Announcement

**Udog** · 04-27-2016, 08:20 AM

Armadillo: Wednesday's six-pack

-- Toronto 102, Indiana 99-- Pacers led by 15 in the fourth quarter.

-- Atlanta 110, Boston 83-- Home side won all five series games.

-- New Mexico State promoted from within, tabbed Paul Weir as its head coach to replace Marvin Menzies. Weir has a recruiting connection in Canada.

-- That leaves Delaware, Northern Colorado as the only D-I head coaching jobs that have yet to be filled for next season.

-- Delaware's Kory Holden transferred to South Carolina- good player.

-- Pirates 9, Rockies 4-- Andrew McCutchen hit three homers for the Bucs.

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Armadillo: Wednesday's List of 13: Mid-week musings.......

13) MSNBC's Hallie Jackson was in the gym where Hoosiers was filmed last night for a political rally, but admitted on air that she has never seen the iconic basketball movie. Ms Jackson will be 32 on Friday, two years before Hoosiers was made; she went to college at Johns Hopkins, an elite college, but so did Andy Enfield, the basketball coach at USC.

I've never seen Star Wars or The Godfather; I can't say anything.

12) Uh-oh. Prince didn't have a will or a trust, so his sister, six half-siblings are in line to divide his estate, estimated at $300M, which doesn't include the stash of hundreds of unpublished songs, which figure to be worth another small fortune. Hopefully they can divide everything up peacefully.

11) Over/under given by a doctor Tuesday on recovery time for Chris Paul's hand injury: four weeks. If Paul misses four weeks, his next game for the Clippers will be in October- they're not going far without him.

10) I like Steve Kerr, I'm a big fan of his, but how in God's name does a coach who missed 43 of 82 regular season games win Coach of the Year? No player who missed 43 games would ever win MVP-- it makes very little sense.

9) Dick Vermeil is only coach in NFL history who worked for three different teams, but was never fired by any of them.

8) Obscure trivia: Christian Yelich is an OF for the Miami Marlins; his great-grandfather is the guy who designed the LA Rams' football helmets back in the 40's, the first helmets with the team's logo on them.

7) Chicago White Sox are 6-0 in games where the winning run scored in the 7th inning or later; Toronto is 1-7 in such games.

6) Padres are only major league team that doesn't have a bobblehead giveaway night this year; they didn't have one LY, either.

5) Was surprised to hear that New Hampshire has produced 51 major league baseball players and four major league managers.

4) Kelly Ripa makes $26M a year? Seriously? And she blows off three days of work because no one told her a co-worker got another job? As a friend of mine likes to say and I'll clean it up here, "Grow the (bleep) up!!!"

3) What would happen if Bernie Sanders ran as a third party candidate in the Presidential election? Who would that help? Could he win?

2) These politicians must be tired; Bernie Sanders is 74, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are both pushing 70, but they've all been bouncing around the country like rock stars. Has to be exhausting.

1) Tonight Nashville-Anaheim play a Game 7 in NHL playoffs. Nashville has never had a Game 7 in its franchise history; Ducks lost their last four Game 7's, are 2-5 in Game 7's in their franchise history.

**Udog** · 04-27-2016, 08:24 AM

NBA
Long Sheet

Wednesday, April 27

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CHARLOTTE (50 - 36) at MIAMI (50 - 36) - 4/27/2016, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MIAMI is 31-22 ATS (+6.8 Units) as a favorite this season.
MIAMI is 13-5 ATS (+7.5 Units) in home games second half of the season this season.
MIAMI is 24-15 ATS (+7.5 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season this season.
MIAMI is 22-11 ATS (+9.9 Units) in home games versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
MIAMI is 13-4 ATS (+8.6 Units) in home games versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season this season.
CHARLOTTE is 39-24 ATS (+12.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season over the last 3 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
MIAMI is 12-8 against the spread versus CHARLOTTE over the last 3 seasons
MIAMI is 14-6 straight up against CHARLOTTE over the last 3 seasons
12 of 20 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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PORTLAND (46 - 40) at LA CLIPPERS (55 - 31) - 4/27/2016, 10:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
LA CLIPPERS are 20-10 ATS (+9.0 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent this season.
PORTLAND is 12-4 ATS (+7.6 Units) off an upset win as an underdog this season.
LA CLIPPERS are 84-117 ATS (-44.7 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders since 1996.
LA CLIPPERS are 211-262 ATS (-77.2 Units) after a loss by 10 points or more since 1996.
LA CLIPPERS are 192-252 ATS (-85.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
PORTLAND is 8-7 against the spread versus LA CLIPPERS over the last 3 seasons
LA CLIPPERS is 9-6 straight up against PORTLAND over the last 3 seasons
9 of 15 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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HOUSTON (42 - 44) at GOLDEN STATE (76 - 10) - 4/27/2016, 10:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
HOUSTON is 38-48 ATS (-14.8 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 47-36 ATS (+7.4 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 61-47 ATS (+9.3 Units) when the total is greater than or equal to 210 over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 44-35 ATS (+5.5 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 54-38 ATS (+12.2 Units) in home games over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 119-88 ATS (+22.2 Units) in April games since 1996.
GOLDEN STATE is 26-12 ATS (+12.8 Units) when playing with 2 days rest over the last 3 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 16-6 ATS (+9.4 Units) against Southwest division opponents this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 20-7 ATS (+12.3 Units) in the first round of the playoffs since 1996.
GOLDEN STATE is 57-40 ATS (+13.0 Units) after a win by 10 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 36-24 ATS (+9.6 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 62-43 ATS (+14.7 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
HOUSTON is 19-7 ATS (+11.3 Units) when playing with 2 days rest over the last 2 seasons.
HOUSTON is 128-90 ATS (+29.0 Units) in road games after allowing 105 points or more since 1996.
HOUSTON is 39-25 ATS (+11.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 11-23 ATS (-14.3 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
GOLDEN STATE is 12-7 against the spread versus HOUSTON over the last 3 seasons
GOLDEN STATE is 15-4 straight up against HOUSTON over the last 3 seasons
12 of 19 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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NBA
Short Sheet

Wednesday, April 27

Charlotte at Miami, 8:05 ET
Charlotte: 0-9 ATS off 2 consecutive wins against division rivals
Miami: 9-1 ATS in home games after a loss by 6 points or less

Portland at LA CLippers, 10:05 ET
Portland: 6-1 ATS off an upset win as a home underdog
Los Angeles: 1-6 ATS off an upset loss as a road favorite

Houston at Golden State, 10:35 ET
Houston: 16-26 ATS after playing a home game
Golden State: 21-11 ATS off a road win

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Wednesday, April 27

Charlotte-Miami (2-2)
Home side won all four series games; Walker/Lin combined for 55 points in Game 4 win- no other Hornet had more than 11. Hornets lost five of last nine games with Miami (over 6-2 in last eight). Hornets lost four of last five visits here; Heat scored 115-123 in Games 1-2 here, then 80-85 in Charlotte. Hornets won five of their last eight games (over 7-2); they lost four of their last six road games. Miami won its last five home tilts, all by 8+ points- their last three home games all went over.

Portland-LA Clippers (2-2)
Clippers are without Paul/Griffin for duration of this series; Portland is 0-4 in last four games played here, with three losses by 15+, but missing Paul is huge for LA- Game 4 was Monday, so Rivers had only had a day to retool offense, with less dynamic PG Prigioni getting more minutes. Home side won all four series games; last five games in series stayed under total. Trailblazers won nine of their last 13 games overall; eight of their last ten games stayed under the total.

Houston-Golden State (G 3-1)
Curry is out for series, but Warriors outscored Houston 41-20 in decisive third quarter Sunday, without Curry. Golden State won 12 of last 14 games (9-5 vs the spread) against Houston, covering three of last four played here (non-cover was by half-point). Last game, Iguodala scored 22 points in 24:00 to pick up slack created by Curry's injury. Not big fan of Houston's chemistry; they went in tank last game, they have interim coach- they're 1-3 vs spread in last four road games. .

Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 21-14, Over: 11-24

NBA

Wednesday, April 27

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Trend Report
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8:00 PM
CHARLOTTE vs. MIAMI
Charlotte is 6-19 SU in its last 25 games when playing Miami
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Charlotte's last 5 games on the road
Miami is 19-6 SU in its last 25 games when playing Charlotte
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Miami's last 6 games

10:00 PM
PORTLAND vs. LA CLIPPERS
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Portland's last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Portland's last 12 games on the road
LA Clippers are 10-1 SU in their last 11 games when playing at home against Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of the LA Clippers last 5 games when playing at home against Portland

10:30 PM
HOUSTON vs. GOLDEN STATE
Houston is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Houston's last 12 games when playing Golden State
Golden State is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Golden State's last 12 games when playing Houston

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**Udog** · 04-27-2016, 09:35 AM

NBA
Dunkel

Wednesday, April 27

Charlotte @ Miami

Game 575-576
April 27, 2016 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Charlotte
116.723
Miami
124.816
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Miami
by 8
190
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Miami
by 5 1/2
193
Dunkel Pick:
Miami
(-5 1/2); Under

Portland @ LA Clippers

Game 577-578
April 27, 2016 @ 10:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Portland
126.082
LA Clippers
120.513
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Portland
by 5 1/2
191
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Portland
by 2 1/2
197 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Portland
(-2 1/2); Under

Houston @ Golden State

Game 579-580
April 27, 2016 @ 10:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Houston
120.227
Golden State
126.915
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Golden State
by 6 1/2
216
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Golden State
by 9 1/2
211
Dunkel Pick:
Houston
(+9 1/2); Over

**Udog** · 04-27-2016, 10:22 AM

NBA

Wednesday, April 27

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Wednesday's NBA playoffs betting preview and odds
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The Clippers are in big trouble against the Blazers without Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.

The San Antonio Spurs will be sitting comfortably at home watching as their damaged Western Conference rivals go to work in the trenches for Game 5. No Steph Curry, no Chris Paul and no Blake Griffin - it's going to be interesting to see how the Warriors and Clippers react on the court.

Charlotte Hornets at Miami Heat (-6, 193)

Series ties 2-2

The Heat have been two different teams in the playoffs depending on the venue and will hope for a return to form on offense when the series shifts back to Miami for Game 5 on Wednesday. The sixth-seeded Charlotte Hornets took Games 3 and 4 at home to even the series and hope the defensive improvements the team made can carry over to Game 5.

The Heat set a franchise postseason scoring record with 123 points in Game 1 and put up 72 in the first half of a 115-103 Game 2 win before failing to crack 90 points in either of the two road games. “The biggest thing I’d change is nothing,” Miami center Hassan Whiteside, who was careful not to directly criticize the referees, told reporters. “We just missed some shots. They’ve got to come to South Beach, and we’ve been playing well all year at home.” The Hornets attacked the Heat defense through the paint with guards Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lin in the 89-85 Game 4 win, and the two combined for 55 points. Walker scored 11 straight Charlotte points in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter to help his team pull away.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT, FSN Sun (Miami)

LINE HISTORY: The Heat opened as 5.5-point favorites for this pivotal Game 5 matchup against the Hornets and the line has moved up slightly to -6. The total opened at 193 and also has not moved. Check out the complete line history here.

ABOUT THE HORNETS (50-36, 44-41-1 ATS, 42-42-2 O/U): Walker slumped to 17 points on 4-of-19 shooting in Game 3 but found his groove again in Game 4, especially late. “Time and time again in these situations, my team, coaching staff, everybody tells me it’s time to win.” Walker told reporters. “Coach put me in position to make plays. I just want to be as aggressive as possible. I was able to get my shot off, and I just wanted to be confident.” Lin added the highlight of the game when he banked in a 3-pointer and shrugged on the way down the court.

ABOUT THE HEAT (50-36, 45-40-1 ATS, 36-49-1 O/U): Miami was whistled for 26 personal fouls in Game 4, with starting guards Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic combining for nine. “We’ve had some key guys in foul trouble,” Heat guard Joe Johnson, who did not commit a foul, told reporters. “For the most part, we were just trying to hold the fort until we can get those guys back out there. But it’s tough. We just kept fouling and kept putting them on the line. We have to make the game easier. The game has been so tough for us, especially in Charlotte. We have to make an adjustment.” Wade averaged 22 points on 19-of-38 in the first two games at home before slumping to 14.5 on 11-of-31 in Charlotte.

TRENDS:

* Hornets are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600.
* Heat are 7-0 ATS in their last 7 home games vs. a team with a losing road record.
* Over is 5-0 in Hornets last 5 road games.
* Home team is 4-0 ATS in the last 4 meetings.

Portland Trail Blazers at Los Angeles Clippers (+3, 197.5)

Series ties 2-2

The Los Angeles Clippers looked like things were finally breaking their way on the injury front, and then Chris Paul reached in for a steal. The fourth-seeded Clippers will be without their All-Star point guard and All-Star forward Blake Griffin when they host the fifth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

The MCL sprain suffered by Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry on Sunday seemed to make the path to the Western Conference finals much easier for Los Angeles, but the path out of the first round got much tougher the next night. Paul reached in for a steal in the lane in the third quarter on Monday and suffered a broken third metacarpal on his right hand which required surgery on Tuesday that will keep him out for the rest of the playoff. Griffin, who missed over three months in the regular season with his own broken hand and a quad injury, re-aggravated the quad in Monday’s Game 4 loss and will also sit out the rest of the way. The Trail Blazers took advantage of Paul’s absence in Game 4 and outscored the Clippers 32-20 in the fourth quarter, marking the second straight game they pulled away late.

TV: 10 p.m. ET, NBATV, KGW (Portland)

LINE HISTORY: The Clippers opened as two-point favorites and the Blake Griffin injury news flipped the line on Tuesday afternoon. Overnight on Tuesday the line continued The total hit the board at 198.5 and came down a full point to 197.5 with no Griffin. Check out the complete line history here.

ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (46-40, 46-40 ATS, 44-42 O/U): Damian Lillard struggled from the floor in three of the four games in the series, including a 4-of-15 effort in Game 4, but Portland is picking up its star with big efforts from players like Al-Farouq Aminu and Mason Plumlee. Aminu scored a career-high 30 points on 11-of-20 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds, three blocks and three assists in Monday’s triumph after going 11-of-37 in the first three games. “It was just a matter of time,” Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts told reporters. “Obviously (Aminu) struggled shooting the ball the first three games, but that didn’t take away from what he was giving us defensively. It was good to see him break out. Everybody has been encouraging him and he’s put in the time and, like I said, it was just a matter of time before he had a game like that.”

ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (55-31, 42-41-3 ATS, 34-52 O/U): Los Angeles is focusing on the near future and trying to figure out a way to win two more games in this series. "We don't have to be the best team,” coach Doc Rivers told reporters. “We just have to be the best team (Wednesday). And then we have to figure out how to do it one more time." Paul averaged 26.3 points in the first three games of the series and had 16 before going down in Game 4 while Griffin, who aggravated the quad sometime in the second half on Monday and tried to play through the injury until the middle of the fourth quarter, averaged 15 points and 8.8 rebounds.

TRENDS:

* Trail Blazers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
* Clippers are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 home games.
* Under is 5-0 in Trail Blazers last 5 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Under is 6-1 in Clippers last 7 games following a ATS loss.
* Under is 5-0 in the last 5 meetings in Los Angeles.

Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors (-9.5, 211.5)

Warriors lead series 3-1

The news wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but the Golden State Warriors will still be without MVP Stephen Curry when they attempt to close out the Houston Rockets at home in Game 5 on Wednesday. Curry left Sunday’s Game 4 after slipping on the floor at the end of the half and was diagnosed with a sprained MCL in his right knee.

Curry will sit for two weeks before being reevaluated, putting his availability for the next round in jeopardy should the Warriors, as expected, close out the eighth-seeded Rockets. The star guard was defending on the final play of the first half on Sunday when he slipped on a wet spot and had his right knee bend awkwardly on his way to the ground. "We said two weeks, but that's no guarantee that it will be in two weeks, might be after two weeks, might be before," Golden State general manager Bob Myers told reporters after an MRI exam on Monday. "But I think it will be somewhere in that range, hopefully." Houston had a chance to even the series with Curry limping around the locker room on Sunday at home and instead were outscored 65-38 in the second half of a 121-94 loss.

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT, ROOT Southwest (Houston), CSN Bay Area (Golden State)

LINE HISTORY: The Warriors opened as 9.5-point favorites and, although the line wobbled a bit down to -9, it currently sits at the same number that it hit began. The total opened at 214 and dropped consistantly down to 211.5. Check out the complete line history here.

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (42-44, 38-48 ATS, 48-38 O/U): The difference in effort between the teams was noticeable in the second half on Sunday, and Houston interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff was not afraid to call out his players after the game. “When the moment calls for us to raise our intensity levels, we dropped our guard,” Bickerstaff told reporters. “You could see the difference in the way that (the Warriors) played in that third quarter and how they scrapped and how they got every loose ball. You could see the intent in their guys’ eyes.” The Rockets allowed 41 points in the third quarter and now need a miraculous comeback for the second straight postseason – they overcame a 3-1 deficit to the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round last spring before falling to Golden State in the conference finals.

ABOUT THE WARRIORS (76-10, 48-36-2 ATS, 46-39-1 O/U): Golden State is already 1-1 in the series while playing without Curry, who sat out Games 2 and 3 with a sprained right ankle. The Warriors tend to lean on Curry’s epic scoring binges when the offense stalls, but All-Stars Draymond Green and Klay Thompson both stepped up in the second half on Sunday and are ready to carry more of the load. “It was the way we were moving the ball and trusting each other on both sides of the ball,” Thompson told reporters of the 41-point third quarter. “That’s what we’ve got to do to beat this team. We knew, as soon as Steph went down, we were going to have to do it by ourselves.”

TRENDS:

* Rockets are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game.
* Warriors are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games.
* Over is 8-1 in Rockets last 9 games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points.
* Over is 5-1 in Warriors last 6 home games.
* Rockets are 2-6 ATS in the last 8 meetings.

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Announcement

Wednesday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 4/27

Wednesday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 4/27

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