Friday's Trends and Indexes - 2/28 (NBA, NCAAB, NHL, Misc.)

[Udog]

NCAAB

Friday, February 28

Duquesne stays hot with win over Saint Louis

Duquesne sprang a huge upset of red-hot Saint Louis Thursday night, but wise bettors were probably aware the Dukes stood a great chance of covering a hefty spread.

Duquesne entered the road game with a 10-5-2 ATS mark and had cashed its last three in a row. The Billikens – winners of 19 in a row SU -- were 9-15 ATS and had dropped four straight pointspread decisions.

The Dukes were 13.5-point underdogs against Saint Louis, but notched a 71-64 victory to bolster their solid ATS mark and keep the Billikens in a betting-window freefall.


Home not where the heart is for Princeton backers

Princeton (15-8 SU, 8-9 ATS) is just 1-5 ATS on its home floor, including getting swept at the betting window last weekend. The Tigers beat Dartmouth 67-57 but failed to cash as a 13-point favorite last Friday, then fell to league-leading Harvard 59-47 on Saturday as a 2.5-point underdog.

The Tigers have a pair of home games this weekend as they host Yale (14-10 SU, 9-5 ATS) Friday and Brown (14-10 SU, 8-5-1 ATS) on Saturday.


UNC's 10-game winning streak bodes well for futures

Thinking about a futures bet on streaking North Carolina? Well, there is some precedent. When the Tar Heels beat North Carolina State 85-84 in overtime on Wednesday night, it marked their 10th straight win, something they hadn’t done since the 2008-09 season, when they opened with 13 straight wins and later added a 10-game winning streak.

Carolina ended that season with an 89-72 rout of Michigan State as a 7.5-point chalk in the NCAA championship game.


Columbia cashing in for Under bettors

A pretty good Ivy League bet throughout this season has been taking the under when Columbia hits the floor. The total has gone low in 11 of the Lions’ 15 lined games, and the trend has been even stronger on the highway for Columbia, at 6-1 in true road games and 9-1 counting neutral-site contests.

The Lions are at Dartmouth Friday and at Harvard on Saturday.

[Udog]

NBA

Friday, February 28

Tony Parker, San Antonio - Ques Fri

Parker has been dealing with a sprained left hand since the beginning of February as well as a few other ailments. He is questionable to play Friday against the Bobcats.

[Udog]

NHL

Friday, February 28

Kuemper gets start after Thursday's shutout

Fresh off a 21 save, shutout performance against the Edmonton Oilers Thursday, the Minnesota Wild will ride the hot goalie as Darcy Kuemper will start tonight at the Vancouver Canucks.

Kuemper has played well as starter Josh Harding remains on IR. The Saskatoon native is 9-3-2 with a 2.29 GAA and .921 save percentage on the season.

The Wild are currently +138 road dogs at the Canucks Friday.


Lightning forward Steven Stamkos, out Saturday

Stamkos is recovering from a broken right tibia which he suffered on November 11th against the Bruins. He will not play on the team's upcoming four-game road trip but expects to return on March 6th to face the Sabres.


Pens' Letang expects to return after stroke

Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang is confident that he will play hockey again after suffering a stroke last month.

Speaking with reporters before the Penguins' game against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night, Letang, 26, said doctors told him that he should be able to get back on the ice. But when that happens remains unknown.

"(Doctors) said being 26 and having a stroke, it's actually a small percentage, but the chance that I get back to normal is really high," Letang said. "We'll take the decision from there, but for now, we're keeping like this. ... I'm going day by day to get to 100 percent. I feel like I'm trying to make steps and getting closer to coming back at one point."


Sabres come out of Olympic break hot

The Buffalo Sabres have come out of the Olympic break on a modest two-game winning streak and close off their mini three-game homestand against the San Jose Sharks Friday.

The Sabres defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 Tuesday, and followed that up with a 5-4 OT victory against the Boston Bruins Thursday.

The Sabres are currently +163 home dogs.

[Udog]

Phoenix: A springboard to a Harvick title?

With the Daytona 500 and all its pageantry now complete, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers and teams can now turn its focus toward the rest of the schedule, which starts with a trip west to Phoenix for Sunday's The Profit on CNBC 500, Presented by Small Business Fueling America (3 p.m. ET on FOX).

Phoenix will feature the first knock-out group qualifying session in NASCAR's premier series. The new qualifying format was announced during the offseason and offers fans and drivers a more intense, exciting qualifying session.

When the drivers take to the one-mile track, four-time Phoenix winner Kevin Harvick should be considered one of the favorites. Although he has experienced success in Phoenix, he knows that reaching Victory Lane is a never-ending learning process.

"You really have to have an understanding of the track," Harvick said. "Every time we go back, I feel like we learn something different.

"The track is still racy enough where you can make up time if your car is good, but you need to stay focused on strategy."

Harvick, currently in 12th place and 17 points behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the standings, has finished third in the title hunt in three of the past four years. If he's to make the jump to the championship stage at Homestead in November, he will need a strong performance at Phoenix -- one of his best tracks.

A win on Sunday would all but guarantee him a spot in the revamped Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. It also plays to his advantage that all three national series return to Phoenix for the penultimate race of the season.

In 22 NSCS races at the track, Harvick has compiled seven top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in addition to his four wins, which is tied for most at the track with Jimmie Johnson. In last November's event, he finished first after leading a race-high 70 laps. In 2006, Harvick swept both races at Phoenix, and won again in fall 2012.

Harvick's driver rating is 101.3 over the last 18 races, second only to Johnson.

Harvick endured a number of changes during the offseason -- moving from Richard Childress Racing to Stewart-Haas Racing and pairing with crew chief Rodney Childers. Those adjustments, however, don't concern Harvick; he feels confident about where he and his team are in terms of communication and performance.

"We're starting the rest of the season this weekend at Phoenix, in a way," said Harvick, who placed 13th in the Daytona 500. "Rodney has always built fast short-track race cars and I'm really looking forward to building off what we've accomplished thus far."

ONE RACE AT TIME FOR REGAN SMITH

After a win in the season-opening race at Daytona, Regan Smith carries a six-point standings advantage over Trevor Bayne into Saturday's Blue Jeans Go Green presented by Cotton, The Fabric of Our Lives (3:45 p.m. ET on ABC).

Smith, however, isn't taking anything for granted.

"We left Daytona with the points lead, but it's a long season," Smith said. "Something I've learned is to not pay attention to the points. I'm sure I'll hear about it one way or another, but I'm not going to really look at it until we get to race 20 or 25."

With the NASCAR Nationwide Series in Phoenix, he is looking to build upon last week's success and improve upon his fourth-place finish in last fall's race at the one-mile track, his best showing in six starts.

"Phoenix was a challenge for us last spring," Smith said. "We came back and did our homework, changed some things and left there with a top five last fall."

In last year's spring event, the Cato, N.Y., driver finished a respectable 11th. In his four other NNS Phoenix starts, he has an eighth and three finishes lower than 24th. He has an 82.2 driver rating at the track. His best result in nine NSCS starts was a 20th, coming in the second race of 2012. In two NCWTS starts, he has never finished higher than 30th.

If there is one team with a decided advantage over all others, it has to be Joe Gibbs Racing. JGR's drivers have won the last three NNS races at Phoenix with Kyle Busch sweeping the events last season and Joey Logano winning in 2012. In the past 12 races, JGR drivers have won six. This weekend, Busch, Elliott Sadler and Matt Kenseth will all be piloting JGR-owned Toyotas.

[Udog]

NBA
Short Sheet

Friday, February 28

Utah at Cleveland, 7:35 ET
Utah: 52-31 UNDER revenging a home loss vs opponent of 10 points or more
Cleveland: 19-10 UNDER in home games

Memphis at Oklahoma City, 8:05 ET
Memphis: 32-17 UNDER against Northwest division opponents
Oklahoma City: 8-0 ATS off an upset loss as a favorite of 10 points or more

Golden State at NY Knicks, 8:05 ET
Golden State: 27-14 ATS after a loss by 10 points or more
NY Knicks: 10-21 ATS as an underdog

Charlotte at San Antonio, 8:35 ET
Charlotte: 17-33 ATS in non-conference games
San Antonio: 26-14 ATS after scoring 110 points or more

Chicago at Dallas, 8:35 ET
Chicago: 1-9 ATS after a blowout win by 20 points or more
Dallas: 8-0 ATS against Central division opponents

New Orleans at Phoenix, 10:35 ET
New Orleans: 22-9 ATS in road games after 5 or more consecutive losses
Phoenix: 5-15 ATS in home games after having lost 3 of their last 4 games

Sacramento at LA Lakers, 10:35 ET
Sacramento: 16-7 ATS after allowing 105 points or more
LA Lakers: 39-62 ATS in home games after a loss by 6 points or less

[Udog]

NBA

Friday, February 28

Report: Butler to sign with Thunder

Forward Caron Butler, whose contract was bought out by the Milwaukee Bucks, plans to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder after he clears waivers on Saturday, according to ESPN.com.

Butler agreed to a buyout and was placed on waivers by the Bucks on Thursday.

Oklahoma City reportedly appeals to Butler because the Thunder can offer him the most playing time while playing behind star Kevin Durant. Butler could see more action when the Thunder go to a smaller lineup with center Kendrick Perkins out for up to six weeks.

The Miami Heat are also reportedly interested in Butler, who played his first two NBA seasons (2002-2004) of his career there and is close friends with Heat guard Dwyane Wade.

Butler, 34, averaged 11 points and 4.6 rebounds in 34 games with Milwaukee this season. He has missed time with a high ankle sprain. He is also shooting career-low 39 percent. However, in his last 10 games with the Bucks, he scored 17 or more points four times.


Report: Granger signing with Clippers

Guard/forward Danny Granger is signing with the Los Angeles Clippers, ESPNLosAngeles.com reported Friday.

Granger became a free agent when his contract was bought out by the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.

Granger has struggled in coming back from knee and calf injuries. He averaged 8.3 points on just 35.9 percent shooting in 22.5 minutes over 29 games with the Indiana Pacers before getting traded to Philadelphia last week. He played just five games last season.

The Clippers are loaded with shooting guards and small forwards, including Matt Barnes, Jared Dudley, Willie Green, Jamal Crawford and rookie Reggie Bullock. Also, J.J. Redick is expected to return from injury soon.

Granger made his lone All-Star appearance in 2009, the year he finished fifth in the NBA in scoring at 25.8 points per game. In Granger's last full season, 2011-12, he averaged 18.7 points and five rebounds.


Perkins' injury, not Westbrook's return, sparked OKC's slide

It’d be easy to lay blame for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s recent skid at the feet of Russell Westbrook.

Sure OKC’s struggles, losing three in a row SU and ATS, coincides with the return of their All-Star guard but also coincide with absence of center Kendrick Perkins.

In those three losses, the Thunder have given up an average of 114 points - over 15 points worse than their season average. They’ve been dominated in the key, outrebounded each game and either gave up too many fastbreak points (20.6 against a season average of 13) or points in the paint (44 versus a season average of 39.8).

What Perkins brings is experience, interior toughness, and intimidation – attributes that can positively affect a team but don’t necessarily show up on a stats sheet. A hard foul can make someone think twice about taking the ball to the rim and a well-placed box out can stop an easy put back.

Without Perkins, and with games coming up against the Memphis Grizzlies and the Charlotte Bobcats, the Thunder could find themselves in difficult spots to try and reverse this downward trend.

The Grizzlies and Bobcats are both slow offensive teams that pound it down to their big men, Zac Randolph, Marc Gasol and Al Jefferson respectively.

The Grizzlies are 3-1 SU since the All-Star break by doing just what was mentioned, evidenced by Gasol and Randolph accounting for over 30 percent of Memphis’ scoring. Meanwhile, the Bobcats are a very impressive 4-0 SU since the break with Jefferson averaging 25 points and almost 10 rebounds through Thursday’s games.

The prospect of a Perkins-less Thunder has those opponents licking their lips in anticipation. Perkins’ 20 minutes per game has been replaced by rookie Steven Adams and veteran Nick Collison and teams seem to be keying on the duo.

Cleveland Cavaliers centre Spencer Hawes had a 19-point, seven-rebound effort in the 114-104 Cleveland win Wednesday while DeAndre Jordan had 18 and 12 in the Clippers’ 125-117 win Sunday.

The combo of Adams and Collison is averaging five points and eight rebounds over the three-game slide.

The Thunder are 5-point home favorites hosting Memphis Thursday. The total is set at 193 points.

[Udog]

NCAAB

Friday, February 28

NMSU G Ross-Miller suspended

New Mexico State suspended guard K.C. Ross-Miller hours after he instigated a postgame brawl with Utah Valley on Thursday night, ESPN.com reported.

Ross-Miller fired the ball at Utah Valley's Holton Hunsaker at close range and hit him in the leg as time expired in the host Wolverines' 66-61 win in overtime.

Utah Valley fans then stormed the court as the victory got the Wolverines closer to the WAC regular-season championship.

A video of the postgame scene revealed New Mexico State guard DK Eldridge throwing a punch at someone in the crowd and staff forcefully pulling Aggies guard Daniel Mullings away from the melee.

WAC commissioner Jeff Hurd planned to review the video. He is meeting with the Aggies at their game Saturday at Cal State Bakersfield.

New Mexico State coach Marvin Menzies told ESPN.com there were "two separate components" between Ross-Miller throwing the ball and the fans rushing the floor.


Ranked teams fail to cash in for bettors Thursday

All six ranked teams in action failed to cover the spread and went 1-5 straight up in college basketball action Thursday.

Only the Louisville Cardinals won SU, hammering Temple 88-66 but just couldn't cover the 22.5-point closing spread.

[Udog]

MLB

Friday, February 28

Giants open to sharing AT&T Park with A's

The San Francisco Giants would be open to allowing the Oakland Athletics, their cross-bay rival, to share AT&T Park if the A's build a new stadium.

Over the past three seasons, AT&T Park has allowed the fewest home runs in baseball. Batters at AT&T Park have averaged 1.13 home runs per game over the past three seasons, while batters at O.Co Coliseum average 1.75. Over the course of an entire season that equates to 50 less home runs.

If the A's end up sharing AT&T Park, bettors can look at the Athletics pitching staff for dark horse O/U plays.


Greinke leaves game with strained calf

Right-hander Zack Greinke made just four pitches against two batters in his spring-training debut on Thursday for the Los Angeles Dodgers before leaving the Cactus League game against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a calf injury.

Greinke landed awkwardly while making a pitch to Arizona second baseman Cliff Pennington in the first inning and was limping after throwing another pitch. Dodgers trainer Stan Conte and manager Don Mattingly came to the mound and Greinke attempted several warm-up tosses before he left the game and headed to the clubhouse.

The injury, which Greinke described as feeling like a cramp, was diagnosed as a mild calf strain. He had been scheduled to pitch two innings.

The Dodgers went on to lose to a Diamondbacks split squad 4-3.

"I just felt something in my calf," Greinke said, according to MLB.com. "Just try to take care of it this early in spring. Hopefully, it's not a big deal. I think it's minor. We'll see in a couple of days. Right now, I don't feel too bad."

Greinke caused somewhat of a stir earlier this week when he said he had no interest in traveling to Australia for the Dodgers' season-opening, two-game series against the Diamondbacks on March 22-23.

"There just isn't any excitement to it," he told ESPN. "I can't think of one reason to be excited for it."

But the Dodgers' No. 2 starter backtracked on Thursday and now says he would like to make a start in Sydney.

"If we're going to be there, and we obviously are, yes I'd like to pitch there," he said. "My comments, I didn't realize they would cause a stir. I'm looking forward to playing over there. No one wants me to say it, I had to vote to go, my vote was not to go. Now that we are going, I want to be there. I don't want the team to go and me sit here and watch. I don't want to go and watch. I want to play."

Despite Greinke's injury setback, Mattingly would not rule out the possibility of using him Down Under.

"It depends on where it goes," Mattingly said, according to MLB.com. "He might do a 'pen in a couple of days and go from there."


Brewers' second base battle could last all spring

Everyone wants to know how the Milwaukee Brewers are going to pick between veteran Rickie Weeks and young Scooter Gennett in the battle for second base this spring. Understandably, manager Ron Roenicke was vague regarding how that competition would be judged.

"I'm looking for Rickie to be the guy that he was for a lot of years, and hopefully he comes out and really gets locked in swinging," Roenicke said.

That would be nice, because Weeks regressed at the plate the past two seasons. In 104 games last year, he batted only .209 with a .306 on-base percentage, 10 homers and 24 RBIs.

Weeks, 31, was lost for the season at the outset of August with a torn hamstring, and Gennett took over. Gennett, 23, raised eyebrows by batting .324 and playing stellar defense, making a strong bid to unseat Weeks.

"Scooter, we're just looking for him to progress, to keep getting better at everything he does," Roenicke said. "He did a nice job for us defensively, but he's not satisfied with that. He wants to continue to get better. He swung the bat great for us, but the same thing -- he wants to make sure he continues to do the right things there.

"Then, instead of worrying about who's going to start the season, I'm just going to let them play and we'll talk about it later on here in camp."

Making the situation more difficult is that neither Weeks nor Gennett plays another position. Another major issue is that Weeks has an $11 million salary on the final year of his contract, which would make for a very expensive bench player.

The best-case scenario for the Brewers would be for Weeks to play well enough in camp to draw the attention of another club, even if they have to pay some of his salary to make a trade. Such a move would set the stage for Gennett to be their second baseman for years to come.

Luckily for Weeks and the Brewers, he is showing no lingering effects from the hamstring injury. In Milwaukee's first Cactus League game, Weeks started and went 2-for-3 as the Brewers beat the A's 11-3 on Feb. 27.

NOTES, QUOTES

--RF Ryan Braun homered in his first at-bat of the spring, going deep against A's LHP Tommy Milone. It was Braun's first action since accepting a 65-game suspension last season and admitted he used performance-enhancing drugs. As far as his fielding, Braun said he would track as many balls as possible during batting practice each day. Braun is making the move from left field to right field, a position he had not played previously.

--LHP Wei-Chung Wang admitted he was a bit nervous while pitching in the Brewers' only intrasquad game of the spring. However, the 21-year-old Rule 5 draft pick knew how big of a star RF Ryan Braun is and admitted to taking pride in striking him out.

--RHP Michael Olmsted, removed from the 40-man roster over the offseason after a rough year at Triple-A Nashville, struggled in the Brewers' intrasquad game. Olmsted walked two hitters, allowed two hits and a run, and also uncorked a wild pitch.

--LHP Will Smith impressed manager Ron Roenicke in his early bullpen sessions in camp. Smith has done some starting in the majors, but Roenicke told Smith he should focus at this point on winning a spot in the bullpen.

--UT Elian Herrera could be valuable to the Brewers for his remarkable versatility. Herrera not only can play all three outfield spots, he has can play second base, shortstop and third base. That kind of flexibility could be huge on a National League roster.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I've just never been quiet, from when I came up. That's just me being me. I'm very vocal and I like to talk to guys, figuring out what guys are like. The only way to do it is talk to them." -- RHP Matt Garza, who made his presence known in the clubhouse in his first spring with the Brewers.

[Udog]

NCAAB
Short Sheet

Friday, February 28

RIDER: 14-2 ATS when the line is +3 to -3

IONA: 1-11 ATS off a road win by 10 points or more

MONMOUTH: 0-7 ATS in February games

NIAGARA: 1-9 ATS in road games after playing a game as an underdog

WASHINGTON: 0-7 ATS when playing against a team with a losing record

FAIRFIELD: 0-7 ATS in home games after having lost 3 of their last 4 games

HARVARD: 2-11 ATS in home games after allowing 60 points or less

HIGH POINT: 0-7 ATS in all games

[Udog]

NHL
Short Sheet

Friday, February 28

San Jose at Buffalo, 7:00 ET
San Jose: 9-1 SU revenging a loss where opponent scored 4 or more goals
Buffalo: 5-23 SU when playing their 3rd game in 5 days

Phoenix at Colorado, 9:00 ET
Phoenix: 13-4 SU in February
Colorado: 1-7 SU when playing 3 or less games in 10 days

Minnesota at Vancouver, 10:00 ET
Minnesota: 12-6 SU second half of the season
Vancouver: 2-10 SU after having lost 4 of their last 5

St Louis at Anaheim, 10:00 ET
St Louis: 1-10 SU in road games revenging a home loss versus opponent
Anaheim: 8-1 SU off a road win scoring 4 or more goals