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**Udog** · 12-14-2015, 09:19 AM

Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

Westgate Super Contest (1,727 entrants-- prize pool is $2.5M)
six most popular picks in Week 14 season record: 42-40-2

6) Steelers +2.5 (377)-- Bengals clinch division with a win here- W. .

5) Bills -1 (386)-- LeSean McCoy returns to Philly; interesting game- L.

4) Giants -1 (447)-- Big Blue has lost four games in last minute when they led.

3) Lions even (517)-- Detroit had extra prep time after LW's Thursday game- L.

2) Patriots -3 (532)-- People don't think NE will lose three in a row- W.

1) Seahawks -6.5 (962)-- Spread doubled after Clausen named starter- W.

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

14) Steelers 33, Bengals 20-- This is how fragile success is in the NFL; Andy Dalton broke his right (passing) thumb, is out for the year- he might get back for the playoffs, but how long are the Bengals going to last in playoffs without him? This probably will cost them a first round bye, at least.

Wonder what the jackasses who booed Dalton at the celebrity softball game in Cincy last summer are saying now?

13) Eagles 23, Bills 20-- When LeSean McCoy was in Philly, he lived in a condo that didn't allow Christmas decorations on the doors that led to the hallway; McCoy's mom put them up anyway, no one said anything, so other people put them up. McCoy had 74 yards on 20 rushes in his return to Philly, but Bills had 15 penalties for 101 yards, Eagles five for 55. Third loss in four games for Rex Ryan's fading team.

12) Panthers 38, Falcons 0-- While network TV nitwits insist on putting Dallas on national TV most every week, Carolina is 13-0 and steamrolling towards going 16-0. This was a major tank job by freefalling Falcons, who gave up almost 300 yards in the first quarter. Atlanta has a big decision regarding Matt Ryan this winter- do they plan to go ahead with him as their franchise QB and if so, why?

11) Browns 24, 49ers 10-- Manziel was 21-31, 270 passing as Cleveland ended skid at seven games. Johnny Football has certainly improved this year, but are Browns using him to get ready for 2016, or to showcase him for a trade? Total yardage in this game was 481-221, Browns ran for 230, winning easily despite a -2 turnover ratio.

10) Redskins 24, Bears 21-- Condolences to Jay Cutler, whose brother-in-law was found dead in Utah this week, at age 30. Nine of last ten Chicago games were won by six or less points- Chicago lost three of its last four. Jay Gruden was head coach in Arena League for nine years, UFL for one; he is actually one of more experienced head coaches in NFL. Washington/Philly are tied atop NFC East at 6-7.

9) Rams 21, Lions 14-- At one point in this game, Rams had 3rd-and-3, Keenum took a quick drop, threw a 5-yard pass to Britt and the play gained seven yards and a first down- I jumped out of my chair and shook my fist-- they NEVER get first downs that easily, and I'm not being sarcastic. Actual progress. Aaron Donald is a beast at tackle and Hekker/Gurley also had big games, as St Louis ended a 5-game skid.

8) Chiefs 10, Chargers 3-- Gil Brandt pointed out that Chiefs are the second team in NFL history ('70 Bengals) to win seven consecutive games following a losing streak of five games- this was first of the seven they didn't cover. San Diego isn't a good team, but they've covered their last four road games. .

7) Saints 24, Buccaneers 17-- Damaging loss to Bucs' playoff hopes, as Saints win fourth visit in row to Bay Area, endng their 4-game skid. This turned out to be a good week for teams on long losing streaks (Saints-Browns-Rams). Saints converted on 12 of 17 third down plays, helping New Orleans to 9-yard edge in field position.

6) Jaguars 51, Colts 16-- Indy led this game 13-3 at 2:00 warning of first half, gave up a defensive TD before halftime, then two more TDs in first 3:11 of third quarter. Jags outscored Indy 42-3 in second half; at 5-8, they're not out of AFC South race just yet, with Texans losing badly Sunday night. As for Colts, who lost 45-10 last week, it is time to start speculating on who their next coach will be.

5) Jets 30, Titans 8-- My cousin texted me around 2:15: "....Titans stopped playing".

Jets are now +15 in turnovers in their eight wins, -13 in five losses. Jets ran for 183 yards, had 12-yard edge in field position. Only Tennessee TD was pass to Mariota. Jets-Steelers-Chiefs are tied for two AFC Wild Cards; Gang Green ends up with road games at Dallas/Buffalo and a home game with New England.

4) Raiders 15, Broncos 12-- NFL teams are now 1-25 when they don't score a TD on offense, the one win being the first Raider-Bronco game, so Denver didn't score a TD on offense in two games vs Oakland this year. Red zone failures in first half (three FGs on three red zone drives), dropped passes on big plays in second half doomed Denver here. The big question in Denver is going to be whether or not Osweiler keeps his job at QB, if and when Peyton Manning deems himself ready to play.

Jack Del Rio almost broke Twitter when he went for two with a 15-12 lead; turns out the Oakland long snapper hurt his shoulder, so they went for two instead of risking a fouled-up snap on a PAT with a backup snapper.

3) Seahawks 35, Ravens 6-- Former Viking coaxh Bud Grant liked to say "Its not who you play, its when you play them". Seattle played Chicago in only game Jimmy Clausen started for Bears; here they played Ravens in only game Clausen has started for them. The results? 26-0/35-6 wins. Clausen might be the worst QB in the NFL. Seattle looks like the #5 seed in the NFC, which will make them a hefty road favorite at the NFC East champ on Wild Card weekend.

2) Packers 28, Cowboys 7-- Dallas is now 1-8 with backup QBs starting; when NFL only has two 4:00 games and Cassel-led Cowboys are in one of them, its just terrible scheduling. Put the undefeated Panthers in the national spotlight more often, they've earned it. Biggest news here is that Mike McCarthy took play-calling duties back for Green Bay, who end season with Raiders-Cardinals-Vikings.

1) Patriots 27, Texans 6-- This game had all the suspense of a Harlem Globetrotters-Washington Generals tilt. NE is back as #1 seed in AFC, with Broncos/Bengals losing. Houston plays at Indy next week; in what could be a QB matchuip between Charlie Whitehurst-TJ Yates, with a division title on the line. Can the Rams get moved to this division? They're as good as any of those four teams.

**Udog** · 12-14-2015, 09:21 AM

NCAAB

Monday, December 14

Top 25 roundup: No. 4 Iowa State rolls

Jameel McKay had 17 points and eight rebounds, and No. 4 Iowa State used a strong shooting effort to beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 78-64 Sunday at Ames, Iowa.

Matt Thomas also scored 17 points for the Cyclones (9-0). Monte Morris added 12 points and 11 assists a Iowa State made 12 3-point shots and finished with a 48.1 shooting percentage.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff didn't go away until late in the second half behind its own hot shooting. The Golden Lions (2-8) shot 45.8 percent and had JoVaughn Love and Ghiavonni Robinson lead the team with 13 points each.

No. 9 Villanova 78, La Salle 55

The Wildcats were lights-out from the floor, especially in the second half, to run away with a victory over the Explorers.

Up 15 at halftime, Villanova made nine of its first 10 shots of the second half to open up a 30-point advantage on its city rivals before the period's midway point.

Josh Hart (18 points), Ryan Arcidiacono (14 points, seven assists), and Jalen Brunson (13 points) led the way for the Wildcats (8-1). Jordan Price scored a team-high 16 points for La Salle (4-4).

No. 14 West Virginia 100, Louisiana-Monroe 58

Jevon Carter, benched during the final 13 minutes of a Tuesday loss to No. 10 Virginia, returned to score 19 first-half points and 21 overall, fueling the Mountaineers in a blowout of the Warhawks.

West Virginia (8-1) made a season-high 15 3-pointers. Devin Williams finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Daxter Miles Jr. scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half.

Louisiana-Monroe (4-5) got a career-best 19 points from Jamaal Samuel. The Warhawks were hurt by 21 turnovers.

No. 13 Arizona 88, Missouri 52

Mark Tollefsen scored 17 points guard Gabe York had 16 to lead a balanced offensive effort as 13th-ranked Arizona started fast and never let up in routing Missouri in Tucson, Ariz.

Missouri was led in scoring by Namon Wright, who had nine points. Wes Clark and forward Jakeenan Gant each had eight.

Arizona played its fifth game without starting senior Kaleb Tarczewski, expected to be out until at least the start of conference season -- Jan. 3 at Arizona State -- because of an ankle injury. The Wildcats were also without Elliott Pitts for the second consecutive game.

**Udog** · 12-14-2015, 09:30 AM

NCAAB
Dunkel

Monday, December 14

Cal Poly @ St. Mary's

Game 523-524
December 14, 2015 @ 10:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Cal Poly
55.533
St. Mary's
69.891
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
St. Mary's
by 14 1/2
122
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
St. Mary's
by 7 1/2
136 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
St. Mary's
(-7 1/2); Under

Eastern Washington @ Western Carolina

Game 525-526
December 14, 2015 @ 7:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Eastern Washingto
50.646
Western Carolina
48.881
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Eastern Washingto
by 2
156
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Western Carolina
by 4
150
Dunkel Pick:
Eastern Washingto
(+4); Over

Southern Miss @ South Alabama

Game 521-522
December 14, 2015 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Southern Miss
40.365
South Alabama
49.713
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
South Alabama
by 9 1/2
127
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
South Alabama
by 6 1/2
133 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
South Alabama
(-6 1/2); Under

NCAAB
Long Sheet

Monday, December 14

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SOUTHERN MISS (1 - 6) at S ALABAMA (3 - 5) - 12/14/2015, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
S ALABAMA is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 3 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
S ALABAMA is 1-1 against the spread versus SOUTHERN MISS over the last 3 seasons
SOUTHERN MISS is 2-0 straight up against S ALABAMA over the last 3 seasons

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CAL POLY-SLO (5 - 3) at ST MARYS-CA (6 - 1) - 12/14/2015, 10:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CAL POLY-SLO is 6-18 ATS (-13.8 Units) in a road game where the total is 135 to 139.5 since 1997.
ST MARYS-CA is 21-10 ATS (+10.0 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
ST MARYS-CA is 21-10 ATS (+10.0 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
ST MARYS-CA is 18-7 ATS (+10.3 Units) as a favorite over the last 2 seasons.
ST MARYS-CA is 60-38 ATS (+18.2 Units) in home games in non-conference games since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
ST MARYS-CA is 1-0 against the spread versus CAL POLY-SLO over the last 3 seasons
ST MARYS-CA is 1-0 straight up against CAL POLY-SLO over the last 3 seasons

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E WASHINGTON (5 - 5) at W CAROLINA (3 - 6) - 12/14/2015, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
E WASHINGTON is 12-27 ATS (-17.7 Units) as a road underdog of 3.5 to 6 points since 1997.
E WASHINGTON is 31-55 ATS (-29.5 Units) in December games since 1997.
W CAROLINA is 0-7 ATS (-7.7 Units) after allowing 80 points or more over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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NCAAB
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, December 14

Southern Mississippi beat South Alabama last two years by 7-9 points; Golden Eagles are 1-5 vs D-I teams this year, turning ball over 24.2% of time, shooting 37.7% inside arc- they're 0-3 on road, losing by 18-15-10. USM's bench is playing 7th-most minutes in country. USA is also 1-5 vs D-I teams, with two other wins; they're shooting 28% from the arc, and teams shooting 56.4% inside arc against them.

St Mary's lost its first game Saturday; they're 5-0 at home vs D-I teams, but #95 Cal Poly is best team they've hosted this year. Gaels are making 47.6% (#3) on arc, have #2 eFG%- they made 15-29 from arc in an 82-56 win over Cal Poly LY. Mustangs haven't played in nine days; they're 0-2 in true road games, losing at UNLV/UCLA by combined seven points.

Eastern Washington allowed 90 ppg in losing first two legs of trip east by 10-33 points at Davidson/Pitt; Eagles are already playing fourth game east of Mississippi River this year- their eFG% defense is #339. Western Carolina is 1-6 vs D-I teams after losing by 33 to Davidson Saturday- they turn ball over 21% of time (#296), are shooting 41.7% inside the arc (#296). Big Sky road underdogs are 14-18 vs spread.

NCAAB

Monday, December 14

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Trend Report
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2:00 PM
ROBERT MORRIS vs. COLUMBIA
No trends available
Columbia is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home
Columbia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games

7:00 PM
EASTERN WASHINGTON vs. WESTERN CAROLINA
Eastern Washington is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Western Carolina is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Western Carolina is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games

7:00 PM
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL vs. MARSHALL
No trends available
Marshall is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games at home
Marshall is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games

7:00 PM
COASTAL CAROLINA vs. WOFFORD
No trends available
Wofford is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Wofford is 18-7 SU in its last 25 games

7:00 PM
TENNESSEE STATE vs. STETSON
Tennessee State is 2-19 SU in its last 21 games on the road
No trends available

7:00 PM
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL vs. NORTH FLORIDA
Florida International is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games on the road
No trends available

7:00 PM
ST. FRANCIS NY vs. MANHATTAN
No trends available
Manhattan is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games
Manhattan is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home

8:00 PM
NICHOLLS STATE vs. NORTH TEXAS
No trends available
North Texas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of North Texas's last 5 games

8:00 PM
PRAIRIE VIEW A&M vs. TULANE
No trends available
Tulane is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
Tulane is 4-11 SU in its last 15 games at home

8:05 PM
SOUTHERN MISS vs. SOUTH ALABAMA
Southern Miss is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing on the road against South Alabama
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Southern Miss's last 5 games when playing on the road against South Alabama
South Alabama is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
South Alabama is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games

9:00 PM
ST. MARTIN'S vs. GONZAGA
No trends available
Gonzaga is 0-4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Gonzaga is 20-5 SU in its last 25 games

10:00 PM
DARTMOUTH vs. CS BAKERSFIELD
Dartmouth is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
CS Bakersfield is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

10:00 PM
CAL POLY vs. ST. MARY'S
Cal Poly is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games on the road
Cal Poly is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against St. Mary's
St. Mary's is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Cal Poly
St. Mary's is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Cal Poly

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**Udog** · 12-14-2015, 02:10 PM

Oddsmakers high on this big fave with their NFL Week 15 betting odds

“Steel prices are way down, but Steeler stock is at a season high." - John Avello, executive director of race and sports for Wynn Las Vegas.

Week 15 of the NFL season includes an intriguing game that pits an unbeaten playoff lock against a team that doesn’t even have a winning record – yet is totally in the playoff hunt.

That game would be the Carolina Panthers (13-0 SU, 10-3 ATS) traveling to East Rutherford, N.J., for a date with the New York Giants (5-7 SU, 6-5 ATS) of the NFC East, which doesn’t have a single team at .500 or better, but will send somebody to the postseason.

Carolina kept rolling in Week 14, shelling Atlanta 38-0 Sunday as an 8.5-point home favorite. Cam Newton and the Panthers have scored 33 points or more in five of their last six games and have gone 5-1 ATS in that stretch, with four blowout wins.

New York still has some work to do in Week 14, playing at Miami in the Monday nighter. The Giants have dropped three in a row, including a 23-20 overtime decision to the New York Jets in Week 13 as a 2.5-point pup, despite leading 20-10 in the fourth quarter.

John Lester, senior lines manager for Bookmaker.eu, said the line will have to wait until the Giants wrap up play tonight. But the Panthers will likely be a field-goal or so chalk.

“If the Giants don’t sustain any major injuries Monday night, we’ll look to open Carolina between three and 4-point favorites,” Lester said. “The Panthers are absolutely rolling, but this is a game some circled as a potential first loss for them. I think we know what to expect from Carolina, but you just never know which Giants team is going to show up.”

Johnny Avello, executive director of race and sports for Wynn Las Vegas, also expects a game Giants team to show up.

“The Panthers will be the favorite in their remaining three games as they try to complete an undefeated regular season,” Avello said. “This one may be the toughest, because the Giants will still be in the hunt to win the NFC East, and at times, the G-Men play up to their potential. The Panthers should be laying right around four in a packed house at New Jersey.”

Denver Broncos at Pittsburgh Steelers (-6.5)

Pittsburgh is pushing for a wild card berth, having won four of its last five, including a statement road win Sunday at Cincinnati. The Steelers (8-5 SU, 8-4-1 ATS), catching one point, rolled to a 33-20 victory and have now scored 30 or more in each of their last five games.

Denver, meanwhile, isn’t scoring much at all, save for its 30-point outburst in an overtime win against New England - the only time in the last five weeks that the Broncos (10-3 SU, 7-6 ATS) scored more than 17 points. It bit them hard Sunday, when they entered a home game against Oakland as the AFC’s No. 1 seed and left as the No. 3 seed, getting just four field goals in a 15-12 loss as 6-point chalk.

“Steel prices are way down, but Steeler stock is at a season high,” Avello said. “I believe we'll see Peyton Manning this week for the Broncos, but he better be the old Manning, because Big Ben's Steelers are averaging 35 points per game over the past five games.”

The Pittsburgh offense against the Denver defense appeals to Lester.

“I’m really looking forward to this matchup between one of the best offenses in the league and one of the best defenses,” Lester said. “Of course, with the Broncos missing Peyton Manning, the Steelers are the sexier team, and bettors take notice of high-scoring offenses. We went fairly high with this number, and we moved down a full point shortly after opening, but I can see us trending back toward Pittsburgh as the week progresses.”

New York Jets (-2.5) at Dallas Cowboys

The Jets are 8-5 SU and right in the thick of the playoff race. The Cowboys are 4-9 SU… and right in the thick of the playoff race. That’s how bad the NFC East is. Dallas (4-9 ATS) got thumped Sunday 28-7 catching six points at Green Bay, dropping to 2-9 SU in its last 11 (3-8 ATS), mostly without the services of QB Tony Romo.

New York (7-5-1 ATS) has bounced back from a 1-4 SU skid (0-4-1 ATS) with three straight wins and covers, and would be a wild card team if the season ended this week. The Jets pounded Tennessee 30-8 Sunday as 8-point home faves.

“It’s our first Saturday night game of the year, and with a pair of high-profile teams, we’ll see some good action,” Lester said. “The early money came in on New York, so we moved to the key number of three. I wouldn’t be surprised to see that spread climb with steam, but there will certainly be Cowboys backers who come out at the end of the week.”

Added Avello, “It's rare that you'll find the Jets favored at Dallas, but that's the case here. The offensively inept Cowboys are disappointing to the faithful, and the one hope they have, Dez Bryant, isn't performing well.”

Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts (N/A)

The AFC South is working hard to rival the NFC East as the worst division in the league. No teams have a winning record, with Indianapolis suffering a surprising nosedive after reaching the AFC title game last year.

The Colts (6-7 SU and ATS), still without Andrew Luck, got boatraced by lightweight Jacksonville 51-16 Sunday as a 1-point road underdog. Indianapolis gave up 42 second-half points after leading 13-9 at the break.

That gave Houston (6-7 SU and ATS) an opportunity to make a statement at home against the New England Patriots in the Sunday night game. And the statement the Texans made was that they can’t score touchdowns, as they lost 27-6 getting 4.5 points.

Colts QB Matt Hasselbeck was hurt during the loss, and Luck’s status is still not certain either, so Lester is holding off on the number.

“We’ll wait to see what Indy’s quarterback situation looks like before hanging a line for this matchup,” he said. “There’s a chance Andrew Luck could return, and if not, Matt Hasselbeck is a wounded duck, so his health is a concern. The division is wide open, so it’s a pivotal game for both.”

Avello is expecting Luck to be in the lineup.

“It’s a huge game in the AFC South, and Andrew Luck is supposed to return,” he said. “It couldn't come soon enough, as the Colts have lost two straight, fill-in Hasselbeck was dinged up Sunday, and the one-time huge favorite in the division is on the verge of not making the playoffs.”

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Monday's NCAAB Trends and Indexes - 12/14

Monday's NCAAB Trends and Indexes - 12/14

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