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**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:02 AM

BYU-San Diego State meet in Mountain West title game

SAN DIEGO STATE AZTECS (31-2, #2 seed in Mountain West)

vs. BYU COUGARS (25-8, #3 seed in Mountain West)

Mountain West Tournament – Championship
Tip-off: Saturday, 7:00 p.m. EDT – Las Vegas, NV
Line: TBD

College basketball fans with an active remote were treated to a bodacious display of “mad game” on Friday night, courtesy of the sport’s two most dominant players this season. While the beast from the east, 6-foot-1 Kemba Walker, was lighting up Broadway with a 33-point, 12-rebound, six-steal, five-assist performance that powered his underdog Huskies into Saturday’s Big East title game, Jimmer Fredette, the best in the west, electrified the Vegas strip with a 33-point first half, and a career-high, 52-point effort which put his No. 8 BYU Cougars into the Mountain West championship game. It was a superb effort by two players who have competed against one another from afar for the honor of who will be the Player of the Year in college basketball this season. Fredette’s career night made him not only BYU’s all-time leading scorer (2,417 points), passing Danny Ainge, it also made him the all-time leading scorer in Mountain West history. What can he do for an encore? Well, there is the matter of winning the Mountain West Championship, and the outside possibility of securing a number one seed in the NCAA tournament. To do that the Cougars will have to pull off one of the most difficult feats in the collegiate game, beating a team three times in the same season. That is the mountain that the Cougars will have to scale when they take on Steve Fisher’s No. 7 San Diego State Aztecs Saturday night in the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

San Diego State advanced to the championship game with a 74-72 semifinal victory over UNLV. The Aztecs have guard D.J. Gay to thank for that. Gay nailed a jumper with 4.9 seconds to play to break a 72-all tie, and send the Aztecs into the conference title game for the third straight year. The school will be trying to defend its league crown, but to do so they will have to defeat the only team that has defeated them all season. Gay finished with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, a strong bounce-back game after going just 1-for-9 the previous night in his team’s 64-50 victory over Utah. Kawhi Leonard added 18 points and eight rebounds in Friday’s win, despite playing with four personal fouls in the last four minutes of the game. "You could tell when D.J. made that first basket -- at least I could -- that he was going to be playing with confidence and hopefully his shot would fall, and it did tonight," Fisher said. Now the Aztecs must turn their attention to a BYU team that defeated them twice by a 13-point margin, 71-58 in Provo, and 80-67 in San Diego. In losing those contests, Fredette averaged 34.0 PPG against San Diego State, scoring 43 in the first game, and adding 25 with nine assists in the rematch. Is a re-assessment of strategy in order? "He's just amazing. It's just impossible to stop him," Aztec forward Billy White said. "We're just going to try to go back to our game plan and see what we did wrong. … The first game at BYU, they kind of ran us off the floor, kind of outrebounded us," White said. "The second game, we let them get wide-open shots. We kind of contained Jimmer, but we just left other people open."

Whether the New Mexico Lobos left other people open Friday night really did not play a factor, since Fredette scored 52 of his team’s 87 points by himself. Amazingly almost all of the damage was done from the floor, as Fredette only shot one free throw the entire night. The 6-foot-2 guard finished 22-for-37 from the field (59.4%), and 7-of-14 from beyond the arc. "He's very special, everyone knows that. The country knows that," said Lobos coach Steve Alford, himself a prolific scorer at Indiana in his day. "Special players can have special evenings like this, especially in March. He had one of 'em. He took great shots. He got into rhythm." Somewhat lost in the amazing performance was the magnitude of the win. With the victory, BYU avoided losing to the Lobos for the third time this season, and kept its slim chances of a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament alive. One thing that will be different in this third matchup involves personnel. The Cougars will be playing without forward Brandon Davies (11.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG) who was a strong inside presence in the first game, scoring 14 points with five boards and two blocked shots. Davies was suspended after the second victory over San Diego State for his now well-publicized violation of the school’s honor code. Without Davies, the interior of the Cougars defense could be more vulnerable this time around. Whomever is on the floor, the Aztecs will need to shoot much better than the 35.5% and 39.7% they shot in the first two games against the Cougars. Will the third time be the charm for San Diego State, or will coach Fisher pay the price for getting “Jimmered” again?

Both the Cougars and Aztecs are an identical 10-8 ATS against MWC schools this season. But BYU is 7-1 SU (6-2 ATS) in the past eight meetings with San Diego State, including four straight victories (SU and ATS). Expect Fredette to keep this streak alive for one more game as BYU will capture the Mountain West title.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:03 AM

Miami favored by 7.5 over Grizzlies

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (36-30)

at MIAMI HEAT (44-21)

Tip-off: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. EDT
Line: Miami -7.5, Total: 195

The Grizzlies travel down to South Beach on Saturday to take on LeBron James and Miami. Memphis defeated the Heat at Memphis, 97-95 in November on a buzzer-beater by Rudy Gay. Dwyane Wade did not play against Memphis earlier this season.

Memphis has one of the best records ATS this season at 41-24, including wins in eight of its past 11 games ATS. On the road the Grizzlies are an impressive 22-12 ATS this season and have won three straight and six of their past seven. Memphis lost a heart-breaker on Wednesday against the Knicks. Trailing by 14 points entering the fourth quarter, the Grizzlies stormed back to tie the game, only to lose on a last-second shot by Carmelo Anthony. After struggling for most of the season, Tony Allen has come alive recently. He has scored 20 or more points in three of his past five games, averaging 14.4 PPG over that span, while shooting 61.9 percent from the field. Mike Conley scored 20 points in the loss against the Knicks, and is averaging 22.3 PPG in his past four games against Eastern Conference opponents. Zach Randolph scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds against Miami earlier this season, and is averaging 19.0 PPG and 16.0 RPG in his last two games against the Heat. Marc Gasol scored just 11 points against Miami earlier this season, but averaged 19.0 PPG, 9.0 RPG and shot 80% FG (16-of-20) against the Heat in two games last season.

Miami temporarily righted its ship on Thursday with a six-point win over the defending champions to snap a five-game losing streak. The Heat have struggled all season ATS, posting a 29-34 record, and have really done poorly ATS at home. The Heat’s mark of 11-20 ATS at home is one of the worst in the NBA. After scoring just seven points on 3-of-7 shooting in the loss against Portland, Chris Bosh led the Heat scoring 24 points against the Lakers. LeBron James scored 29 points against Memphis earlier this season, and is averaging 30.7 PPG over his past seven games against them.

Memphis has won five of its past seven games against the Heat. Memphis is just 12-13 ATS against the Eastern Conference this season. Miami has won three of their last four ATS against Western Conference opponents at home. This game should be tight for a while, but the Heat should eventually pull away and win by double digits. The pick here is Miami.

Nineteen of the past 27 games (70%) in this series have finished Under the total and this FoxSheets trend also sides with the Under:

MEMPHIS is 30-10 UNDER (75.0%, +19.0 Units) in road games after a close loss by 3 points or less since 1996. The average score was MEMPHIS 91.8, OPPONENT 95.4 - (Rating = 2*).

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:04 AM

Scola not expected to play vs. Spurs

SAN ANTONIO SPURS (52-12)

at HOUSTON ROCKETS (33-33)

Tip-off: Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
Line: TBD

San Antonio travels to Houston to play the Rockets on Saturday. The Spurs have won both meetings against the Rockets this season. Luis Scola (18.5 PPG, 8.1 RPG) is expected to miss his second straight game for Houston because of a sore left knee.

Entering Friday, the Spurs are 36-26 ATS this season and their record of 20-10 ATS on the road ranks as one of the best in the NBA. They have won three straight against the Rockets, averaging 117.0 PPG over those games while shooting 52.0 percent from the field. Manu Ginobili is averaging 25.0 PPG this season against the Rockets, while connecting on 47.1 percent of his three-point attempts. Richard Jefferson is averaging 20.0 PPG against Houston this season and connecting on 71.4 percent of his shots from the field, and 75% (6-of-8) of his shots from behind the arc.

Houston is 35-29 ATS this season and has won three straight and six of its past seven ATS. The Rockets have played very well since the All-Star break, winning seven of their nine games. Chase Budinger is averaging 17.6 PPG and making 41.7 percent of his three-point attempts in his past eight games. Kyle Lowry scored 32 in the Rockets loss at Phoenix on Tuesday, and is averaging 22.0 PPG while shooting 49.0 percent from behind the arc in his past six games.

Houston has lost three straight in this series, but all three games have been at San Antonio. The Spurs have been scuffling ATS lately, going just 2-8 ATS in their past 10 games, including three straight ATS defeats. The Rockets are 4-2 in their past six meetings with the Spurs in Houston, and are playing too well to pick against right now. Expect Houston to keep this game very close, and possibly even win outright.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:05 AM

West powers collide as Lakers visit Dallas

LOS ANGELES LAKERS (46-20)

at DALLAS MAVERICKS (47-18)

Tip-off: Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
Line: Dallas -1, Total: 193

Two teams battling for the top spots in the Western Conference will meet in Dallas on Saturday when the Lakers take on the Mavericks. Dallas enters 1½ games ahead of Los Angeles for the second spot in the Western Conference.

After dropping its final three games before the All-Star break, L.A. reeled off eight straight wins before losing at Miami on Thursday. The Lakers have struggled ATS this season, posting a 32-34 record, but they have won seven of their past nine and 12 of their past 17 ATS overall. They have done very well ATS on the road, going 20-16, including 5-1 in their past six ATS on the road. Kobe Bryant has led the Lakers in scoring in eight of their nine games since the break, and is averaging 25.0 PPG over that stretch. Pau Gasol has recorded six double-doubles in his past nine games, and is averaging 17.7 PPG and 9.9 RPG over that span. After scoring in single-digits in his previous four games, Andrew Bynum is averaging 12.6 PPG and 12.9 RPG, while connecting on 68.8 percent of his shot attempts over his past seven games.

Dallas has won 20 of its past 23 games SU. They are 35-28 ATS this season. Dirk Nowitzki has scored at least 20 points in 10 straight games, averaging 25.8 PPG over that span, while shooting 56 percent from the field. Nowitzki scored just 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting in the Mavs win over L.A. on January 19. After averaging 10.5 PPG in his previous two games, Jason Terry scored 22 in the Mavs 127-109 blowout win over the Knicks on Thursday. Terry scored 22 on 9-of-15 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 from behind the arc in the Mavericks win over the Lakers in January.

Dallas has won their last two against the Lakers, but lost eight of nine before that. Losa Angeles is 14-10 ATS in Dallas since 1996. Expect the Lakers to recover quickly from Thursday’s defeat and leave Dallas with a huge road victory. The FoxSheets give two more reasons to pick Los Angeles:

Phil Jackson is 48-19 ATS (71.6%, +27.1 Units) in road games after covering 6 or 7 of their last 8 against the spread as the coach of L.A. LAKERS. The average score was L.A. LAKERS 103.3, OPPONENT 98.4 - (Rating = 3*).

Play Against - Home teams (DALLAS) - extremely tired team - playing their 5th game in 7 days, good team, winning 60-75% or more of their games on the season. (119-73 since 1996.) (62%, +38.7 units. Rating = 2*).

The FoxSheets also give a five-star reason to bet the Over.

DALLAS is 12-0 OVER (+12.0 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season this season. The average score was DALLAS 112.9, OPPONENT 105.2 - (Rating = 5*).

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:09 AM

NCAA Betting: Connecticut, Louisville in Big East final

The bright lights of the Big Apple shine on UConn and Louisville tonight.
The Big East Conference Tournament comes to a dramatic conclusion Saturday from Madison Square Garden when the Connecticut Huskies meet the Louisville Cardinals.

Keep watching the Don Best screen for the pointspread and total.

Connecticut (25-9 straight-up, 17-11 against the spread) is trying to win its first Big East Tournament since 2004 and seventh overall. Louisville shoots for its second title, the first in 2009.

The Huskies came into this tourney as an ninth seed. They had a 9-9 SU mark (7-11 ATS) in the Big East, including 1-4 SU and ATS in their final five regular season games.

Coach Jim Calhoun’s squad also hadn’t won a conference tourney game since 2005. This year has been a different story with wins and ‘covers’ over DePaul (97-71), Georgetown (79-62), Pittsburgh (76-74) and Syracuse (76-71 OT) during the last four days.

Connecticut lost a six-overtime classic against Syracuse in this tourney two years ago. This year’s semifinal game was considerably shorter, but almost equally exciting. The Huskies blew a 68-62 lead in regulation with just 20 seconds remaining, but took the extra session 8-3.

The 147 combined points scored went ‘over’ the 136 ½-point total. The ‘over’ is 4-0 for Connecticut in this tournament, although the Syracuse game would have gone just ‘under’ if not for the overtime.

The ‘under’ was 12-3-1 in the Huskies' final 16 regular season games. They scored just 67.9 PPG in Big East regular season play (ranked eighth).

Electric guard Kemba Walker had 33 points against Syracuse, while big man Alex Oriakhi had 15 points and 11 boards. Walker is averaging 27.8 PPG for the tournament, including the game-winning basket over top-seed Pittsburgh.

Freshman swingman Jeremy Lamb has also come on strong the last four games (14.5 PPG). Starting forward Roscoe Smith (eye) played just five minutes against Syracuse and could be limited tonight.

This is a decent supporting cast, but this is clearly Walker’s team and he needs to score 25-30 points to win.

Louisville (25-8 SU, 19-10-1 ATS) is a third seed and advanced to the final with an overtime win of its own, 83-77 as two-point ‘dogs over second-seed Notre Dame.

Preston Knowles had 20 points in rallying from a 14-point halftime deficit. Terrence Jennings (16), Peyton Siva (15) and Kyle Kuric (14) also chipped in offensively. The battle of the boards was key with a 41-32 advantage, 19-8 on the offensive end. That was impressive with just one starter over 6-foot-4.

Rick Pitino’s team had a much easier path to tonight’s game with an automatic bid into the quarterfinals. The first game was an 81-56 win over Marquette as 3 ½-point favorites. That was another balanced effort with four players in double-digits.

Louisville is now 7-0 ATS in its last seven games (6-1 SU).

UConn has a major height advantage with a starting frontcourt of seven-foot Charles Okwandu, 6-foot-9 Oriakhi and 6-foot-8 Smith. Louisville will have to gang rebound like it did against Notre Dame. It also has to use its quickness and three-point shooting to draw Connecticut’s bigger players out.

Pitino is known for using a lot of players, but he’s cut the rotation down to 6-7 guys.

Louisville is 2-0 SU and ATS against Connecticut this year, 4-0 SU and ATS in the last four overall. The last game was February 18, a 71-58 home win as 3 ½-point favorites. Walker was just 3-of-10 for 16 points.

ESPN has the marquee matchup beginning at 6 p.m. (PT).

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:10 AM

NCAA Betting: North Carolina meets Clemson

Any hope of the North Carolina Tar Heels securing one of the four No. 1 seeds in the upcoming NCAA Tournament appeared dead for most of Friday's ACC quarterfinal matchup with the Miami Hurricanes. In fact, the Tar Heels were only ahead in the game for 2/10ths of a second.

Those 2/10ths of a second turned out to be the most important time of the game as Tyler Zeller's buzzer beater lifted North Carolina to a 61-59 victory after Miami led by as many as 19 points.

The Tar Heels will now turn their attention to the Clemson Tigers in Saturday's conference semifinal that tips at 10 a.m. (PT) with ESPN providing the broadcast.

North Carolina, favored by 10 points, played like anything but the conference top seed for much of the first 30 minutes. The Tar Heels committed 15 turnovers in the first half, six of those in the initial 4:30 of play. Miami didn't find its range from three-point land until late in the first half, otherwise the 'Canes would've taken more than a nine-point lead into the locker room.

Miami would again lose its long range touch midway through the second half when UNC (25-6 straight up, 15-13 against the spread) started to find the net from outside. Leslie McDonald and Kendall Marshall initiated the Tar Heels comeback, with Marshall also contributing 10 assists on the afternoon, none of them bigger than the final dish under the bucket to Zeller for the winner.

It marked the second time this season Miami saw its upset bid over the Heels thwarted at the end of the game. Two-point chalk on the road in Coral Gables in late January, North Carolina needed a Harrison Barnes three-pointer in the waning seconds for the 73-70 triumph.

Friday's victory was UNC's eighth straight, and 13th in the last 14 games. 'Under' bettors have cashed six times during the Tar Heels' winning streak.

Unlike UNC who only led at the end of its game, Clemson was on top of Boston College wire-to-wire at Greensboro Coliseum on Friday, rolling to a 70-47 rout. The Tigers, 4½-point favorites, jumped to an 11-0 lead over the Eagles and never looked back. Boston College's first point in the game came on a free throw with almost 5:30 gone in the first half, and the Eagles' first field goal came just before the seven-minute mark.

Demontez Stitt paced the Tigers with 20 points, adding eight boards and four assists. Jerai Grant contributed 12 points to the Clemson attack and accounted for half of the Tigers' eight blocked shots.

Clemson (21-10 SU, 14-13 ATS) will enter Saturday's tilt on 4-1 runs straight up, against the spread and to the 'under.'

North Carolina turned Clemson back twice during the regular season covering the 5½-point chalk at home in a 75-65 win on Jan. 18 and 'pushing' as a two-point road favorite, 64-62, on Feb. 12. The first matchup just snuck 'over' the 139½-point line while the rematch stayed well 'under' 140.

The last time the two schools met in the ACC Tournament was the 2008 conference championship. North Carolina won the contest, 86-81, 'pushing' the five-point closing odds. The game easily topped the 155½-point total that had been bet up five points from the opening number.

Saturday's winner will go on to this year's ACC Championship on Sunday (10 a.m. PT) that will be seen on ESPN.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:11 AM

NBA Betting Preview: Utah Jazz at Chicago

The Utah Jazz play the final game of a four-game road trip at Chicago on Saturday night, a contest that can be seen on WGN. It won’t be an easy game for Utah since it is a back-to-back and because the Bulls almost never lose at home. The Bulls are also playing with no rest after hosting Atlanta on Friday night.

Check out the current line for this game at *** Global. And don’t forget to play the free Million Dollar Madness of March Contest at *** Global.

The Bulls could be without forward Carlos Boozer who sprained his ankle against Charlotte earlier this week. Head coach Tom Thibodeau said that Boozer will be able to play when the swelling in his ankle goes down, but the Bulls will probably sit him out until next week.

Boozer would definitely want to play on Saturday since Utah is his former team. The last time that Boozer sprained his ankle he missed three games so it seems unlikely he will go on Saturday.

Utah has fallen out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference, and although the Jazz are just 1.5 games behind Memphis, not many people expect them to make any kind of playoff run. The Jazz have been awful since head coach Jerry Sloan stepped down and after the trade of All-Star point guard Deron Williams.

The Jazz did get a fortunate win against Toronto the other night and they had a winnable game last night against Minnesota. Saturday night’s game against the Bulls does not look to be a game Utah can win.

Here are the basketball betting stats for Saturday’s game:

•The Jazz are 11-5-1 ATS in their last 17 versus Central Division teams.
•Utah is 9-24 ATS in its last 33 games overall.
•The Jazz are 1-5 ATS in their last six games playing on no rest.
•Utah is 0-4 ATS its last four Saturday games.
•The Bulls are 6-1 ATS in their last seven home games.
•Chicago is 5-1-1 ATS in its last seven versus Northwest Division squads.
•The Bulls are 10-3 ATS in their last 13 games overall.
•In this betting series the Jazz are 2-5 ATS in the last seven meetings.
On the totals board, the 'over' is 13-6 in Utah’s last 19 road games. The 'under' is 7-1 in the Bulls' last eight overall and 16-7 in Chicago's last 23 versus the Western Conference. In this series, the 'under' is 6-2-1 in the last nine meetings.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:12 AM

Lakers and Mavericks in Saturday NBA odds clash

A pair of teams that are looking for some motivation meet up in NBA betting action in "Big D" on Saturday, as the Los Angeles Lakers duke it out with the Dallas Mavericks.

These two teams are both vying for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoffs this year, and Dallas currently has the slender lead by just 1.5 games coming into Friday, making this tussle all the more important. Tip-off from American Airlines Center is set for 6:00 p.m. (PT).

Kobe Bryant spent an extra hour on the court in South Beach on Thursday night after his Lakers were dropped by the Miami Heat to try to get his shooting touch back. You can bet that the Black Samba is certainly going to be ready and raring to get back on the court in Dallas, and the Mavericks had better be awfully careful about it.

Bryant already has 19 games this season with at least 30 points scored, and we would tend to guess that his season high of 41 against the Indiana Pacers and Boston Celtics is a mark that is challengeable.

The difference this year for the Lakers though, is their team defense. They're holding teams to just 95.2 PPG this season, ranking No. 7 in the Association. We know that LA isn't going to go scoreless down the stretch with Bryant and Pau Gasol, so if the team can continue playing solid ball, especially late in games on the defensive end of the court, there is going to be no stopping this team.

The Mavs were beaten by the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night, and head coach Rick Carlisle essentially called his team out. As a response, they came out and absolutely beat the snot out of the New York Knicks on Thursday, 127-109.

Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry all scored at least 21 points on the day for Dallas, and all three are really playing well at this point. Marion scored over 10 points for the first time this month, while Terry had his 11th-straight game reaching double digits in scoring.

Dallas is shooting 47.6 percent from the field this season, ranking No. 2 in the land, while a three-point shooting percentage of 37.3 percent is No. 7 in the NBA. The defense is slacking just a bit though, and that really can't make Carlisle happy.

Against a schedule that really hasn't been that tough, the Mavericks have given up 103.8 PPG in their last five, and they have gone just 1-4 ATS in those outings. For the season, they're at 96.3 PPG allowed, No. 10 in the league. That's a far cry from where this team was earlier in the season when it was challenging the best defensive marks in the game.

The Lakers might not have been able to stay cool and beat the Heat on Thursday, but they still have seven straight covers against Western Conference teams on the NBA odds. They're also 9-2 ATS over the course of their last 11 road games against teams with winning home records. However, LA has only gone 5-11 ATS in its last 16 games against the Southwest Division.

Dallas is 9-3 ATS in its last 12 games following an ATS victory, and 9-4 ATS in its last 13 games against teams with a winning percentage of at least .600.

This is the second meeting of the season between these foes. The Mavs snared a 109-100 victory here at the American Airlines Center back in January.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:12 AM

Heat continue NBA odds homestand with Grizzlies

The home team is 13-4 ATS in the last 17 meetings between Memphis and Miami.
Miami (44-21 straight up, 30-34-1 against the spread) continues its six-game homestand Saturday against Memphis (36-30 SU, 41-24-1 ATS). The Heat remain the third seed in the Eastern Conference despite some recent troubles, and they are 23-9 SU and 12-20 ATS on their home court.

The Grizzlies would nab the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference if the regular season ended today. Memphis is a modest 14-20 SU on the road, but maintains a solid 22-12 ATS ledger. The Grizzlies have seen the ‘under’ go 8-3 their past 11 road endeavors.

Memphis had strung together back-to-back SU and ATS victories before Wednesday’s setback to New York as a 4 ½-point home ‘chalk,’ 110-108. The combined 218 points eclipsed the 210 ½-point closing total, helping the ‘over’ cash the fifth consecutive contest.

The Grizzlies rallied by outscoring the Knicks in the fourth quarter, 26-14, and the game appeared to be going into overtime until New York’s Carmelo Anthony hit the game-winning shot at the buzzer. Memphis lost despite shooting a stellar 54 percent (36-of-67) from the field and 60 percent (3-of-5) from behind the arc. The Grizzlies also hit 33-of-35 free throws, while the Knicks shot and made all four of their attempts.

Memphis shooting guard Tony Allen led a balanced attack with 22 points, while power forward Zach Randolph provided 20 and 11 rebounds. Point guard Mike Conley had 20 and six assists in the setback, while forward Darrell Arthur accounted for 21 and seven boards.

Miami was mired in high-profile five-game SU losing streak before beating the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday as a one-point home underdog, 94-88. The combined 182 points failed to eclipse the 189 ½-point closing total, helping the ‘under’ improve to 4-2 the previous six games. The Heat had failed to cover seven consecutive contests before upending the two-time defending champions.

Miami prevailed by outscoring the Lakers in the fourth quarter, 26-18. The Heat won the rebounding battle, 46-37, and points in the paint, 46-30. Miami shot a solid 46 percent (37-of-81) from the field, and 42 percent (8-of-19) from 3-point land.

Power forward Chris Bosh stepped up with 24 points and nine rebounds, while forward LeBron James provided 19 and nine assists. Guard Dwyane Wade had 20 and five in the victory, while Mario Chalmers added nine.

Memphis beat Miami in the lone encounter this season Nov. 20 as a 5 ½-point home underdog, 97-95. The combined 192 points slithered below the 193-point closing total, helping the ‘under’ improve to 6-1 the previous seven meetings. The home team is 13-4 ATS the last 17 games in this series.

Memphis forward Rudy Gay is ‘out’ indefinitely due to a shoulder injury, while guard Jason Williams (back) is ‘questionable’ versus the Heat. The Grizzlies follow this contest with a home game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Miami center Dexter Pittman remains ‘out’ of action due to a knee injury. The Heat conclude their homestand with games against San Antonio and Oklahoma City. Miami has seen the ‘over’ go 9-2 its last 11 home games against Western Conference opponents.

Saturday’s matchup is scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m. PT from Miami’s American Airlines Arena.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:13 AM

NHL Betting Preview: NY Rangers at Sharks

New York heads to San Jose off Wednesday night’s loss in Anaheim.
The New York Rangers wrap up a quick two-game West Coast swing this Saturday night when they tangle with the San Jose Sharks at the HP Pavilion. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. (PT) and it will be broadcast locally on Comcast.

New York continues to battle for its postseason life as it is currently clinging to a two-point lead over Carolina for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Rangers followed up a dominating 7-0 victory over Philadelphia last Sunday as a 119 home favorite with a sluggish 5-2 loss to Anaheim as a slight 102 road favorite this past Wednesday night.

They have won just twice in their last six outings and with only 13 games left to play the regular season need as many wins a possible in hopes of extending their season. Heading into Saturday’s game, New York was 35-30-4 straight-up (35-34 against the spread). It is tied with Buffalo in the East with a total of 74 points, but the Sabres have two games in hand.

The Rangers have a solid core of players that can put the puck in the net led by centers’ Brandon Dubinsky and Brian Doyle and right winger Ryan Callahan. All three have scored 20 goals this year and Dubinsky leads the team with 45 points. New York is ranked 17th in the NHL in scoring, averaging 2.72 goals a game.

Defense remains the strong suit of this team behind the play of goalie Henrik Lundqvist, who has a goals-against-average of 2.34 and a save percentage of .921 in 54 starts this season. The Rangers are giving up an average of just 2.42 goals a game, which is tied for sixth-best in the league.

San Jose’s playoff position is much more secure with a four-point lead over Phoenix in the Pacific Division standings and the third-most points in the Western Conference. It is coming off a dramatic 5-4 OT shootout loss to Vancouver as a 117 home favorite in what could very well have been of preview of this year’s Conference Finals. The Sharks are 8-1-1 SU in their last 10 games and 39-22-7 SU overall (30-38 ATS).

San Jose remains one of the more prolific scoring teams in the league with an average of 2.75 goals a game. It boasts a number of sharpshooters with four players scoring 20 or more goals led by left winger Patrick Marleau’s team-high 27. Center Joe Thornton has 40 assists and his 56 points ties him with Dany Heatley as the team’s top two point scorers.

Antti Niemi has started 47 of the Sharks 68 games this season and is expected to be in net for this one. He has a GGA of 2.41 and a .918 save percentage, putting him near the top of the league in both categories. San Jose is giving up an average of 2.52 goals a game, ranking it ninth in the NHL.

One injury note to be aware of is that defenseman Dan Boyle remains day-to-day after missing Thursday’s game with an upper body injury.

New York is 15-16 as a favorite and is over .500 on the money line as an underdog at 20-18. The total is 2-3-1 in its last six games and has stayed ‘under’ in 55 percent of its games.

San Jose is 28-20 as a favorite and 11-8 as an underdog. The 'under' is 3-1-1 in the last five games and has slightly favored the ‘under’ over the course of the season.

The Sharks should open as a healthy favorite on the money line and remain a solid pick against a Rangers’ team that is struggling to play with any kind of consistency, especially on the road where it is 3-5 SU in its last eight games.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:14 AM

Flyers and Canucks top NHL betting futures

The Canucks opened 12/1 to win it all but have been bet down to 4/1.
Pro hockey bettors who are looking to hedge their future book wagers have quite a few large line moves on their radar. Let’s examine four teams that have seen their future book odds dramatically increase, and four that have seen a significant drop.

Those who proficiently prospected at the beginning of the season by placing a few dollars on the Vancouver Canucks to capture the Stanley Cup at 12/1 are presently sitting pretty.

The Canucks have been bet down to 4/1 thanks to a league-leading 97 points. That’s 11 more points than any Western Division rival and seven more points than the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia Flyers.

Vancouver has a league-best 225 goals thanks in large part to the NHL’s No. 1 power play that has a 24.2 percent success rate. The Canucks are tops in the league defensively, allowing just 2.3 GPG. They also have the NHL’s best home ledger at 23-7-1-4.

The aforementioned Flyers opened at 15/1 to take the Cup back to Philadelphia, but have since been bet down to the 7/2 favorite. The Flyers are equally adept at home (21-10-1-2) as they are on the road (21-9-2-1). They have scored the most goals in the Eastern Conference (215), despite a 20th-ranked power play.

Two other division leaders have also seen their respective future book odds bet down. The Northeast Division-leading Boston Bruins went from 20/1 to 7/1, while the Central Division-leading Detroit Red Wings are currently 4/1 from an opening of 8/1.

Both teams have had the majority of success on enemy ice, with the Bruins owning the league’s best road ledger at 22-8-1-3. It’s a good thing the Bruins are clicking on the road because the club is just 16-12-3-2 at home.

Detroit also has a better record on the road (22-9-2-2) than it does at home (18-11-3-1). Ironically, the Wings began the campaign with a 10-1-1 home ledger, but have gone 8-10-2 since. Mike Babcock’s troops are tied for first offensively, averaging 3.2 GPG. However, they are a dismal 19th defensively by yielding an average of 2.9 GPG.

Those who wagered on the Chicago Blackhawks to repeat as Cup champs at 5/1 have seen those odds swell to 22/1. But, after a very slow start, the Blackhawks have recently picked up steam. Entering weekend action, Chicago has won eight of its last 10 outings to climb within seven points of the first place Red Wings in the Central Division.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were a stylish choice to take home Lord Stanley’s cup with an opening number of 7/1. However, the Pens have dropped six of their last nine contests and are playing without superstars Sidney Crosby (concussion) and Evgeni Malkin (knee). As a result, the Pens are now 12/1 to go all the way.

Washington, which was expected to lead the world in scoring, opened at 6/1 to take the title. Despite holding a slim two-point lead over second-place Tampa Bay in the Southeast Division, the Caps are now 10/1.

The scoring expectations have not come to fruition, as the Caps rank 22nd offensively by averaging 2.6 GPG. However, the club is getting it done on the defensive end. Washington is yielding an average of 2.4 GPG, which ranks fourth. The Caps are also fourth on the penalty kill with an 85.5 percent success rate.

Despite a furious late-season rally that has seen them go 18-4 in their last 22 games, the New Jersey Devils are currently 60/1 to capture the Cup. That is significantly higher that their 18/1 opening line. The Devils are still 10 points out of the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:17 AM

SEC Tourney Semifinals

March 12, 2011

The SEC Tournament semifinals are set to tip off at 1:00 p.m. Eastern on Saturday at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. In the first game, Kentucky (23-8 straight up, 11-14-1 against the spread) will look to avenge a regular-season loss against the champion of the SEC West, Alabama.

After his team pushed past Ole Miss 75-66 as a nine-point favorite, UK head coach John Calipari told the media, “Alabama had us down 20 down there. We had a little run at the end, but they smashed us. We're playing a team that smashed us."

UK freshman point guard Brandon Knight was the catalyst with 17 points, six rebounds and six assists against the Rebels. Doron Lamb scored a team-high 19 points, knocking down 7-of-10 shots from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Alabama (21-10 SU, 15-12 ATS) beat Georgia for a second time in less than a week by rallying from a 14-point second-half deficit to force overtime. In the extra session, the Crimson Tide pulled away to capture a 65-59 win as a 1 ½-point underdog.

JaMychal Green led the way with 20 points, 13 rebounds, five blocked shots and four steals. Charvez Davis chipped in 15 points. For UGA, Travis Leslie had a game-high 24 points and 10 rebounds.

When these teams met at Coleman Coliseum on Jan. 18, Alabama held off a late Kentucky charge to preserve a 68-66 win as a four-point home underdog. Green finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Tony Mitchell added 15 points and seven boards.

In the losing effort, Terrence Jones had 17 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots. Knight was limited to 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field.

The 'under' has gone 5-2-1 in the last eight head-to-head meetings between these programs. In the first meeting this year, the 134 combined points made bets on the total pushes with the 134-point tally.

The 'under' is 14-10-2 overall for UK, cashing in each of its last three outings.

Florida (25-6 SU, 13-13-1 ATS) went to intermission trailing Tennessee, but the Gators rode the hot shooting of Kenny Boynton and Erving Walker to capture an 85-74 win as 3 ½-point favorites. UF beat the Vols three times for the first time in school history.

Boynton finished with a team-high 22 points, burying all 10 of his free-throw attempts. Walker had 17 points, making 3-of-4 from 3-point range. Chandler Parsons, who was recently named SEC Player of the Year, scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished out four assists, made two steals and had a pair of blocked shots.

Billy Donovan’s team will face Vanderbilt (23-9 SU, 15-11-2 ATS) in the second game of Saturday’s afternoon session. The Commodores withstood a game effort from Mississippi St. and pulled away in the final minute to collect an 87-81 triumph. They closed as six-point favorites at most books, resulting in a push for gamblers. The 168 combined points jumped ‘over’ the 144 ½-point total.

John Jenkins paced Vandy with a game-high 29 points one night after sitting out a win over LSU due to a foot injury. Jeffery Taylor added 20 points and five assists. Despite playing less than two minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, Renardo Sidney scored a team-high 22 points for the Bulldogs. Dee Bost finished with 16 points and 11 assists, while Ravern Johnson scored 18 points.

UF beat Vandy in both head-to-head meetings this season, including an 86-76 win at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville last Saturday. The Gators got at least 13 points from all five starters, led by Boynton’s 17.

Florida has won nine of their last 10 games, going 6-3-1 ATS during that stretch. If they can win the SEC Tournament, it says here that they’ll be worthy of a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

As of early Saturday morning, there was no line for either of these games yet. Both contests will be televised by ABC.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:18 AM

ACC Tournament Semifinals

March 12, 2011

North Carolina (25-6 SU, 15-13 ATS) advanced to the ACC Tournament semifinals by rallying from a 19-point deficit to beat Miami on Tyler Zeller’s buzzer-beating layup on a sweet leave from freshman point guard Kendall Marshall. Zeller’s bucket gave the Tar Heels a 61-59 win, but the Hurricanes easily took the cash as nine-point underdogs.

Harrison Barnes scored a team-high 18 points for the winners. Marshall had 10 assists and John Henson scored 10 points, pulled down 13 rebounds and blocked five shots.

Clemson (21-10 SU, 13-13-1 ATS) knocked off Boston College 70-47 in the ACC quarterfinals, easily covering the number as a 4 ½-point favorite. The Tigers were led by Demontez Stitt, who had 20 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

UNC swept the season series from Clemson, winning 64-62 at Littlejohn Coliseum as a two-point underdog on Feb. 12. Barnes and Marshall scored 20 and 18 points, respectively, while Henson produced a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds. In the losing effort, Stitt had 17 points and seven rebounds, while Milton Jennings had 15 points and 12 boards.

UNC won the meeting in Chapel Hill by a 75-65 count as a 5 ½-point home ‘chalk.’ Reggie Bullock, who is now out for the season after recently sustaining a knee injury, scored a game-high 18 points in the Tar Heels’ victory back on Jan. 18.

The ‘under’ is 17-9-1 overall for Clemson, 16-11-1 overall for UNC.

Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.

The second game will feature Duke vs. Va. Tech in a rematch of a game won by the Hokies in Blacksburg two weeks ago. On that night, Seth Greenberg’s team prevailed by a 64-60 score as a four-point home underdog. Jeff Allen dominated the paint with 18 points and 15 rebounds.

Kyle Singler scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in defeat. Nolan Smith had 18 points and seven boards.

Va. Tech (21-10 SU, 12-13-2 ATS) is in the ACC semifinals thanks to last night’s 52-51 win over Florida St. in thrilling fashion. The Hokies got the go-ahead bucket from Erick Green with 4.8 seconds remaining. Moments later, FSU’s Derwin Kitchen drained a 18-footer at the horn, but replays showed that Kitchen didn’t get the shot off before the buzzer – barely. Thus, after initially counting Kitchen's basket, but the officials waved it off.

Green had missed 11 of his first 12 shots from the field. VT’s senior guard Malcolm Delaney tallied 16 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals.

Duke (28-4 SU, 17-14 ATS) advanced by trouncing Maryland 87-71 as a nine-point favorite. However, the win was bittersweet as Smith, the senior guard who was named ACC Player of the Year, left the game with a toe injury. As of early this morning, Smith was considered ‘questionable.’

Singler was the catalyst against the Terps, scoring 29 points and grabbing nine rebounds.

As of early this morning, there was no line for either game in the ACC Tournament semifinals. Both contests will be on ESPN.

**StarDust Bum** · 03-12-2011, 10:20 AM

Big Ten Semifinals

March 12, 2011

As we get closer to crowning a champion at the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis, we find out that it truly is wide open for the last four teams standing. The possibility of a No. 1 overall seed is still out there for the big dance in this group, while dreams of making a better seeding for others is still possible.

Friday’s action was all about the underdogs barking with covering the spread in all four games, with three of them winning outright. And one of those matches was about the most boring thing I’ve ever seen on television.

The path to the conference title game opens up at 2:00 p.m. EST on CBS when the Buckeyes take on the hated Wolverines in the first semifinal contest.

Ohio State (30-2 straight up, 14-13 against the spread) might be one of the best teams in the nation, but they have a nasty habit of playing down to its competition. That was the case on Friday afternoon as the Buckeyes held on for a 67-61 overtime win against Northwestern, failing to cover as 12-point favorites.

Jared Sullinger paced the Bucks with 20 points and 18 boards in the win over the Wildcats. It wasn’t his best outing though, going 2-of-12 from the field for the game. He made up for it though with 16-of-18 from the charity stripe. That was the only bright spot considering OSU went 3-for-15 beyond the three-point line. Ohio State is now 17-0 SU, but 6-11 ATS when listed as a double-digit favorite this season.

Michigan (20-12 SU, 18-8 ATS) is making its first trip to the semis since 2004 after tripping up the Fighting Illini 60-55 as a three-point underdog. Darius Morris helped the Wolverines rally for the win by scoring eight of his 17 points in the last eight minutes of the second half. The victory extends their SU win streak to three games and is now on a 6-0 ATS run.

The Buckeyes swept the season series with Michigan, but the Maize and Blue covered the spread both times as double-digit pups. These two met in last year’s tournament in the quarterfinals. Evan Turner drained a three-pointer from near midcourt at the buzzer to pick up a thrilling 69-68 win. The victory helped propel Ohio State to the conference championship and sent the Wolverines back to Ann Arbor for the rest of the season.

The saving grace for Michigan is that even though the Buckeyes are 4-1 SU over the last five head-to-head meetings, they are 5-0 ATS. The ‘over’ is 3-2 in those contests.

The ‘over’ is 6-3 over the last nine games for the Wolverines.

Ohio State has seen the ‘over’ go 17-13 this season, but the ‘under’ is on a two-game run at the moment.

We’ll find out the who the other participant in the title game will be when Spartans and Nittany Lions square off at 4:00 p.m. EST on CBS.

Michigan State (19-13 SU, 11-19-1 ATS) was supposed to be in this spot before the season started. Yet the way they’ve played all year made them a true bubble club. Well, Sparty won’t have to worry about that now after dropping Purdue 74-56 as seven-point underdogs. Kalin Lucas had a career night, scoring a personal best 30 points to lead the Spartans to the upset win. This was MSU’s second straight outright win as an underdog and third straight ATS win in this role.

The Spartans will be taking on the other darkhorse left in the Big Ten tourney, Penn State (18-13 SU, 16-11 ATS). The Nittany Lions keep their NCAA hopes alive after a shocking 36-33 win over Wisconsin as 7 ½-point pups that put college basketball back about 25 years. Talor Battle led PSU with a grand total of nine points. That’s not a half of basketball for nine points…that’s the whole damned game. Tim Frazier was more integral to the Nittany Lions making the trip to the semifinals with eight points, seven rebounds and four assists.

Penn State most likely needs to win this game in order to push itself into the big dance. The plus side for them is that they split the season series with the Spartans, both teams winning and covering on their home courts.

Despite what we saw on Friday night, this game has a chance of going above the closing total. That’s because the ‘over’ is 7-2 in the last nine head-to-head meetings.

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