2016 wnba thread news notes picks !

[CNOTES]

Preview: Wings (3-3) at Lynx (6-0)
Date: June 04, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

Not many WNBA fans know that Dallas Wings coach Fred Williams is also a jazz musician who has released two albums.


While his creativity knows no bounds when he's putting together some smooth beats, his imagination is sure to be tested while concocting a game plan to slow down the unbeaten Minnesota Lynx.


The Lynx seek their second 7-0 start in three seasons Saturday night when they host Williams' Wings.


Minnesota is the league's best shooting team at 48.2 percent and is off to another strong start after Tuesday's 79-69 victory at New York. Maya Moore is among the league's leaders at 22.3 points per game for the Lynx, who took three of four meetings from the Wings last season when the franchise was the Tulsa Shock.


Williams' club was responsible for one of the Lynx's four home defeats in 2015, and he expects the challenge to be even greater Saturday.


"They have a lot of momentum going with an undefeated season and the crowd they pull in," Williams said. "With a team like that, you just have to take it a possession at a time and build on it."


Minnesota has been concerned with some complacency, seeing a 23-point lead cut to six against the Liberty. It was the second straight game the Lynx nearly blew a 20-point lead.


'It's something we definitely are aware of and are working on,' Moore said. 'Every team is going to make a run and we can't be as complacent with big leads.'


One key matchup to look for will be between centers Courtney Paris of Dallas and Sylvia Fowles of Minnesota. Paris averages 11.3 boards and Fowles 8.8 to rank among the league's best.


Fowles is second on the team with 13.8 points per game, with Seimone Augustus third at 12.3.


"They move the ball well and play a good offense," Wings guard Brianna Kiesel said. "Maya, Sylvia Fowles, and Lindsay Whalen play really well together. We just have to go out there and play our game."


Dallas (3-3) completed a 1-2 homestand with Sunday's 92-87 loss to Chicago. Odyssey Sims scored 23 points while Karima Christmas and Jordan Hooper each added 14.


Wings superstar Skylar Diggins is uncertain. She has played just once this season after knee surgery.


Minnesota is the unanimous top choice in the AP WNBA power poll while Dallas is No. 5.

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Sparks (6-0) at Stars (1-4)
Date: June 04, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

A matchup between the team ranked No. 2 in the AP WNBA power poll against a team ranked second to last proved to be anything but straightforward.


Though the unbeaten Los Angeles Sparks prevailed over the San Antonio Stars, it was a tight affair and these teams meet again Saturday night to complete a home-and-home set.


Los Angeles (6-0) continued its best start since opening 9-0 in 2003 with a 68-61 home victory Thursday over San Antonio. Nneka Ogwumike had 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.


The Stars (1-4) never led but tied the game at 54-all with 6:28 left on Sydney Colson's steal and layup for her only basket of the game. The Sparks answered with a 9-0 run - with six points from Ogwumike - and were never threatened again.


Los Angeles led by as many as nine in the opening quarter before going on a field-goal drought of 8:12 to start the second as San Antonio got back into the game. The contest stayed tight throughout before the Sparks held on for their fourth straight victory over the Stars, ranked No. 11.


The Sparks prevailed despite a quiet night from Candace Parker, who scored 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting although she added a season-high seven assists with five boards.


Kayla McBride scored 20 points and Kayla Alexander had a career-high 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for her first double-double for the Stars, who held a 38-30 rebounding edge.


The growing pains continue for Moriah Jefferson, the No. 2 pick out of Connecticut. Jefferson scored five points in 21 minutes and has reached double digits in points just once.


The Sparks have won their last two visits to San Antonio after losing their previous three there.




WNBA HEAD TO HEAD


Jun 2, 2016 Score ATS Results
SA 61 Cover: 10.5
LOS « 68 Under: 129
Tools: Recaps


Aug 30, 2015 Score ATS Results
SA 52 Cover: 3.5
LOS « 60 Under: 112
Tools: Recaps


Aug 23, 2015 Score ATS Results
LOS « 90 Cover: 26
SA 59 Over: 149
Tools: Recaps


Aug 2, 2015 Score ATS Results
LOS « 80 Over: 158
SA 78 Cover: 3
Tools: Recaps


Jul 8, 2015 Score ATS Results
LOS 63 Under: 133
SA « 70 Cover: 10.5
Tools: Recaps


Jul 2, 2015 Score ATS Results
SA 81 Cover: 0
LOS « 86 Over: 167
Tools: Recaps

 

[CNOTES]

YESTERDAY'S RESULTS:


WNBA 6/3 - 5 - 2


SATURDAY, JUNE 4


GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS


LA at SA 08:00 PM

LA -10.0


U 146.5




DAL at MIN 08:00 PM


MIN -14.0


O 164.5

 

[CNOTES]

Sunday's List of 13:

Sunday's six-pack

Pointspreads on some college football games this Labor Day weekend........
-- Clemson (-8.5) at Auburn
-- Oklahoma (-9.5) @ Houston
-- Notre Dame @ Texas (even)
-- Kansas State @ Stanford (-16.5)
-- Appalachian State @ Tennessee (-19)
......and one from later in the season (Nov 26)
-- Utah State @ BYU (-6)-- This game opened at BYU -1

Sunday's List of 13: Wrapping up a sports Saturday.......

13) James Shields got traded to the White Sox for Erik Johnson and a 17-year old who has never played a pro game; San Diego is also on the hook for $29M of $56M left on Shields' contract, assuming he doesn't opt out after this season.

12) In essence, White Sox get Shields for $9M a year thru 2018, a pretty good deal.

11) Milwaukee SS Jonathan Villar has homered in his last three games, after hitting two homers in his first 51 games. Philly is definitely a hitters' park.

10) If you care about such things, over is 57-32-3 in interleague games this year.

9) In Oakland's last 32 games, take out Rich Hill's starts and A's starting pitchers have a 7.90 ERA-- the Donaldson trade has turned into a complete disaster- the two starting pitchers Oakland got were Kendall Graveman and Sean Nolin- no bueno.

8) White Sox brought up OF Jason Coats who left his first big league game with a lacerated mouth after a collision with JB Shuck. Tough way to begin a career.

7) NBA teams who won Game 1 of Finals by 15+ points are 11-2 in those series.

6) San Francisco 49ers aren't favored in any of their games this coming season.

5) Looking thru social media for the last 36 hours, one thing is for sure; Muhammad Ali posed for a hell of a lot of pictures with fans-- lot of people who are famous themselves were showing off their picture(s) with the Champ Saturday.

4) Speaking of Ali, back in 60's, when he was training in Miami, one of his sparring partners was Rich Kotite, then a football player at Miami and later head coach of the Jets and Eagles.

3) I've read almost all the John Grisham books and seen all the movies that were made out of his mostly legal-themed books; in my opinion, the two best movies were Runaway Jury and The Client. I think Runaway Jury is a great movie, with Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman and John Cusack.

2) I hope actress Jennifer Garner buys her agent a Cadillac for Christmas; she is an awful lot of commercials.

1) College baseball tournament has a weird dynamic to it; the pro draft begins this coming Thursday, right in the middle of the tournament. Nothing like some of your best players being totally distracted during the team's most important time of year.

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA Basketball Trend Report


INDIANA (26 - 19) at CONNECTICUT (15 - 19) - 6/5/2016, 3:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CONNECTICUT is 16-4 ATS (+11.6 Units) in June games over the last 3 seasons.
CONNECTICUT is 9-1 ATS (+7.9 Units) in home games after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
INDIANA is 35-19 ATS (+14.1 Units) after a division game over the last 3 seasons.


Head-to-Head Series History
INDIANA is 5-3 against the spread versus CONNECTICUT over the last 3 seasons
INDIANA is 6-2 straight up against CONNECTICUT over the last 3 seasons
5 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

WASHINGTON (19 - 18) at ATLANTA (15 - 19) - 6/5/2016, 3:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
WASHINGTON is 281-340 ATS (-93.0 Units) in all games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 17-35 ATS (-21.5 Units) in road games on Sunday games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 177-223 ATS (-68.3 Units) vs. division opponents since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 168-215 ATS (-68.5 Units) after a division game since 1997.
ATLANTA is 19-8 ATS (+10.2 Units) after allowing 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) in home games after scoring 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.


Head-to-Head Series History
ATLANTA is 7-1 against the spread versus WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
ATLANTA is 7-1 straight up against WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons


NEW YORK (26 - 14) at SEATTLE (10 - 24) - 6/5/2016, 7:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SEATTLE is 35-20 ATS (+13.0 Units) in home games on Sunday games since 1997.
NEW YORK is 28-17 ATS (+9.3 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 15-4 ATS (+10.6 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 74-49 ATS (+20.1 Units) in road games against Western conference opponents since 1997.
NEW YORK is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) in road games after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 74-49 ATS (+20.1 Units) in road games in non-conference games since 1997.
SEATTLE is 34-53 ATS (-24.3 Units) off an upset win as an underdog since 1997.


Head-to-Head Series History
NEW YORK is 2-1 against the spread versus SEATTLE over the last 3 seasons
NEW YORK is 4-0 straight up against SEATTLE over the last 3 seasons
2 of 4 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Fever (3-4) at Sun (1-6)
Date: June 05, 2016 3:00 PM EDT

Immediately after her team's miserable beginning to a brief trip, the Indiana Fever's Tamika Catchings was looking forward to another game.


A chance to face the lowly Connecticut Sun on Sunday might allow the Fever atone for their latest performance and avoid the first 0-4 road record in franchise history.


Indiana (3-4) was routed 91-59 by New York on Friday after losing its previous two road games - against Minnesota and Atlanta - by a combined 12 points.


"Out toughed us, out-worked us, out-executed us, out-efforted us, really kicked our (butt)," coach Stephanie White said. "That's all there is to it. That's all I have to say about that."


The Fever were outshot 51.5-32.8 percent and went 3 of 20 from 3-point range. They also were outrebounded 40-28 en route to matching their 0-3 road starts from 2001 and 2003.


"Fortunately we have another game in 48 hours so we have a chance to get back on the court quickly," Catchings said.


The Fever face a team that has matched the worst overall start in club history and has dropped five in a row. The Sun fell to 1-6 for the first time since 2001 - when they were the Orlando Miracle - with Friday's 83-77 defeat to Atlanta.


The loss also put them at 0-3 on their own court for the first time.


"There was frustration tonight because there were stretches where we had self-inflicted turnovers. There were stretches where players got into themselves and then we started running plays wrong. We didn't execute," coach Curt Miller said.


Indiana has won five straight over the Sun and opened last season's series with a pair of road victories. Catchings shot 58.3 percent in the four matchups in 2015 while averaging 16 points.


She's putting up a career-low 11 points per game in her final WNBA season.


Connecticut's Kelsey Bone averaged a team-best 18 points and 51.6 percent shooting in last season's series but has seen a significant drop in scoring this season. She's averaging 8.9 points, down from a career-high 15.4 in 2015.




WNBA HEAD TO HEAD


Sep 1, 2015 Score ATS Results
CONN 51 Under: 132
IND « 81 Cover: 20
Tools: Recaps


Aug 2, 2015 Score ATS Results
CONN 70 Over: 153
IND « 83 Cover: 7
Tools: Recaps


Jul 28, 2015 Score ATS Results
IND « 75 Cover: 2
CONN 73 Under: 148
Tools:


Jul 18, 2015 Score ATS Results
IND 0 Cover: 2.5
CONN « 0 Under: 0
Tools:

Jun 30, 2015 Score ATS Results
IND « 92 Cover: 12.5
CONN 84 Over: 176
Tools: Recaps

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA (WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL)


DUNKEL'S HIGHLIGHTED GAME


Indiana at Connecticut - Sunday June 5, 2016
The Fever head to Connecticut today and come into the contest with a 4-0 ATS record in their last 4 games versus the Sun. Indiana is the pick (-3 1/2)




New York
@
Seattle
Game 605-606
June 5, 2016 @ 7:00 pm


Dunkel Rating: New York
112.462
Seattle
113.395
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total: Seattle
by 1
149
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total: New York
by 3 1/2
153 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Seattle
(+3 1/2); Under


Indiana
@
Connecticut
Game 601-602
June 5, 2016 @ 3:00 pm


Dunkel Rating: Indiana
112.843
Connecticut
107.379
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total: Indiana
by 5 1/2
157
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total: Indiana
by 3 1/2
162 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Indiana
(-3 1/2); Under


Washington
@
Atlanta
Game 603-604
June 5, 2016 @ 3:00 pm


Dunkel Rating: Washington
101.936
Atlanta
115.456
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total: Atlanta
by 13 1/2
169
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total: Atlanta
by 10
164
Dunkel Pick: Atlanta
(-10); Ov

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Mystics (2-6) at Dream (6-1)
Date: June 05, 2016 3:00 PM EDT

An increase in scoring has propelled the Atlanta Dream to one of the best starts in franchise history, and Tiffany Hayes has played a significant role.


Following one of her best performances of the season, Hayes looks to lead the Dream to another win Sunday against the scuffling Washington Mystics.


Atlanta (6-1) has averaged 85.7 points in its best start since a 10-1 mark in 2013, up from 77.8 last season, and Hayes has increased her scoring from 12.9 to 16.7 per game. The guard tallied a team-best 23 points in an 83-77 win at Connecticut on Friday and once again displayed a fine shooting touch by knocking down six of 10 attempts, as well as 11 of 13 from the free-throw line.


Hayes is shooting 58.1 percent, a huge leap from the 41.6 in her first four seasons.


The Dream, of course, have gotten their usual high-scoring efforts from Angel McCoughtry, averaging 19.3 points. Her 21 in Friday's win gave her a combined 69 points on 52.1 percent shooting in the past three of Atlanta's five consecutive victories.


The Dream open a season-high four-game homestand looking to send Washington (2-6) to a fourth consecutive defeat. The Mystics were swept in back-to-back matchups with Chicago and lost 98-72 on the road Friday, getting outshot 54.9-36.7 percent and outrebounded 37-25.


Tayler Hill, averaging a team-best 15.3 points, had another sub-par shooting night in going 3 for 11 and scoring 10 points. She's averaged 10.7 points while shooting 26.3 percent in her last three games after putting up 18 per game in her first five contests.


Atlanta swept last season's four matchups with Washington by a combined 14 points and have won nine of the past 11, including playoffs. The Dream have taken the past five home meetings.




WNBA HEAD TO HEAD


Sep 13, 2015 Score ATS Results
ATL « 73 Cover: 6
WAS 71 Under: 144
Tools: Recaps


Sep 6, 2015 Score ATS Results
WAS 67 Under: 140
ATL « 73 Cover: 3.5
Tools: Recaps


Jun 26, 2015 Score ATS Results
WAS 69 Under: 141
ATL « 72 Cover: 6
Tools: Recaps


Jun 12, 2015 Score ATS Results
ATL « 64 Cover: 9
WAS 61 Under: 125
Tools: Recaps

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Liberty (3-3) at Storm (3-4)
Date: June 05, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

A lengthy residency at Madison Square Garden didn't go as smoothly as the New York Liberty would've liked, but they head to the Pacific Northwest with a renewed confidence after closing the homestand with their largest victory in six years.


The Liberty begin a road-heavy stretch Sunday night seeking a seventh straight win over a Seattle Storm team that's coming off a victory behind another big game from Jewell Loyd.


After going 12-5 at MSG last season en route to the Eastern Conference regular-season crown, an early five-game homestand figured to give New York (3-3) a golden opportunity to pad its record. It didn't work out that way as the Liberty followed a win over Dallas in their home opener with three straight defeats.


They managed to get back on track in a big way, crushing Indiana 91-59 on Friday in a conference finals rematch.


'We definitely needed this one,' said Tina Charles, who had 14 points, nine rebounds and six assists. 'After letting a few get away this was one we wanted to have.'


New York dominated the Fever from both the inside and outside, holding a 40-18 scoring advantage in the paint while going 10 of 17 from 3-point range in their most lopsided victory since beating Phoenix by 38 in August 2010.


Sugar Rodgers made five 3-pointers and scored 21 and Swin Cash had nine points to go with five rebounds in her first start since signing with New York on May 24.


The Liberty now play three straight and six of seven on the road.


They've won six in a row over the Storm (3-4) since an 84-66 road loss in August 2012. Charles combined for 59 points in last season's two meetings.


Loyd was a non-factor in the 2015 series, totaling nine points on 2-of-9 shooting with seven turnovers, but has been the driving force behind Seattle's success in 2016.


She had career highs of 32 points and nine rebounds in Friday's 95-81 home win over Phoenix, while Breanna Stewart added 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.


In Seattle's wins, Loyd is averaging 29.3 points and shooting 60 percent - including 10 of 18 from 3-point range - but has averaged 13.5 points while missing 12 of 13 3-point tries in the defeats.


The Storm, who have totaled 188 points in winning two straight home games, are one of the league's top 3-point shooting teams at 37.7 percent while the Liberty are among the worst at 25.9.




WNBA HEAD TO HEAD


Aug 2, 2015 Score ATS Results
SEA 62 Under: 140
NEW « 78 Cover: 7
Tools: Recaps


Jul 21, 2015 Score ATS Results
NEW « 81 Over: 158
SEA 77 Cover: 0.5
Tools: Recaps

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA RESULTS YESTERDAY: 3 - 1
JUNE'S OVERALL RECORD: 8 - 3


SUNDAY, JUNE 5

GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS


IND at CONN 03:00 PM


IND -5.0


U 164.5




WAS at ATL 03:00 PM


WAS +9.5


O 162.5




NY at SEA 07:00 PM

SEA +2.5


O 153.0

 

[CNOTES]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

From MSN.com, six things I didn't know about M&M's..........

-- M&M stands for Mars and Murrie, the partners who invented the candy.

-- M&M's were invented in 1941, but the public couldn't buy them until 1947.

-- During World War II, M&M's were sold exclusively to the US military as part of their food rations.

-- M&M's originally came in five colors: red, orange, yellow, green and violet.

-- The "M" didn't appear on the candy until 1950; it was a black "M" until 1954, when it was changed to white.

-- Red M&M’s disappeared for a decade from 1976 because a Russian study linked red food dye to cancer in humans. An undergrad at the University of Tennessee is responsible for that being found false, which brought the red M&M's back in '87.

**********

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

13) You don't think professional golf is hugely competitive? A freshman golfer at LSU qualified for US Open Monday. Kid named Sam Burns was one of two golfers out of six in a playoff to grab the last two spots at the Memphis qualifier. So a kid who was in high school last year qualified for the US Open- lot of good players.

12) Good news and bad news for Packer fans in Wisconsin: Aaron Rodgers has given up dairy products and is at his lightest weight since 2007, which is the good news.

Bad news is that Wisconsin is the Dairy State, where people wear plastic hats that looks like hunks of cheese. If giving up dairy products is good for you......

11) Leaders amongst starting pitchers in strikeouts per nine innings:
Jose Fernandez 13.3, Noah Syndergaard 11.5, Steven Strasburg 11.4

10) Ole Miss Rebels will be playing home football games on grass this season, for the first time since 2002.

9) Draymond Green was drafted 35th in the 2012 NBA Draft; he can recite (in order) all 34 guys taken ahead of him, not that he took it personally or anything.

8) Rumors during the day Monday had the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes (once the Hartford Whalers) moving to Las Vegas, which would put expansion on hold.

7) Sounds like Arizona basketball commit Terrance Ferguson will skip college and go play overseas next season- he'l sign an endorsement deal with Under Armour and be eligible for the 2017 NBA Draft. Ferguson is a shooting guard.

6) Mets' OF Juan Lagares has a partially torn ligament in his left thumb but didn't go on the DL, which seems odd. He hurt the thumb making a diving catch Saturday.

5) Mets' 2B Neil Walker was so popular in Pittsburgh that all the stadium workers gathered and gave Walker a huge ovation when he came out for batting practice before Monday's game, which wound up getting rained out. It was Walker's first game back in Pittsburgh since he was traded to New York last winter.

4) Steph Curry is out of the Olympics this summer, a smart move. Been couple long years in a row for Curry, that on top of health concerns in South America. LaMarcus Aldridge will also miss the Olympics with a hand injury.

3) Colorado pitcher Tyler Chatwood on road this year: 5-0, 0.65 ERA, 0.84 WHIP. Too bad he has to make half his starts at high altitude at Coors Field. .

2) Pittsburgh 3, San Jose 1-- Penguins lead series 3-1, are one win away from their fourth Stanley Cup championship.

1) If you get shot in the leg at a nightclub, and your story is "I was too drunk to remember what happened" you might have a deeper problem than an injured leg. I'm just saying.........Aqib Talib is the same guy who once grabbed a gun from his mother to shoot at his sister's boyfriend. Oy.

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA


Tuesday, June 7


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


8:00 PM
PHOENIX vs. MINNESOTA
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Phoenix's last 10 games when playing on the road against Minnesota
Phoenix is 1-8 ATS in its last 9 games
Minnesota is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 7 games at home


10:00 PM
NEW YORK vs. LOS ANGELES
New York is 9-1-1 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
New York is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games on the road
Los Angeles is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Los Angeles's last 7 games when playing at home against New York


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


WNBA
Dunkel


Tuesday, June 7




Phoenix @ Minnesota


Game 651-652
June 7, 2016 @ 8:00 pm


Dunkel Rating:
Phoenix
108.709
Minnesota
123.319
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Minnesota
by 14 1/2
168
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Minnesota
by 10
164 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Minnesota
(-10); Over


New York @ Los Angeles


Game 653-654
June 7, 2016 @ 10:00 pm


Dunkel Rating:
New York
110.639
Los Angeles
120.554
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Los Angeles
by 10
146
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Los Angeles
by 8
150
Dunkel Pick:
Los Angeles
(-8); Under


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


WNBA
Long Sheet


Tuesday, June 7


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


PHOENIX (2 - 5) at MINNESOTA (7 - 0) - 6/7/2016, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PHOENIX is 14-29 ATS (-17.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 6-16 ATS (-11.6 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 2-9 ATS (-7.9 Units) in a road game where where the total is greater than or equal to 150 over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 7-17 ATS (-11.7 Units) in May, June, or July games over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 0-7 ATS (-7.7 Units) on Tuesday over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 8-19 ATS (-12.9 Units) after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 3-13 ATS (-11.3 Units) revenging a loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 27-12 ATS (+13.8 Units) in road games after 3 or more consecutive overs since 1997.


Head-to-Head Series History
MINNESOTA is 9-7 against the spread versus PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA is 8-8 straight up against PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
12 of 16 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons


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


NEW YORK (4 - 3) at LOS ANGELES (7 - 0) - 6/7/2016, 10:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
NEW YORK is 29-17 ATS (+10.3 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 12-3 ATS (+8.7 Units) as an underdog over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 16-4 ATS (+11.6 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) in June games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 75-49 ATS (+21.1 Units) in road games against Western conference opponents since 1997.
NEW YORK is 75-49 ATS (+21.1 Units) in road games in non-conference games since 1997.
NEW YORK is 11-3 ATS (+7.7 Units) in road games after scoring 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 12-26 ATS (-16.6 Units) in home games over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 6-18 ATS (-13.8 Units) in home games in May, June, or July games over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 25-43 ATS (-22.3 Units) in home games on Tuesday since 1997.
LOS ANGELES is 1-11 ATS (-11.1 Units) in home games against Eastern conference opponents over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 1-11 ATS (-11.1 Units) in home games in non-conference games over the last 3 seasons.
LOS ANGELES is 82-111 ATS (-40.1 Units) after a win by 10 points or more since 1997.


Head-to-Head Series History
NEW YORK is 3-2 against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
NEW YORK is 3-2 straight up against LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
4 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA Betting Recap - 5/30-6/5
June 5, 2016


League Betting Notes (Monday, May 30 through Sunday, June 5)


-- Favorites went 12-2 straight up (SU)
-- Favorites went 9-5 against the spread (ATS)
-- Home/road teams posted a 7-7 SU record
-- Road teams posted a 8-6 ATS record
-- The 'over/under' went 7-7




Team Betting Notes


-- The final day of the week provided the biggest shocker to date. Washington (3-6) pulled off the biggest upset of the season, dropping Atlanta (6-2) down in Georgia to cash +425 on the moneyline. The Mystics were just one of two underdogs to win straight up in 13 games.


-- If you want to make money, hammer the 'over' in Washington's games. The over has hit in each of their nine games to date. They have games in Dallas Wednesday, and home against Minnesota Saturday.


-- Indiana (4-4) has been rather erratic during the early going, and they had been poor on the road. However, the Fever won and covered as six-point favorites at Connecticut (1-7) by an 88-77 count Sunday. Despite the win Indiana is still just 1-3 SU and 2-2 ATS on the road.


-- The 'over' Sunday for Indiana snapped a four-game 'under' run. The Sun has seen the 'over' hit in three of their past four heading into Friday's home game against Seattle.


-- Los Angeles (7-0) continues to hum along, winning each of their games this week. The Sparks also put the brakes on a two-game non-cover run. One thing which has been consistent is the 'under', hitting in three straight games heading into this showdown with New York Tuesday.


-- Minnesota (7-0) also remained perfect, routing Dallas (3-4) Saturday. The Lynx covered for the first time in three games as a nine-point or greater favorite. The 'under' is now 5-0 in the past five for the Lynx.


-- The Wings have dropped three in a row, and they're 0-4 ATS over their past four outings heading into Wednesday's home game against the Mystics.


-- New York (4-3) picked up an impressive road win in Seattle (3-5) Sunday night, although the Storm certainly made it close down the stretch with an impressive fourth quarter comeback. The 'under' is 4-1 in five home games for the Liberty, and the 'over' is 2-0 in each of their two road outings. New York has allowed 71 or more points in six of their seven games to date.

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Mercury (2-5) at Lynx (7-0)
Date: June 07, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

The Minnesota Lynx will try to stay perfect Tuesday against a team they already have handled twice this season.


Minnesota is one of two teams off to a 7-0 start in the WNBA -- the Los Angeles Sparks are the other -- and it will be going for its third victory over the struggling Phoenix Mercury, which enters the matchup at 2-5.


The Lynx won 95-76 at Target Center on May 14 and 85-78 in Phoenix on May 25.


Forward Maya Moore has been at the forefront of everything for the Lynx. The league's Western Conference Player of the Month for May posted her two highest-scoring efforts of the season against Phoenix, with 27 in the first game and 34 in the second.


The Mercury, even with guard Diana Taurasi back after taking a season's hiatus in 2015, are winless in three road games. Taurasi is averaging 20.0 points per game, fourth in the league. Moore is second at 21.0.


Phoenix is also getting 14.4 points per game from forward Penny Taylor, who returned to the franchise this season after sitting out 2015. Taurasi and Taylor were part of the Mercury's championship squads in 2007, 2009 and 2014.


But the Mercury rank last in the league in scoring defense (88.6 points per game allowed), while the Lynx are second (72.6) and lead the WNBA in steals at 11.4 per game. Minnesota has held four consecutive opponents to under 15 points in the first quarter.


"I thought we got some deflections and some good stops out there on defense," Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen said on WNBA.com after an 80-63 win over the Dallas Wings on Saturday. "We were able to get out and run."


The Lynx and Sparks are chasing the best start in WNBA history -- a record that belongs to the 2012 Lynx, who reeled off 10 consecutive victories at the beginning of the season.


"We just have a group that came out of the gates and said, 'We don't want to be a team that lets games early in the season get away from us because we weren't quite ready,'" Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve told WNBA.com.

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Liberty (4-3) at Sparks (7-0)
Date: June 07, 2016 10:00 PM EDT

The Los Angeles Sparks will be going for the eighth consecutive victory to start the season when they play host to the New York Liberty on Tuesday.


The Sparks are off to their best start since going 9-0 in 2003.


They already have a road win over the Liberty this season, but needed overtime to pull out a 79-72 decision on May 21. Nneka Ogwumike scored 25 points and had 15 rebounds to lead the Sparks, who erased an eight-point deficit in the final 1:20 of regulation. Candace Parker added 14 points and 12 rebounds for Los Angeles that night.


The Sparks are coming off back-to-back wins over the San Antonio Stars. New York (4-3) opened a three-game road trip with an 86-78 victory over the Seattle Storm on Sunday night. Tina Charles led four players in double figures with 19 points and 13 rebounds.


Charles was selected the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time this season on Monday. She is averaging league-highs in points (21.4 per game), rebounds (11.6) and minutes (35.6).


Swin Cash of the Liberty said there is a little something different about the Sparks this season.


"Playing against them in the past there have been times where it's like L.A. is gonna let you back in the game or you might be able to win it, whereas you see their guards exuding a certain level of confidence and being able to execute more inside," Cash told WNBA.com.


The Sparks lead the league in 3-point shooting, making 42.5 percent of their attempts. Kristi Toliver has made 16 of 33 shots from 3-point range.


New York is the second-best team in the WNBA at 3-point defense, allowing opponents to make just 25.4 percent. Only Los Angeles is better, giving up a scant 20.4 percent from behind the arc.


The Sparks will be one of two teams trying for an 8-0 start on Tuesday night. The other is the Minnesota Lynx, who play host to Phoenix (2-5).

 

[CNOTES]

June's WNBA Record: 12 - 5


TUESDAY, JUNE 7


GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS


PHO at MIN 08:00 PM

MIN -10.5


O 166.5




NY at LA 10:00 PM


LA -7.5


U 151.0

 

[CNOTES]

Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack


Odds to win the College World Series, with Super Regionals this week


-- 5-1-- Florida, Louisville, Mississippi State, Texas A&M


-- 6-1-- Miami-- Stadium is named after A-Rod, but he never played there.


-- 7-1-- LSU-- Les Miles should coach first for a couple innings.


-- 10-1-- Texas Tech-- Wouldn't want to pitch in Lubbock if wind is blowing out.


-- 12-1-- South Carolina-- Not a lot of northern teams on this list.


-- 25-1-- Coastal Carolina, Arizona, Cal-Santa Barbara


**********


Armadillo: Thursday's List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud......


13) Sauerkraut got a lot of support from e-mailers today, which baffles me, but that is what makes life interesting-- we like different things.


12) I was also informed that the world's largest sauerkraut factory is in Phelps, NY, near where a friend of mine's grandfather lives. You learrn new stuff every day.


11) Speaking of which, it is now illegal to sit on a sidewalk in Saratoga Springs, NY, where the six-week horse racing meet is held every summer. Not sure if the mayor is a guy who sells benches, but that seems like a dumb thing to have as a law.


10) Maria Sharapova was suspended for two years, which means she is likely to lose as much as $50M in income during that time. Sharapova has been the world's highest-paid female athlete for the last 11 years, but that streak is over now.


9) A Uber driver from Boulder, CO won $1M in a World Series of Poker tourney this week, after being down to one $500 chip at one point in the tournament. Something you rarely read about are people who try to become pro poker players and fail; this guy went bust couple years ago, moved to Colorado and started driving for Uber, then built up some cash and took a shot in this year's WSOP and hit it big. Good for him.


8) Jacksonville Jaguars paid WR Allen Hurns $40M for four years this offseason, now find out Hurns is allergic to grass; no bueno. Will they switch to Field Turf?


7) Washington 11, White Sox 4-- James Sheilds faced 17 batters in his White Sox debut and seven of them scored, not what the struggling Pale Hose needed. He threw 84 pitches and got six outs. Chicago is 6-20 in its last 26 games.


6) Braves' play-by play Chip Caray, grandson of Harry, son of Chip, has improved a lot as a play-play guy; he used to be awful. Haven't listened to Braves' games much the last few years because I don't have any Braves on my fantasy team, but I have this year and Chip is pretty good now. He has a very good partner in Joe Simpson.


5) Phillies young pitching star Vince Velasquez left Wednesday's game after two pitches, never a good sign. Apparently some kind of biceps issue. Last thing Phillies need right now is a pitching injury. Last thing anyone needs, actually.


4) Why I like Phil Martelli as a college hoop coach; St Joe's is 12-3 vs spread in its last 15 conference tournament games, 11-4 vs spread as a road underdog in conference games. He has good players and he lets them play, which gives them confidence.


3) Rumors in NYC this week that St John's assistant coach Barry Rohrssen is off to another job, possibly to be replaced by former NBA star Mitch Richmond. St John's gets to play the Big East tournament on its home court every year, yet they are 0-7 vs spread in last seven Big East tournament games.


Then there is Providence, which covered its last seven Big East tourney games.


2) Cavaliers 120, Warriors 90-- 10 of last 12 Cleveland games were decided by 11+ points. Golden State is 3-5 on the road in playoffs. Still think all playoff series should be best-of-3 and the Finals best-of-5. Much more dramatic that way.


1) Tonight was Golden State's 102nd game this season, not counting the handful of preseason games they play; it was Cleveland's 99th game. NBA is a long season, then the draft is June 23, and the NBA Summer League is in Las Vegas starting July 8. Not a lot of rest for the executives of the good teams.


Regular season ended in mid-April, so the lesser teams have had some time off.

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA
Dunkel

Thursday, June 9


San Antonio @ Phoenix

Game 651-652
June 9, 2016 @ 10:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
San Antonio
102.516
Phoenix
116.992
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Phoenix
by 14 1/2
149
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Phoenix
by 11
156
Dunkel Pick:
Phoenix
(-11); Under




WNBA
Long Sheet

Thursday, June 9

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

SAN ANTONIO (1 - 5) at PHOENIX (2 - 6) - 6/9/2016, 10:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN ANTONIO is 6-0 ATS (+6.0 Units) as a road underdog of 9.5 to 12 points over the last 3 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) on Thursday over the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 15-29 ATS (-16.9 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 10-21 ATS (-13.1 Units) as a favorite over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 8-17 ATS (-10.7 Units) in May, June, or July games over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 9-19 ATS (-11.9 Units) after a division game over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
SAN ANTONIO is 4-3 against the spread versus PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX is 6-2 straight up against SAN ANTONIO over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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




WNBA

Thursday, June 9

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

10:00 PM
SAN ANTONIO vs. PHOENIX
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of San Antonio's last 6 games when playing Phoenix
San Antonio is 1-19 SU in its last 20 games on the road
Phoenix is 2-8 SU in its last 10 games
Phoenix is 18-7 SU in its last 25 games at home

 

[CNOTES]

Preview: Stars (1-5) at Mercury (2-6)
Date: June 09, 2016 10:00 PM EDT

The San Antonio Stars and Phoenix Mercury are stuck at the bottom of the WNBA's Western Conference. One could use the other as a potential springboard to get their season on track Thursday night at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix.


Coming off a 74-61 loss on Saturday night at home to unbeaten Los Angeles, San Antonio (1-5) seeks its first road win. The Stars have dropped both of their road games, unable to consistently score, and will have to find an offensive rhythm against a team that can score in droves.


Although the Mercury are just 2-6 after losing 89-81 at defending WNBA champion Minnesota on Tuesday night, they average 85.1 points per game and are the only team in the league with four players averaging at least 12 ppg.


Guard Diana Taurasi leads Phoenix at 19 points per game, although she's struggling to make shots, hitting only 39.7 percent from the field. Center Brittney Griner averages 13.8, guard Penny Taylor 13.1 and forward DeWanna Bonner 12.8.


Emblematic of Taurasi's troubles in the loss at Minnesota, she converted only 4 of 11 shots from the field and finished with 12 points. Defense also hampered the Mercury, who allowed a whopping 57 second-half points to wipe out a strong first half that resulted in a 38-32 halftime lead.


Phoenix does have history in its favor against San Antonio, which it has beaten in eight of its last 10 meetings, including an 85-52 drubbing in the last matchup in September. Going back to the days when the Stars were located in Utah, the Mercury own a 28-13 record at home against them.


San Antonio is connecting on just 37.7 percent of its shots from the field, including a pitiful 26 percent on 3-pointers, and is scoring only 68.2 points per game. The Stars have yet to touch 80 points in a game this year.


Guard Kayla McBride has been San Antonio's only consistent source of offense so far, averaging 18.2 points. Forward Dearica Hamby is the only other double-figure scorer at 10.2 points; she also leads the Stars in rebounding at 6.2 per game.




WNBA HEAD TO HEAD


Sep 5, 2015 Score ATS Results
PHO « 82 Cover: 23
SA 52 Under: 134
Tools: Recaps


Jun 30, 2015 Score ATS Results
SA 78 Cover: 3.5
PHO « 85 Over: 163
Tools: Recaps


Jun 25, 2015 Score ATS Results
PHO 71 Under: 147
SA « 76 Cover: 7.5
Tools: Recaps


Jun 5, 2015 Score ATS Results
SA 71 Cover: 0
PHO « 76 Under: 147
Tools: Recaps

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA JUNE RESULTS: 14 - 7




THURSDAY, JUNE 9


GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS


SA at PHO 10:00 PM

SA +11.5


U 155.5