By Bodog
1. NBA: L.A. Lakers at Boston (Sunday, 3:30 p.m.)
Don?t pay attention to all of the hype of Kobe and LeBron meeting up in the NBA Finals. The NBA odds say it?s just as likely we?ll see another battle between the Lakers (33-11 SU, 19-24-1 ATS) and the Celtics (28-13 SU, 17-24 ATS). The Lakers are 8-5 favorites to defend their championship, while the Celtics and Cavaliers are tied at 7-2 coming out of the East. This is the healthiest Boston has been in a while. Kevin Garnett (19.5 points, 9.8 rebounds per 40 minutes) returned to the lineup Friday after sitting 10 games with a knee injury; Boston was 4-6 SU and ATS while Garnett was out. Los Angeles is 5-5 SU and 4-5-1 ATS in its last 10 games, all five losses coming on the road.
2. NCAAB: Duke at Georgetown (Saturday, 1:00 p.m.)
This isn?t your run of the mill non-conference matchup in college hoops. The Blue Devils are the cream of the ACC crop at 16-3 (12-6 ATS), while the Hoyas are riding high in the Big East at 15-3 (8-6 ATS). The running theme in this contest is whether Duke can shake off its softie reputation against one of the toughest teams in Division I. Georgetown is 9-1 SU and 3-4 ATS at home; Duke is 1-3 SU and ATS on the road, with losses at Georgia Tech (+7) and North Carolina State (+11.5). The Hoyas are coming off an upset win in Pittsburgh (-1), followed by an easy victory over Rutgers (+19.5) that allowed coach John Thompson III to give his overworked starters a breather before Monday?s matchup with Syracuse.
3. NBA: Dallas at Phoenix (Thursday, 10:30 p.m.)
It?s the latest reunion between MVPs and good buddies Dirk Nowitzki (26.5 points, 8.3 rebounds/40) and Steve Nash (22.2 points, 13.2 assists/40), still two of the very best players in the NBA. It?s Nowitzki with the better supporting cast at the moment; his Mavericks are on top of the Southwest Division at 29-15 (20-24 ATS), while Nash and the Suns have cooled off at 26-19 (23-22 ATS), losing five of their last seven games SU and ATS. Phoenix is once again without valuable sixth-man Leandro Barbosa (21.5 points, 3.5 assists/40), who was due to have a cyst removed from his right wrist on Monday and is expected out until late February.
4. NHL: Detroit at Pittsburgh (Sunday, 12:30 p.m.)
It?s going to take one hell of a turnaround for us to get a third straight Stanley Cup Final between Pittsburgh and Detroit. While the Penguins (32-20-1, -10.31 units) remain among the top Cup contenders at 6-1, the Red Wings (25-18-8, -8.16 units) are in ninth place in the Western Conference and have fallen from 6-1 to 15-1 on the futures market. Pittsburgh came out of the holiday break with an 0-5 slump, but has since gone 6-4 despite the loss of No. 1 goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (.908 save percentage) to a broken finger on his catching hand. Fleury is expected back at any time. Detroit is expecting the return of two key players next week: winger Tomas Holmstrom (15 goals in 42 games) and defender Niklas Kronwall (13 points in 21 games).
5. Soccer: Arsenal at Aston Villa (Wednesday, 2:45 p.m.)
The Gunners may be in second place on the Premiership table with 15 wins, four losses and three draws, but the mood around the pubs of North London is pretty dour after Sunday?s 3-1 loss to Stoke City in the FA Cup. Manager Arsene Wenger, however, used a reduced lineup filled with young players and creaky 35-year-old central defender Sol Campbell. Arsenal?s A-Team will be back on the pitch Wednesday to face Aston Villa, the No. 7 team on the table at 10-5-6. The Gunners (6-3-2 away) were priced at +130 at press time with the Villa (6-2-3 at home) yielding +210 and the draw at +220.
Honorable Mentions
NBA: Atlanta at Orlando (Saturday, 7:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: Wisconsin at Purdue (Thursday, 7:00 p.m.)
NHL: Anaheim at Washington (Wednesday, 8:30 p.m.)
Soccer: Fulham at Tottenham Hotspur (Tuesday, 3:00 p.m.)
1. NBA: L.A. Lakers at Boston (Sunday, 3:30 p.m.)
Don?t pay attention to all of the hype of Kobe and LeBron meeting up in the NBA Finals. The NBA odds say it?s just as likely we?ll see another battle between the Lakers (33-11 SU, 19-24-1 ATS) and the Celtics (28-13 SU, 17-24 ATS). The Lakers are 8-5 favorites to defend their championship, while the Celtics and Cavaliers are tied at 7-2 coming out of the East. This is the healthiest Boston has been in a while. Kevin Garnett (19.5 points, 9.8 rebounds per 40 minutes) returned to the lineup Friday after sitting 10 games with a knee injury; Boston was 4-6 SU and ATS while Garnett was out. Los Angeles is 5-5 SU and 4-5-1 ATS in its last 10 games, all five losses coming on the road.
2. NCAAB: Duke at Georgetown (Saturday, 1:00 p.m.)
This isn?t your run of the mill non-conference matchup in college hoops. The Blue Devils are the cream of the ACC crop at 16-3 (12-6 ATS), while the Hoyas are riding high in the Big East at 15-3 (8-6 ATS). The running theme in this contest is whether Duke can shake off its softie reputation against one of the toughest teams in Division I. Georgetown is 9-1 SU and 3-4 ATS at home; Duke is 1-3 SU and ATS on the road, with losses at Georgia Tech (+7) and North Carolina State (+11.5). The Hoyas are coming off an upset win in Pittsburgh (-1), followed by an easy victory over Rutgers (+19.5) that allowed coach John Thompson III to give his overworked starters a breather before Monday?s matchup with Syracuse.
3. NBA: Dallas at Phoenix (Thursday, 10:30 p.m.)
It?s the latest reunion between MVPs and good buddies Dirk Nowitzki (26.5 points, 8.3 rebounds/40) and Steve Nash (22.2 points, 13.2 assists/40), still two of the very best players in the NBA. It?s Nowitzki with the better supporting cast at the moment; his Mavericks are on top of the Southwest Division at 29-15 (20-24 ATS), while Nash and the Suns have cooled off at 26-19 (23-22 ATS), losing five of their last seven games SU and ATS. Phoenix is once again without valuable sixth-man Leandro Barbosa (21.5 points, 3.5 assists/40), who was due to have a cyst removed from his right wrist on Monday and is expected out until late February.
4. NHL: Detroit at Pittsburgh (Sunday, 12:30 p.m.)
It?s going to take one hell of a turnaround for us to get a third straight Stanley Cup Final between Pittsburgh and Detroit. While the Penguins (32-20-1, -10.31 units) remain among the top Cup contenders at 6-1, the Red Wings (25-18-8, -8.16 units) are in ninth place in the Western Conference and have fallen from 6-1 to 15-1 on the futures market. Pittsburgh came out of the holiday break with an 0-5 slump, but has since gone 6-4 despite the loss of No. 1 goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (.908 save percentage) to a broken finger on his catching hand. Fleury is expected back at any time. Detroit is expecting the return of two key players next week: winger Tomas Holmstrom (15 goals in 42 games) and defender Niklas Kronwall (13 points in 21 games).
5. Soccer: Arsenal at Aston Villa (Wednesday, 2:45 p.m.)
The Gunners may be in second place on the Premiership table with 15 wins, four losses and three draws, but the mood around the pubs of North London is pretty dour after Sunday?s 3-1 loss to Stoke City in the FA Cup. Manager Arsene Wenger, however, used a reduced lineup filled with young players and creaky 35-year-old central defender Sol Campbell. Arsenal?s A-Team will be back on the pitch Wednesday to face Aston Villa, the No. 7 team on the table at 10-5-6. The Gunners (6-3-2 away) were priced at +130 at press time with the Villa (6-2-3 at home) yielding +210 and the draw at +220.
Honorable Mentions
NBA: Atlanta at Orlando (Saturday, 7:00 p.m.)
NCAAB: Wisconsin at Purdue (Thursday, 7:00 p.m.)
NHL: Anaheim at Washington (Wednesday, 8:30 p.m.)
Soccer: Fulham at Tottenham Hotspur (Tuesday, 3:00 p.m.)
