The Bum's 2017 WNBA Picks-Trends-News !

[StarDust Bum]

WNBA July Record:

Date.................... W-L-T................... % ...................Units Record

07/02/2017........... 2-2-0............... 50.00% ......................-1.00
07/01/2017........... 0-4-0................. 0.00%.................... -22.00

[StarDust Bum]

Monday’s List of 13: Wrapping up a sports weekend…….

13) Colorado Rockies lost eight games in a row recently and the bandwagon was quickly emptying. Baseball season is very long, though; here is what I mean…….

2012 Giants went 2-7 from June 29-July 8; they won the World Series
2013 Cardinals went 0-7 from July 26-31; they lost the World Series.
2014 Giants went 2-9 from June 23-July 4; they won the World Series.
2015 Mets went 0-7 from June 17-24; they lost the World Series.
2016 Cubs went 1-9 from June 30-July 9; they won the World Series.

Every team hits a rough patch during the season, even the really good ones.

12) Major league teams are 76-228 this season when they score two runs in a game; Cardinals are 7-2 at home when they score two runs.

11) Miami Marlins said Brewers’ PH Jonathan Villar had too much pine tar on his bat, so when Marcell Ozuna batted for the Marlins, Milwaukee returned the favor and had two of his bats taken out of play for the same reason. Ozuna then used one of Giancarlo Stanton’s bats and hit a homer to give the Marlins a 7-3 lead. Weird gamesmanship.

10) Odd Fact of the Day: In the last 40 years, only twice has a team broken a losing streak of 8+ games on its manager’s birthday. Both times, in 2008 and 2017, the manager was Bud Black.

9) Brewers’ pitcher Zach Davies got 30 called strikes from plate umpire Joe West Saturday, which is really unusual; only third time this season a pitcher got 30 called strikes in one game. Dallas Keuchel, Alex Cobb were the other two pitchers.

8) Odd to see the Michigan Wolverines’ football team ranked #127 out of 130 I-A team in terms of experience this season- they only have one starter back on defense.

7) Random All-Star Game fact: Rosters have been reduced from 34 to 32 players this year and every team has be represented.

6) Alex Rodriguez hit six home runs on his birthday, more than any major leaguer hit on their birthday.

5) Chris Paul talked free agent PJ Tucker into choosing Houston over Toronto; he took $32M for four years from the Rockets, turned down $33M for three years from Toronto.

You do the math. Tucker must like hanging around with Chris Paul..

4) Padres called up reliever Kevin Quackenbush from AAA Sunday, the 5th time they’ve called him up this season. Unfortunately, he’s also been sent out five times.

3) Mets-Nationals have an 11am game on the 4th of July (Tuesday). Lot of stuff going on in the nation’s capital, so they play the game earlier in the day.

2) NBA happenings:
— Andre Iguodala gets three years, $48M to stay with the Warriors
— Kyle Korner gets three years, $22M to keep shooting jumpers in Cleveland.
— Jodie Meeks gets $7M for two years from Washington
— Taj Gibson gets two years, $28M from Minnesota
— Serge Ibaka gets three years, $65M to stay in Toronto; Kyle Lowry gets three years, $100M to stay with the Raptors.
— Denver Nuggets sign Paul Millsap; three years, $90M. Good day for the Millsaps.

1) If you watch Ray Donovan on Showtime, the new season starts August 6, and Susan Sarandon is joining the cast, which is excellent news.

[StarDust Bum]

Wednesday’s six-pack

Odds on various NFL teams to make the playoffs this fall:

— Buffalo Bills Yes +$550, No -$800

— Carolina Panthers Yes -$110, No -$110

— Chicago Bears Yes +$1,200, No -$3,000

— Green Bay Packers Yes -$310, No +$260

— Houston Texans Yes +$140, No -$160

— Indianapolis Colts Yes +$140, No -$160

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Wednesday’s List of 13: Happy 5th of July!!!!

13) Gordon Hayward signed with the Celtics, then wrote an article thanking Utah.

I get tired of players bolting teams, then writing an article thanking the previous city for everything. If you loved it so much, why don’t you stay? He gets four years, $128M from the Celtics, but he would’ve gotten that in Utah, too- he might’ve gotten more than that.

Maybe its because I’m an A’s fan and I’ve spent the last 42 years seeing our best players either leave via free agency or get traded (at a loss) before that happens. Losing isn’t fun.

But at least guys who bolt the A’s are leaving for huge raises. This isn’t about money. Jazz traded for Ricky Rubio to try and entice Hayward to stay in Utah. Now what? Their franchise is screwed.

12) Celtics’ title odds jump from 15-1 to 12-1 with Hayward aboard; Utah’s drop from 150-1 to 250-1. If you want to bet on the Jazz to win the NBA title, just go give the money to a homeless guy— at least that money will help someone.

11) Celtics beat the 76ers 89-88 in the first game of the Utah Summer League Monday night; Jayson Tatum finished with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 steals in 34 minutes, while Markelle Fultz put up 17 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 blocks for the Sixers.

Who wins these games don’t matter much; both players played well, which matters a lot.

10) Boston Globe newspaper publishes the entire Declaration of Independence every 4th of July.

9) Joey Chestnut won the Nathan’s hot dog eating contest by downing 72 hot dogs in 10:00 in Brooklyn Tuesday. I am told the average American eats 70 hot dogs a year.

8) Daniel Murphy has 34 RBI in 31 games against the Mets, who let him walk two years ago.

7) First-place Milwaukee Brewers are only 33-1 to win the World Series. Not a lot of faith there.

6) Midwestern trivia: Barbed wire was invented in DeKalb, Illinois.

5) Tigers’ star Miguel Cabrera left Tuesday’s game with left hip tightness, bad news for Detroit and Cabrera’s fantasy owners (I am not one).

4) Freddie Freeman was activated Tuesday and is now the Braves’ third baseman, so they can keep Matt Adams in the lineup at first base. He lined a single to center in his first at-bat back.

3) Why are phone solicitors calling me on July 4th, trying to sell me solar energy panels? It is a damn national holiday; go have some potato salad and leave me the bleep alone.

2) I understand the Marlins aren’t very good this year, but their entire pre-game show Tuesday was about the All-Star Game or Home Run Derby, which are a week from now. Enough.

The constant badgering to vote for Justin Bour in the Final 5 voting intrudes on the game.

1) Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few still hasn’t watched his team’s national title game with North Carolina from three months ago; John Calipari hasn’t watched the Memphis-Kansas national title game his Tigers lost at the very end. Apparently, successful people prefer to look ahead.

[StarDust Bum]

Betting Recap - 6/26-7/2
July 3, 2017

League Betting Notes (Monday, June 26 through Sunday, July 2)

-- Favorites went 9-3 straight up (SU)
-- Favorites went 9-3 against the spread (ATS)
-- Home/road teams posted a 6-6 SU record
-- Home/road teams posted a 6-6 ATS record
-- The 'over/under' went 6-6

Team Betting Notes

-- Atlanta (6-7) ended a three-game skid Sunday against New York (7-7), winning 81-72 at home despite entering as a 4 1/2-point underdog. It was a rare cover for the Dream, as they're still just 2-7 ATS over their past nine outings. The 'under' has now connected in three of the past four four Atlanta and 8-3 over the past 11 outings.

-- The Liberty have dropped a season-high three in a row following their road loss in the ATL. After an impressive 4-0 SU/ATS streak from June 2-11, the Liberty are 1-4 SU/ATS over the past five outings.

-- Chicago (3-12) has dropped three in a row, and they really have bottomed out. They provided San Antonio (1-14) with their first victory of the season. For the Sky, they're 0-3 SU/ATS while losing by an average of 16.0 points per game during the span.

-- The Stars have been inching closer to a win lately, before finally breaking through against Chicago. While the first win came Friday, they're an impressive 3-1 ATS over the past four outings.

-- Connecticut (8-7) had a very successful week, topping the Seattle (7-8) and Indiana (7-8) after a loss to Los Angeles (12-3). The Sun are now an impressive 9-2 ATS over their past 11, and 11-3 ATS over their past 14. The 'over' is also a frequent result for Connecticut lately, going 8-1 over their past nine outings.

-- Dallas (8-9) was tripped up at home Saturday by the visiting Storm, snapping a four-game winning streak. The 'under' connected, however, and is now 4-1 over the past four for the Wings.

-- The Fever have been solid, yet unspectacular so far this season. They haven't won or lost more than two games in a row at any point so far. The same goes for their work against the spread. Next up for Indiana is a date with Atlanta, a team they polished off 85-74 back on June 15.

-- The Sparks continue to roll right along. They took care of Washington (10-6) by a 76-69 score, narrowly covering a 6 1/2-point number on Sunday. L.A. has posted a season-high nine game winning streak and they're a perfect 4-0 ATS over the past four outings. Total bettors are also a fan of the Sparks, as the 'under' is now an impressive 5-1 over their past six outings.

-- Minnesota (12-1) picked up a 91-83 win in Phoenix (7-6) in another high-scoring affair. The 'over' has cashed in four in a row for the Lynx, and six of the past seven overall.

-- The Mercury have alternated wins and losses over the past eight outings. They're not having much luck against the number, however, going 1-4 ATS over the past five outings.

[StarDust Bum]

Wednesday’s six-pack

Odds on various NFL teams to make the playoffs this fall:

— Buffalo Bills Yes +$550, No -$800

— Carolina Panthers Yes -$110, No -$110

— Chicago Bears Yes +$1,200, No -$3,000

— Green Bay Packers Yes -$310, No +$260

— Houston Texans Yes +$140, No -$160

— Indianapolis Colts Yes +$140, No -$160

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Wednesday’s List of 13: Happy 5th of July!!!!

13) Gordon Hayward signed with the Celtics, then wrote an article thanking Utah.

I get tired of players bolting teams, then writing an article thanking the previous city for everything. If you loved it so much, why don’t you stay? He gets four years, $128M from the Celtics, but he would’ve gotten that in Utah, too- he might’ve gotten more than that.

Maybe its because I’m an A’s fan and I’ve spent the last 42 years seeing our best players either leave via free agency or get traded (at a loss) before that happens. Losing isn’t fun.

But at least guys who bolt the A’s are leaving for huge raises. This isn’t about money. Jazz traded for Ricky Rubio to try and entice Hayward to stay in Utah. Now what? Their franchise is screwed.

12) Celtics’ title odds jump from 15-1 to 12-1 with Hayward aboard; Utah’s drop from 150-1 to 250-1. If you want to bet on the Jazz to win the NBA title, just go give the money to a homeless guy— at least that money will help someone.

11) Celtics beat the 76ers 89-88 in the first game of the Utah Summer League Monday night; Jayson Tatum finished with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 steals in 34 minutes, while Markelle Fultz put up 17 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 blocks for the Sixers.

Who wins these games don’t matter much; both players played well, which matters a lot.

10) Boston Globe newspaper publishes the entire Declaration of Independence every 4th of July.

9) Joey Chestnut won the Nathan’s hot dog eating contest by downing 72 hot dogs in 10:00 in Brooklyn Tuesday. I am told the average American eats 70 hot dogs a year.

8) Daniel Murphy has 34 RBI in 31 games against the Mets, who let him walk two years ago.

7) First-place Milwaukee Brewers are only 33-1 to win the World Series. Not a lot of faith there.

6) Midwestern trivia: Barbed wire was invented in DeKalb, Illinois.

5) Tigers’ star Miguel Cabrera left Tuesday’s game with left hip tightness, bad news for Detroit and Cabrera’s fantasy owners (I am not one).

4) Freddie Freeman was activated Tuesday and is now the Braves’ third baseman, so they can keep Matt Adams in the lineup at first base. He lined a single to center in his first at-bat back.

3) Why are phone solicitors calling me on July 4th, trying to sell me solar energy panels? It is a damn national holiday; go have some potato salad and leave me the bleep alone.

2) I understand the Marlins aren’t very good this year, but their entire pre-game show Tuesday was about the All-Star Game or Home Run Derby, which are a week from now. Enough.

The constant badgering to vote for Justin Bour in the Final 5 voting intrudes on the game.

1) Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few still hasn’t watched his team’s national title game with North Carolina from three months ago; John Calipari hasn’t watched the Memphis-Kansas national title game his Tigers lost at the very end. Apparently, successful people prefer to look ahead.

Added Note:

Quote of the Day

“There was nothing going on. I had a couple of beers. So I’m like, ‘I think I’m going to watch those games,. So I go to pull them up on the DVR and Marcy, my wife, has … deleted everything. My daughter has 47 episodes of a Disney show on there. One of my sons is totally addicted to Modern Family. So there are 57 Modern Family episodes on the DVR. And Seinfeld. The Voice. Everything. And I’m like, ‘You deleted my greatest professional achievement, after 30 years in the business, my greatest professional moment for 47 Disney episodes? What were you thinking?’ It was a total WTF moment.”
Gonzaga coach Mark Few, whose wife deleted the Zags’ NCAA tourney games on their DVR

[StarDust Bum]

WNBA
Long Sheet

Wednesday, July 5

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ATLANTA (6 - 7) at DALLAS (8 - 9) - 7/5/2017, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
ATLANTA is 3-11 ATS (-9.1 Units) in road games versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 7-18 ATS (-12.8 Units) against Eastern conference opponents over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 7-18 ATS (-12.8 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
DALLAS is 17-28 ATS (-13.8 Units) after allowing 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.

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

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CONNECTICUT (8 - 7) at SAN ANTONIO (1 - 14) - 7/5/2017, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN ANTONIO is 23-11 ATS (+10.9 Units) after allowing 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 13-5 ATS (+7.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) in all games this season.
CONNECTICUT is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in road games this season.
CONNECTICUT is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in a road game where where the total is greater than or equal to 150 this season.
CONNECTICUT is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in July games over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) in May, June, or July games this season.
CONNECTICUT is 8-0 ATS (+8.0 Units) on Wednesday over the last 3 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 18-7 ATS (+10.3 Units) against Western conference opponents over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 16-5 ATS (+10.5 Units) after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 18-7 ATS (+10.3 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 10-3 ATS (+6.7 Units) after allowing 75 points or more this season.
CONNECTICUT is 26-11 ATS (+13.9 Units) after scoring 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 16-6 ATS (+9.4 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 9-0 ATS (+9.0 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record after 15+ games after 15+ games over the last 2 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 22-10 ATS (+11.0 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 14-32 ATS (-21.2 Units) in home games off an upset win as an underdog since 1997.
SAN ANTONIO is 41-66 ATS (-31.6 Units) in home games after scoring 75 points or more since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
CONNECTICUT is 5-1 against the spread versus SAN ANTONIO over the last 3 seasons
CONNECTICUT is 6-0 straight up against SAN ANTONIO over the last 3 seasons
4 of 6 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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WASHINGTON (10 - 6) at PHOENIX (7 - 6) - 7/5/2017, 10:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WASHINGTON is 302-358 ATS (-91.8 Units) in all games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 57-81 ATS (-32.1 Units) when playing with 2 days rest since 1997.
PHOENIX is 36-52 ATS (-21.2 Units) in all games over the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 8-20 ATS (-14.0 Units) in home games in May, June, or July games over the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 1-7 ATS (-6.7 Units) after scoring 75 points or more this season.

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

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Dream (6-7) at Wings (8-9)
Date: July 05, 2017 8:00 PM EDT

Dallas hopes history does not repeat itself.

At 8-9, the Wings sport the same record as they did last season. But amid injuries and tough luck, they went on to lose 12 of 13 games to finish 11-23.

Atlanta, too, is hoping history doesn't repeat as the inconsistent Dream have posted two three-game losing streaks while stumbling to a 6-7 record this season.

On Wednesday, the two teams take their first steps trying to rewrite history when they collide at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.

There's plenty of optimism in Dallas despite suffering a 20-point loss to the Seattle Storm on Sunday. The Wings had won four straight to get to .500 before the loss.

The reason for that optimism falls on the shoulders of All-Star Skylar Diggins-Smith.

Last season, Diggins-Smith was dogged by ACL surgery. This season, she is healthy and is eighth in the WNBA in scoring at 17.2 points while fourth with 5.7 assists.

"As I've said many times in the past, as Skylar goes, the Wings go," Dallas president and general manager Greg Bibb told sportsday.dallasnews.com. "If you look at Skylar right now, she is clearly playing at an All-Star level. I would suggest she also deserves to be in the Most Valuable Player conversation based on her stats."

While Diggins-Smith is credited as the glue that holds her team together, Dream coach Michael Cooper sings the praises of his own point guard, Layshia Clarendon, who was instrumental in helping Atlanta snap a three-game skid against the New York Liberty on Sunday.

"There goes a saying; So goes your point guard, so goes your team. And Layshia hasn't played well the last three or four games and we struggled," Cooper told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "So, when she plays well, she has great command of the game, and she's running our offense the way it's supposed to be run.

"It's not about her always scoring, but when she does score, it helps our offense run a little more smoothly."

Clarendon said she was thinking too much and not letting the game come to her naturally during the Dream's losing streak

"I've been struggling the last couple games, started to overthink it a bit," Clarendon said. "You get in that rut of losing, so it was really just like, I need to get in attack mode and get back to what I know how to be."

Atlanta most likely will be in attack mode from the opening tip as Dallas allows a league-high 86.1 points per game.

The Wings' offense (84.1 points per game) will put pressure on the Dream's defense as four players, led by Diggins-Smith, score in double figures.


WNB HEAD TO HEAD

Jul 22, 2016 Score ATS Results
DAL 88 Over: 181
ATL « 93 Cover: 3
Tools: Recaps

Jul 8, 2016 Score ATS Results
DAL 90 Over: 185
ATL « 95 Cover: 2.5
Tools: Recaps

May 27, 2016 Score ATS Results
ATL « 102 Cover: 13.5
DAL 93 Over: 195
Tools: Recaps

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Sun (8-7) at Stars (1-14)
Date: July 05, 2017 8:00 PM EDT

Connecticut finally found its stride the last time it played the San Antonio Stars. Now it's up to the Sun to keep that momentum when the teams square off Wednesday at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.

The first 2 1/2 months of the 2017 campaign have identified three teams -- Minnesota, Los Angeles and Washington -- that are head and shoulders above the rest of the league, and two -- Chicago and San Antonio -- that are at the bottom of the pack.

The Sun (8-7) are fifth overall in the WNBA standings, in the midst of a seven-team pack that is at .500 or one game above or below. Connecticut's run of seven wins in nine games started when it last played and won at San Antonio on June 3.

Connecticut won its second straight when Jonquel Jones paced the Sun with 29 points and 15 rebounds in a 91-85 victory at Indiana on Saturday. Jasmine Thomas added 22 points, and Alyssa Thomas poured in 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds.

"It was a great game -- I think the two of us (Indiana and Connecticut) are going to be scratching and clawing on for the playoffs," Sun coach Curt Miller said. "I coached tonight like it was a playoff game. You know how, early in the season, how big this game could be."

The performances of Jones and the two Thomases have fueled Connecticut's turnaround from a team that lost five of its first six games to one that has lost twice since.

Jones leads Connecticut this season in scoring (16.1 points per game) and rebounding (WNBA-best 12.1). Her showing against Indiana was her fourth straight double-double and ninth of the season. It was her eighth straight game scoring in double figures.

Jasmine Thomas is second on the team in scoring (15.4) and in assists (5.1), while Alyssa Thomas ranks first in assists (5.1), second in rebounding (6.0) and third in scoring (13.9). Her 71 assists for the season already have surpassed her previous career high of 70, set in 2016.

The Stars (1-14) are still at the bottom of the WNBA standings, but at least they have a win -- an 89-82 verdict over Chicago on Friday.

San Antonio ended a 16-game losing streak that extended into the 2016 season. The Stars also stopped their home losing skid at 13 games, which set a dubious WNBA record.

Isabelle Harrison paced the Stars with 22 points and 10 rebounds against Chicago, while Moriah Jefferson had 13 points, Alex Montgomery added 12 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, Kayla McBride scored 11 and Dearica Hamby tallied 10 for San Antonio.

"It's great to get our first win, just for this young team to know that they can play this game," Stars coach Vickie Johnson said. "We have to play like this every game. They did an excellent job executing the game plan, sharing the ball. I'm so proud of them."

McBride leads San Antonio in scoring (15.3), is second in assists (2.2) and third in rebounding (4.5). Harrison is second on the Stars in scoring (11.3) and rebounding (5.6), while Jefferson leads the team in assists (4.7) and ranks third in scoring (11.2).

"There's a lot of pressure losing so many games in a row, so I think that first (win) is a big relief," said Jefferson, the former University of Connecticut star who rarely lost as a collegiate player. "Now, we just have to keep going up from here."


WNB HEAD TO HEAD

Jun 3, 2017 Score ATS Results
CONN « 85 Cover: 3
SA 77 Over: 162
Tools: Recaps

Aug 30, 2016 Score ATS Results
SA 62 Under: 151
CONN « 89 Cover: 20
Tools: Recaps

Jun 19, 2016 Score ATS Results
SA 90 Cover: 2.5
CONN « 93 Over: 183
Tools: Recaps

May 19, 2016 Score ATS Results
CONN « 72 Under: 140
SA 68 Cover: 0
Tools: Recaps

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Mystics (10-6) at Mercury (7-6)
Date: July 05, 2017 10:00 PM EDT

The Phoenix Mercury have alternated losses and wins for the past seven games and are due for a victory when they host the Washington Mystics on Wednesday night.

Getting that win won't be easy against Washington, which is third in the WNBA with a 10-6 record, 1 1/2 games ahead of the fourth-place Mercury (7-6). Phoenix leads a thick pack of teams in the middle of the league standings, with seven clubs separated by only one game.

"I think we're right there," Phoenix coach Sandy Brondello said. "I like the group we have. You can lose any game in this league. We're looking no further than Washington. They're one of the best teams, too. It's a good challenge for us. We know we're right there."

Phoenix is coming off a 91-83 home loss to WNBA-leading Minnesota, while Washington squandered a 17-point halftime lead in a 76-69 loss at the second-place Los Angeles Sparks in its most recent game.

That was the first game back for Washington 6-foot-4 forward Emma Meesseman, who missed 11 games while playing for Belgium at the 2017 FIBA EuroBasket Championships. She came off the bench Sunday, scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds in 19 minutes.

Meesseman averaged 15.2 points last season.

"The best part of this is we can get a lot better," Mystics coach Mike Thibault told the Washington Post before Meeseeman's return. "We've got a lot of upside, and that feels good."

The Mystics are led by forward Elena Delle Donne, who is averaging 19.6 points and 6.7 rebounds. Guard Tayler Hill is averaging 14.8 points but has made only 2 of 20 shots in the past two games.

Phoenix center Brittney Griner leads the WNBA in scoring at 21.8 points per game. She is coming off a season-low six points in a foul-plagued effort against Minnesota. Guard Diana Taurasi, the WNBA's career leader in points and 3-point field goals, is sixth in the league at 18.6 points per game.

The Mercury will be playing their second game with 6-6 post Angel Robinson (signed after the EuroBasket Championships) and wing Monique Currie, acquired in a trade with the San Antonio Stars.

Robinson had eight rebounds in 13 minutes against the Lynx; Currie scored four points in 15 minutes.

"Excited about the team we have now," Brondello said. "We've added some help. With rebounding, it gives us a bit more length. And Mo is another playmaker/shooter. We can go to the bench and we know they will maintain that high level. We see glimpses of a very good team."

Washington is 3-4 on the road; Phoenix is 3-4 at home.


WNB HEAD TO HEAD

Jul 13, 2016 Score ATS Results
WAS 74 Cover: 1
PHO « 78 Under: 152
Tools: Recaps

Jun 24, 2016 Score ATS Results
PHO « 91 Cover: 14.5
WAS 79 Over: 170
Tools: Recaps

May 29, 2016 Score ATS Results
WAS 77 Over: 170
PHO « 93 Cover: 8
Tools: Recaps

[StarDust Bum]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5

GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

CONN at SA 08:00 PM

SA +8.5

U 163.5

ATL at DAL 08:00 PM

DAL -4.5

O 164.5

WAS at PHO 10:00 PM

PHO +1.0

O 162.0

[StarDust Bum]

WNBA Capsules
July 5, 2017

PHOENIX (AP) Brittney Griner scored 30 points for her third 30-plus game of the season and the Phoenix Mercury beat the Washington Mystics 88-80 on Wednesday night.

Griner also had 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season.

Diana Taurasi made her second basket of the game with 5:26 left to extend Phoenix's lead to 74-67 and she hit a 3-pointer on the Mercury's next possession for a 10-point advantage. After Washington pulled to 83-78 on Ivory Latta's 3-point play, Taurasi hit another 3 with 39.4 seconds left to seal it.

Camille Little added 14 points, and Taurasi finished with 12 for Phoenix (8-6).

Little and Griner combined to score 23 of Phoenix's 44 first-half points as the Mercury built a five-point lead. Little's steal and fast-break basket gave Phoenix an 11-point lead early in the third quarter, and Griner beat the shot clock on a lob from Leilani Mitchell for a 72-65 lead.

Elena Delle Donne scored 15 points, and Latta added 13 for Washington (10-7).

SUN 89, STARTS 56

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Alyssa Thomas had 13 points, eight rebounds and a career-high seven steals to help Connecticut rout San Antonio.

Courtney Williams led the Sun (9-7) with 17 points and Jasmine Thomas reached 700 assists for her career.

Williams scored 13 points in the first half to help Connecticut build a 40-24 lead. Alyssa Thomas had seven points, six rebounds, five assists, and five steals before halftime.

Kayla McBride scored 12 points on 3-of-12 shooting for San Antonio (1-15). Kelsey Plum and Sydney Colson each added 11 points. Moriah Jefferson had a head injury in the first half and did not return.

The Stars shot just 34 percent, turned it over 18 times and were outrebounded 44-31.

WINGS 94, DREAM 84

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Skylar Diggins-Smith scored 21 points and had seven assists, Allisha Gray added 20 points, and the Wings beat the Dream.

Atlanta trailed by 10 points early in the fourth quarter but pulled to 86-82 with 1:28 left on Brittney Sykes' 3-pointer. Gray answered with Dallas' first four-point play of the season for an eight-point lead.

Glory Johnson had 13 points and seven rebounds, and Karima Christmas-Kelly added 11 points for Dallas (9-9). Courtney Paris played six minutes in her first action since injuring a knee on May 25 and scored four points. Coach Fred Williams returned after missing two games for health reasons.

Tiffany Hayes scored 16 points and Sykes added 15 for Atlanta (6-8). Jordan Hooper chipped in 13 points, and Damiris Dantas and Elizabeth Williams each had 10. Sancho Lyttle played just 11 minutes after injuring her nose.

[StarDust Bum]

Thursday’s six-pack

Odds on various NFL teams to make the playoffs this fall:

— Cincinnati Bengals Yes +$140, No -$160

— Cleveland Browns Yes +$2,000, No -$10,000

— Jacksonville Jaguars Yes +$400, No -$500

— Kansas City Chiefs Yes -$150, No +$130

— Los Angeles Chargers Yes +$270, No -$350

— Oakland Raiders Yes -$160, No +$140

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Thursday’s List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud……..

13) Lets see the analytics guys try to quantify this, because you can’t:

In Tuesday’s Milwaukee Brewer game, 3B Travis Shaw threw a ball to first base that wound up going into foul territory, and the runner advanced. Scorer ruled: E5, which ended a 52-game errorless streak for Shaw.

After the game, Brewers’ 1B Eric Thames called the official scorer and told him the error should be his; it was a good throw and he missed it. The error was changed to E3 and Shaw’s errorless streak extended to 53.

Not everyone would do that, but a selfless guy on an overachieving team did it, and there is no way you can quantify that and factor it into his WAR. Too bad, because it matters.

12) Cincinnati Reds’ OF Scott Schebler is a pretty good big leaguer; he is a .259 hitter in 180 major league games. Coming out of high school in Iowa, he had zero baseball scholarship offers, but he did have a couple to play football. Things have turned out pretty well for him.

11) 70 hot dogs (and buns) in 10 minutes. Oy.

I almost get nauseous just thinking about what it must feel like to eat 70 hot dogs in ten minutes. How long before you eat again? Do you just find a restroom and puke your guts out?

10) Orlando Magic waived big guy Stephen Zimmerman, who will be 21 in September and could be heading into his junior year at UNLV, had he gotten/taken intelligent advice. He wasn’t even a first round pick— he was the 41st player taken in the 2016 draft.

Instead, Zimmerman scored 23 points in 108 minutes of garbage time spread out over 19 NBA games, a classic case of a kid turning pro before he is ready. Now he’ll have to climb back to the NBA the hard way— it can still be done, but it ain’t gonna be easy.

He scored 13.4 pts/game in 21 D-League games last year. Now he is either headed back there or over to Europe, when he could still be in college and improving his game and getting a college education, in case this NBA thing never works out for him.

Zimmerman scored 10.5 pts/game for a sub-par UNLV squad in 2015-16; their coach got fired during the season, thats how cruddy the team played. But Zimmerman and his family were convinced he was an NBA star-in-waiting, so he bolted to the draft despite having a game that needed more maturity to be NBA-ready. He shot 62% from the line, both at UNLV and in the D-League last year- -shooting is one part of his game he needs to sharpen up.

9) Pretty cool to see Stan Van Gundy watching games at the Orlando Summer League while sitting next to his dad Bill, a coaching lifer who was a small college coach for years.

Flash back to November 1980, I’m a student manager at Albany- we’re in a tip-off tournament at Brockport State near Rochester, NY. Host Brockport plays Upsala in the first round; Brockport’s coach has a neck brace on from a car accident- Bill Van Gundy. Upsala is the #1 preseason team in the country, according to Sports Illustrated.

We sneak by RIT in the first game, Upsala beats Brockport, then we beat Upsala in the title game, beating the #1 team in the country. Basketball without a shot clock; our team ran its offense until Upsala got sick of defending it. It wasn’t pretty, but it damn sure worked.

Who knew that the guy with neck brace would wind up with two famous sons?

8) They had 15,664 fans in Albuquerque Tuesday night for baseball/fireworks, but the game lasted only 2:03, so the fans had to wait a while for the fireworks- the sun hadn’t set yet when the ballgame ended.

7) I’ve never understood why people like fireworks; seriously. They have a free fireworks show in downtown Albany every July 4, and it draws 50,000 people. I know its free, but I just don’t see what the big deal is. Thats what makes the world interesting; different people like different stuff.

6) RIP Gene Conley 86, who played on a World Series champ with the Milwaukee Braves and three NBA championship teams with the Celtics. Not many humans pitched to Willie Mays and also guarded Wilt Chamberlain. RIP, sir.

5) NBA doings:
— You may have heard; Boston gave Gordon Hayward $128M for four years.
— Golden State signed Omar Casspi for one year, $2.1M
— Sacramento signed Zach Randolph for two years, $24M
— Sacramento signed George Hill for three years, $57M.
— Mike Scott gets one year, $1.17M from Washington
— Clippers acquired Danilo Gallinari and gave him three years, $65M.
— Nick Young somehow gets $5.2M for one year from the Warriors.
— Andre Roberson gets $30M for three years from Oklahoma City.

4) Celtics have to trade at least one of these three players: Marcus Smart, Jae Crowder and Avery Bradley, to clear cap room for Hayward. Crowder might be the most marketable of the three, because his contract is very team-friendly.

3) Handicapping baseball is difficult; Cincinnati’s Homer Bailey allowed 14 runs in 4.2 IP in his first two starts this year- with start #3 at Coors Field, it didn’t look good for Bailey breaking his cold spell, but he did. Colorado won 8-1; Bailey put only eight men on base on six innings.

Go figure.

2) Former Louisville guard Russ Smith scored 61 pts/game in his first five games in a Chinese pro league- he had 81 in one game. Smith also owns the G-League scoring record: 65 points.

He has played in 27 NBA games for the Pelicans/Grizzlies, scoring 2.0 pts/game.

1) Marlins 9, Cardinals 6— Giancarlo Stanton homered in innings 1-2, his 22nd multi-homer game. Stanton is incredibly streaky, but when he gets hot, he is great fun to watch.

[StarDust Bum]

SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY JULY 6, 2017
Time (ET) Away Home Site
8:30 PM Los Angeles Sparks Minnesota Lynx Target Center
10:00 PM New York Liberty Seattle Storm KeyArena

SCHEDULE FOR FRIDAY JULY 7, 2017
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:30 PM Indiana Fever Atlanta Dream McCamish Pavilion
8:00 PM Phoenix Mercury San Antonio Stars AT&T Center

SCHEDULE FOR SATURDAY JULY 8, 2017
Time (ET) Away Home Site
7:00 PM Washington Mystics Connecticut Sun Mohegan Sun Arena
8:00 PM Minnesota Lynx Chicago Sky Allstate Arena
9:00 PM Los Angeles Sparks Seattle Storm KeyArena

SCHEDULE FOR SUNDAY JULY 9, 2017
Time (ET) Away Home Site
3:00 PM Dallas Wings Atlanta Dream McCamish Pavilion
6:00 PM New York Liberty Phoenix Mercury Talking Stick Resort Arena

SCHEDULE FOR WEDNESDAY JULY 12, 2017
Time (ET) Away Home Site
12:00 PM San Antonio Stars Indiana Fever Bankers Life Fieldhouse
12:30 PM Dallas Wings Chicago Sky Allstate Arena
3:00 PM Connecticut Sun Seattle Storm KeyArena
10:00 PM Atlanta Dream Phoenix Mercury Talking Stick Resort Arena

Updated Thu Jul 6 1:04 AM EDT

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LEAGUE STANDINGS

Rank Team W L PCT GB CONF HOME ROAD L-10 STREAK

#1 Minnesota Lynx12 1 0.923 - 6-0 5-1 7-0 9-1 W 3

#2 Los Angeles Sparks12 3 0.800 1 5-1 7-0 5-3 9-1 W 8

#3 Washington Mystics10 7 0.588 4 7-0 7-2 3-5 5-5 L 2

#4 Phoenix Mercury8 6 0.571 4.5 3-4 4-4 4-2 6-4 W 1

#5 Connecticut Sun9 7 0.563 4.5 5-3 3-3 6-4 8-2 W 3

#6 New York Liberty7 7 0.500 5.5 1-4 5-3 2-4 5-5 L 3

#7 Dallas Wings9 9 0.500 5.5 5-5 5-5 4-4 6-4 W 1

#8 Seattle Storm7 8 0.467 6 3-3 5-3 2-5 3-7 W 1

#9 Indiana Fever7 8 0.467 6 4-2 5-3 2-5 5-5 L 1

#10 Atlanta Dream6 8 0.429 6.5 3-6 3-3 3-5 3-7 L 1

#11 Chicago Sky3 12 0.200 10 2-7 0-7 3-5 2-8 L 3

#12 San Antonio Stars1 15 0.063 12.5 0-9 1-7 0-8 1-9 L 1

[StarDust Bum]

Lynx, Sparks renew rivalry

They claimed three of the past four WNBA titles. They were the two best teams last season, which ended with their epic battle in Game 5 of the Finals, considered one of the greatest in league history.

Not much has changed.

The Minnesota Lynx (12-1) and Los Angeles Sparks (12-3) are once again the top two teams in the WNBA. They meet for the first time this season Thursday at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

In October, Nneka Ogwumike's put-back with 3.1 seconds remaining gave the Sparks a 77-76 win and their first championship in 14 years.

"That's a heart-breaking way to lose," said the Lynx's Maya Moore, who had put her team up by one with 15 seconds to go. "The team that won this game deserved to win the game. It's just hard to have it come that close."

Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve says she has moved on.

"Other than when people bring it up," she told the (St. Paul) Pioneer Press after Wednesday's practice, "it's not at the top of my mind anymore.

"(Thursday's game is) not the WNBA Finals. It's a regular-season game and both teams are jockeying for position, and I'm sure both teams are going to want to win the game."

Lynx center Sylvia Fowles, who this week was named Eastern Conference player of the month for the second straight time, said last year's loss will fuel her.

"It definitely sparks something in us because we did lose to them last year," Fowles told the newspaper. "That's always on our mind when we have to go back and face them."

Fowles is second in the league this season in both points (20.7 per game) and rebounds (10.1).

For the Sparks, who have won eight straight games, Ogwumike and Candace Parker are second and third behind Fowles in the WNBA's list of most likely MVPs.

Parker had 17 points and 11 rebounds on Sunday when Los Angeles came back from a 17-point halftime deficit to beat the Washington Mystics 76-69.

"I joke with our team saying that I'd rather us be down 17 points than up 17 points -- just the way in which we attack possessions," Parker told the website Swish Appeal.

"We knew that we didn't play very well in the first half but we kept it within distance. We had to get the game within single digits by the fourth quarter and that's what we did."

Parker said she believes Thursday's contest will gauge where her team stands in 2017.

"It will be a good opportunity to see where we are against the top team in the league," she said.

"We're excited to play them, excited to hold up our end of the rivalry," Parker said. "But it's only a rivalry when you beat a team multiple times in the playoffs. We have to get a couple more (playoff series) wins for it truly to be a rivalry. But it is becoming that."

[StarDust Bum]

WNBA July Record:

Date.................... W-L-T................... % ...................Units Record

07/05/2017........... 5-1-0 ...............83.33%................... +19.50
07/02/2017........... 2-2-0............... 50.00% ......................-1.00
07/01/2017........... 0-4-0................. 0.00%.................... -22.00

Totals:...................7 - 7..................50.00%.....................- 3.50