Announcement

**Udog** · 05-07-2018, 08:52 AM

Armadillo: Monday's six-pack

— Jason Day birdied two of last three holes to win the Wells Fargo PGA event.

— In his last 10 games, Twins’ Eddie Rosario is 17-43 with 11 runs, 14 RBI.

— New York 7, Cleveland 4— Game was scoreless after seven innings.

— Rockies 3, Mets 2— Mets have their first 0-6 homestand since 2012.

— Greg Maddux’s son Chase Maddux is a pitcher at UNLV.

— Hall of Famer George Brett is a 4-handicap at golf; he won his club championship last year, despite having a torn rotator cuff and torn labrum in his shoulder.

**********

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

13) If you’re coaching the Toronto Raptors Saturday night, don’t you have to double Lebron James and make him pass the ball? Understood that Lebron would find an open teammate, but no way that teammate wants to take the last shot- they want Lebron taking the last shot.

12) A 64-year old guy from Wisconsin recently had his 30,000th Big Mac (he counts them); the guy doesn’t look like he is overweight, he is 64 and still alive, but doubtful that having 30,000 Big Macs is real good for you.

Myself, I’ve haven’t had a Big Mac since I was a kid; prefer the fish sandwich or the sausage biscuit with egg at McDonald’s.

By the way, this guy from Wisconsin used to also save the styrofoam containers the Big Macs came in, but in June 1990, he lost 7,000 of them in a tornado.

11) NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights have already sold out their entire home schedule for next season.

10) Rough day for some baseball stars:
— Cardinals’ C Yadier Molina had groin surgery, is out at least a month.
— Dodgers’ P Clayton Kershaw (bicep tendonitis) goes on the DL.
— Mets’ Of Yoenis Cespedes (hip tightness) left after the 1st inning Sunday
— Mets’ P Jacob deGrom (elbow) goes on 10-day DL, could return next Sunday.

9) Random observation; new umpires call more marginal strikes than older umpires.

8) Tuesday night is the 50th anniversary of Catfish Hunter’s perfect game, when he also knocked in three runs in the A’s 4-0 win over Minnesota.

Only one Oakland employee from that night still works for the A’s; equipment manager Steve Vucinich, who was a 15-year ball boy that night, working down the left field line.

7) Stumbled onto a movie I’ve never seen the other night; Lucky You, a poker movie with Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall and a bunch of pro poker players from the ESPN days.

Movie centers around the World Series of Poker; star of the movie is a guy I’ve never heard of, but in the movie he is the son of a legendary gambler (Duvall) who is trying to win the WSOP while also trying to win the heart of his girlfriend (Barrymore).

Not a bad movie; lot of poker in it.

6) Brice Garnett, who won a PGA tournament at Corales Puntacana in March, shot an 88 Sunday – the highest score recorded by anyone this season on Tour. He’s the only player this decade with a win and a round of 88 or worse in same Tour season.

5) Favorites won the last six Kentucky Derbies, which is a new record.

4) CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats will be an interesting team this year; not only will Johnny Manziel be one of their QB’s, but 76-year old Jerry Glanville, the old Oilers/Falcons head coach, will be their defensive coordinator. June Jones III is the Ti-Cats’ head coach.

When Glanville was coaching the Oilers, Jones was one of his assistants, as was a young coach named Nick Saban.

3) Royals, Tigers both lost a fly ball in the bright sun in Kansas City Sunday; neither player had sunglasses on. WTF? Shouldn’t the manager send someone out to give them sunglasses?

2) Bryant Bulldogs of the NEC got a commitment from Murray State graduate transfer G Byron Hawkins; he was the sixth man on the Racers’ OVC championship team- before that, he averaged 14 ppg as a sophomore at Towson.

In other words, this young man will be playing for his third team in three years. He scored 14 ppg in the CAA so he is talented, but why has he bolted schools two years in a row?

1— A lawyer in Monterrey, Mexico named Mario Gracia played in the Gulf Coast League with Clayton Kershaw and Kenley Jansen in 2006; his friends didn’t believe his stories until this weekend, when the Dodgers played the Padres in Monterrey. Now he has proof.

**Udog** · 05-07-2018, 09:39 AM

Monday's NBA Playoffs betting preview and odds

Round 2 of the NBA Playoffs continues Monday with the Cavaliers and Celtics both attempting sweep their opponents and advance to the Eastern Conference Final. Both the Raptors and 76ers entered Round 2 as series favorites but now each must pull off a miracle in order to advance.

Boston Celtics at Philadelphia 76ers (-6.5, 204.5)

Celtics lead series 3-0.

The Boston Celtics look to avoid a launch of confetti and finish off the Eastern Conference semifinal series Monday night when they visit the Philadelphia 76ers for Game 4. The Celtics received 24 points from rookie Jayson Tatum while Al Horford scored the final five of the game as they earned a stunning 101-98 overtime victory Saturday and took a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Marco Belinelli’s jumper with less than a second left in the fourth quarter caused confetti to fill the air at the Wells Fargo Center, but his foot was inside the 3-point line and it only tied the game before Boston rallied in overtime. “I’ve seen crazier things that happened,” Celtics guard Jaylen Brown told reporters after scoring 16 points off the bench. “The win just was the confetti for us. So we’ll take it like that.” Joel Embiid scored 22 points and grabbed 19 rebounds, but the 76ers shot just 39.2 percent from the field Saturday while turning the ball over in key situations and now are forced to buck NBA history as all 129 teams have failed to win a series after falling behind 3-0. “Teams that are down 3-0 have a record of (0-129),” Philadelphia coach Brett Brown told reporters. “Think about that. Just think about that number. The number is 0. The number to me, 0, happens more out of spirit than talent. Like there’s a breaking point we all have and I believe that if we can maintain our spirit, why couldn’t we be the one and I mean that.”

TV: 6 p.m. ET, TNT

SERIES PRICE (PER WESTGATE LV SUPERBOOK):

LINE MOVES AND BETTING ACTION: In what was a surprise to many, the 76ers opened as 6-point home favorites for Game 4 and that number has actually been bumped higher to -6.5 as of Sunday night. This line move is despite 68 percent of Covers Consensus wagers coming in on the Celtics. The total hit betting boards at 204.5 and has yet to move. Check out the complete line history here.

INJURY REPORT:

Celtics - PG K. Irving (Out For Season, Knee), PF D. Theis (Out For Season, Knee), SF G. Hayward (Out For Season, Ankle).

76ers - SG T. Luwawu-Cabarrot (Out Indefinitely, Knee).

ABOUT THE CELTICS (62-30 SU, 58-32-2 ATS, 50-41-1 O/U): Horford scored seven of his 13 points in overtime and had a key steal in the final seconds that snuffed out a chance for Philadelphia to win the contest. “Al is our leader,” Tatum told reporters. “He’s been in the playoffs every year, so he’s been in every situation possible. He’s always making sure we’re in the right situations, and we know we can look toward him to make the right play.” Tatum is averaging 24.3 points in the series and guard Terry Rozier continues to shine while leading the team in scoring during the playoffs (19.0) and providing 22.3 per game the past three.

ABOUT THE 76ERS (56-34 SU, 51-37-2 ATS, 45-44-1 O/U): Rookie Ben Simmons rebounded from a rough Game 2 (one point, five turnovers) to score 16 while recording eight rebounds and eight assists in Saturday’s setback. “I have a lot of growing to do,” Simmons told ESPN.com. “This is the first time I’ve played in the playoffs, and I’m learning a lot. It’s a great opportunity for myself and the team. We’re all learning together. There’s a lot of lessons. I think they’re all very important.” Embiid has registered five straight double-doubles in the playoffs and guard J.J. Redick is averaging 20.3 points in the series with 10 made 3-pointers.

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Celtics are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 Conference Semifinals games.
* 76ers are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 Conference Semifinals games.
* Over is 11-3 in Celtics' last 14 overall.
* Under is 8-2-1 in 76ers' last 11 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Celtics are 6-1 ATS in the last 7 meetings.

Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers (-6, 213.5)

Cavaliers lead series 3-0.

LeBron James is putting on a display this postseason that will be talked about for ages, and he has a chance to take his run another round further when he leads the Cleveland Cavaliers into a potential Game 4 clincher at home against the Toronto Raptors on Monday. After scoring 43 points on Thursday to help the Cavaliers gain a 2-0 series lead on the road, James knocked down a running buzzer-beater to give his team a 105-103 victory in Game 3 on Saturday.

The game-winner capped a 38-point effort for the superstar, who is averaging 34.8 points on 54.7 percent shooting to go along with 9.5 rebounds and 8.8 assists during the playoffs. "I've been doing that since I was like six, seven, eight years old," James told reporters of his latest clutch moment. "Maybe even before that. There's a picture floating around of me beside a Little Tikes hoop with a saggy Pamper on and I was doing it back then and all the way up until now, at 33." The top-seeded Raptors are on the verge of being swept out of the playoffs for the second straight season by Cleveland. "Our goal in the timeout was to trap him and make someone else beat us," Toronto coach Dwane Casey told reporters of a play that will haunt him. "He split the trap and went 100 miles an hour down the floor and lost them. We just didn't execute. It was probably my fault that I didn't make it clear that we wanted to trap him and get the ball out of his hands. We had it started in the backcourt, and for whatever reason, we let him out of the trap."

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, TNT

SERIES PRICE (PER WESTGATE LV SUPERBOOK):

LINE MOVES AND BETTING ACTION: The Cavs really have the Raptors' number in the postseason and they opened as 5.5-point home favorites for Game 4. The number has been bumped up to -6 as of Sunday night despite 62 percent of Covers Consensus bettors siding with the underdog Raps. The total hit betting boards at 213 and has been bumped up slightly to 213.5.

INJURY REPORT:

Raptors - No injuries to report.

Cavaliers - No injuries to report.

ABOUT THE RAPTORS (63-28 SU, 48-42-1 ATS, 46-44-1 O/U): Teams that fall behind 3-0 in the playoffs are 0-129 in NBA history, giving Toronto virtually insurmountable odds to come out on top against a team it cannot seem to solve. The task is made all the more difficult when leading scorer DeMar DeRozan struggles the way he did in Game 3, producing eight points - more than 15 below his average this postseason - on 3-of-12 shooting, leading to a benching during a critical portion of the fourth quarter. "It's extremely hard, extremely hard," DeRozan told reporters of sitting on the sidelines while his teammates made a late push. "I just want to be out there helping my team, way more than anything. It definitely sucks to be watching ... we've got to give credit to those guys. We fought hard and gave ourselves a chance to win."

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (57-35 SU, 35-56-1 ATS, 43-47-2 O/U): James will finish his career with a hefty collection of buzzer-beaters, but the sheer difficulty of Saturday's one-handed bank shot will make this one stand out. "In the moment, that's a tough shot, but I've watched him shoot that shot countless times in shootaround and practice, just messing around, shooting off the wrong leg," guard Kyle Korver told the media. "I'm like, 'When would you shoot a shot like that?' Apparently to win a playoff game. Amazing shot." Even more important for Cleveland's long-term outlook this spring was the second straight solid game for big man Kevin Love, who had 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting and 16 rebounds.

MATCHUP CHART:

TRENDS:

* Raptors are 1-5-1 ATS in their last 7 Conference Semifinals games.
* Cavaliers are 5-1-1 ATS in their last 7 Conference Semifinals games.
* Over is 8-2 in Raptors' last 10 Conference Semifinals games.
* Under is 5-1 in Cavaliers' last 6 home games.
* Over is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings.

**Udog** · 05-07-2018, 10:29 AM

NBA
Dunkel

Monday, May 7

Boston @ Philadelphia

Game 501-502
May 7, 2018 @ 6:05 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Boston
118.325
Philadelphia
127.513
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Philadelphia
by 9
212
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Philadelphia
by 6 1/2
204 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Philadelphia
(-6 1/2); Over

Toronto @ Cleveland

Game 503-504
May 7, 2018 @ 8:35 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Toronto
119.364
Cleveland
127.408
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Cleveland
by 8
218
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Cleveland
by 5 1/2
213 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Cleveland
(-5 1/2); Over

NBA
Long Sheet

Monday, May 7

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BOSTON (62 - 30) at PHILADELPHIA (56 - 34) - 5/7/2018, 6:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PHILADELPHIA is 52-38 ATS (+10.2 Units) in all games this season.
PHILADELPHIA is 37-26 ATS (+8.4 Units) as a favorite this season.
PHILADELPHIA is 29-15 ATS (+12.5 Units) in home games this season.
PHILADELPHIA is 30-16 ATS (+12.4 Units) revenging a home loss vs opponent over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 62-43 ATS (+14.7 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent over the last 2 seasons.
PHILADELPHIA is 18-8 ATS (+9.2 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
BOSTON is 56-32 ATS (+20.8 Units) in all games this season.
BOSTON is 23-7 ATS (+15.3 Units) as an underdog this season.
BOSTON is 29-15 ATS (+12.5 Units) in road games this season.
BOSTON is 13-4 ATS (+8.6 Units) after a division game this season.
BOSTON is 19-9 ATS (+9.1 Units) in all playoff games over the last 2 seasons.
BOSTON is 14-2 ATS (+11.8 Units) off an upset win as an underdog this season.
BOSTON is 20-9 ATS (+10.1 Units) after 3 or more consecutive wins this season.
BOSTON is 32-16 ATS (+14.4 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
BOSTON is 35-17 ATS (+16.3 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 106+ points/game this season.
BOSTON is 21-12 ATS (+7.8 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 106+ points/game - 2nd half of the season this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 9-6 against the spread versus PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 13-2 straight up against PHILADELPHIA over the last 3 seasons
8 of 14 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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TORONTO (63 - 28) at CLEVELAND (57 - 35) - 5/7/2018, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 200-251 ATS (-76.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season since 1996.
CLEVELAND is 35-55 ATS (-25.5 Units) in all games this season.
CLEVELAND is 20-48 ATS (-32.8 Units) as a favorite this season.
CLEVELAND is 13-32 ATS (-22.2 Units) in home games this season.
CLEVELAND is 17-29 ATS (-14.9 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
CLEVELAND is 6-14 ATS (-9.4 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
CLEVELAND is 14-8 against the spread versus TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
CLEVELAND is 17-6 straight up against TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
14 of 23 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Monday, May 7

Celtics (3-0) @ 76ers
Celtics won their last six games with Philly, after losing first meeting this season; they’ve been an underdog in all three games this series. Sixers could’ve had Tatum last summer but didn’t take him; he was +24 in Game 3, scoring 24 points. Boston was -21 in 12:00 he was on bench. Boston lost six of its last seven road games; 76ers coughed away Game 3 at end of regulation, after blowing 22-point lead in Game 2. Sixers won 12 of their last 14 home games; over is 8-5 in their last 13 games overall. Over is 11-3 in last 14 Boston games.

Raptors @ Cavaliers (3-0)  
Cavaliers blew 15-point halftime lead in Game 3, then won it when James hit walk-off bank shot to drive a stake into the Raptors’ hearts. James had 38 points in Game 3; Cavaliers were -18 in 10:00 that Love was off floor. DeRozan was 3-12 from floor, was -23 for game. Cleveland won its last four home games, by 3-3-4-2 points; they’ve won five games in row with Toronto. Raptors are -15 in turnovers (28-13) in their last two games. Four of last five Cleveland games went over the total; over is 7-7 in second round games so far this spring.

Second Round
Pelicans-Warriors
GState 123-101, -7.5, O223.5
GState 121-116, -11, O229
NO 119-100, +5, U232.5
GState 118-92, -6, U231.5

Jazz-Rockets
Hst 110-96, -11.5, U206.5
Utah 116-108, +10.5, O205
Hst 113-92, -4.5, U209.5
Hst 100-87, -6, U211

76ers-Celtics
Bos 117-101, +5, O205
Bos 108-103, +3.5, O206.5
Bos 101-98 OT, +9.5, U206.5

Cavaliers-Raptors
Clev 113-112 OT +7, O213.5
Clev 128-110, +7, O213.5
Clev 105-103, -4.5, U214.5

NBA

Monday, May 7

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Trend Report
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Boston Celtics
Boston is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Boston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Boston's last 14 games
Boston is 16-7 ATS in its last 23 games on the road
Boston is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Boston is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Boston is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Philadelphia
Boston is 17-2 SU in its last 19 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Boston's last 12 games when playing Philadelphia
Boston is 7-2 ATS in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Boston is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston's last 6 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia is 15-7 ATS in its last 22 games
Philadelphia is 20-4 SU in its last 24 games
Philadelphia is 18-7 ATS in its last 25 games at home
Philadelphia is 22-3 SU in its last 25 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 6 games at home
Philadelphia is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Boston
Philadelphia is 2-17 SU in its last 19 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Philadelphia's last 12 games when playing Boston
Philadelphia is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games when playing at home against Boston
Philadelphia is 1-8 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Boston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 6 games when playing at home against Boston

Toronto Raptors
Toronto is 8-14-1 ATS in its last 23 games
Toronto is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Toronto's last 6 games
Toronto is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games on the road
Toronto is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Toronto's last 7 games on the road
Toronto is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Cleveland
Toronto is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Toronto's last 7 games when playing Cleveland
Toronto is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Toronto is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland is 3-8 ATS in its last 11 games
Cleveland is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland's last 5 games
Cleveland is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Cleveland is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Cleveland's last 6 games at home
Cleveland is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Toronto
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Toronto
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Cleveland's last 7 games when playing Toronto
Cleveland is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Toronto
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Toronto

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**Udog** · 05-07-2018, 10:53 AM

NBA

Monday, May 7

Both favorites covered on the road Sunday. Two elimination/sweep games tonight.

Current 2018 NBA Playoffs betting stats:

Home Teams:
41-18 Straight Up
32-26-1 ATS (55.17%)

Favorites:
44-15 Straight Up
34-24-1 ATS (58.62%)

Over-Under: 29-30

Announcement

Monday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 5/7

Monday's NBA Trends and Indexes - 5/7

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