charlotte's last 6 games when playing on the road against Orlando
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Orlando's last 6 games when playing Charlotte
Orlando is 4-1-1 ATS in its last 6 games at home

6:00 PM
PHILADELPHIA vs. INDIANA
Philadelphia is 9-3-1 ATS in its last 13 games
Philadelphia is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Indiana's last 13 games when playing Philadelphia
Indiana is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Philadelphia

6:30 PM
OKLAHOMA CITY vs. LA LAKERS
Oklahoma City is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Oklahoma City's last 5 games
LA Lakers are 3-7 SU in their last 10 games at home
LA Lakers are 2-4 SU in their last 6 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City

8:00 PM
NEW ORLEANS vs. DENVER
New Orleans is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
New Orleans is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Denver
The total has gone UNDER in 16 of Denver's last 23 games when playing New Orleans
Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against New Orleans

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:02 PM

NBA

Sunday, March 1

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Game of the Day: Cavaliers at Rockets
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cleveland Cavaliers at Houston Rockets (OFF)

LeBron James will be back in action Sunday when he leads Cleveland into a nationally televised matinee at Houston, but the status of his running mate remains up in the air. While James - who was coming off a season-high 42-point effort in a win over Golden State - rested Friday night at Indiana, Irving was absent with a shoulder strain, leaving the Cavaliers vulnerable. The Pacers took advantage by claiming a 93-86 win to send Cleveland to just its third loss in 21 games.

The Rockets have won the first four games of a five-game homestand and entered Saturday sitting 1 1/2 games behind first-place Memphis in the race for the Southwest Division and the possible No. 2 seed in the West. Houston needed to rally late for a 102-98 win over Brooklyn on Friday, riding a season-high 26 points from Terrence Jones to its eighth victory in the last nine home games. James sat due to injury and Irving scored 38 points in a 103-95 home loss to the Rockets on Jan. 7, Houston's fifth straight win in the series.

TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC

INJURY REPORT: Cavaliers - F LeBron James (Prob-Back), G Kyrie Irving (Out-Shoulder) Rockets - F Kostas Papanikolaou (Ques-Ankle), G Pablo Prigioni (Prob-Head)

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (37-23 SU, 29-31 ATS, 21-38-1 O/U): Kevin Love did a nice job picking up the slack when James missed eight games earlier in the season with knee and back issues - including a 17-point, 16-rebound effort in the loss to Houston - but has not provided much of a boost in his last two opportunities. The up-and-down power forward shot 3-of-15 without James on the floor against Portland on Jan. 28 and was 6-of-19 at Indiana on Friday. Cleveland has won 10 straight against the Western Conference, its longest such run since an 11-gamer in 2008-09.

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (40-18 SU, 33-25 ATS, 26-32 O/U): It appears as if Jones is all the way back from a leg injury that kept him out for nearly three months, a development that has helped Houston absorb the lengthy absence of star center Dwight Howard. Jones was 11-of-16 from the floor Friday night and also grabbed 12 rebounds to record his second double-double in the last three games. The third-year pro averaged 13.7 points on 57.5 percent shooting once the calendar turned to March last season and looks primed to finish strong once again.

TRENDS:

*Cavaliers are 10-1 ATS in their last 11 vs. Western Conference.
*Rockets are 11-3 ATS in their last 14 home games.
*Under is 4-1 in Cavaliers last 5 vs. NBA Southwest.
*Under is 5-1 in Rockets last 6 overall.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:02 PM

NBA
Long Sheet

Sunday, March 1

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LA CLIPPERS (38 - 21) at CHICAGO (37 - 22) - 3/1/2015, 1:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
LA CLIPPERS is 4-1 against the spread versus CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
LA CLIPPERS is 4-1 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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OKLAHOMA CITY (32 - 27) at LA LAKERS (16 - 41) - 3/1/2015, 6:35 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
LA LAKERS is 5-4 against the spread versus OKLAHOMA CITY over the last 3 seasons
OKLAHOMA CITY is 7-2 straight up against LA LAKERS over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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CHARLOTTE (23 - 33) at ORLANDO (19 - 41) - 3/1/2015, 6:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CHARLOTTE is 25-40 ATS (-19.0 Units) after allowing 105 points or more over the last 3 seasons.
CHARLOTTE is 63-41 ATS (+17.9 Units) in a road game where where the total is between 185 and 189.5 points since 1996.
ORLANDO is 44-62 ATS (-24.2 Units) in home games over the last 3 seasons.
ORLANDO is 1-11 ATS (-11.1 Units) in a home game where where the total is between 185 and 189.5 points over the last 3 seasons.
ORLANDO is 27-40 ATS (-17.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHARLOTTE is 6-5 against the spread versus ORLANDO over the last 3 seasons
CHARLOTTE is 6-5 straight up against ORLANDO over the last 3 seasons
8 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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GOLDEN STATE (45 - 11) at BOSTON (23 - 33) - 3/1/2015, 6:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
GOLDEN STATE is 33-20 ATS (+11.0 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 19-10 ATS (+8.0 Units) when the total is greater than or equal to 210 this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 30-16 ATS (+12.4 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 21-10 ATS (+10.0 Units) after a win by 10 points or more this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 23-12 ATS (+9.8 Units) after scoring 105 points or more this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 57-39 ATS (+14.1 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 29-16 ATS (+11.4 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 21-9 ATS (+11.1 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 27-13 ATS (+12.7 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
BOSTON is 38-59 ATS (-26.9 Units) in home games after 3 or more consecutive overs since 1996.
BOSTON is 187-230 ATS (-66.0 Units) in home games revenging a loss vs opponent since 1996.
BOSTON is 85-119 ATS (-45.9 Units) in home games after scoring 105 points or more since 1996.
BOSTON is 9-20 ATS (-13.0 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 3-2 against the spread versus GOLDEN STATE over the last 3 seasons
GOLDEN STATE is 4-1 straight up against BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
4 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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PHILADELPHIA (13 - 45) at INDIANA (24 - 34) - 3/1/2015, 6:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PHILADELPHIA is 59-31 ATS (+24.9 Units) as a road underdog of 9.5 to 12 points since 1996.
INDIANA is 18-32 ATS (-17.2 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
INDIANA is 2-16 ATS (-15.6 Units) in March games over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
PHILADELPHIA is 6-4 against the spread versus INDIANA over the last 3 seasons
INDIANA is 7-3 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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PORTLAND (38 - 19) at SACRAMENTO (20 - 36) - 3/1/2015, 6:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
SACRAMENTO is 6-4 against the spread versus PORTLAND over the last 3 seasons
PORTLAND is 6-4 straight up against SACRAMENTO over the last 3 seasons
7 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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CLEVELAND (37 - 23) at HOUSTON (40 - 18) - 3/1/2015, 3:30 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
HOUSTON is 4-1 against the spread versus CLEVELAND over the last 3 seasons
HOUSTON is 5-0 straight up against CLEVELAND over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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NEW ORLEANS (31 - 27) at DENVER (20 - 38) - 3/1/2015, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NEW ORLEANS is 11-24 ATS (-15.4 Units) in road games second half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
NEW ORLEANS is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) in road games off an upset win as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
NEW ORLEANS is 179-223 ATS (-66.3 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game since 1996.
DENVER is 22-10 ATS (+11.0 Units) in March games over the last 3 seasons.
NEW ORLEANS is 33-24 ATS (+6.6 Units) in all games this season.
DENVER is 21-33 ATS (-15.3 Units) in all games this season.
DENVER is 13-22 ATS (-11.2 Units) as an underdog this season.
DENVER is 3-13 ATS (-11.3 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders over the last 2 seasons.
DENVER is 4-15 ATS (-12.5 Units) after a loss by 10 points or more this season.
DENVER is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) after scoring 85 points or less over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
DENVER is 6-3 against the spread versus NEW ORLEANS over the last 3 seasons
DENVER is 6-3 straight up against NEW ORLEANS over the last 3 seasons
5 of 8 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

**StarDust Bum** · 03-01-2015, 12:03 PM

NBA

Sunday, March 1

Kyrie Irving, Cleveland - Out Sun

Irving missed Friday's game with a shoulder injury and will not play Sunday against the Rockets.

LeBron has a track record of torching the Rockets

If there's one team LeBron James loves facing, it's the Houston Rockets.

King James' teams have won seven out of their last eight meetings with Houston, with James torching the red and white for an average of 30.2 PPG during that span. LeBron and the Cavs will collide with Houston once again in the Lone Star State.

After opening the Rockets as 1.5-point chalk, books have since adjusted that in favor of the red-hot Cavaliers. As of 9: 50 p.m. EST, that number was sitting at Houston +2. There wasn't any movement on the total of 204 at the time of writing.

Kings struggling mightily in the absence of Cousins

There's no questioning just how important superstar big man DeMarcus Cousins is to the Sacramento Kings, and their record without him in the lineup is proof of that.

The Kings are just 2-11 straight-up in games Cousins has missed in the 2014-15 campaign. The Kentucky product is officially ruled out for Sacramento's matchup with Portland Sunday due to a nagging ankle injury that's kept him sidelined since Jan. 27.

At the time of writing, books had the Blazers as healthy 8-point road faves with a total of 202.

Celtics' playoff push resulting in big profits

Lost in the drama for the race for the postseason in the almighty Western Conference, one team has quietly been making a big playoff push in the not-so-sexy Eastern Conference and providing some great value in the process.

The Boston Celtics are 7-3 straight-up in their last 10 outings and have cashed in eight out of those games. They'll be in tough Sunday when Stephen Curry and the rest of the West-leading Golden State Warriors come to town.

Oddsmakers currently have set the C's as +8.5 dogs with the total sitting at 215.5.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-02-2015, 06:47 PM

Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

-- Fifteen lined D-I games Sunday; Oregon was the only road team that won.

-- Paul Casey, Ian Poulter are tied for first at the rain-delayed Honda Classic, which resumes early Monday morning.

-- Resume-damaging losses Sunday for Pitt, Stanford; they'll both have to win their conference tournament to make the NCAAs.

-- Phillies lost an exhibition game to a D-II college team, which doesn't matter but is not going to help season ticket sales any.

-- Memphis lost its best player, Austin Nichols, to an ankle injury, which cripples their chance to make a run in the C-USA tournament next week.

-- Watched the movie Hurricane Season on VH1 last night; excellent true story about a high school team that won the state championship after Hurricane Katrina.

**********

Armadillo: Monday's List of 13: Wrapping up a sports weekend.........

13) Everyone has bad days, even Lebron James, who went 3-11 from the foul line in an OT loss in Houston. Cavaliers are 37-24, right now the #4 seed in the east- that would pit them against #1 seed Atlanta in the second round.

12) NBA office once vetoed a Kevin Garnett/DeAndre Jordan trade, maybe the best move the Clippers never made. Jordan had 26 rebounds Sunday in Chicago.

11) Speaking of Garnett, he bought 1,000 tickets for tonight's game with the Clippers and gave them away-- thats a pretty expensive gift. .

10) Watched the Jerry Tarkanian memorial on the Internet yesterday; UNLV did a really nice job, with one segment video appearances by John Calipari, Dick Vitale, Tom Thibodeau, Bob Huggins and Mike Krzyzewski.

ESPN's Kenny Mayne was the emcee; he is a former backup QB for the Rebels.

9) Hard to believe the NFL hasn't had a team in LA or Anaheim since 1994, but it looks like they'll have at least one therre fairly soon. I've been a Ram fan since the mid-60's; they weren't supported that well in the Coliseum, which is why they moved to Anaheim. Part of the reason they moved out of the Big A is that then-owner Georgia Frontiere was from St Louis-- really wasn't a great move for the franchise.

8) Tired of people bashing current Rams owner Stan Kroenke as being difficult to deal with; its not that hard to meet him. I live in upstate NY and I've met the guy. Saw him at the NBA Summer League in Vegas few years ago, talked to him about the Rams for 10 minutes. Good guy, was very polite and answered some questions. He's a business guy; he'll do what is best for his wallet, which is how rich people get rich. Would any of us do any differently?

7) When James Hahn won the LA Open last week, he was 297th in World Golf Ranking; this week, Padraig Harrington was 297th and now he is contending at Doral, only four shots out of the lead, thats how competitve golf has become, guys barely in the top 300 are winning or contending to win.

6) If you shoot a basketball and it wedges between the backboard and the rim, that should not be ruled a held ball, the defense should get the ball. No way should the offense benefit from a shot like that- those are bad shots.

5) Want to feel old? Ron Howard (Richie Cummingham on Happy Days, Opie on the Andy Griffith Show) turned 61 Sunday.

4) Saturday night, UTEP blew a 15-point halftime lead and lost at lowly Southern Miss 63-60; thats what happens when your head coach is suspended for a game. Tim Floyd was ejected at Louisiana Tech in the Miners' previous game and got suspended for that, so in effect, he got thrown out of two games for the same act.

3) Did you know the voting age is Japan is 20? Me either.

2) Oregon 73, Stanford 70-- 11 ties, 17 lead changes as the Ducks stay hot; tough loss for Stanford, which now probably needs to win the Pac-12 tournament or else they'll be on ESPN losing an NIT home game in a couple weeks.

1) Let me get this straight; the 76ers have two young prospects they drafted who have never played for the team, then they traded for JaVale McGee and just cut him, possibly because he doesn't always try hard. My question is this: Is the 76er brass trying hard to win? How are they any different from McGee?

**StarDust Bum** · 03-02-2015, 06:48 PM

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, March 2

Hot Teams
-- Warriors won seven of their last nine ganes (2-8 last ten AF). Nets are 5-1 vs spread in last six games (3-2 last five SU).
-- Clippers won six of their last eight games (1-7 last eight AF).
-- Pelicans won/covered their last five games (7-1 last eight AU).

Cold Teams
-- Toronto lost its last five games (0-3 last three AF). 76ers lost their last seven games (7-1 last eight HU).
-- Suns lost nine of their last twelve games (7-8-1 AU). Miami lost nine of its last fourteen games (3-1 last four HF).
-- Minnesota lost five of its last seven games (4-2 last six HU).
-- Dallas lost its last two games, by 14-10 points (4-1 last five HF).

Series Records
-- 76ers lost their last seven games with Toronto.
-- Heat won their last nine games with Phoenix.
-- Warriors won four of last five games with Brooklyn.
-- Clippers won their last ten games with Minnesota.
-- Pelicans lost nine of last ten games with Dallas.

Totals
-- 11 of last 14 Philly home games stayed under total.
-- Three of last four Miami home games went over total.
-- Seven of last eight Golden State road games stayed under.
-- Under is 3-0-1 in last four Clipper games.
-- 12 of last 14 Dallas home games stayed under total.

Back-to-Backs
-- 76ers are 4-1 vs spread at home if they played day before.
-- Golden State is 6-4-1 if they played the day before.
-- Pelicans are 11-2 vs spread if they played night before.

East vs West
SU: West 189-126 ATS: West 161-151-3
East teams HF vs West: 43-42
East teams HU vs West: 35-39
West teams HF vs East: 63-62-3
West teams HU vs East: 17-13

NBA

Monday, March 2

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7:00 PM
TORONTO vs. PHILADELPHIA
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Toronto's last 8 games
Toronto is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
Philadelphia is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 6 games

7:30 PM
PHOENIX vs. MIAMI
Phoenix is 2-5-2 ATS in its last 9 games on the road
Phoenix is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games on the road
Miami is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Phoenix
Miami is 7-16 SU in its last 23 games at home

7:30 PM
GOLDEN STATE vs. BROOKLYN
Golden State is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games
Golden State is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 7 games when playing Golden State
Brooklyn is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games at home

8:00 PM
LA CLIPPERS vs. MINNESOTA
LA Clippers are 6-13 ATS in their last 19 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of the LA Clippers last 9 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Minnesota's last 7 games when playing at home against LA Clippers
Minnesota is 6-19 SU in its last 25 games at home

8:30 PM
NEW ORLEANS vs. DALLAS
The total has gone OVER in 4 of New Orleans's last 5 games when playing Dallas
New Orleans is 1-9 SU in its last 10 games when playing Dallas
Dallas is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing New Orleans
Dallas is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home

**StarDust Bum** · 03-02-2015, 06:48 PM

NBA
Long Sheet

Monday, March 2

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TORONTO (37 - 22) at PHILADELPHIA (13 - 46) - 3/2/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 69-43 ATS (+21.7 Units) in a road game where where the total is between 190 and 194.5 points since 1996.
PHILADELPHIA is 24-42 ATS (-22.2 Units) as a home underdog of 6.5 to 9 points since 1996.
PHILADELPHIA is 89-131 ATS (-55.1 Units) in home games versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
PHILADELPHIA is 6-5 against the spread versus TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
TORONTO is 8-3 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PHOENIX (31 - 29) at MIAMI (25 - 33) - 3/2/2015, 7:35 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
MIAMI is 5-0 against the spread versus PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
MIAMI is 5-0 straight up against PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
4 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GOLDEN STATE (46 - 11) at BROOKLYN (24 - 33) - 3/2/2015, 7:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
GOLDEN STATE is 63-92 ATS (-38.2 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders since 1996.
BROOKLYN is 44-29 ATS (+12.1 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 33-21 ATS (+9.9 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 30-17 ATS (+11.3 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 23-13 ATS (+8.7 Units) after scoring 105 points or more this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 57-40 ATS (+13.0 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 29-17 ATS (+10.3 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
BROOKLYN is 7-17 ATS (-11.7 Units) off an upset win as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
GOLDEN STATE is 3-2 against the spread versus BROOKLYN over the last 3 seasons
GOLDEN STATE is 4-1 straight up against BROOKLYN over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

LA CLIPPERS (39 - 21) at MINNESOTA (13 - 45) - 3/2/2015, 8:05 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
LA CLIPPERS is 6-3 against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
LA CLIPPERS is 9-0 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NEW ORLEANS (32 - 27) at DALLAS (39 - 22) - 3/2/2015, 8:35 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
DALLAS is 7-4 against the spread versus NEW ORLEANS over the last 3 seasons
DALLAS is 9-2 straight up against NEW ORLEANS over the last 3 seasons
7 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

**StarDust Bum** · 03-02-2015, 06:49 PM

NBA

Monday, March 2

Raptors' PG Kyle Lowry, questionable Monday

Lowry is dealing with nagging injuries and general soreness and could be held out of Monday's game against the 76ers to rest.

Rockets end Cavs ATS dominanec vs. West

The Houston Rockets snapped the Cleveland Cavaliers streak of 10 consecutive covers versus Western Conference opponents, with their 105-103 overtime win Sunday.

The Rockets, 1-point home dogs to the Cavaliers, also halted the Cavaliers straight up win streak against West foes at 10 games.

Cleveland doesn't play another team from the West until they host the Phoenix Suns on March 7.

Heat in revenge spot with Dragic set to face Suns

The Miami Heat are in a revenge spot with newly acquired point guard Goran Dragic set to face his former team, the Phoenix Suns, for the first time Monday night since being traded.

It is a unique spot for the Suns, who had to play another former point guard, Isaiah Thomas, right after trading him to the Boston Celtics at the deadline. Thomas lead the Celtics to a 115-110 win and cover over the Suns as 8-point dogs on Feb. 23.

The Heat have opened as 3.5-point home favorites over the Suns.

Announcement

The Bum's NBA March Trends/News/ Stats/ All You Need To Know !

The Bum's NBA March Trends/News/ Stats/ All You Need To Know !

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