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**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 07:58 AM

Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

-- Ricky Fowler played last ten holes in -8, won the PLAYERS title in a three-way playoff; if golf announcers got fined for every cliche they uttered, most would work for free, some would owe money, especially on NBC.

-- White Sox have played five home series, won two of three in all five.

-- All 11 of the Rangers' playoff games this spring were decided by one goal.

-- Anaheim eliminated the Flames in five games; Ducks are 8-1 in playoffs.

-- Why do people make TV commercials with screaming in them? Does this make people buy the product? It makes me turn the channel.

-- Orioles are back in Baltimore tonight; lets hope its a peaceful night.

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

13) I don't know how much Tyronn Lue makes as an assistant coach, but he earned every penny Sunday, pulling coach David Blatt away when the head coach tried to call a timeout he didn't have with the score tied and 0:08 left.

Blatt then channeled his inner Gene Hackman (from Hoosiers) and wanted the last play to start with Lebron James inbounding the ball. Um, no; James got the ball instead, drained the winning shot and everyone was happy.

12) When JR Smith is (correctly) criticizing his head coach after a game, you have to wonder what the hell is going on? Just let Lebron coach the team.

11) By the way, if I'm the Bulls, I'm wondering why none of the three refs saw Blatt (who was standing on the freakin' court) and gave him what would have been an illegal timeout? Seems like the refs may have bailed Cleveland out of what would've been a very embarrassing situation.

10) Last two games: Clippers 252, Rockets 194-- Coaching in the NBA must suck (except for the $$$); Kevin McHale had to be steaming at the gutless performance of his team Sunday, yet his postgame press conference sounded like a Little League coach consoling a bunch of 10-year olds after a game.

I'm reminded of what Rick Pitino said when the Thunder hired Billy Donovan a couple weeks ago, something to the effect that he'll have to learn to bite his tongue, that would be very important. Apparently if you publicly criticize the highly paid players, they'll go in the tank and get you fired. Awesome.

9) While I'm here, DeAndre Jordan was 10-28 from the foul line.....in the first half alone, as Houston fouled him over and over. Anyone who says the NBA game is better than college ball is delusional- they just have better players, the best in the world. In the NBA, the inmates run the asylum.

8) Think about the three buzzer beaters this weekend; two were banked in, totally lucky shots, the third was on a play after the players told the coach to stuff the play he had called-- and they were right to do so!!!!

7) NHL officials had to be sick when Anaheim eliminated the Flames in five games last night; its serious money if a series goes six or seven games. Better TV ratings, more sellout crowds- short series don't help the bottom line.

6) Baseball oddity last night; normally when a pitcher comes into a game, he has to face a batter, but when Luke Hochevar was announced as a reliever in the ninth inning, there was a downpour ten seconds later and the game had a rain delay of over an hour.

When the game resumed, Hochevar didn't have to pitch, since it had been over an hour since he warmed up and there is a rule for that (to help prevent injury) , so this was the rare case of a pitcher getting in a game but doing nothing.

5) A disgruntled former U of Illinois football player went on a Twitter rant Sunday, saying the Illini's head football trainer was fired after it was discovered he wasn't licensed to work in the state of Illinois. Whoops. Read here.

The player involved quit the team last year and obviously has an ax to grind, but apparently a lot of what he said is true.

4) Johnny Cueto got 30 called strikes from ump John Hirschbeck Saturday; very unusual for a pitcher to get that many in one game. For some reason, the Reds left Cueto in a 10-1 game in 9th inning- they finally took him out after he had thrown 123 pitches and the game got to 10-4.

3) At some point, I'm going to do a thing on the great debate that rages these days between numbers guys and non-numbers guys (we need a name for them!!!) in sports. How decisions are made is changing and not everyone has the same blueprint for how to do it. People copy teams who win.

Analytics, you know-- for instance, the A's two assistant GMs went to Harvard and Brown- the guy who left this year to go to the Dodgers went to MIT and only became interested in baseball after he saw the movie Moneyball, so he had no background in baseball until ten years ago. Just great.

Wonder which Ivy League genius is taking credit for Cespedes/Lester trade? A's were 66-41 when they made the trade, are 34-56 since. Ouch.

2) Robert Morris did a great job last year; they had the NEC Freshman of the Year, but the kid had people in his ear, so he left Robert Morris and will let the anxious world know his next college stop this week. This sucks when teams at low major schools lose out on recruiting coups because bigger schools poach their players. We'll find out who these poachers are fairly soon.

1) Washington Capitals' fans have to be sick; they were up 3-1 on Rangers, now it is 3-3, Game 7 is in NYC. Since Alex Ovechkin has been a Cap, they're 4-12 in games when they can end a series- last five times they were up 3-2, they lost Game 6.

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 08:00 AM

NBA
Long Sheet

Monday, May 11

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ATLANTA (65 - 26) at WASHINGTON (52 - 37) - 5/11/2015, 7:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
ATLANTA is 13-32 ATS (-22.2 Units) in road games in all playoff games since 1996.
ATLANTA is 5-20 ATS (-17.0 Units) in the second round of the playoffs since 1996.
ATLANTA is 7-17 ATS (-11.7 Units) in road games versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 46-33 ATS (+9.7 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 52-36 ATS (+12.4 Units) in all games this season.
ATLANTA is 39-27 ATS (+9.3 Units) as a favorite this season.
ATLANTA is 26-12 ATS (+12.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ATLANTA is 28-18 ATS (+8.2 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
WASHINGTON is 342-411 ATS (-110.1 Units) in home games since 1996.
WASHINGTON is 157-201 ATS (-64.1 Units) vs. division opponents since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 8-5 against the spread versus ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
ATLANTA is 8-7 straight up against WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
12 of 15 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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GOLDEN STATE (72 - 17) at MEMPHIS (61 - 29) - 5/11/2015, 9:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
GOLDEN STATE is 64-97 ATS (-42.7 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders since 1996.
MEMPHIS is 113-80 ATS (+25.0 Units) off an upset win as an underdog since 1996.
MEMPHIS is 46-29 ATS (+14.1 Units) after a win by 10 points or more over the last 3 seasons.
MEMPHIS is 32-19 ATS (+11.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
MEMPHIS is 90-69 ATS (+14.1 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game over the last 3 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 48-37 ATS (+7.3 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 44-31 ATS (+9.9 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 26-16 ATS (+8.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
MEMPHIS is 9-4 against the spread versus GOLDEN STATE over the last 3 seasons
MEMPHIS is 8-5 straight up against GOLDEN STATE over the last 3 seasons
8 of 13 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, May 11

Wall has multiple fractures in left hand/wrist; is probably out for rest of series. Hawks bench shot 7-20/ 7-15/18-33, as subs got them back in game after they were down 13 at half in Game 3; they also got to line 29 times, most in series so far. Over is 8-6 so far in this round of playoffs, 2-1 in this series; hosts are 6-7-1 vs spread. Washington won Game 3 even with their starting guards shooting 8-25 from the floor. Washington is 3-4 in its last seven games vs Atlanta; nine of last 11 series games went over total. Eight of last ten Wizard games went over total.

Four Memphis subs were combined +52 in Game 3 win, as Warriors scored under 40 points in first half for second game in row- they scored less than 40 in first half once during regular season. Playoff games are a grind; Warriors are 6-28/6-26 from arc last two games- they turned ball over 37 times last two games. Golden State is 2-8 vs spread in last ten games. Memphis is 6-2 SU in playoffs. Seven of last nine series games stayed under the total, including all three in this playoff series. Conley is a "warrior" by the way, playing 33:00 in Game 3 with a broken face.

2015 playoffs
Chicago vs Cleveland
Chi 99-92, +4.5, U195
Clev 106-91, -5.5, O195.5
Chi 99-96, -3, O194.5
Clev 86-84, -3 U194

Washington vs Atlanta
Wash 104-98, +5.5, O197
Atl 106-90, -9, U199
Wash 103-101, +4, O196.5

Memphis vs Golden State
GSt 101-86, -10.5, U196
Mem 101-86, +10.5, U198.5
Mem 99-89, +4.5, U196.5

LA Clippers vs Houston
LAC 117-101, +7.5, O212
Hst 115-109, -8, O214.5
LAC 124-99, -6, O214.5
LAC 128-95, -6.5 O217.5

NBA

Monday, May 11

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Trend Report
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7:00 PM
ATLANTA vs. WASHINGTON
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing on the road against Washington
Atlanta is 2-5-2 ATS in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Washington's last 13 games at home
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

9:30 PM
GOLDEN STATE vs. MEMPHIS
Golden State is 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Golden State's last 6 games
Memphis is 14-5 SU in its last 19 games when playing Golden State
Memphis is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

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**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 08:01 AM

NBA

Monday, May 11

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Game of the Day: NBA Monday playoff matchups
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Atlanta Hawks at Washington Wizards (+4.5, 199)
Wizards lead series 2-1

Paul Pierce just won’t let Washington lose and the Wizards are in position to take a 3-1 lead when they host the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks in Monday’s Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Pierce banked in a jumper at the buzzer to give Washington a 103-101 victory on Saturday and the fifth-seeded Wizards now have a chance to take a commanding lead.

Pierce’s heroics were timely as Washington knows it won’t have John Wall (broken left hand and wrist) for the remainder of the series. But the mantra for the squad has been that it will be able to overcome the loss of the standpoint point guard. “We don’t have a choice,” shooting guard Bradley Beal told reporters. “We can sit here and make excuses or we can go out and prove people wrong.” Atlanta power forward Paul Millsap struggled in Game 3 with just eight points and two rebounds while plagued with flu-like symptoms and is just 14-of-39 shooting in the series.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, TNT

LINE HISTORY: Oddsmakers initially opened the Wiz as 3-point dogs, but that's been adjusted to +4.5.

INJURY REPORT: Atlanta - T. Sefelosha (out for season). Washington - J. Wall (questionable)

ABOUT THE HAWKS: Small forward DeMarre Carroll has been Atlanta’s top player in the series and is also considered one of its top defensive players so his absence was conspicuous on Pierce’s game-winning shot. Immediately after the contest, Carroll said he wasn’t physically able to play at the time and then backtracked on those comments the next day, while coach Mike Budenholzer was insisting he went with the best group to get a stop. “I know a lot of people are going to say a lot of things because I’m supposed to be the top defender on the team, but I guess y’all can talk to Coach and he can answer the rest of the questions,” Carroll told reporters.

ABOUT THE WIZARDS: Washington led by 21 points with under 10 minutes to play in Game 3 before seeing the lead evaporate and then needing Pierce to hit one of his customary clutch shots. “Took my time. You know, wanted to make sure I got the shot off with no time on the clock,” Pierce told reporters. “I’ve been in those situations many times.” The Wizards are hoping power forward Nene will continue to play like he did in Game 3 – 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting – as opposed to the poor showings in the first two games when he missed all nine of his field-goal attempts.

TRENDS:

*Wizards are 8-1-1 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
*Over is 6-1 in the last 7 meetings.
*Hawks are 0-4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
*Hawks are 3-8-1 ATS in their last 12 games overall.

Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies (+5, 196)
Grizzlies lead series 2-1

The Memphis Grizzlies are hounding the Golden State shooters and seek their third consecutive victory when they host the Warriors in Monday’s Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals. Memphis has won the past two games with tenacious defense and has held Golden State to an average of 89.5 points during the stretch.

Memphis posted a 99-89 victory in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead and held the Warriors to 6-of-26 shooting from 3-point range and swingman Tony Allen promises the approach will be the same in Game 4. “Why would we change anything? I don’t think we should change nothing,” Allen told reporters. “We need to play how we’ve been playing, the way that got us this notoriety – the reason why all these cameras are in my face now.” Golden State posted 67 wins in the regular season and is now facing its largest dose of adversity. “This is kind of our moment of truth,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “You have to learn in the postseason.”

TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT

LINE HISTORY: There hasn't been any line moves in this matchup as of this writing.

INJURY REPORT: Golden State - O. Kuzmic (questionable), M. Speights (doubtful). Memphis - None.

ABOUT THE WARRIORS: NBA MVP Stephen Curry is among the struggling Golden State players and he’s only 4-of-21 from 3-point range over the last two games. “I hold myself to a high standard and I haven’t reached it yet,” Curry told reporters. “So looking forward to the challenge of getting that level in Game 4, setting the tone and it could be a different outcome.” Backcourt mate Klay Thompson had his best performance of the series with 20 points and eight rebounds in Game 3 but missed three of four free throws, including two crucial misses that hindered a fourth-quarter rally attempt.

ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES: Power forward Zach Randolph and center Marc Gasol are operating at will in the interior and combined for 43 points and 23 rebounds in the Game 3 victory. Randolph has three consecutive 20-point outings in the series after failing to record one in the first round against Portland while Gasol had his second 21-point performance of the series on Saturday and is averaging 10 rebounds. “We might not play great or we might not make the shot or we might make mistakes or we might get really slow,” Gasol told reporters. “But we’re going to stay in the moment.”

TRENDS:

*Grizzlies are 8-2-1 ATS in their last 11 games overall.
*Warriors are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
*Under is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings.
*Under is 23-3 in Grizzlies last 26 home games.

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**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 08:02 AM

NBA

Monday, May 11

Warriors' Speights will not play in Game 4

Golden State Warriors big man Marreesse Speights will not participate in Monday's Game 4 of the Conference Semifinals versus Memphis, the team announced Sunday.

Speights suffered a moderate right calf strain in Game 3 and will be re-evaluated in one week.

The Dubs, who are in a 2-1 hole, are currently 5-point favorites for the tilt.

Under is red-hot in Grizzlies home games

The Under has paid out in 23 out of Memphis's last 26 home games.

The Grizzlies play host to the Golden State Warriors once again in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals Series Monday.

Books have tabbed the matchup with a total of 196.

Wizards have been covering the spread with ease

The Washington Wizards have been covering the spread with ease as of late, and will try and keep that momentum going Monday in Game 4 against Atlanta.

The Wiz are 2-1 ATS in the series but have cashed tickets in eight out of their last nine

Bradley Beal and company are listed as 4-point dogs for the matchup.

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 09:10 AM

NBA
Short Sheet

Monday, May 11

Eastern Conference - Semifinals - Best of 7 - Game 4, WAS Leads 2-1

Atlanta Hawks at Washington Wizards, 7:05 ET
Atlanta: 16-5 ATS revenging a loss where opponent scored 100 or more points
Washington: 2-13 ATS after allowing 100 points or more 2 straight games

Western Conference - Semifinals - Best of 7 - Game 4, MEM Leads 2-1

Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies, 9:35 ET
Golden State: 64-97 ATS after 3 or more consecutive unders
Memphis: 12-2 ATS off a win by 10 points or more as an underdog

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 09:36 AM

NBA

Monday, May 11

LeBron James, Cleveland - Prob Tues

James rolled his ankle last game but is expected to be ready for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Bulls.

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 09:53 AM

NBA
Dunkel

Monday, May 11

Atlanta Hawks @ Washington Wizards

Game 729-730
May 11, 2015 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Atlanta Hawks
122.522
Washington Wizard
125.878
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Washington Wizard
by 3 1/2
204
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Atlanta Hawks
by 4 1/2
198 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Washington Wizard
(+4 1/2); Over

Golden State Warriors @ Memphis Grizzlies

Game 731-732
May 11, 2015 @ 9:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Golden State Warr
123.794
Memphis Grizzlies
128.627
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Memphis Grizzlies
by 5
200
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Golden State Warr
by 5
196
Dunkel Pick:
Memphis Grizzlies
(+5); Over

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 11:16 AM

NBA

Monday, May 11

Under cashing when Fraher works Warriors games

The Under has gone 7-0 in the past seven Golden State Warriors games when referee Pat Fraher has been a part of the officiating crew, including 6-0 during the 2014-15 regular season.

Alongside Mike Callahan and Tony Brothers, Fraher has been tasked with officiating Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinal series between the Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies Monday evening.

The Under has cashed in all three games in the series thus far and oddsmakers have posted a total of 196 on Game 4.

**Udog** · 05-11-2015, 03:18 PM

NBA

Monday, May 11

Grindhouse producing unders at high rate

The "Grindhouse" is living up to its name, with the under going an incredible 23-2 in the Memphis Grizzlies' last 25 home games, including 3-1 this postseason.

The Grizzlies are allowing a miniscule 88.2 points per game over those 25 games, which includes a run of going under in 14 consecutive games at home.

The under is also 3-0 so far in the Grizzlies' Western Conference semi final versus the Golden State Warriors, going under by an average of nine points per game and is also 5-1 in the last six meetings overall.

The total for Monday's pivotal Game 4 is currently at 195.5 after opening at 196.

Clippers and the over are perfect in their series

The Los Angeles Clippers are a perfect 4-0 against the spread in their Western Conference semi final, after crushing the Houston Rockets 128-95 Sunday night.

The Clippers easily covered the 6.5-point chalk thanks to a dominant fourth quarter which saw them outscore the Rockets 43-25. In fact, they have cashed easily all series, covering by an average of 17.6 points per game.

Meanwhile the Clippers and Rockets are also flying over totals, with the over going 4-0 in the series.

Despite seeing a high average total of 214.75 in the series, the teams are going over by 7.25 points per game.

The Clippers will try to close out the series in Game 5 Tuesday in Houston. The Rockets are currently 1.5-point home dogs with a total of 219.

Announcement

Monday's NBA and NCAAB Trends and Indexes - 5/11

Monday's NBA and NCAAB Trends and Indexes - 5/11

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