Announcement

**Udog** · 02-25-2018, 08:52 AM

Armadillo: Sunday's six-pack

Six top prospects for the Boston Red Sox:

1) Jay Groome, P— When your #1 prospect has a 3-9 career record, that says a lot.

2) Michael Chavis, 3B— Hit .250 in 67 games in the Eastern League LY.

6) Darwinzon Hernandez, P— Three years in, hasn’t escaped A-ball yet.

7) Sam Travis, 1B— Ht .263 in 76 big league AB’s last season.

20) Hector Velasquez, P— Had 2.92 ERA in 25 big league IP last season.

23) Brian Johnson, P— Struck out 21 batters in 27 big league IP last year.

**********

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

13) Oregon 89, Arizona 83 OT— Most intense regular season college basketball game I’ve seen in years; Arizona was out to win for its suspended coach, with an us-against-them mentality, but they ran out of gas in overtime, and lost despite 28 points, 13 rebounds from Deandre Ayton.

Sean Miller has a weird contract at Arizona; he gets $10.3M if he is fired for cause, but only $5.15M if he is fired without cause. Either way, if Arizona fires him because of this mess, he ain’t gonna have to work anymore.

With all this FBI stuff going on, will the IRS go after the families who took payoff money and didn’t pay taxes on it? If coaches are losing their jobs, I hope they do go after the families.

12) Shaquille O’Neal’s son is a big time high school recruit this year who had committed to play at Arizona. He de-committed Saturday, which is probably good news for LSU, Shaq’s alma mater.

11) Virginia 66, Pitt 37— Halftime score: Virginia 30, Pitt 7. I’m not making that up. 30-7. Pitt was 1-22 from the floor in the first half. One basket, 22 shots. No bueno.

Sean Miller is a Pitt alum and from the Pittsburgh area. You wonder if they would hire him once Arizona shows him the door, which could happen soon. Given Arizona’s NCAA troubles, probably not.

10) Kansas 74, Texas Tech 72— Jayhawks clinched at least a tie for their 14th consecutive Big X title, which is extremely impressive. Don’t think they had the best team in the league this year but that does not matter, since they’ve won the most games.

9) Creighton 89, Villanova 83 OT— The huge grin Creighton coach Greg McDermott wore in the last few seconds of this game said a lot; the Bluejays are going to the NCAA’s.

Villanova split its last six games; they’ll be a shaky #1 seed when NCAA tournament brackets come out in two weeks.

8) If you read this space regularly, you know I’m a big fan of the Showtime series Billions. Learned last night that Paul Giamatti, the actor who plays prosecutor Chuck Rhoades, is the son of the late baseball commissioner Bart Giamatti.

Has to be a way they can work Pete Rose into an episode to bust Chuck’s chops.

7) William & Mary 114, Charleston 104 OT— Cougars scored 1.30 ppp and lost, which almost never happens. Teams combined to shoot 21-47 on arc. W&M blew a 16-point second half lead but made 33-38 on the foul line.

If seeds hold in CAA tourney, these teams would meet in the semifinals.

6) So far this season, 105 of 351 D-I teams have taken 40%+ of their FGA’s from behind arc; eight years ago, only 33 teams took 40% of their shots behind the arc.

279 of 351 teams have taken 33.3% of their shots behind the arc; eight years ago, only 149 teams did. College basketball has largely become a 6-6 and under sport.

The increase in 3-pointers means more long rebounds, more loose balls— success in shooting 3-pointers is tough to sustain from game-to-game. It creates hugely erratic performances from more and more teams. Makes the sport much harder to handicap.

5) Oregon State 79, Arizona State 75— Beavers led by 9 with 2:36 to go, ASU tied it with about a minute left, but never scored again. Bobby Hurley was going off on one of the refs as the game went off the air. Sun Devils are 7-9 in the Pac-12, after a 12-0 pre-conference mark- they have no inside game, and their guards played lot better in December than they are now.

4) Seton Hall 81, St John’s 74 OT— Red Storm played six guys in an overtime game; four of their five starters played more than 40:00— their only sub played 23:00.

3) Jacksonville Jaguars gave QB Blake Bortles a 3-year, $54M contract, so they’re out of the market for a new quarterback.

2) Upsets of the Day:
Wyoming (+9.5) 78, Fresno State 68
Creighton (+7.5) 89, Villanova 83 OT
Tenn-Martin (+7) 72, SE Missouri 66
Indiana State (+6) 66, Bradley 64
Valparaiso (+5) 69, Drake 64
Arkansas (+5) 76, Alabama 73
Louisville (+4) 75, Virginia Tech 68

1— Baseball streak that will never, ever be topped; in 1980, Oakland’s Rick Langford threw 22 straight complete games, one of which went 14 innings. He went 19-12, 3.26 for the season in 35 starts, throwing 290 innings.

**Udog** · 02-25-2018, 09:22 AM

NBA
Dunkel

Sunday, February 25

Detroit @ Charlotte

Game 801-802
February 25, 2018 @ 1:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Detroit
116.654
Charlotte
119.127
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Charlotte
by 2 1/2
219
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Charlotte
by 4 1/2
214 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Detroit
(+4 1/2); Over

New Orleans @ Milwaukee

Game 803-804
February 25, 2018 @ 3:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
New Orleans
119.845
Milwaukee
119.763
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
New Orleans
Even
228
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Milwaukee
by 4 1/2
222 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
New Orleans
(+4 1/2); Over

San Antonio @ Cleveland

Game 805-806
February 25, 2018 @ 3:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
San Antonio
117.453
Cleveland
125.623
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Cleveland
by 8
214
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Cleveland
by 4 1/2
217
Dunkel Pick:
Cleveland
(-4 1/2); Under

Houston @ Denver

Game 807-808
February 25, 2018 @ 8:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Houston
127.243
Denver
120.197
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Houston
by 7
222
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Houston
by 4 1/2
228
Dunkel Pick:
Houston
(-4 1/2); Under

Philadelphia @ Washington

Game 809-810
February 25, 2018 @ 8:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Philadelphia
121.704
Washington
120.665
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Philadelphia
by 1
216
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Washington
by 2
211 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Philadelphia
(+2); Over

NBA
Long Sheet

Sunday, February 25

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

DETROIT (28 - 30) at CHARLOTTE (26 - 33) - 2/25/2018, 1:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
DETROIT is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) in February games this season.
DETROIT is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) in the second half of the season this season.
DETROIT is 6-16 ATS (-11.6 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
DETROIT is 20-41 ATS (-25.1 Units) in road games versus poor defensive teams - allowing 106+ points/game since 1996.
DETROIT is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 106+ points/game - 2nd half of the season this season.
CHARLOTTE is 23-32 ATS (-12.2 Units) in all games this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHARLOTTE is 5-4 against the spread versus DETROIT over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 5-4 straight up against CHARLOTTE over the last 3 seasons
6 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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

SAN ANTONIO (35 - 25) at CLEVELAND (35 - 23) - 2/25/2018, 3:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN ANTONIO is 1034-905 ATS (+38.5 Units) in all games since 1996.
SAN ANTONIO is 345-284 ATS (+32.6 Units) in non-conference games since 1996.
CLEVELAND is 19-38 ATS (-22.8 Units) in all games this season.
CLEVELAND is 10-33 ATS (-26.3 Units) as a favorite this season.
CLEVELAND is 6-21 ATS (-17.1 Units) in home games this season.
CLEVELAND is 20-33 ATS (-16.3 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
CLEVELAND is 6-14 ATS (-9.4 Units) in non-conference games this season.
CLEVELAND is 20-33 ATS (-16.3 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent over the last 2 seasons.

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

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

PHILADELPHIA (32 - 25) at WASHINGTON (34 - 25) - 2/25/2018, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PHILADELPHIA is 81-57 ATS (+18.3 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 61-41 ATS (+15.9 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 41-28 ATS (+10.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 35-19 ATS (+14.1 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 106+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 18-4 ATS (+13.6 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 106+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 13-24 ATS (-13.4 Units) as a favorite this season.
WASHINGTON is 401-470 ATS (-116.0 Units) in home games since 1996.

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

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

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Sunday, February 25

Pistons won five of last seven games with the Hornets; they’re 1-3 vs spread in last four visits to Charlotte. six of last eight series games went over. Detroit lost four of its last five games; they’re 2-7 in last nine games as road underdogs. Under is 3-1-1 in their last five games. Charlotte won its last three games; they’re 7-4 in last 11 games as home favorites. four of their last six games stayed under.

Pelicans won eight of last ten games with Milwaukee; they’re 2-2 vs spread in last four visits here. Seven of last nine series games went over total. New Orleans won its last four games, scoring 129.8 ppg with two OT wins; they’re 4-2 in last six games as road underdogs. Over is 5-2 in their last seven games. Bucks won six of their last eight games; they’re 2-5 in last seven games as home favorites. Three of their last four games went over.

Spurs won eight of last ten games with the Cavaliers; they covered three of last four visits to Cleveland. Seven of last ten series games went over total. San Antonio lost six of its last seven games; they’re 7-6 as road underdogs. Spurs’ last six games all went over total. Cleveland won five of its last six games; they’re 7-18 vs spread as home favorites. Four of their last six games went over total.

Home side won last six Philly-Washington games; 76ers are 2-2 vs spread in their last four visits here. Last four series games went over the total. Philly won its last seven games; they’re 4-10 vs spread in last 14 games as road underdogs. Under is 5-3 in their last eight games. Washington won three of its last four games; they’re 1-4 in last five games as home favorites. Five of their last seven games went over.

Rockets won their last six games with Denver (4-2 vs spread); they’re 2-2 vs spread in last four visits here. Over is 5-5 in last ten series games. Rockets won their last 11 games; they’re 4-1 in last five games as road favorites. Three of their last four games stayed under the total. Nuggets won seven of their last eight games; they’re 3-1 as home underdogs this season. Nine of last ten Denver games went over.

NBA

Sunday, February 25

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

DETROIT @ CHARLOTTE
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Detroit's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Detroit's last 8 games when playing Charlotte
Charlotte is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Detroit
Charlotte is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Detroit

NEW ORLEANS @ MILWAUKEE
New Orleans is 19-4 SU in its last 23 games when playing Milwaukee
New Orleans is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Milwaukee is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Milwaukee's last 6 games at home

SAN ANTONIO @ CLEVELAND
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio's last 5 games on the road
Cleveland is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Cleveland is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games

PHILADELPHIA @ WASHINGTON
Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 6 games when playing Washington
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 6 games when playing Philadelphia

HOUSTON @ DENVER
Houston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Denver
Houston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Denver's last 5 games
Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

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

**Udog** · 02-25-2018, 01:58 PM

NBA

Sunday, February 25

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NBA Game of the Day: Rockets at Nuggets betting preview and odds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Houston Rockets at Denver Nuggets (+4.5, 225.5)

The Houston Rockets are bridging the All-Star break with an 11-game winning streak but are about to begin the toughest part of the remaining schedule with 10 of the next 13 on the road. That stretch begins with a high-altitude back-to-back, starting with a visit to the surging Denver Nuggets on Sunday.

The Rockets, who head to Utah on Monday and will play 12 of the next 13 games against teams with current winning records, are trying to hold off the defending champion Golden State Warriors for the top spot in the Western Conference. Houston didn't show any rust out of the break on Friday, when it enjoyed one of its few home games over the next month by breezing past the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-102. The Nuggets are tied for the second-longest winning streak in the West at four in a row and are trying to emerge out of a pack of teams tightly grouped from third through tenth in the standings. "We just have to keep worrying about ourselves, keep on winning games," Denver coach Michael Malone told reporters after a 122-119 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday. "We have 23 games left and it doesn't get any easier. ... We still have a lot of heavy-lifting to do, but if we continue to win and continue to play really exciting, good basketball, people will take notice."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), Altitude (Denver)

LINE HISTORY: The visiting Rockets opened as 4.5-point road favorites and that number has yet to move. The total hit betting boards at 228 and has been dropped slightly to 225.5

INJURY REPORT:

Rockets - SG E. Gordon (Doubful, Illness).

Nuggets - SF R. Jefferson (Questionable, Wrist), PF K. Faried (Questionable, Personal), SG T. Craig (Questionable, Hamstring), PF P. Millsap (Mid March, Wrist).

POWER RANKINGS: Rockets (-11.6) - Nuggets (-3.4) + home court (-3) = Rockets -5.2

MATCHUP CHART:

ABOUT THE ROCKETS (45-13 SU, 29-28-1 ATS, 26-31-1 O/U): Houston has an MVP candidate in James Harden starting alongside a future Hall of Famer in Chris Paul in the backcourt, but center Clint Capela is starting to carve out some recognition for himself as well. The 23-year-old, who leads the NBA in field-goal percentage at .659, scored 25 points on 10-of-11 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds on Friday for his fifth straight double-double. "He's just a smart player in the sense that he gets in the right spots at the right time," Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni told reporters. "He's got great hands. He's obviously long as heck and he can finish. He just understands James and Chris, where he needs to get to in an open spot. He has some kind of innate ability to be able to do it."

ABOUT THE NUGGETS (33-26 SU, 28-28-3 ATS, 28-31 O/U): Capela will be in for a big challenge on the defensive end on Sunday from red-hot Denver center Nikola Jokic. The 23-year-old turned in his third consecutive triple-double with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in Friday's win and is 8-of-13 from 3-point range in that span. "I try to play the right way every time," Jokic said. "I think that's how you're supposed to play. The ball's going to find you. If you see the open guy next to you, just pass the ball, two extra passes. The small things."

TRENDS:

* Rockets are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 vs. NBA Northwest.
* Nuggets are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games overall.
* Under is 11-2 in Rockets last 13 vs. Western Conference.
* Over is 6-0 in Nuggets last 6 overall.
* Road team is 5-0 ATS in the last 5 meetings.

CONSENSUS: Contest users are backing the Houston Rockets in this matchup, with 75 percent of pointspread picks on the road favorite. When it comes to the total, 73 percent of wagers are on the Over.

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

Announcement

Sunday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 2/25

Sunday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 2/25

Comment

Comment

Comment