Cnotes 2019 WNBA News - Notes - Picks Thru The Playoffs !

[Cnotes53]

The WNBA regular season came to an end on September 8. See below for more information on where all teams stand and the opening-round matchups. The Playoffs begin September 11.

The Playoff Picture Is Set

(NOTE: Updated through games played on 9/8)

First Round (Single Elimination)
? No. 8 Phoenix Mercury at No. 5 Chicago Sky
? No. 7 Minnesota Lynx at No. 6 Seattle Storm

Second Round (Single Elimination)
? Lowest-Seeded First-Round Winner at No. 3 Los Angeles Sparks
? Highest-Seeded First-Round Winner at No. 4 Las Vegas Aces

Semifinals (Best-of-Five Series)
? Lowest Remaining Seed at No. 1 Washington Mystics
? Highest Remaining Seed at No. 2 Connecticut Sun

Finals (Best-of-Five Series)
? Tip Off September 29

The Playoff Field

(NOTE: Updated through games played on 9/8)

Washington Mystics (26-8)
? Clinched No. 1 seed, double bye to semifinals, and home-court advantage throughout the Playoffs

Connecticut Sun (23-11)
? Clinched No. 2 seed and double bye to semifinals

Los Angeles Sparks (22-12)
? Clinched No. 3 seed and first-round bye

Las Vegas Aces (21-13)
? Clinched No. 4 seed and first-round bye

Chicago Sky (20-14)
? Clinched No. 5 seed and first-round home game

Seattle Storm (18-16)
? Clinched No. 6 seed and first-round home game

Minnesota Lynx (18-16)
? Clinched No. 7 seed

Phoenix Mercury (15-19)
? Clinched No. 8 seed

Tiebreak Procedure

The following tiebreak procedure shall be used to break ties for playoff eligibility and home-court advantage.

a. Two-Way Tie Between Teams. In order to break a tie, the following criteria will be utilized in the order set forth:
(1) Better record in head-to-head games.
(2) Better winning percentage against all teams with .500 or better record at the end of the season.
(3) Better point differential in games net result of total points scored less total points allowed head-to-head.
(4) Better point differential net result of total points scored less total points allowed against all opponents.

b. More Than Two Teams Tied. As many teams as possible will be eliminated at each step. As soon as one or more teams are eliminated at any step, the process must begin again from step (1).

Playoff Format

Effective with the 2016 season, the WNBA implemented changes to playoff seeding and qualification procedures as well as the postseason format. Under the new postseason structure, the eight teams with the highest winning percentages regardless of conference qualify for the playoffs and are seeded based on their record.

Additional features of the reconfigured playoff structure are as follows:

The number of playoff rounds increased from three to four. The top two seeds receive a bye to the semifinals (third round), and the third and fourth seeds receive a bye to the second round.

Teams will be re-seeded after each postseason round.

The first and second rounds are single elimination. In the first round, the No. 5 seed hosts the No. 8 seed and the No. 6 seed hosts the No. 7 seed. In the second round, the No. 3 seed hosts the lowest-seeded first-round winner and the No. 4 seed hosts the other first-round winner.

The semifinals feature a best-of-five format, with the No. 1 overall seed playing the lowest remaining seed and the No. 2 overall seed meeting the remaining team. The Nos. 1 and 2 seeds will host Games 1, 2 and 5, and the lower-seeded teams will host Games 3 and 4 in their respective series. The WNBA Finals remain best-of-five and follow the same 2-2-1 format.

Playoff Schedule

Below is the complete list of 2019 WNBA playoff dates. All times and broadcast information to be announced. Schedule subject to change.

DAY DATE PLAYOFF ROUND GAME

Wednesday Sept. 11 First Round Elimination

Sunday Sept. 15 Second Round Elimination

Tuesday Sept. 17 Semifinals Game 1

Thursday Sept.19 Semifinals Game 2

Sunday Sept. 22 Semifinals Game 3

Tuesday Sept. 24 Semifinals Game 4*

Thursday Sept. 26 Semifinals Game 5*

Sunday Sept. 29 Finals Game 1

Tuesday Oct. 1 Finals Game 2

Sunday Oct. 6 Finals Game 3

Tuesday Oct. 8 Finals Game 4*

Thursday Oct. 10 Finals Game 5*

* ? If Necessary

 

[Cnotes53]

Cheat Sheet - First Round
September 8, 2019
By VI News

The first round of the WNBA playoffs begins on Wednesday, Sept. 11 with a a single-elimination format. The winners of these games will travel to either No. 3 Los Angeles or No. 4 Las Vegas for second round matchups on Sunday.

Those games will be single-elimination as well with the winners advancing to the semifinals against either No. 1 Washington or No. 2 Connecticut for a five-game series before the WNBA Finals, which is also a best-of-five matchup.

(Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under - O/U)

No. 8 Phoenix at No. 5 Chicago (ESPN2, 8:00 p.m. ET)

-- The Sky went 3-0 both SU and ATS versus the Mercury this season.

-- The pair met twice in Chicago and the home squad captured an 82-75 victory on June 10 and a 105-78 blowout win on Sept. 1.

-- The 'over' went 2-1 in the three encounters and the totals ranged from 165 ? to 169 ?.

-- Phoenix enters the playoffs as the lowest seed and the worst record (15-19 SU, 17-16-1 ATS).

-- The Mercury closed the season with four consecutive losses and setbacks in six of their final eight games. In Sunday's finale, the club was outraced 98-89 to Las Vegas at home.

-- Phoenix went 6-11 away from home but it did manage to produce a 9-7-1 record versus the number.

-- Versus the Eastern Conference, the Mercury went 10-8 SU and 11-7 ATS. That includes a 4-5 SU and 6-3 ATS mark on the road.

-- The 'under' went 19-15 for the Mercury this season and that include a 7-10 mark on the road.

-- Since the WNBA created the first and second round elimination matchups in 2016, the Mercury have been involved each of the last three seasons.

-- Phoenix has gone 6-0 in those games, going 3-0 at home in the first round and 3-0 in the second round.

-- Unfortunately for the club, they?ve never captured a semifinal matchup after winning the elimination games. They dropped a 3-2 series to Seattle last season, which was an improvement after getting swept in the 2016 and 2017 semifinal matchups.

-- Chicago earned the third seed in the Eastern Conferenec with a 20-14 overall record but for our purposes, the club was the most profitable team (21-12-1 ATS) in the league.

-- At home, the Sky went 12-5 SU and 11-6 ATS.

The team went 9-9 SU and 11-8-1 ATS versus the Western Conference this season. At home, the Sky went 6-3 both SU and ATS at home.

-- Chicago closed the season with a 100-86 loss at Washington on Sunday. Prior to that setback, the Sky had won two straight and five of the last eight.

-- The offense has been on fire of late, averaging 107 points per game in the two recent wins and that pushed the averaged up to 84.6 PPG on the season, ranked second in the league.

-- Along with covering numbers, the Sky were also beasts for 'over' bettors. The high side went 22-10-2 but make a note that the 'under' was 8-7-2 at Wintrust Arena.

-- After watching the 'under' cash in five straight games for Chicago, the club saw the 'over' go 4-0 their final four matchups versus the West.

-- This will be the first trip to the playoffs for Chicago since 2016 when Los Angeles eliminated the Sky in four games (3-1). Chicago went 1-3 ATS in that series and the 'over' was 3-1 with the lone 'under' connecting in its only win versus the Sparks.


No. 7 Minnesota at No. 6 Seatlte (ESPN2, 10:00 p.m. ET)

-- The Storm went 3-1 both SU and ATS versus the Lynx in the regular season.

-- At home, Seattle went 2-0 by capturing an 84-77 win on June 4 and an 82-74 victory on Aug. 18.

-- The 'over' went 3-1 in those games and the totals ranged from 148 ? to 152 ?.

-- Minnesota (18-16 SU, 18-15-1 ATS ended the regular season on Sunday with a 77-68 loss at Los Angeles. Prior to that defeat, the Lynx had won five in a row while covering four of those games.

-- On the road, the Lynx went 7-10 both SU and ATS.

-- The club went 3-1 both SU and ATS down the stretch away from home and that included Sunday's loss at Los Angeles.

-- Total bettors saw Minnesota post a stalemate (17-17) in its 34 games, with the 'under' go 9-8 on the road.

-- Minnesota played in its first playoff elimination game last season and the club dropped a 75-68 decision to Los Angeles as six-point underdogs.

-- Despite getting sent home early last year, the Lynx have won the WNBA Finals in each of the last four odd years (2017, 2015, 2013, 2011).

-- While that trend could have you leaning to Minnesota, the Storm are the defending WNBA champions.

-- Seattle went 6-2 SU and 4-4 ATS in last year's postseason and that included a 5-0 record (2-3 ATS) at home.

-- At home this season, Seattle went 11- 6 SU and 9-7-1 ATS.

-- The Storm closed the regular season with a 3-1 record and that included a 78-64 road win over Dallas on Sunday.

-- Seattle produced the second best 'under' record (20-13-1) in the regular season but the 'over' closed the season with a 5-3 record.

 

[Cnotes53]

Armadillo: Wednesday's six-pack

Six more interesting pointspreads for this week?s college football:

? North Carolina @ Wake Forest (-3)

? Kansas State @ Mississippi State (-7.5)

? Maryland (-7) @ Temple

? Pittsburgh @ Penn State (-17)

? Eastern Michigan @ Illinois (-8)

? Akron @ Central Michigan (-3)


**********

Armadillo: Wednesday's List of 13: Mid-week musings??.

13) ESPN football analyst Brian Griese is very good; Monday night he produced an old set of notes he had as a player, when his coach was Jon Gruden, back when he played for the Buccaneers in 2004-05, 08. Gruden would hand-write the notes and distribute them to players.

Griese said ??..I never felt more prepared as a player than when I played for Gruden? which is obviously high praise from a guy who spent 11 years playing QB in the NFL, and whose dad was also a really good QB in the NFL.

12) Virginia is -7 over Florida State in Charlottesville Saturday; since 1997, Seminoles are 11-2 SU vs Virginia, 8-5 vs spread? FSU was favored in all 13 games, eight times by 12+ points. 10 of their 11 wins over the Cavaliers were by 14+ points. Teams haven?t met since 2014.

11) Actor Matthew McConaughey is apparently the Texas Longhorns? new Minister of Culture, which means that he is a prominent celebrity booster who helps pump people up when it comes to all things Texas Longhorn. People are impressed by celebrities.

From The Athletic: ?McConaughey once thought he would be a college or pro athlete ? he jokes he only gave up the dream about eight years ago ? and he believes if he hadn?t found the acting thing, he might have become a coach. Now he has the chance to speak with, influence and encourage college kids.?

Four years ago McConaughey started teaching a course at Texas, Script to Screen, in which film students receive a script from a film he?s working on and follow through all of its edits and iterations until production. The Moody College of Communications named him a professor of practice last week.

10) Carolina RB Christian McCaffrey had 29 touches for 209 yards in the Panthers? 30-27 loss to the Rams LW; great production if you have him in your fantasy league, but Carolina better find some other weapons, because 29 touches a week isn?t sustainable, especially in a week like this one, when the Panthers are playing on three days? rest.

9) Sunday afternoon in Queens, the Phillies had Andrew Knapp at bat with two men on and the pitcher (reliever Mike Morin) due up next; the Mets walked Knapp intentionally to get to the pitcher?s spot, because they wanted Morin out of the game, either that or they didn?t think the Phillies would hit for him. This strategy had one glaring problem.

Bryce Harper wasn?t in the game yet, so they walked Knapp to pitch to pinch-hitter Harper, and strategy does not get much dumber than that; it is baseball malpractice. Harper walked to force in a run. Philly won the game 10-7.

8) Mets? P Noah Syndergaard doesn?t want to throw to catcher Wilson Ramos; he pleaded his case to pitching strategist Jeremy Accardo, manager Mickey Callaway, and general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, then got annoyed when word of the private conversation became public.

7) Mets? bullpen has a 7.62 ERA in 80.1 IP in Jacob deGrom?s starts this season.

In totally unrelated news, Milwaukee star OF Christian Yelich fouled a ball off his knee Tuesday night and fractured his kneecap; he is done for this season.

6) Cleveland Browns had 19 snaps on 1st-and-10 Sunday; on 15 of those 19 plays, they were penalized and wound up with 1st or 2nd down and more than 10 yards to go. Not good.

5) Kentucky QB Terry Wilson is out for the season after hurting his left knee last week.

4) Jets signed K Sam Ficken and cut K Kaare Vedvik, who has been traded twice, cut once in the last six weeks. Vedvik missed a PAT and a field goal in Sunday?s 17-16 loss to Buffalo.

Jets also acquired WR DeMaryius Thomas from New England for a 6th round draft pick.

3) Houston Texans released veteran CB Aaron Colvin, just over a year into a 4-year, $34M contract; he gets $7.5M this year- that was guaranteed.

2) If you live in the Albany area and like pro wrestling, you will be interested to know that Ric Flair is doing an appearance at Colonie Center Sunday, at a hobby shop that is upstairs by the food court. They?re expecting a big crowd; get there early.

1) Patriots at Dolphins opened at New England -14.5, but as I type this, it is up to -18.5 or -19. Takes lot of onions to back a Dolphin squad that lost 59-10 last week, while New England was killing the Steelers, but Patriots have lost SU in five of their last six visits to south Florida.

CG Technology got a $55,000 bet Tuesday on the Patriots (-18) to cover; if that person read this site, he/she would know that over the last decade, Week 2 teams who won by 28+ points in Week 1 are 1-10 vs spread in their Week 2 game. We?ll see what happens.

 

[Cnotes53]

WNBA
Long Sheet

Wednesday, September 11

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

PHOENIX (15 - 19) at CHICAGO (20 - 14) - 9/11/2019, 8:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO is 6-3 against the spread versus PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
CHICAGO is 5-4 straight up against PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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

MINNESOTA (18 - 16) at SEATTLE (18 - 16) - 9/11/2019, 10:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
SEATTLE is 7-3 against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
SEATTLE is 6-4 straight up against MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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




WNBA

Wednesday, September 11

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

Chicago Sky
Chicago is 11-5 ATS in its last 16 games
Chicago is 13-6 SU in its last 19 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games
Chicago is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Chicago is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 6 games at home
Chicago is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Phoenix
Chicago is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Phoenix
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 6 games when playing Phoenix
Chicago is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Phoenix
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Chicago's last 6 games when playing at home against Phoenix
Phoenix Mercury
Phoenix is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
Phoenix is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
Phoenix is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
Phoenix is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Phoenix's last 5 games on the road
Phoenix is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
Phoenix is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Phoenix's last 6 games when playing Chicago
Phoenix is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Phoenix's last 6 games when playing on the road against Chicago

Seattle Storm
Seattle is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games at home
Seattle is 19-6 SU in its last 25 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Seattle's last 6 games at home
Seattle is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Minnesota
Seattle is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Minnesota
Seattle is 7-14 SU in its last 21 games when playing Minnesota
Seattle is 10-2 ATS in its last 12 games when playing at home against Minnesota
Seattle is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Seattle's last 6 games when playing at home against Minnesota
Minnesota Lynx
Minnesota is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
Minnesota is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Minnesota is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Minnesota is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games on the road
Minnesota is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Seattle
Minnesota is 14-7 SU in its last 21 games when playing Seattle
Minnesota is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing Seattle
Minnesota is 2-10 ATS in its last 12 games when playing on the road against Seattle
Minnesota is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Seattle
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing on the road against Seattle


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


WNBA
Dunkel

Wednesday, September 11


Phoenix @ Chicago

Game 601-602
September 11, 2019 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Phoenix
104.054
Chicago
113.400
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Chicago
by 9 1/2
185
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Chicago
by 6
169
Dunkel Pick:
Chicago
(-6); Over

Minnesota @ Seattle

Game 603-604
September 11, 2019 @ 10:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Minnesota
102.777
Seattle
112.803
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Seattle
by 10
156
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Seattle
by 2 1/2
151
Dunkel Pick:
Seattle
(-2 1/2); Over

 

[Cnotes53]

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

PHO at CHI 08:00 PM
CHI -6.0
O 170.0

MIN at SEA 10:00 PM
MIN +2.5
O 151.0

 

[Cnotes53]

WNBA postseason gets underway
September 11, 2019
By The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) After a wild regular season, the WNBA postseason gets underway with a pair of first-round games.

Top seeds Washington and Connecticut don't play for another week, as the teams earned double byes to the semifinals. Los Angeles and Las Vegas don't play until Sunday against the winners of Wednesday night's games.

The first round, single elimination round matches Chicago welcoming Phoenix, and Seattle hosting Minnesota.

The Mercury will head into the Windy City short-handed as they will most likely be without Diana Taurasi. Phoenix's star guard has missed most of the season with back and hamstring injuries. She's listed as doubtful for the opening game.

''Hopefully we can win and get her ready for Sunday,'' Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said on Tuesday. ''But at this stage, I don't envision Diana playing.''

Taurasi has been the ultimate competitor in do-or-die WNBA playoff elimination games, going 13-1 in her career, with her lone loss coming against Seattle in the semifinals last season. The Mercury have gone 6-0 in the single elimination format since the WNBA first introduced it in 2016. Phoenix is used to playing without Taurasi this season, and Brittney Griner and DeWanna Bonner have had outstanding seasons, as well as guard Leilani Mitchell.

Chicago is back in the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The Sky are led by guard Courtney Vandersloot, who became the first player in WNBA history to have 300 assists in a season. While experience is on the Mercury's side, the Sky have won all three games between the teams this season. That includes a 27-point win last week.

In the second game of the night, Minnesota will visit the defending champion Storm. Both teams have been a bit surprising this season considering the players they've been missing. Seattle has played this season without reigning MVP Breanna Stewart, who has been out with a ruptured Achilles' tendon. The Storm have also been missing Sue Bird for the entire year after she had knee surgery in May.

Seattle has found other players to step up in the absence of the two stars. Natasha Howard has had an incredible season, playing well at both ends of the court.

Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve had to find a way to restructure the franchise after four key pieces to the Lynx's dynasty were missing. Lindsay Whalen retired, Rebekkah Brunson sat out because of a concussion and Maya Moore decided to take the year off. Add to that Seimone Augustus missed the first half of the season while recovering from knee surgery and Reeve had a mostly new roster this season.

The one mainstay from the championship run was center Sylvia Fowles, who had another strong season. She was complemented by first-round pick Napheesa Collier, who is a leading candidate for rookie of the year.

Here are a few things to watch for in the playoffs:

RESTING TIME: Washington and Connecticut will have time to heal up and be ready for the semifinals. For the Mystics, it's a chance to get a few more days for Kristi Toliver to recover from a bone bruise that has sidelined her for the last few weeks. For the Sun, it's a chance to play a best-of-five series in the playoffs instead of a single-elimination game in which the team hasn't fared well, losing the last two years to Phoenix.

PLAYOFF NEWBIES: The Las Vegas Aces were the preseason pick by the WNBA's general managers and coaches to win the league this year. Coach Bill Laimbeer has said all along it's a three-year plan for the team and this is just the second year. The Aces earned a bye on the final day of the regular season and have the talent to make a deep playoff run. They are led by the dominant front court of A'ja Wilson and Liz Cambage.

ROUNDING INTO FORM: The Los Angeles Sparks have been nearly unbeatable at home this season, winning 15 of 17 contests. With Candace Parker, Chelsea Gray and the Ogwumike sisters leading the way, the Sparks have playoff experience and depth. The key though might be the play of Riquna Williams. Los Angeles' guard was suspended for 10 games because of a domestic violence arrest. She provides the team with a consistent outside shooting presence and has the ability to create her own shot.

 

[Cnotes53]

Sky and Storm advance to second round
September 12, 2019
By The Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) Diamond DeShields scored 25 points and the fifth-seeded Chicago Sky used a dominating second half for a 105-76 win over the eighth-seeded Phoenix Mercury in a first-round, winner-take-all playoff game on Wednesday night.

Astou Nadour and Stefanie Dolson added 16 points apiece for the Sky, who play at fourth-seeded Las Vegas on Sunday in the single-elimination second round. Allie Quigley had 15 points, Cheyenne Parker had 11 off the bench and Courtney Vandersloot had nine points to go with 11 assists as Chicago was making its first playoff appearance since 2016.

Phoenix only trailed 44-41 at halftime despite losing league-leading scorer Brittney Griner with a left knee injury with 8:18 left in the second quarter. Griner was called for an offensive foul setting a screen on Quigley, and it appeared there was knee-to-knee contact. Griner went to the locker room with the help of injured star Diana Taurasi, who was sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Griner returned to start the third quarter with a knee brace, playing briefly before going to the bench for good. She had six points, more than 14 below her average. Chicago used a 12-0 to start the second half and the Sky didn't look back.

STORM 84, LYNX 74

EVERETT, Wash. (AP) - Jordin Canada scored a career-high 26 points and the defending WNBA champion Storm beat the seventh-seeded Lynx.

With Jewell Loyd adding 22 points, the No. 6 Storm, who play at third-seeded Los Angeles on Sunday in the single-elimination second round, got 48 out of their backcourt. Minnesota had one point from starting guards Odyssey Sims and Danielle Robinson. Mercedes Russell contributed 13 points for Seattle.

Sylvia Fowles scored inside with 5:52 to play in the fourth quarter to pull Minnesota within 71-67. The Lynx then went nine straight possessions without scoring. By the time Napheesa Collier made a free throw with 1:11 to play, Seattle was up 76-68.

Damiris Dantas led the Lynx with 20 points, Collier had 19 and Fowles 11. Fowles also had 11 rebounds and Collier 10. According to Elias Sports Bureau, Collier is the third rookie in WNBA history to produce a double-double in their playoff debut, joining Candace Parker and Tamika Catchings.

Seattle led 29-21 after one quarter as Canada and Loyd scored 11 points each. Minnesota stayed close because of its frontcourt production but never led after the opening minutes.

Trailing 64-59 entering the fourth quarter, Minnesota got an early basket but Seattle reserves Shavonte Zellous and Sami Whitcomb combined for seven points to push the lead to 10. The Lynx answered with six points but then went cold with six turnovers and four missed shots before Dantas hit a 3 in the final minute.

 

[Cnotes53]

SCHEDULE FOR SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2019
Time (ET) Away Home Site
3:05 PM Seattle Storm Los Angeles Sparks Staples Center
5:05 PM Chicago Sky Las Vegas Aces Mandalay Bay Events Center


***********************

WNBA SEPT. PLAYOFFS OPINIONS AND BEST BETS: ALL BASED ON 5 UNITS

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD


09/11/2019 3-1-0 75.00% +9.50

Total................3-1-0........75.00%.....+9.50


*****************************

BEST BETS:

DATE........................ATS............. ..UNITS...............O/U..............UNITS...........TOTALS


09/11/2019..............1 - 1................-0.50................2 - 0............+10.00..........+9.50

Totals......................1 - 1 ...............-0.50................2 - 0.............+10.00..........+9.50

 

[Cnotes53]

Armadillo: Sunday's six-pack

Top six picks for Week 2 in Westgate Super Contest:

6) Falcons, +1.5 (729)

5) Rams, 2.5 (785)

4) Bengals, -2 (804)

T2) Steelers, -4 (966)
T2) Cowboys, -5 (966)

1) Browns, -2.5 (2,053)? Spread posted before Darnold declared out

2019 record: 3-3


**********

Armadillo: Sunday's Den: Wrapping up a college football Saturday

13) Virginia 31, Florida State 24? Cavaliers had three TD drives of 72+ yards in the 4th quarter, as they handed FSU a loss that made the Seminoles 13-15 SU in their last 28 games.

12) Iowa 18, Iowa State 17? Game was delayed twice by lightning for total of almost three hours; Hawkeyes won 5th straight game in this rivalry, despite being outgained by 105 yards. Cyclones lost two fumbles, were 3-9 on 3rd down; Iowa was 10-19.

11) Temple 20, Maryland 17? Weird game; Terrapins were 5-21 on 3rd down, 1-6 on 4th down, failing to score on three drives where they had 1st-and goal. Maryland scored two safeties, was +2 in turnovers but still lost- they completed only 16-39 passes.

10) BYU 30, USC 27 OT? Cougars win in OT for second week in a row; they won at Tennessee LW. Trojans were minus-3 in turnovers; total yardage was 452-430, fun game to watch.

9) Air Force 30, Colorado 23 OT? Buffaloes started LY 5-0, then lost their last seven games and fired coach MacIntyre, who I think is a good coach (DC at Ole Miss now).

Colorado beat Nebraska LW, in the renewal of an old rivalry, then they get beat in OT here by an Air Force team that ran ball for 289 yards. Buffs have a senior QB; this is their year to make some noise, but this is a bad loss.

8) Wake Forest 24, North Carolina 18? Demon Deacons are 3-0, and appear headed to their 4th straight bowl, which would be the first time Wake Forest has done that. Thats the good news.

Bad news for Wake Forest will be when a big $$$ school comes calling for coach Dave Clawson, who appears headed for greener pa$ture$ fairly soon. Very good coach.

7) Upsets:
? Kansas (+19) 48, Boston College 24
? Arizona State (+15.5) 10, Michigan State 7
? Kansas State (+7.5) 31, Mississippi State 24
? West Virginia (+7) 44, NC State 27
? Temple (+7) 20, Maryland 17
? Eastern Michigan (+7) 34, Illinois 31
? Liberty (+6) 35, Buffalo 17

6) I-A team losing to a I-AA team:
? Citadel 27, Georgia Tech 24? Citadel runs the option, making things worse for Tech.

Close call, red flag:
? Virginia Tech 24, Furman 17
? Nevada 19, Weber State 13
? Wyoming 21, Idaho 16

5) Eastern Michigan 34, Illinois 31? Was impressed by EMU senior QB Mike Glass III, who was 23-36/316 passing in the Eagles? upset win.

4) Arizona State 10, Michigan State 7? Spartans didn?t score until there was 8:37 left to play; Sun Devils went ahead 10-7 with 0:50 left, then Michigan State tied it on a FG with 0:06 left, but they had 12 men on the field- when they tried the kick again, they missed badly.

Big win for Herm Edwards? Sun Devils, who were 15.5-point underdogs; ASU is 6-2 ATS as an underdog under Edwards.

3) Arizona 28, Texas Tech 14? Wildcats ran ball for 314 yards, converted 15-21 third down plays. Arizona QB Tate threw for 185 yards, ran for 129 more.

2) Southern Miss 47, Troy State 42? Both teams threw for 500+ yards; there were six TD?s scored in 4th quarter, including back/back kick returns for TD?s? shortest play of the six TD?s was 34 yards. 12 TD?s, no turnovers, wild game.

1) A gambler put $1,000 on Auburn to beat Kent State (with no pointspread) at a Caesars sportsbook Saturday night. Auburn won 55-16; the bettor wins $5, so he basically got a free drink for his trouble.

 

[Cnotes53]

Cheat Sheet - Second Round

The WNBA playoffs is down to six teams as the first round concluded this past Wednesday.

In those games, the home teams went 2-0 both straight up and against the spread as Chicago and Seattle posted wins and covers against Phoenix and Minnesota respectively while the 'over' also cashed in both games as well.

The Sky will now head to desert to meet Las Vegas on Sunday while the Storm trek down the West Coast for a matchup at Los Angeles later in the evening.

Those two clubs will meet the winner of Sunday's winners in the semifinals, which are best-of-five matchups.

(Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under - O/U)

No. 6 Seattle at No. 3 Los Angeles (ESPN, 3:05 p.m. ET)

Regular Season Meetings (Los Angeles 2-1 SU/ATS, Over 2-1, Home Team 3-0 SU/ATS)

June 21 - Seattle (+1.5) 84 vs. Los Angeles 62 (Under 154)
Aug. 4 - Los Angeles (-4.5) 83 vs. Seattle 75 (Over 148)
Sept. 5 - Los Angeles (-6.5) 102 vs. Seattle 68 (Over 155)

-- The home team went unbeaten in all three regular season meetings.

-- The Sparks captured their two victories at home, winning by eight points in early August before a 34-point blowout win last week.

-- Seattle advanced to this matchup by defeating Minnesota 84-74 at home this past Wednesday in the first round as a 2 1/2-point home favorite while the 'over' (149.5) cashed.

-- Including that victory, the Storm have won and covered four of their last five games. The lone loss, mentioned above, came at Los Angeles.

-- Seattle went 7-10 SU and 9-8 ATS on the road this season.

-- When catching points away from home, the Storm went 5-9 SU and 7-7 ATS.

-- In their last six spots as a road underdog, Seattle went 1-5 SU and 2-4 ATS.

-- Even though Wednesday's first-round playoff game went 'over' the total, the Storm were a solid 'under' bet in the regular season (20-13-1).

-- On the road, the low side went 11-5-1 for the club and all of those results are attributed to Seattle's defense that is allowing a league best 75.1 points per game.

-- Los Angeles finished the regular season with a 22-12 SU and 17-16-1 ATS record, the best mark in the Western Conference.

-- The Sparks closed the year with three straight wins at home, winning by an average of 17.6 PPG.

-- At home, Los Angeles was an impressive 15-2 SU and 12-5 ATS.

-- As home favorites this season, the Sparks closed with 12 consecutive wins and they went 9-3 ATS in those contests.

-- Total bettors saw a nice back and forth with Los Angeles this season as the club saw the 'over' go 18-16 overall, 9-8 both at home and on the road.

-- L.A. went 1-1 in last year's postseason and the win came at home, a 75-68 decision over Minnesota as a six-point home favorite.

-- Going back to the 2015 playoffs, Los Angeles has gone 8-2 both SU and ATS in its last 10 playoff games at home. The 'over' has gone 6-4 during this span but the 'under' has connected in the last three encounters.

-- Seattle managed to steal one road win against Washington in last year's WNBA Finals but that was an anomaly. Prior to that win, the Storm had dropped eight straight playoff games on the road.


No. 5 Chicago at No. 4 Las Vegas (ESPN2, 5:05 p.m. ET)

Regular Season Meetings (Las Vegas 2-1 SU, 1-2 ATS, Over 3-0, Away 2-1 SU, 3-0 ATS)

July 2 - Las Vegas (-9) 90 vs. Chicago 82 (Over 162.5)
Aug. 9 - Chicago (+7) 87 at Las Vegas 84 (Over 164.5)
Aug. 18 - Las Vegas (-2) 100 at Chicago 85 (Over 168.5)

-- This regular season matchup saw the visitor go 2-1 SU and ATS, with all of the encounters coming in the second-half of the season.

-- Chicago surprised Las Vegas on Aug. 9 wtih an 87-84 win as a seven-point home favorite but it did fall to Las Vegas 90-82 at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 2.

-- The point-spread on those games was Vegas -9 and -7, which is much higher than Sunday's opening number of -2.5.

-- The totals on those games ranged from 162.5 to 168.5 and the 'over' went 3-0 in the regular season. Fast forward to the playoffs, where defense is expected to be stressed, and the number is up to 176.5 off an opener of 173.

-- Chicago came to play this past Wednesday as it dominated Phoenix 105-76 in wire-to-wire fashion as a seven-point favorite.

-- Including the win over the Mercury, the Sky have won and covered three of their last four games.

-- The 'over' has been the hot hand for Chicago, winners now in seven straight and 15 of the last 16 for the club.

-- Chicago is the only team in the WNBA to average and allow over 80 points per game (84.6, 83.3).

-- On the road, the Sky went 8-9 SU and 10-6-1 ATS.

-- Circling back to the 'over' angle, the Sky have watched the high side go 15-2 in 17 away games.

-- Las Vegas finished 21-13 SU overall but it burned bettors with a 13-21 record against the spread.

-- The Aces were strong at home, going 13-4 at the Thomas & Mack Center and they were a tad better for bettors (7-10 ATS).

-- Vegas finished the season with a 98-89 road win at Phoenix but a 1-4 record in its previous five games could be alarming.

-- The 'over' went 10-7 at home for Las Vegas, 17-16-1 overall on the season.

-- This will be the first playoff appearance for the Las Vegas franchise since the club moved from San Antonio.

-- Prior to Wednesday's playoff win over Seattle, the last trip to the postseason for the Sky came in the 2016 playoffs.

 

[Cnotes53]

WNBA

Sunday, September 15

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

Los Angeles Sparks
Los Angeles is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
Los Angeles is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Los Angeles is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games at home
Los Angeles is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Los Angeles's last 6 games at home
Los Angeles is 5-11 ATS in its last 16 games when playing Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Los Angeles's last 11 games when playing Seattle
Los Angeles is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Seattle
Los Angeles is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Seattle
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Los Angeles's last 19 games when playing at home against Seattle
Seattle Storm
Seattle is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Seattle is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Seattle's last 6 games
Seattle is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 15 of Seattle's last 21 games on the road
Seattle is 11-5 ATS in its last 16 games when playing Los Angeles
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Seattle's last 11 games when playing Los Angeles
Seattle is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles
Seattle is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles
The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Seattle's last 19 games when playing on the road against Los Angeles

Las Vegas Aces
Las Vegas is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
Las Vegas is 15-7 SU in its last 22 games
Las Vegas is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Las Vegas's last 11 games
Las Vegas is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Las Vegas's last 5 games at home
Las Vegas is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Chicago
Las Vegas is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 13 of Las Vegas's last 16 games when playing Chicago
Las Vegas is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Chicago
Las Vegas is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Las Vegas's last 8 games when playing at home against Chicago
Chicago Sky
Chicago is 12-5 ATS in its last 17 games
Chicago is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games
Chicago is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games on the road
Chicago is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Las Vegas
Chicago is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Las Vegas
The total has gone OVER in 13 of Chicago's last 16 games when playing Las Vegas
Chicago is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Las Vegas
Chicago is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Las Vegas
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Chicago's last 8 games when playing on the road against Las Vegas


**********************************


WNBA
Dunkel

Sunday, September 15


Seattle @ Los Angeles

Game 605-606
September 15, 2019 @ 3:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Seattle
109.661
Los Angeles
114.917
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Los Angeles
by 5
152
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Los Angeles
by 7
155
Dunkel Pick:
Seattle
(+7); Under

Chicago @ Las Vegas

Game 607-608
September 15, 2019 @ 5:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Chicago
115.275
Las Vegas
108.390
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Chicago
by 7
166
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Las Vegas
by 4 1/2
175
Dunkel Pick:
Chicago
(+4 1/2); Under




WNBA
Long Sheet

Sunday, September 15

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

SEATTLE (19 - 16) at LOS ANGELES (22 - 12) - 9/15/2019, 2:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SEATTLE is 20-38 ATS (-21.8 Units) in road games when playing with 3 or more days rest since 1997.
SEATTLE is 82-113 ATS (-42.3 Units) in road games after a division game since 1997.
LOS ANGELES is 12-4 ATS (+7.6 Units) in home games this season.
LOS ANGELES is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) in a home game where where the total is greater than or equal to 150 this season.
LOS ANGELES is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) in home games in August or September games this season.
LOS ANGELES is 15-5 ATS (+9.5 Units) on Sunday games over the last 2 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 8-1 ATS (+6.9 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest this season.
LOS ANGELES is 7-1 ATS (+5.9 Units) in home games vs. division opponents this season.
LOS ANGELES is 10-1 ATS (+8.9 Units) in home games after 3 or more consecutive wins over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
SEATTLE is 43-31 ATS (+8.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 23-13 ATS (+8.7 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 12-5 ATS (+6.5 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
SEATTLE is 18-9 ATS (+8.1 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 17-8 ATS (+8.2 Units) in road games versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
SEATTLE is 5-4 against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
LOS ANGELES is 5-4 straight up against SEATTLE over the last 3 seasons
7 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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

CHICAGO (21 - 14) at LAS VEGAS (21 - 12) - 9/15/2019, 4:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CHICAGO is 22-12 ATS (+8.8 Units) in all games this season.
CHICAGO is 14-7 ATS (+6.3 Units) as an underdog this season.
CHICAGO is 11-1 ATS (+9.9 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest this season.
CHICAGO is 18-10 ATS (+7.0 Units) after allowing 75 points or more this season.
CHICAGO is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
CHICAGO is 8-2 ATS (+5.8 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game after 15+ games this season.
CHICAGO is 11-4 ATS (+6.6 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game this season.
LAS VEGAS is 26-46 ATS (-24.6 Units) as a home favorite of 3.5 to 6 points since 1997.
LAS VEGAS is 3-12 ATS (-10.2 Units) after a division game this season.
LAS VEGAS is 6-17 ATS (-12.7 Units) after scoring 75 points or more this season.

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

 

[Cnotes53]

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 15
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

SEA at LA 03:00 PM
SEA +7.5
O 154.5

CHI at LV 05:00 PM
CHI +4.5
O 175.5

 

[Cnotes53]

Hamby's shot lifts Las Vegas over Chicago
September 15, 2019
By The Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) Dearica Hamby hit a shot from a few steps inside halfcourt with 5 seconds left to lift Las Vegas to a 93-92 win over the Chicago Sky on Sunday in the second round of the WNBA playoffs.

With the Aces down by two, Hamby stole a pass from Courtney Vandersloot, took a dribble over halfcourt near the sideline and threw up her shot that went in. The Sky had one last chance, but Astou Ndour's 3-pointer from the corner after a timeout was off.

Las Vegas will play Washington in the best-of-five semifinals that begin Tuesday.

Liz Cambage had 23 points, 17 rebounds and six blocks, Hamby finished with 17 points.

Hamby made a short basket to give Las Vegas a five-point lead with 3:32 left in the fourth quarter but Diamond DeShields and Vandersloot each made a layup before Ndour, who made just 14 3-pointers in the regular season, hit a corner 3 with 24.4 seconds to play to give Chicago a 92-90 lead.

On the ensuing possession, Vandersloot poked the ball off the leg of A'ja Wilson, who lost it out of bounds. Vandersloot then had the ball in the backcourt and was under pressure when Hamby stole it and hit her deep runner.

Diamond DeShields had 23 points, Ndour scored 17 and Kahleah Copper 16 for No. 5 seed Chicago.

SPARKS 92, STORM 69

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Chelsea Gray had 21 points and eight assists, Candace Parker added 11 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and the Sparks beat Seattle to eliminate the defending-champion Storm from the WNBA playoffs.

No. 3 seed Los Angeles advance to play second-seeded Connecticut, which earned a double-bye to the semifinals. The best-of-five series begins Tuesday in Connecticut. The WNBA said that they will pay for charter flights for the winners of the second round games to fly east so that the teams can have a full day to prepare for the first game of the semifinals.

Natasha Howard gave the Storm their first lead since early in the second quarter with a 3-pointer that made it 56-55 with 3:11 left in the third but Parker answered with a layup, Gray hit a pull-up jumper and, after a short basket by Seattle's Jewell Loyd, the Sparks scored 21 of the next 24 points to pull away for good.

Nneka Ogwumike scored 17 points and Riquna Williams added 11 for the Sparks (22-12).

Natasha Howard led the Storm with 20 points, 11 rebounds and four steals.

 

[Cnotes53]

SCHEDULE FOR TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 2019
Time (ET) Away Home Site
6:30 PM Los Angeles Sparks Connecticut Sun Mohegan Sun Arena
8:30 PM Las Vegas Aces Washington Mystics The Entertainment and Sports Arena

SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 19, 2019
Time (ET) Away Home Site
6:30 PM Los Angeles Sparks Connecticut Sun Mohegan Sun Arena
8:30 PM Las Vegas Aces Washington Mystics The Entertainment and Sports Arena

SCHEDULE FOR SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 22, 2019
Time (ET) Away Home Site
5:00 PM Washington Mystics Las Vegas Aces Mandalay Bay Events Center
7:00 PM Connecticut Sun Los Angeles Sparks Staples Center


***************************


WNBA SEPT. PLAYOFFS OPINIONS AND BEST BETS: ALL BASED ON 5 UNITS

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

09/15/2019.......3-1-0........75.00%.......+9.50
09/11/2019...... 3-1-0 .......75.00% ......+9.50

Total.................6-2-0........75.00%.......+19.00


*****************************

BEST BETS:

DATE........................ATS............. ..UNITS...............O/U..............UNITS...........TOTALS

09/15/2019..............1 - 1................-0.50................2 - 0............+10.00..........+9.50
09/11/2019..............1 - 1................-0.50................2 - 0............+10.00..........+9.50

Totals......................2 - 2 ...............-1.00.................4 - 0............+20.00.........+19.00

 

[Cnotes53]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

Six interesting college football spreads this week:

? Utah (-4.5) @ USC

? Michigan State (-6.5) @ Northwestern

? Michigan @ Wisconsin (-3)

? Kentucky @ Mississippi State (-7)

? Auburn @ Texas A&M (-4)

? Oklahoma State @ Texas (-5)


**********

Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but??.

13) Bad news on the quarterback front Monday; Ben Roethlisberger is done for the year- he needs elbow surgery. Roethlisberger will be 38 in March; there is a chance his Hall of Fame career is over.

Mason Rudolph takes over as Pittsburgh?s starter; they traded #3 QB Josh Dobbs to the Jaguars last week, a move they probably regret now. Looks like the new backup is Devlin Hedges, who played college ball at Samford.

12) Drew Brees needs surgery for ligament damage in his right thumb, is out for at least six weeks; Teddy Bridgewater is the Saints? new starter.

11) I?m endorsing something today that I never thought I?d endorse, the Peyton Manning stories on ESPN+ about the history of the NFL . Watched one the other day about the Lombardi Trophy, and it was excellent.

Lot of information in there, even if Peyton continues to be annoying at the same time, just like his TV commercials. But if you like NFL history, this is good stuff.

10) Armen Keteyian wrote an article on Nick Saban in The Athletic last week that made me sad, talking about how when Saban won his first national title at Alabama, he didn?t/couldn?t enjoy the win, he was still correcting mistakes made during the game, and then stressing out about the things that had to be done about recruiting in the next few days.

If you can?t enjoy winning, coaching is a miserable job, because no one enjoys losing. Saban had a staff meeting in a hotel meeting room at 10am the day after Alabama won the title, less than 12 hours after the championship game ended.

Understood that you don?t sustain winning without that single-minded focus, but life is short, and you need to enjoy the good things along the way, too.

9) From Jen McCaffrey:
In 2001, an FBI investigation called Operation Bullpen found that over 75% of all autographed items on the market were forgeries. As a result, Major League Baseball created an authentication department that now employs 220 current and former law enforcement officials.

Authenticators Inc. is a company that works with MLB to ensure the legitimacy of milestone and game-used items as well as any player-autographed items. At least two authenticators are present at all 2,430 regular season games, with more at postseason games and special events like the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby.

8) Baseball stuff:
? Braves put IF Johan Camargo (hairline fracture of shin) on the IL.

7) Football stuff:
? Steelers? QB Ben Roethlisberger (elbow) is out for the year.
? Saints? QB Drew Brees is out for six weeks.
? Redskins RB Derrius Guice (knee) was put on IR.
? Florida Gators QB Feleipe Franks (dislocated ankle) is out for the year.

6) Virginia basketball coach Tony Bennett turned down a raise this week while extending his contract another year. The Cavaliers announced the extension Monday, saying Bennett asked for the money he turned down to be used to pay his staff more and for improvements to both his program as well as other Virginia teams.

5) Browns 23, Jets 3:
? Terrible game; wasn?t nearly as close as the final score indicates.
? Beckham caught an 89-yard TD pass to officially seal the win.
? Teams combined to convert 6-27 on third down.

? 3rd-stringer Falk was 20-25/198 in relief of injured QB Siemian.
? Jets had 45 total yards in the first half, wound up with 262.
? Le?veon Bell had 31 touches for 129 yards.

4) Handicapping 101? France upset the USA in that FIBA basketball tournament in China, then lost their next game by 14 to Argentina. For once, life makes perfect sense. Peaks and valleys, you have an emotional win, then a very disappointing loss.

3) In case you were wondering, the highest paid player on the WNBA?s Las Vegas Aces makes $115,000 a year. They play a 34-game regular season. Was wondering the other day, so I looked it up, but I can?t find out how much WNBA coaches make.

2) If I owned an NBA team and was shelling out hundreds millions of dollars to pay the players, no way in hell would I want any of them playing in these international tournaments during the offseason that don?t mean a damn thing. One of them gets hurt, then what?

1) Best wishes to Nationals? skipper Dave Martinez, who felt chest pains and underwent a cardiac catheterization Monday- he?ll miss the series in St Louis this week. Chip Hale is the interim manager for Washington.

 

[Cnotes53]

Cheat Sheet - Semifinals

No. 4 Las Vegas vs. No. 1 Washington

Regular Season Meetings (Washington 2-1 SU/ATS, Over 3-0, Home Team 0-3 SU/ATS)

June 20 - Washington (+3.5) 95 at Las Vegas 72 (Over 166.5)
July 5 - Washington (-1) 99 at Las Vegas 70 (Over 166)
July 13 - Las Vegas (+3) 85 at Washington 81 (Over 163.5)

Aces: 22-13 Straight-Up, 13-22 Against the Spread, 18-16-1 Over/Under
Mystics: 26-8 Straight-Up, 20-13-1 Against the Spread, 20-14 Over/Under

-- Las Vegas shocked Chicago in the second round on a steal and desperation three-pointer in the final 10 seconds of a 93-92 victory as four-point favorites.

-- The Aces owned the second-worst ATS record in the league at 13-22, behind the Liberty?s 11-21-2 ATS mark.

-- Las Vegas has won eight of its last nine home games, but has compiled a 3-6 record in its previous nine road contests.

-- Washington put together the top record in the league at 26-8, while closing the season on an 11-1 run.

-- The Mystics have won 10 consecutive home contests, as Washington has covered seven times in this span.

-- Washington?s offense has topped the 86-point mark in each of its last 13 victories, while the Mystics are 6-2 in their last eight road affairs.

-- The road team captured all three meetings this season, as Washington destroyed Las Vegas in the first matchup, 95-72 as 3 ?-point underdogs on June 20.

-- The Mystics led the Aces, 51-36 at halftime in the next matchup in Sin City on July 6 before an earthquake stopped the contest. The teams resumed the game one month later as Washington cruised to a 99-70 rout, capped off by a 24-11 fourth quarter run.

-- Las Vegas broke through in D.C. in the final regular season matchup on July 13 in an 85-81 win as three-point underdogs. The Mystics played without leading scorer Elena Delle Donne, as Washington squandered a 12-point lead after the first quarter.

-- This is the first-ever meeting in the postseason between these two franchises (Las Vegas started in Utah then moved to San Antonio before settling as the Aces two seasons ago).

-- Las Vegas is taking part in the playoffs for the first time since its move from San Antonio in 2018, and its first postseason appearance since 2014.

-- Washington is back in the playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons, as the Mystics are coming off a loss in the WNBA Finals last season to Seattle.



No. 3 Los Angeles vs. No. 2 Connecticut

Regular Season Meetings (Los Angeles 2-1 SU/ATS, Under 2-1, Home Team 3-0 SU/ATS)

May 31 - Los Angeles (+2.5) 77 vs. Connecticut 70 (Under 164.5)
June 6 - Connecticut (-7) 89 vs. Los Angeles 77 (Over 157.5)
Aug. 25 - Los Angeles (-4.5) 84 vs. Connecticut 72 (Under 156.5)

Sparks: 23-12 Straight-up, 18-16-1 Against the Spread, 19-16 Over/Under
Sun: 23-11 Straight-up, 14-19-1 Against the Spread, 17-17 Over/Under

-- Los Angeles dominated Seattle, 92-69 in the second round as seven-point favorites to advance to the semifinals.

-- The Sparks have won eight of their last 10 games, including seven consecutive wins at home in this stretch.

-- Los Angeles struggled on the road this season by posting a 7-10 SU and 5-11-1 ATS record, including a 2-4 ATS mark as an away underdog. Five of the seven road wins came against non-playoff teams.

-- The Sparks have caught fire at home by winning 15 consecutive games at Staples Center, including seven straight victories by double-digits.

-- The Sun put together a 15-2 record at home, including wins in nine of their final 10 home contests. However, Connecticut went 5-5 ATS in the last 10 home games.

-- Connecticut enters the playoffs off consecutive losses to Chicago and Indiana to close out the regular season, while riding a five-game OVER streak.

-- Since starting the season on a 6-3 ATS run, the Sun has slumped to an 8-16-1 ATS ledger in the last 25 games.

-- Connecticut began with road wins in three of its four tries on the highway, but finished 5-8 in the last 13 away contests, including a 2-9 ATS run as a road favorite.

-- The home team won all three matchups this season, as all three games were decided by seven points or more.

-- Los Angeles beat Connecticut as 2 ?-point home underdogs on May 31 in a 77-70 triumph following a season-opening defeat to Las Vegas.

-- The Sun jumped out to a 12-point lead after one quarter in the next matchup one week later in Connecticut and grabbed an 89-77 win as seven-point favorites.

-- The Sparks took the series finale at Staples Center on August 25 as 4 ?-point favorites, 84-72.

-- This is the first playoff meeting between the Sparks and Sun ever.

-- Connecticut is making its third straight playoff appearance, while Los Angeles is in the postseason for an eighth consecutive campaign.

-- The Sun lost to Phoenix in the second round of the playoffs each of the past two seasons, while making its last appearance in the WNBA Finals back in 2005 as they lost to Sacramento.

-- The Sparks reached the WNBA Finals in 2016 and 2017 and faced the Lynx both times. Los Angeles won the title in 2016, but failed to repeat in a series loss to Minnesota in 2017.

 

[Cnotes53]

WNBA
Long Sheet

Tuesday, September 17

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

LOS ANGELES (23 - 12) at CONNECTICUT (23 - 11) - 9/17/2019, 6:30 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

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

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

LAS VEGAS (22 - 12) at WASHINGTON (25 - 8) - 9/17/2019, 8:30 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
LAS VEGAS is 5-2 against the spread versus WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
WASHINGTON is 4-3 straight up against LAS VEGAS over the last 3 seasons
4 of 7 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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




WNBA

Tuesday, September 17

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

Connecticut Sun
Connecticut is 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Connecticut is 14-5 SU in its last 19 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Connecticut's last 5 games
Connecticut is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Connecticut's last 5 games at home
Connecticut is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Los Angeles
Connecticut is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Los Angeles
Connecticut is 6-14 SU in its last 20 games when playing Los Angeles
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Connecticut's last 9 games when playing Los Angeles
Connecticut is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Los Angeles
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Connecticut's last 5 games when playing at home against Los Angeles
Los Angeles Sparks
Los Angeles is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Los Angeles's last 6 games
Los Angeles is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Los Angeles is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Los Angeles's last 5 games on the road
Los Angeles is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Connecticut
Los Angeles is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games when playing Connecticut
Los Angeles is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Connecticut
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Los Angeles's last 9 games when playing Connecticut
Los Angeles is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Connecticut
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Los Angeles's last 5 games when playing on the road against Connecticut

Washington Mystics
Washington is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Washington's last 15 games
Washington is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Washington is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Washington's last 9 games at home
Washington is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Las Vegas
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Washington's last 15 games when playing Las Vegas
Washington is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Las Vegas
Washington is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Las Vegas
Las Vegas Aces
Las Vegas is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games
Las Vegas is 16-7 SU in its last 23 games
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Las Vegas's last 12 games
Las Vegas is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Las Vegas is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Las Vegas's last 6 games on the road
Las Vegas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Washington
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Las Vegas's last 15 games when playing Washington
Las Vegas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Washington
Las Vegas is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Washington


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


WNBA
Dunkel

Tuesday, September 17


Los Angeles @ Connecticut

Game 611-612
September 17, 2019 @ 6:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Los Angeles
104.439;
Connecticut
118.671
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Connecticut
by 14
157
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Connecticut
by 2 1/2
161 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Connecticut
(-2 1/2); Under

Las Vegas @ Washington

Game 613-614
September 17, 2019 @ 8:30 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Las Vegas
109.441
Washington
122.655
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Washington
by 13
175
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Washington
by 7 1/2
170 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Washington
(-7 1/2); Over

 

[Cnotes53]

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

LA at CONN 06:30 PM
LA +2.5
O 161.0

LV at WAS 08:30 PM
WAS -10.0
O 172.0

 

[Cnotes53]

Mystics grab Game 1, but Aces cash
September 17, 2019
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WASHINGTON (AP) The Washington Mystics were thrilled to pull out a close win in the playoffs.

Elena Delle Donne scored 24 points and hit a crucial turnaround jumper late, Emma Meesseman added a career postseason high 27 points and 10 rebounds, and the Mystics held on for a 97-95 victory over the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 of their WNBA semifinal series.

It was Washington's first win all year by a single possession, one in which the Aces missed a game-tying runner at the buzzer.

''It was stressful,'' admitted Delle Donne, helped the Mystics to a 26-8 regular season record and the top playoff seed. ''We haven't had many of those moments. And to get one of those in the semifinals is big. To be able to gut it out is huge for us.''

Meesseman also bested her regular-season high of 25 for the Mystics, who were playing their first postseason game since being swept by the Seattle Storm in last year's WNBA Finals. Meesseman wasn't a part of that team, after taking a leave of absence following the 2017 season.

''She's been preached at all year by her teammates and coaches that she's the missing piece from a year ago,'' Mystics coach Mike Thibault said.

In her first game in more than a month, Kristi Toliver added eight points, including a falling away, contested 3-pointer that stretched Washington's lead to 13 in the fourth quarter, an advantage that just barely held.

''Kristi had some Kristi moments,'' Delle Donne said. ''Thank God.''

A'ja Wilson scored 23 points for Las Vegas, which twice got the deficit as close as two points in the final moments. Liz Cambage had 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Kayla McBride added 19 points.

Kelsey Plum had 16 points and nine assists, and missed a runner to force overtime two days after Dearica Hamby's 35-foot runner decided the Aces' 93-92, second-round win over Chicago.

After Toliver's 3 made it 92-79, the Aces scored nine straight points to close the deficit to four, while twice forcing the Mystics into a shot-clock violation with the ball in Delle Donne's hands.

Wilson's drive and layup closed it to 95-93 with 1:33 left, convincing Mystics coach Mike Thibault to call timeout. Following missesd on each end, Delle Donne's turnaround stretched the lead to four with 32 seconds to play.

''They made some big shots tonight, I give them a lot of credit for that,'' Aces coach Bill Laimbeer said. ''They made some shots down the stretch. The lulls that we had hurt us. And hopefully that was a learning experience.''

Plum answered with a layup. Then Delle Donne missed a jumper with the shot clock expiring as the Aces opted not to foul.

Plum received an outlet pass and raced inside the arc, but her 20-footer wouldn't fall.

TIP-INS

Aces: Shot 73.3 % (11 of 15) during the opening quarter but still trailed at the end, 30-27. ... The series opener marked the Aces' first game in a WNBA semifinal series since making a run to the 2008 finals, when the team was located in San Antonio.

Mystics: Did not commit a turnover in the first quarter and committed only two by halftime ... Toliver entered with 4:17 left in the first quarter to a standing ovation. It was her first action since Aug. 8 (knee bruise).

CAN YOU HEAR ME?

Laimbeer could not tell whether Plum was fouled on her final shotcont, but he was frustrated he wasn't granted a timeout to set up a play for a better look.

''I was standing next to the referee by design,'' Laimbeer said. ''As soon as they missed the shot, I would be yelling `Timeout! Timeout! Timeout!' ... I yelled it five times. And she even looked at me as I was yelling and made a conscious decision not to call timeout. I do not understand why. I think the league should make a little bit of an investigation.''

REST OR RUST?

With their playoff double-bye, the Mystics were playing their first game in nine days. They were just 1-2 on five or more days' rest in the regular season. The fourth-seeded Aces also had a week to wait before their win Sunday.

UP NEXT

Game 2 of the best-of-five series is Thursday in Washington.

 

[Cnotes53]

Sun pull away from Sparks, 84-75
September 17, 2019
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UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) Connecticut checked off the first box on its postseason to-do list: winning a playoff game for the first time since 2012.

Alyssa Thomas had 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead a balanced Connecticut offense and the Sun opened the WNBA semifinals with an 84-75 win over the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday night.

Jasmine Thomas scored 19 points, Jonquel Jones had 16 and Courtney Williams had 15 for the second-seeded Sun, who had a bye for the first two rounds.

''We've been working toward this all season,'' said Alyssa Thomas, who also had five assists and four of the team's nine steals. ''Our first goal was to secure at top-two seed. Single game elimination has not been good to us and we finally put ourselves in a position where we can play a series and we're more than ready. We're hungry.''

Candace Parker had 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Nneka Ogwumike added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Sparks, who knocked off defending champion Seattle in the second round.

But the Sun forced the Sparks into 17 turnovers and Los Angeles' starting backcourt of Riquna Williams and Chelsea Gray were a combined 3 of 17 from the floor.

''We have a third and fourth, fifth person that's capable of scoring points,'' said Sparks first-year coach Derek Fisher. ''But we couldn't sustain it, particularly from our backcourt.''

Connecticut trailed by three points at halftime, but scored the first nine points of the third quarter. A layup by Courtney Williams just before that quarter's buzzer sent the Sun into the final 10 minutes up 59-58.

Connecticut never trailed in the fourth. A key 3-pointer from Jones gave the Sun a seven-point lead with 4 minutes remaining and the home team outscored the Sparks 25-17 over the final 10 minutes.

The Sun, who lost their final two regular-season games, had not played since Sept. 8 and missed their first four shots.

But Alyssa Thomas quickly found her form, scoring the Sun's first nine points and had 13 as Connecticut took a 21-14 lead after a quarter.

''I wouldn't say we came out slow, we actually came out really fast, unsettled, rushing shots, being too anxious to shoot instead of just getting settled,'' said Jasmine Thomas. ''She settled us. She took the ball, took over, got us going downhill.''

Connecticut led by as many as 11 points in the second, before Nneka Ogwumike led the Sparks back. She had 13 points in the half, hitting six of her seven shots as LA took a 40-37 lead into intermission.

RESPE-CT

Connecticut has used the predictions of pundits as motivation for the postseason, making promos using the Tweets of ''experts'' saying they don't have a superstar and picking against them in the series. The team sold T-shirts in the arena Tuesday that read DisrespeCT, with the CT highlighted.

''We've got All Stars; we've got the league's best 3-point shooter,'' said Jasmine Thomas. ''I don't know what it's going to take to turn us into big names. But we can't control that. We can't control what people think about us. We can't control what people say. But how we believe in ourselves in this locker room is what we feed off of. It's what makes us special.''

UNWELCOME BACK

This was Chiney Ogwumike's first playoff game in Connecticut since the former Sun star was granted a trade to LA in the offseason. She was booed loudly when the lineups were announced and each time she touched the ball.

''It's sort of surreal,'' said the younger Ogwumike, who finished with four points and four fouls in 15 minutes. ''The first time I came back here they booed and I guess it hurt me a little bit, because this place meant so much to me. But I understand why. What I just learned is that for 40 minutes they are going boo, but afterward there is still a lot of love. At least, that's what I'm leaning on.''

TIP-INS

Sun: Connecticut has won 24 games this season, the most since 2012, which also happens to be the last time the franchise was in the conference semifinals. The team lost in the conference finals that year and has had just two playoff games since, losing to Phoenix in the first round each of the last two seasons.

Sparks: Los Angeles won two out of three from the Sun in the regular season, but fall to 1-2 in Connecticut.

UP NEXT

The teams return to the Mohegan Sun arena on Thursday for Game 2 of the best-of-five series.