Sunday’s 6-pack:
Active hit leaders in major league baseball:
2,135— Joey Votto
2,114— Freddie Freeman
2,091— Elvis Andrus
2,048— Andrew McCutchen
2,047— Jose Altuve
1,930— Evan Longoria
Quote of the Day
“Your verbal compliments don’t pay my bills.”
Overheard a bartender say that to a customer this week
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; what team did he break into the NBA with, as a player?
Saturday’s quiz
Packers’ QB Jordan Love play his college football at Utah State.
Friday’s quiz
First time the Houston Texans made the NFL playoffs was 2011; former NFL QB Gary Kubiak was the Texans’ coach.
*************************************************
Game was 10-10 at halftime.
Houston’s only TD came on a 67-yard punt return.
Texans in second half: 19 plays, 68 yards, no points.
Ravens outgained Houston, 352-213.
Jackson threw for 152 yards, 2 TD’s, ran for 100 yards, 2 more TD’s.
Baltimore hosts the AFC title game next Sunday.
— 49ers 24, Packers 21
49ers drove 69 yards, scored game-winning TD with 1:07 left.
49ers scored 24+ points in their wins, 17-17-17-19-20 in losses.
San Francisco hosts the NFC title game next Sunday night.
Up 21-17 with 6:18 left, Green Bay missed a 41-yard FG.
McCaffrey ran ball 17 times for 98 yards and two TD’s.
49ers were 10-16 on third down, Packers 7-13.
— Big East
Creighton 97, Seton Hall 94, 3OT’s
Seton Hall led by 9 with 13:16 left.
Four players on Creighton played 48:00+
Marquette 73, St John’s 72
St John’s outscored Marquette 14-2 over final 6:20;
Marquette was 3-9 on foul line, Johnnies were 15-19.
Red Storm lost their last three games, after a 12-7 start.
UConn 66, Villanova 65
In this game, there were 50 3-point shots taken, 48 2-point shots.
Villanova lost three of its last four games.
7-1 UConn leads 6-2 Seton Hall by a game atop the Big East standings.
— Big X
West Virginia 91, Kansas 85
Don’t see lot of college games that are 51-51 at halftime.
Kansas shot 67.6% inside arc; WVU was 12-21 on the arc.
Iowa State 73, TCU 72
Cyclones led 44-26 at halftime, hung on for dear life.
TCU never led; they turned ball over 27 times (minus-14)
Texas Tech, Kansas State are tied for first, at 4-1.
— Pac-12
Arizona 77, UCLA 71
UCLA led 32-13 with 7:40 left in first half.
Arizona shot 60.7% inside the arc.
Bruins are 4-11 in their last 15 D-I games.
Oregon leads Pac-12 at 5-1; the Arizona schools are both 5-2.
— ACC
Pittsburgh 80, Duke 76
11 days ago, Duke won 75-53 at Pitt
Panthers had lost four of previous five games.
This is Pitt’s first win at Cameron since 1979.
Syracuse 72, Miami 69
Syracuse hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the win.
Miami led by 7 with 7:47 left in the game.
Syracuse was 10-15 on foul line, Miami 3-5.
North Carolina leads ACC with a 7-0 mark; three teams are 5-2.
— Upsets of the Day:
Pitt (+13.5) 80, Duke 76
UL-Monroe (+11.5) 80, Old Dominion 73
VMI (+9.5) 70, Citadel 63
Fullerton (+7.5) 73, Santa Barbara 69
SE Missouri State (+7.5) 52, SIU-Edwardsville 47
Illinois State (+6.5) 69, Missouri State 60
Wyoming (+6.5) 98, Nevada 93
Iowa State (+5.5) 73, TCU 72
— Word of the Day: Cornucopia- a symbol of abundance and nourishment.
— SEC
Tennessee 91, Alabama 71- Vols are #85 in tempo this year; the previous six years, Tennessee’s tempo averaged #239.
Auburn 82, Oe Miss 59
Rebels are 2-3 in SEC, giving up 90-89-82 points in losses, after a 13-0 pre-conference mark.
Auburn is 5-0 in SEC play; Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama are all 4-1.
— Mountain West
Boise State 67, San Diego State 66
Aztecs lost two of last three games, after a 14-2 start.
Wyoming 98, Nevada 93
Cowboys made 13-23 shots on the arc.
Wyoming was 25-35 on foul line, Nevada 12-22.
Utah State is 5-1 in Mountain West, Boise State is 4-1.
— The last eight days for basketball official Randy McCall:
January 13- Tarleton State @ Grand Canyon
January 14- Utah @ Stanford
January 16- Air Force @ Colorado State
January 17- UCLA @ Arizona State
January 18- Washington @ California
January 20- San Diego State @ Boise State
— Atlantic 15
St Joe’s 71, Duquesne 69
Dukes are 0-5 in A-15, with three losses by 5 or fewer points.
— Big 14
Purdue 84, Iowa 70
Zach Edey scored 30 points, had 18 rebounds, 4 blocked shots.
Purdue out-rebounded Iowa, 50-24.
Wisconsin is 6-1 in conference games, Purdue 6-2.
— Speaking of Wisconsin, they’re #54 in 2-point FG% this year; the last four years, they didn’t finish higher than 215th.
— Big West
Fullerton 73, Santa Barbara 69
Visiting Titans snap a 4-game losing skid.
Loss snaps Santa Barbara’s 4-game win streak.
Gauchos are turning ball over 20.1% of time in league games (#10 of 11)
Davis 54, Irvine 52
Teams combined to shoot 7-29 on the arc.
Both teams shot under 40% inside the arc.
Davis’ big guy Niko Rocak blocked six shots.
Cal-Davis is 7-1 in Big West, half-game ahead of Irvine, UC-San Diego.
Active hit leaders in major league baseball:
2,135— Joey Votto
2,114— Freddie Freeman
2,091— Elvis Andrus
2,048— Andrew McCutchen
2,047— Jose Altuve
1,930— Evan Longoria
Quote of the Day
“Your verbal compliments don’t pay my bills.”
Overheard a bartender say that to a customer this week
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; what team did he break into the NBA with, as a player?
Saturday’s quiz
Packers’ QB Jordan Love play his college football at Utah State.
Friday’s quiz
First time the Houston Texans made the NFL playoffs was 2011; former NFL QB Gary Kubiak was the Texans’ coach.
*************************************************
Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday……
— Ravens 34, Texans 10Game was 10-10 at halftime.
Houston’s only TD came on a 67-yard punt return.
Texans in second half: 19 plays, 68 yards, no points.
Ravens outgained Houston, 352-213.
Jackson threw for 152 yards, 2 TD’s, ran for 100 yards, 2 more TD’s.
Baltimore hosts the AFC title game next Sunday.
— 49ers 24, Packers 21
49ers drove 69 yards, scored game-winning TD with 1:07 left.
49ers scored 24+ points in their wins, 17-17-17-19-20 in losses.
San Francisco hosts the NFC title game next Sunday night.
Up 21-17 with 6:18 left, Green Bay missed a 41-yard FG.
McCaffrey ran ball 17 times for 98 yards and two TD’s.
49ers were 10-16 on third down, Packers 7-13.
— Big East
Creighton 97, Seton Hall 94, 3OT’s
Seton Hall led by 9 with 13:16 left.
Four players on Creighton played 48:00+
Marquette 73, St John’s 72
St John’s outscored Marquette 14-2 over final 6:20;
Marquette was 3-9 on foul line, Johnnies were 15-19.
Red Storm lost their last three games, after a 12-7 start.
UConn 66, Villanova 65
In this game, there were 50 3-point shots taken, 48 2-point shots.
Villanova lost three of its last four games.
7-1 UConn leads 6-2 Seton Hall by a game atop the Big East standings.
— Big X
West Virginia 91, Kansas 85
Don’t see lot of college games that are 51-51 at halftime.
Kansas shot 67.6% inside arc; WVU was 12-21 on the arc.
Iowa State 73, TCU 72
Cyclones led 44-26 at halftime, hung on for dear life.
TCU never led; they turned ball over 27 times (minus-14)
Texas Tech, Kansas State are tied for first, at 4-1.
— Pac-12
Arizona 77, UCLA 71
UCLA led 32-13 with 7:40 left in first half.
Arizona shot 60.7% inside the arc.
Bruins are 4-11 in their last 15 D-I games.
Oregon leads Pac-12 at 5-1; the Arizona schools are both 5-2.
— ACC
Pittsburgh 80, Duke 76
11 days ago, Duke won 75-53 at Pitt
Panthers had lost four of previous five games.
This is Pitt’s first win at Cameron since 1979.
Syracuse 72, Miami 69
Syracuse hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the win.
Miami led by 7 with 7:47 left in the game.
Syracuse was 10-15 on foul line, Miami 3-5.
North Carolina leads ACC with a 7-0 mark; three teams are 5-2.
— Upsets of the Day:
Pitt (+13.5) 80, Duke 76
UL-Monroe (+11.5) 80, Old Dominion 73
VMI (+9.5) 70, Citadel 63
Fullerton (+7.5) 73, Santa Barbara 69
SE Missouri State (+7.5) 52, SIU-Edwardsville 47
Illinois State (+6.5) 69, Missouri State 60
Wyoming (+6.5) 98, Nevada 93
Iowa State (+5.5) 73, TCU 72
— Word of the Day: Cornucopia- a symbol of abundance and nourishment.
— SEC
Tennessee 91, Alabama 71- Vols are #85 in tempo this year; the previous six years, Tennessee’s tempo averaged #239.
Auburn 82, Oe Miss 59
Rebels are 2-3 in SEC, giving up 90-89-82 points in losses, after a 13-0 pre-conference mark.
Auburn is 5-0 in SEC play; Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama are all 4-1.
— Mountain West
Boise State 67, San Diego State 66
Aztecs lost two of last three games, after a 14-2 start.
Wyoming 98, Nevada 93
Cowboys made 13-23 shots on the arc.
Wyoming was 25-35 on foul line, Nevada 12-22.
Utah State is 5-1 in Mountain West, Boise State is 4-1.
— The last eight days for basketball official Randy McCall:
January 13- Tarleton State @ Grand Canyon
January 14- Utah @ Stanford
January 16- Air Force @ Colorado State
January 17- UCLA @ Arizona State
January 18- Washington @ California
January 20- San Diego State @ Boise State
— Atlantic 15
St Joe’s 71, Duquesne 69
Dukes are 0-5 in A-15, with three losses by 5 or fewer points.
— Big 14
Purdue 84, Iowa 70
Zach Edey scored 30 points, had 18 rebounds, 4 blocked shots.
Purdue out-rebounded Iowa, 50-24.
Wisconsin is 6-1 in conference games, Purdue 6-2.
— Speaking of Wisconsin, they’re #54 in 2-point FG% this year; the last four years, they didn’t finish higher than 215th.
— Big West
Fullerton 73, Santa Barbara 69
Visiting Titans snap a 4-game losing skid.
Loss snaps Santa Barbara’s 4-game win streak.
Gauchos are turning ball over 20.1% of time in league games (#10 of 11)
Davis 54, Irvine 52
Teams combined to shoot 7-29 on the arc.
Both teams shot under 40% inside the arc.
Davis’ big guy Niko Rocak blocked six shots.
Cal-Davis is 7-1 in Big West, half-game ahead of Irvine, UC-San Diego.
BROOKLYN is 2-10 ATS (-9 Units) in road games versus poor foul drawing teams - attempting <=24 free throws/game in the current sea...
WASHINGTON is 15-3 Over (11.7 Units) in home games when playing only their 2nd game in 5 days over the last 2 seasons.
MIAMI is 13-4 Under (8.6 Units) in road games versus good passing teams, averaging >=23 assists/game in the current season.
HOUSTON is 8-0 ATS (8 Units) in home games when playing only their 2nd game in 5 days in the current season.
PHOENIX is 23-39 ATS (-19.9 Units) in home games after 1 or more consecutive unders in the last 3 seasons.
PORTLAND is 40-62 ATS (-28.2 Units) after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
NBA
Sunday, January 21
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Trend Report
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Brooklyn @ LA Clippers
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against LA Clippers
Brooklyn is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games when playing LA Clippers
LA Clippers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
LA Clippers is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games
Denver @ Washington
Denver
Denver is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Washington
Denver is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Washington
Washington
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 7 games when playing Denver
Miami @ Orlando
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games on the road
Orlando
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Orlando's last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Orlando's last 5 games at home
Boston @ Houston
Boston
Boston is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Houston
Boston is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Houston
Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston's last 6 games when playing Boston
Houston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Indiana @ Phoenix
Indiana
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Indiana's last 10 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Indiana's last 9 games when playing on the road against Phoenix
Phoenix
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Phoenix's last 9 games when playing at home against Indiana
Phoenix is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Indiana
Portland @ LA Lakers
Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 7 games on the road
LA Lakers
LA Lakers is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Portland
LA Lakers is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Portland
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NBA
Long Sheet
Sunday, January 21
WASHINGTON is 15-3 Over (11.7 Units) in home games when playing only their 2nd game in 5 days over the last 2 seasons.
MIAMI is 13-4 Under (8.6 Units) in road games versus good passing teams, averaging >=23 assists/game in the current season.
HOUSTON is 8-0 ATS (8 Units) in home games when playing only their 2nd game in 5 days in the current season.
PHOENIX is 23-39 ATS (-19.9 Units) in home games after 1 or more consecutive unders in the last 3 seasons.
PORTLAND is 40-62 ATS (-28.2 Units) after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
NBA
Sunday, January 21
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Trend Report
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Brooklyn @ LA Clippers
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against LA Clippers
Brooklyn is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games when playing LA Clippers
LA Clippers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
LA Clippers is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games
Denver @ Washington
Denver
Denver is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Washington
Denver is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Washington
Washington
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 7 games when playing Denver
Miami @ Orlando
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games on the road
Orlando
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Orlando's last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Orlando's last 5 games at home
Boston @ Houston
Boston
Boston is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Houston
Boston is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Houston
Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Houston's last 6 games when playing Boston
Houston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Indiana @ Phoenix
Indiana
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Indiana's last 10 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Indiana's last 9 games when playing on the road against Phoenix
Phoenix
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Phoenix's last 9 games when playing at home against Indiana
Phoenix is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Indiana
Portland @ LA Lakers
Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 7 games on the road
LA Lakers
LA Lakers is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Portland
LA Lakers is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing Portland
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NBA
Long Sheet
Sunday, January 21
Monday’s 6-pack:
— Tulane 81, Memphis 79- Green Wave trailed by 7 with 9:17 left.
— Michigan State 61, Maryland 59- Spartans were +10 in turnovers.
— Lions 31, Bucs 23- Goff threw for 287 yards, two TD’s.
— Chiefs 27, Bills 24- Pacheco ran 15 times for 97 yards.
— Utah 80, Oregon 77- Utah outscored Ducks 15-7 on foul line.
— Indiana State 72, Murray State 63- Larry Bird’s alma mater is 7-1 in MVC.
Quote of the Day
“It feels like my heart just got ripped out.”
Baker Mayfield, who threw for 349 yards, 3 TD’s in Sunday’s loss
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, what well-known actress from the 70’s played Hodges’ mother?
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; he broke into the NBA as a player with the San Diego Rockets, in 1967.
Saturday’s quiz
Packers’ QB Jordan Love play his college football at Utah State.
**************************************************
Anaheim 15-29-1
— lost eight of last ten games overall.
— 6-16-1 at home, 9-13 on road.
— under 4-1 last five home games
Arizona 23-19-3
— lost six of their last nine games
— 15-9 at home, 8-10-3 on road.
— over 6-2 last eight home games.
Boston 28-8-9
— lost last three road games, all in OT/SO.
— 15-3-3 at home, 13-5-6 on road.
— over 6-1 last seven home games
Buffalo 20-23-4
— 3-4 in their last seven games.
— 11-13-1 at home, 9-10-3 on road.
— under 4-0 last four games
— 2-5 if they played the night before.
Calgary 21-20-5
— won four of their last six games
— 11-9-1 at home, 10-11-4 on road.
— over 3-2 last five home games
— 0-5 if they played the night before.
Carolina 25-14-5
— won eight of their last ten games.
— 13-4-4 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— over 3-1 last four road games.
Chicago 14-30-2
— lost seven of their last ten games
— 10-11-1 at home, 4-19-1 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games
— 1-5 if they played the night before.
Colorado 31-14-3
— won nine of last 12 games
— 18-5 at home, 13-9-3 on road.
— over 9-1 last ten games.
— 3-1 if they played the night before.
Columbus 14-22-9
— lost nine of their last 12 games
— 9-13-4 at home, 5-9-5 on road.
— under 4-1 last three road games
Dallas 27-13-5
— won five of their last seven games
— 14-8-2 at home, 13-5-3 on road.
— over 9-3 last 12 games
— 4-1 if they played the night before.
Detroit 23-17-5
— won six of their last eight games
— 11-7-4 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— under 5-1 last six games
— 4-1 if they played the night before.
Edmonton 26-15-1
— won their last 13 games.
— 13-6-1 at home, 13-9 on road.
— under 7-0 last seven games
Florida 27-14-4
— lost their last four games.
— 13-7-2 at home, 14-7-2 on road.
— under 14-4 last 18 games
Los Angeles 22-13-8
— lost 10 of their last 12 games.
— 8-8-5 at home, 14-5-3 on road.
— under 12-5 last 17 games
— 1-5 if they played the night before.
Minnesota 19-21-5
— lost nine of last 12 games.
— 11-9-3 at home, 8-12-2 on road.
— over 5-1 last six games
— 2-6 if they played the night before.
Montreal 19-20-7
— 4-9 in their last 13 games.
— 9-11-3 at home, 10-9-4 on road.
— over 5-2 last seven home games
— 1-9 if they played the night before.
Nashville 25-21-1
— 3-2 in their last five games.
— 13-11 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— under 4-0 last four games
— 5-0 if they played the night before.
New Jersey 23-18-3
— lost five of last seven games
— 9-11-2 at home, 14-7-1 on road.
— under 4-1 last five games.
— 1-6 if they played the night before.
NY Islanders 19-15-11
— lost eight of last ten games.
— 11-5-6 at home, 8-10-5 on road.
— over 10-3 last 13 games
— 0-6 if they played the night before.
NY Rangers 28-15-2
— lost six of their last eight games
— 15-6 at home, 13-9-2 on road.
— over 5-3 last eight games.
— 7-0 if they played the night before.
Ottawa 16-25-1
— lost seven of their last nine games.
— 12-12-1 at home, 4-13 on road.
— over 5-1 last six games.
Philadelphia 25-16-6
— won five of their last six games.
— 11-10-2 at home, 14-6-4 on road.
— under 6-3 last nine games.
— 5-0 on first night of a back/back.
Pittsburgh 21-16-6
— lost three of their last four games
— 11-8-2 at home, 10-8-4 on road.
— under 5-1 last six games
— 4-0 if they played the night before.
St Louis 22-20-2
— lost four of their last six games.
— 14-8-1 at home, 8-12-1 on road.
— over 3-2 last five games
San Jose 11-31-4
— lost 15 of their last 17 games
— 7-12-2 at home, 4-19-2 on road.
— under 5-3 last eight games
Seattle 19-17-9
— lost last three games, outscored 12-4.
— 9-8-3 at home, 10-9-6 on road.
— under 9-3 last dozen games
Tampa Bay 25-17-5
— won their last five games.
— 15-5-3 at home, 10-12-2 on road.
— under 5-1 last six road games
Toronto 22-14-8
— lost five of their last six games.
— 10-9-2 at home, 12-5-6 on road.
— over 5-2 last seven games
Vancouver 31-11-4
— 7-1 in their last eight games.
— 16-4-1 at home, 15-7-3 on road.
— over 6-2 last eight games
Vegas 27-14-5
— lost their last six road games.
— won five of last six home games.
— 18-5-2 at home, 9-9-3 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games
Washington 22-16-6
— won three of last five games.
— 13-7-4 at home, 9-9-2 on road.
— under 4-1 last five games.
— 4-2 if they played the night before.
Winnipeg 31-10-4
— 10-1 in their last 11 games.
— 16-6-2 at home, 15-4-2 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games.
— 4-0 if they played the night before.
— Tulane 81, Memphis 79- Green Wave trailed by 7 with 9:17 left.
— Michigan State 61, Maryland 59- Spartans were +10 in turnovers.
— Lions 31, Bucs 23- Goff threw for 287 yards, two TD’s.
— Chiefs 27, Bills 24- Pacheco ran 15 times for 97 yards.
— Utah 80, Oregon 77- Utah outscored Ducks 15-7 on foul line.
— Indiana State 72, Murray State 63- Larry Bird’s alma mater is 7-1 in MVC.
Quote of the Day
“It feels like my heart just got ripped out.”
Baker Mayfield, who threw for 349 yards, 3 TD’s in Sunday’s loss
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, what well-known actress from the 70’s played Hodges’ mother?
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; he broke into the NBA as a player with the San Diego Rockets, in 1967.
Saturday’s quiz
Packers’ QB Jordan Love play his college football at Utah State.
**************************************************
Monday’s Den: NHL trends…….
NHL trends (thru Saturday, January 20th)Anaheim 15-29-1
— lost eight of last ten games overall.
— 6-16-1 at home, 9-13 on road.
— under 4-1 last five home games
Arizona 23-19-3
— lost six of their last nine games
— 15-9 at home, 8-10-3 on road.
— over 6-2 last eight home games.
Boston 28-8-9
— lost last three road games, all in OT/SO.
— 15-3-3 at home, 13-5-6 on road.
— over 6-1 last seven home games
Buffalo 20-23-4
— 3-4 in their last seven games.
— 11-13-1 at home, 9-10-3 on road.
— under 4-0 last four games
— 2-5 if they played the night before.
Calgary 21-20-5
— won four of their last six games
— 11-9-1 at home, 10-11-4 on road.
— over 3-2 last five home games
— 0-5 if they played the night before.
Carolina 25-14-5
— won eight of their last ten games.
— 13-4-4 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— over 3-1 last four road games.
Chicago 14-30-2
— lost seven of their last ten games
— 10-11-1 at home, 4-19-1 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games
— 1-5 if they played the night before.
Colorado 31-14-3
— won nine of last 12 games
— 18-5 at home, 13-9-3 on road.
— over 9-1 last ten games.
— 3-1 if they played the night before.
Columbus 14-22-9
— lost nine of their last 12 games
— 9-13-4 at home, 5-9-5 on road.
— under 4-1 last three road games
Dallas 27-13-5
— won five of their last seven games
— 14-8-2 at home, 13-5-3 on road.
— over 9-3 last 12 games
— 4-1 if they played the night before.
Detroit 23-17-5
— won six of their last eight games
— 11-7-4 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— under 5-1 last six games
— 4-1 if they played the night before.
Edmonton 26-15-1
— won their last 13 games.
— 13-6-1 at home, 13-9 on road.
— under 7-0 last seven games
Florida 27-14-4
— lost their last four games.
— 13-7-2 at home, 14-7-2 on road.
— under 14-4 last 18 games
Los Angeles 22-13-8
— lost 10 of their last 12 games.
— 8-8-5 at home, 14-5-3 on road.
— under 12-5 last 17 games
— 1-5 if they played the night before.
Minnesota 19-21-5
— lost nine of last 12 games.
— 11-9-3 at home, 8-12-2 on road.
— over 5-1 last six games
— 2-6 if they played the night before.
Montreal 19-20-7
— 4-9 in their last 13 games.
— 9-11-3 at home, 10-9-4 on road.
— over 5-2 last seven home games
— 1-9 if they played the night before.
Nashville 25-21-1
— 3-2 in their last five games.
— 13-11 at home, 12-10-1 on road.
— under 4-0 last four games
— 5-0 if they played the night before.
New Jersey 23-18-3
— lost five of last seven games
— 9-11-2 at home, 14-7-1 on road.
— under 4-1 last five games.
— 1-6 if they played the night before.
NY Islanders 19-15-11
— lost eight of last ten games.
— 11-5-6 at home, 8-10-5 on road.
— over 10-3 last 13 games
— 0-6 if they played the night before.
NY Rangers 28-15-2
— lost six of their last eight games
— 15-6 at home, 13-9-2 on road.
— over 5-3 last eight games.
— 7-0 if they played the night before.
Ottawa 16-25-1
— lost seven of their last nine games.
— 12-12-1 at home, 4-13 on road.
— over 5-1 last six games.
Philadelphia 25-16-6
— won five of their last six games.
— 11-10-2 at home, 14-6-4 on road.
— under 6-3 last nine games.
— 5-0 on first night of a back/back.
Pittsburgh 21-16-6
— lost three of their last four games
— 11-8-2 at home, 10-8-4 on road.
— under 5-1 last six games
— 4-0 if they played the night before.
St Louis 22-20-2
— lost four of their last six games.
— 14-8-1 at home, 8-12-1 on road.
— over 3-2 last five games
San Jose 11-31-4
— lost 15 of their last 17 games
— 7-12-2 at home, 4-19-2 on road.
— under 5-3 last eight games
Seattle 19-17-9
— lost last three games, outscored 12-4.
— 9-8-3 at home, 10-9-6 on road.
— under 9-3 last dozen games
Tampa Bay 25-17-5
— won their last five games.
— 15-5-3 at home, 10-12-2 on road.
— under 5-1 last six road games
Toronto 22-14-8
— lost five of their last six games.
— 10-9-2 at home, 12-5-6 on road.
— over 5-2 last seven games
Vancouver 31-11-4
— 7-1 in their last eight games.
— 16-4-1 at home, 15-7-3 on road.
— over 6-2 last eight games
Vegas 27-14-5
— lost their last six road games.
— won five of last six home games.
— 18-5-2 at home, 9-9-3 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games
Washington 22-16-6
— won three of last five games.
— 13-7-4 at home, 9-9-2 on road.
— under 4-1 last five games.
— 4-2 if they played the night before.
Winnipeg 31-10-4
— 10-1 in their last 11 games.
— 16-6-2 at home, 15-4-2 on road.
— under 8-2 last ten games.
— 4-0 if they played the night before.
DETROIT is 11-1 ATS (9.9 Units) after allowing 135 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 235-182 Under (34.8 Units) versus good foul drawing teams - attempting >=27 free throws/game since 1996.
J.B. Bickerstaff is 21-46 ATS (-29.6 Units) in road games after covering 4 or 5 of their last 6 against the spread (All games)
TORONTO is 16-5 Over (10.5 Units) after playing a road game in the current season.
CHARLOTTE is 16-31 ATS (-18.1 Units) in road games after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
BOSTON is 37-19 ATS (16.1 Units) when the line is +3 to -3 in the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 32-14 ATS (16.6 Units) in home games after 5 straight games where they made 47% of their shots or better since 1996.
ATLANTA is 10-34 ATS (-27.4 Units) in road games after having won 2 of their last 3 games in the last 3 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 235-182 Under (34.8 Units) versus good foul drawing teams - attempting >=27 free throws/game since 1996.
J.B. Bickerstaff is 21-46 ATS (-29.6 Units) in road games after covering 4 or 5 of their last 6 against the spread (All games)
TORONTO is 16-5 Over (10.5 Units) after playing a road game in the current season.
CHARLOTTE is 16-31 ATS (-18.1 Units) in road games after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
BOSTON is 37-19 ATS (16.1 Units) when the line is +3 to -3 in the last 3 seasons.
PHOENIX is 32-14 ATS (16.6 Units) in home games after 5 straight games where they made 47% of their shots or better since 1996.
ATLANTA is 10-34 ATS (-27.4 Units) in road games after having won 2 of their last 3 games in the last 3 seasons.
NBA
Monday, January 22
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Trend Report
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San Antonio @ Philadelphia
San Antonio
San Antonio is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio's last 7 games when playing Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Philadelphia is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing San Antonio
Cleveland @ Orlando
Cleveland
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Cleveland is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Orlando
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Orlando's last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Orlando's last 6 games at home
Milwaukee @ Detroit
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Milwaukee's last 5 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit's last 5 games when playing Milwaukee
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Detroit's last 11 games when playing at home against Milwaukee
Memphis @ Toronto
Memphis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Memphis's last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Memphis's last 6 games when playing Toronto
Toronto
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Toronto's last 5 games when playing at home against Memphis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Toronto's last 6 games when playing Memphis
Charlotte @ Minnesota
Charlotte
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Charlotte's last 6 games on the road
Charlotte is 6-1-1 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games at home
Minnesota is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Boston @ Dallas
Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Dallas
Dallas is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Dallas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home
Chicago @ Phoenix
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 6 games when playing Phoenix
Chicago is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
Phoenix
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
Atlanta @ Sacramento
Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games
Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Sacramento's last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Sacramento's last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta
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Monday, January 22
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Trend Report
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San Antonio @ Philadelphia
San Antonio
San Antonio is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio's last 7 games when playing Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Philadelphia is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing San Antonio
Cleveland @ Orlando
Cleveland
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Cleveland is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Orlando
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Orlando's last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Orlando's last 6 games at home
Milwaukee @ Detroit
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Milwaukee's last 5 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit's last 5 games when playing Milwaukee
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Detroit's last 11 games when playing at home against Milwaukee
Memphis @ Toronto
Memphis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Memphis's last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Memphis's last 6 games when playing Toronto
Toronto
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Toronto's last 5 games when playing at home against Memphis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Toronto's last 6 games when playing Memphis
Charlotte @ Minnesota
Charlotte
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Charlotte's last 6 games on the road
Charlotte is 6-1-1 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games at home
Minnesota is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Boston @ Dallas
Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Dallas
Dallas is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games at home
Dallas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games at home
Chicago @ Phoenix
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 6 games when playing Phoenix
Chicago is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
Phoenix
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
Atlanta @ Sacramento
Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games
Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Sacramento's last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Sacramento's last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta
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Tuesday’s 6-pack:
— 76ers 133, Spurs 123- Joel Embiid scored 70 points in the win.
— Celtics 119, Mavericks 110- Boston was +27 with Tatum on floor.
— Hornets 128, Wolves 125- Towns scored 62 points in a losing cause.
— Bucks 122, Pistons 113- Detroit is 4-39; they must be having fun.
— Grizzlies 108, Raptors 100- Jaren Jackson scored 27 points, had 6 steals.
— Cavaliers 126, Magic 99- Cleveland shot 20-38 behind the arc.
Quote of the Day
“It’s hard to describe the week. Heartbreaking, devastating. It’s just the saddest thing I’ve ever been a part of in the NBA, where we lose someone who’s so close to us. And then, more importantly, seeing his family suffer. So this last week has been — last five days, I guess — has been full of all of the above. The shock, the emotion, the extreme outpouring of love from all over the world.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, after assistant coach Dejan Milojevic passed away last week
Tuesday’s quiz
Who was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl?
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, Jaclyn Smith played Hodges’ mother. She was one of the stars of Charlie’s Angels in the late 70’s.
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; he broke into the NBA as a player with the San Diego Rockets, in 1967.
***********************************************************
Chiefs @ Baltimore (-3.5, 44.5)
Lions @ San Francisco (-6.5, 51)
— Patrick Mahomes is now 13-3 in NFL playoff games, and he’s only 28. Sunday’s game in Baltimore is the 6th time Mahomes’ Chiefs have opened as an underdog of 3+ points- they were 5-0 ATS in the first five games.
Chiefs ranked 14th in NFL this year in points per game; this was first year since 2016 that the Chiefs weren’t in the top 10 in points per game.
— Tennessee Titans are going to hire Brian Callahan as head coach; he was the Bengals’ OC the last five years, and is the son of former Raiders’ coach Bill Callahan- Bill Callahan is now the offensive line coach in Cleveland.
— Chicago Bears named Shane Waldron their new offensive coordinator; he was Seattle’s OC the last three years, after working with the Rams before that. Waldron replaces Luke Getsy, a scapegoat for the Bears dismal showing the last two years.
Of the nine coaches who interviewed for this job, four of them worked for Sean McVay in Los Angeles at one time or another.
— Las Vegas Raiders named Antonio Pierce their full-time head coach; Raiders went 5-4 under Pierce after they fired Josh McDaniels on Halloween.
— Ohio State hired former Houston Texans’ coach Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator; he worked for the Patriots this past season, for Alabama in 2021-22. He went 54-52 coaching the Texans from 2014-20.
— Minnesota Vikings fired their trainer, after an injury-riddled 7-10 season. Go figure. The guy had only been with Minnesota for two years.
— Arizona Cardinals had a cruddy season this year, going 4-13; they recently laid off three members of their front office on the non-football side, all of whom had been with Arizona for 15+ years.
— Baseball Note of the Day: In 2021-22, when defensive shifts were still a thing, lefty batters hit a combined .238. Last year, with no shifts, lefty batters hit .247.
— Word of the Day: Negotiation- a discussion aimed at reaching an agreement.
— Pittsburgh Pirates gave reliever Aroldis Chapman $10.5M on a one-year deal; Pirates are the sixth big league team for Chapman, who was 6-5, 3.09 in 61 games for Royals/Rangers last year, winning a World Series ring with Texas.
— Houston Astros signed Josh Hader to a 5-year, $95M deal; Hader has 103 saves the last three seasons, in 113 opportunities.
— Toronto Blue Jays signed Cuban P Yariel Rodríguez to a 4-year, $32M deal.
— St Louis Cardinals brought utility guy Matt Carpenter back on a 1-year contract; he played for St Louis from 2011-21, but played for Bronx/San Diego the last two years.
Next year, Carpenter will be paid $3.26M by the Braves, $1.5M by the Padres and $740,000 by the Cardinals. Braves traded for Carpenter this winter, kept him for three days, then released him.
— It has been a slow winter for baseball talk; 13 of the top 25 free agents are still unsigned. The top four remaining players are all Scott Boras clients, and Boras tends to drag negotiations out
— North Carolina 85, Wake Forest 64
Tar Heels are 8-0 SU/7-1 ATS in ACC games.
Carolina outscored the Deacons 52-30 in the second half.
— Kansas 74, Cincinnati 69
Game was 35-35 at halftime.
Jayhawks were +5 (16-11) in turnovers.
This was Cincinnati’s sixth straight game against a top 25 opponent.
— McNeese State 62, Corpus Christi 61
McNeese put in a missed foul shot at the buzzer for the road win.
Corpus Christi led this game by 18 with 12:57 left to play.
McNeese has now won 11 in a row, is 6-0 in Southland Conference.
— DePaul fired basketball coach Tony Stubblefield, who was 28-54 with the Blue Demons, 3-15 this year; Matt Brady will serve as the interim head coach the rest of the season.
— Isaiah Watts of Washington State is the grandson of Slick Watts, an excellent point guard for the Seattle SuperSonics back when I was a kid.
— St John’s/UNLV are two teams who always have their conference tournament at their home court, but it hasn’t helped either team very much.
Since 2008, St John’s is 10-16 in the Big East tournament; since 2014, UNLV is 6-10 in their conference tournament.
— 76ers 133, Spurs 123- Joel Embiid scored 70 points in the win.
— Celtics 119, Mavericks 110- Boston was +27 with Tatum on floor.
— Hornets 128, Wolves 125- Towns scored 62 points in a losing cause.
— Bucks 122, Pistons 113- Detroit is 4-39; they must be having fun.
— Grizzlies 108, Raptors 100- Jaren Jackson scored 27 points, had 6 steals.
— Cavaliers 126, Magic 99- Cleveland shot 20-38 behind the arc.
Quote of the Day
“It’s hard to describe the week. Heartbreaking, devastating. It’s just the saddest thing I’ve ever been a part of in the NBA, where we lose someone who’s so close to us. And then, more importantly, seeing his family suffer. So this last week has been — last five days, I guess — has been full of all of the above. The shock, the emotion, the extreme outpouring of love from all over the world.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, after assistant coach Dejan Milojevic passed away last week
Tuesday’s quiz
Who was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl?
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, Jaclyn Smith played Hodges’ mother. She was one of the stars of Charlie’s Angels in the late 70’s.
Sunday’s quiz
Pat Riley won five NBA titles as a head coach; he broke into the NBA as a player with the San Diego Rockets, in 1967.
***********************************************************
Tuesday’s Den: Nobody asked me, but…….
— Betting lines for this weekend’s conference title games:Chiefs @ Baltimore (-3.5, 44.5)
Lions @ San Francisco (-6.5, 51)
— Patrick Mahomes is now 13-3 in NFL playoff games, and he’s only 28. Sunday’s game in Baltimore is the 6th time Mahomes’ Chiefs have opened as an underdog of 3+ points- they were 5-0 ATS in the first five games.
Chiefs ranked 14th in NFL this year in points per game; this was first year since 2016 that the Chiefs weren’t in the top 10 in points per game.
— Tennessee Titans are going to hire Brian Callahan as head coach; he was the Bengals’ OC the last five years, and is the son of former Raiders’ coach Bill Callahan- Bill Callahan is now the offensive line coach in Cleveland.
— Chicago Bears named Shane Waldron their new offensive coordinator; he was Seattle’s OC the last three years, after working with the Rams before that. Waldron replaces Luke Getsy, a scapegoat for the Bears dismal showing the last two years.
Of the nine coaches who interviewed for this job, four of them worked for Sean McVay in Los Angeles at one time or another.
— Las Vegas Raiders named Antonio Pierce their full-time head coach; Raiders went 5-4 under Pierce after they fired Josh McDaniels on Halloween.
— Ohio State hired former Houston Texans’ coach Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator; he worked for the Patriots this past season, for Alabama in 2021-22. He went 54-52 coaching the Texans from 2014-20.
— Minnesota Vikings fired their trainer, after an injury-riddled 7-10 season. Go figure. The guy had only been with Minnesota for two years.
— Arizona Cardinals had a cruddy season this year, going 4-13; they recently laid off three members of their front office on the non-football side, all of whom had been with Arizona for 15+ years.
— Baseball Note of the Day: In 2021-22, when defensive shifts were still a thing, lefty batters hit a combined .238. Last year, with no shifts, lefty batters hit .247.
— Word of the Day: Negotiation- a discussion aimed at reaching an agreement.
— Pittsburgh Pirates gave reliever Aroldis Chapman $10.5M on a one-year deal; Pirates are the sixth big league team for Chapman, who was 6-5, 3.09 in 61 games for Royals/Rangers last year, winning a World Series ring with Texas.
— Houston Astros signed Josh Hader to a 5-year, $95M deal; Hader has 103 saves the last three seasons, in 113 opportunities.
— Toronto Blue Jays signed Cuban P Yariel Rodríguez to a 4-year, $32M deal.
— St Louis Cardinals brought utility guy Matt Carpenter back on a 1-year contract; he played for St Louis from 2011-21, but played for Bronx/San Diego the last two years.
Next year, Carpenter will be paid $3.26M by the Braves, $1.5M by the Padres and $740,000 by the Cardinals. Braves traded for Carpenter this winter, kept him for three days, then released him.
— It has been a slow winter for baseball talk; 13 of the top 25 free agents are still unsigned. The top four remaining players are all Scott Boras clients, and Boras tends to drag negotiations out
— North Carolina 85, Wake Forest 64
Tar Heels are 8-0 SU/7-1 ATS in ACC games.
Carolina outscored the Deacons 52-30 in the second half.
— Kansas 74, Cincinnati 69
Game was 35-35 at halftime.
Jayhawks were +5 (16-11) in turnovers.
This was Cincinnati’s sixth straight game against a top 25 opponent.
— McNeese State 62, Corpus Christi 61
McNeese put in a missed foul shot at the buzzer for the road win.
Corpus Christi led this game by 18 with 12:57 left to play.
McNeese has now won 11 in a row, is 6-0 in Southland Conference.
— DePaul fired basketball coach Tony Stubblefield, who was 28-54 with the Blue Demons, 3-15 this year; Matt Brady will serve as the interim head coach the rest of the season.
— Isaiah Watts of Washington State is the grandson of Slick Watts, an excellent point guard for the Seattle SuperSonics back when I was a kid.
— St John’s/UNLV are two teams who always have their conference tournament at their home court, but it hasn’t helped either team very much.
Since 2008, St John’s is 10-16 in the Big East tournament; since 2014, UNLV is 6-10 in their conference tournament.
DENVER is 14-1 Under (12.9 Units) after 3 consecutive non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
NEW YORK is 10-1 Under (8.9 Units) in January games in the current season.
UTAH is 12-2 ATS (9.8 Units) after having won 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the current season.
PORTLAND is 4-16 ATS (-13.6 Units) in road games vs. division opponents in the last 3 seasons.
LA LAKERS are 11-3 Over (7.7 Units) in road games versus good shooting teams - making >=46% of their shots in the current season.
NBA
Dunkel
Tuesday, January 23
NBA
Tuesday, January 23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Denver @ Indiana
Denver
Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Denver's last 8 games when playing on the road against Indiana
Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Indiana's last 8 games when playing at home against Denver
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Indiana's last 7 games
New York @ Brooklyn
New York
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games
New York is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against New York
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 6 games at home
Portland @ Oklahoma City
Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 6 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 7 games
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Oklahoma City is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Utah @ New Orleans
Utah
Utah is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing New Orleans
Utah is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
New Orleans
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Orleans's last 5 games when playing Utah
The total has gone OVER in 14 of New Orleans's last 19 games when playing at home against Utah
LA Lakers @ LA Clippers
LA Lakers
The total has gone OVER in 12 of LA Lakers's last 13 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 14 of LA Lakers's last 21 games
LA Clippers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against LA Lakers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
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NEW YORK is 10-1 Under (8.9 Units) in January games in the current season.
UTAH is 12-2 ATS (9.8 Units) after having won 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the current season.
PORTLAND is 4-16 ATS (-13.6 Units) in road games vs. division opponents in the last 3 seasons.
LA LAKERS are 11-3 Over (7.7 Units) in road games versus good shooting teams - making >=46% of their shots in the current season.
NBA
Dunkel
Tuesday, January 23
NBA
Tuesday, January 23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Denver @ Indiana
Denver
Denver is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Denver's last 8 games when playing on the road against Indiana
Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Indiana's last 8 games when playing at home against Denver
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Indiana's last 7 games
New York @ Brooklyn
New York
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games
New York is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against New York
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 6 games at home
Portland @ Oklahoma City
Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 6 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 7 games
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Oklahoma City is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Utah @ New Orleans
Utah
Utah is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing New Orleans
Utah is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
New Orleans
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Orleans's last 5 games when playing Utah
The total has gone OVER in 14 of New Orleans's last 19 games when playing at home against Utah
LA Lakers @ LA Clippers
LA Lakers
The total has gone OVER in 12 of LA Lakers's last 13 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 14 of LA Lakers's last 21 games
LA Clippers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against LA Lakers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
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Wednesday’s 6-pack:
Mel Kiper’s first mock draft for 2024:
1- Bears- Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2- Commanders- Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
3- Patriots- Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
4- Cardinals- Marvin Harrison Jr, WR, Ohio State
5- Chargers- Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
6- Mailk Nabers, WR, LSU
Quote of the Day
“Typically, we don’t enforce policies that force loyalty. We want loyalty to be organic and natural. When you limit the ability to exercise your freedoms of transferring, there needs to be a very valid reason to do so. And to just blatantly enforce loyalty, I think it’s hard to argue that case.”
Former college QB JT Daniels, talking about the transfer process- he transferred three times and played for four schools in a six-year college career.
Wednesday’s quiz
Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing played 15 of his 17 seasons with the Knicks, but what team did he finish his career with?
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Flacco was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl.
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, Jaclyn Smith played Hodges’ mother. She was one of the stars of Charlie’s Angels in the late 70’s.
********************************************
This came up because I’ve often wondered if a home playoff loss comes with a hangover effect the next season. Teams work so hard for the home field edge; if you get it, then lose a playoff game at home, are there long-term negative effects?
Since 2010 in the NFL, the road team has won 50 playoff games:
Of the 50 teams who lost at home, those teams, the next season…….
— 3 of them won the Super Bowl (Chiefs in 2019/2022), Broncos in 2015.
Helps to have Mahomes/Peyton Manning at QB.
— 4 of them lost the Super Bowl
— 20 of 50 teams missed the playoffs the next year.
— The 30 teams who made the playoffs went 20-10 in their first playoff game.
— The 20 teams who won that first playoff game went 7-13 in their next game.
Since 2000, #1-seeds are 34-14 in their first playoff game; of the 14 teams who lost that first playoff game……
— 7 0f 14 teams missed the playoffs the next year.
— 2006 Colts were only team to win the Super Bowl the next year.
Again, it helped to have Peyton Manning at QB.
— Two other teams lost the Super Bowl the next year.
Elsewhere in the world……..
— Hard to believe that Sports Illustrated has bit the dust; seems like it has been around forever. Last week they fired just about all their staff. Not good.
For my 9th birthday, a friend of my parents gave me a subscription to Sports Illustrated as a gift; the first issue that came in the mail had Bobby Orr on the cover, and I became a big hockey fan, and the Boston Bruins in particular. The magazine always came on Thursday, as I remember.
— Monday, they had 2.7 inches of rain in San Diego, of all places. It was one of the five wettest days in San Diego’s recorded history.
— Super Bowls won, by division:
13- NFC East
9- AFC East, AFC West
9- NFC West, AFC North
5- NFC North
3- NFC South
2- AFC South
— Lot of job interviews this time of year; I remember hearing a story about how Al Davis would interview people he had no intention of hiring, he just wanted to pick their brains, get new ideas on how to do things going forward.
— Comgrats to Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer, Todd Helton on getting elected into baseball’s Hall of Fame. Manager Jim Leyland is also getting in this year; he was voted in last month.
— Other baseball stuff:
Milwaukee Brewers signed 1B Rhys Hoskins for two years,, $34M.
Washington Nationals signed OF/DH Joey Gallo for one year, $5M.
LA Dodgers signed P James Paxton, for one year, $11M.
— Long time ago, back when ESPN was more fun to watch, their Big Mondays were great:
7:00- Big East game
9:00- Big 10 game
midnight- Big West game
This was back when UNLV was a national power; they played in the Big West back then, when their top competitors were Cal-Santa Barbara, New Mexico State and Cal-Fullerton. Then they moved to the Mountain West, which has hurt both them and the Big West.
My suggestion to ESPN; add the midnight game again, whether it is Big Sky, Big West, WCC or the WAC (or a combination). People will watch, of that I am not uncertain.
— Baseball Fact of the Day: 2008 Florida Marlins were the first team where all four infielders hit 25+ home runs.
1B Mike Jacobs- 32
2B Dan Uggla- 32
SS Hanley Ramirez- 33
3B Jorge Cantu- 29
— Word of the Day: Narcissist- a person who has an excessive interest in or admiration of themselves.
— South Carolina 79, Kentucky 62
South Carolina made 11-24 on the arc.
Gamecocks are 5-3 in last eight games vs Kentucky.
— Kent State 90, Bowling Green 84 OT
Bowling Green led by 3 with 1:38 left in regulation.
Falcons were 26-34 on foul line, but only 6-23 on arc.
— Creighton 85, Xavier 78
Xavier led by 7 with 11:56 left in the game.
Alexander scored 27 points, had 9 rebounds, 4 assists.
— TCU 74, Oklahoma State 69
Oklahoma State led by 17 late in first half.
Horned Frogs shot 64.3% inside the arc.
— Charlotte 76, UAB 70
Blazers led 35-15 late in first half.
Charlotte won its last six games, after a 6-7 start.
— Air Force 90, UNLV 58
UNLV trailed 39-24 at halftime, then it got worse.
Underdogs are 5-1 ATS in Rebels’ Mountain West games.
Mel Kiper’s first mock draft for 2024:
1- Bears- Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2- Commanders- Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
3- Patriots- Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
4- Cardinals- Marvin Harrison Jr, WR, Ohio State
5- Chargers- Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
6- Mailk Nabers, WR, LSU
Quote of the Day
“Typically, we don’t enforce policies that force loyalty. We want loyalty to be organic and natural. When you limit the ability to exercise your freedoms of transferring, there needs to be a very valid reason to do so. And to just blatantly enforce loyalty, I think it’s hard to argue that case.”
Former college QB JT Daniels, talking about the transfer process- he transferred three times and played for four schools in a six-year college career.
Wednesday’s quiz
Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing played 15 of his 17 seasons with the Knicks, but what team did he finish his career with?
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Flacco was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl.
Monday’s quiz
On the classic TV show CSI, Jaclyn Smith played Hodges’ mother. She was one of the stars of Charlie’s Angels in the late 70’s.
********************************************
Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings…….
When I was a kid back in the 70’s, the Rams won their division seven years in a row, but the first six of those years, they lost in the playoffs- they lost the NFC Championship game four times in a five-year span, twice at home, before making the Super Bowl in 1979.This came up because I’ve often wondered if a home playoff loss comes with a hangover effect the next season. Teams work so hard for the home field edge; if you get it, then lose a playoff game at home, are there long-term negative effects?
Since 2010 in the NFL, the road team has won 50 playoff games:
Of the 50 teams who lost at home, those teams, the next season…….
— 3 of them won the Super Bowl (Chiefs in 2019/2022), Broncos in 2015.
Helps to have Mahomes/Peyton Manning at QB.
— 4 of them lost the Super Bowl
— 20 of 50 teams missed the playoffs the next year.
— The 30 teams who made the playoffs went 20-10 in their first playoff game.
— The 20 teams who won that first playoff game went 7-13 in their next game.
Since 2000, #1-seeds are 34-14 in their first playoff game; of the 14 teams who lost that first playoff game……
— 7 0f 14 teams missed the playoffs the next year.
— 2006 Colts were only team to win the Super Bowl the next year.
Again, it helped to have Peyton Manning at QB.
— Two other teams lost the Super Bowl the next year.
Elsewhere in the world……..
— Hard to believe that Sports Illustrated has bit the dust; seems like it has been around forever. Last week they fired just about all their staff. Not good.
For my 9th birthday, a friend of my parents gave me a subscription to Sports Illustrated as a gift; the first issue that came in the mail had Bobby Orr on the cover, and I became a big hockey fan, and the Boston Bruins in particular. The magazine always came on Thursday, as I remember.
— Monday, they had 2.7 inches of rain in San Diego, of all places. It was one of the five wettest days in San Diego’s recorded history.
— Super Bowls won, by division:
13- NFC East
9- AFC East, AFC West
9- NFC West, AFC North
5- NFC North
3- NFC South
2- AFC South
— Lot of job interviews this time of year; I remember hearing a story about how Al Davis would interview people he had no intention of hiring, he just wanted to pick their brains, get new ideas on how to do things going forward.
— Comgrats to Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer, Todd Helton on getting elected into baseball’s Hall of Fame. Manager Jim Leyland is also getting in this year; he was voted in last month.
— Other baseball stuff:
Milwaukee Brewers signed 1B Rhys Hoskins for two years,, $34M.
Washington Nationals signed OF/DH Joey Gallo for one year, $5M.
LA Dodgers signed P James Paxton, for one year, $11M.
— Long time ago, back when ESPN was more fun to watch, their Big Mondays were great:
7:00- Big East game
9:00- Big 10 game
midnight- Big West game
This was back when UNLV was a national power; they played in the Big West back then, when their top competitors were Cal-Santa Barbara, New Mexico State and Cal-Fullerton. Then they moved to the Mountain West, which has hurt both them and the Big West.
My suggestion to ESPN; add the midnight game again, whether it is Big Sky, Big West, WCC or the WAC (or a combination). People will watch, of that I am not uncertain.
— Baseball Fact of the Day: 2008 Florida Marlins were the first team where all four infielders hit 25+ home runs.
1B Mike Jacobs- 32
2B Dan Uggla- 32
SS Hanley Ramirez- 33
3B Jorge Cantu- 29
— Word of the Day: Narcissist- a person who has an excessive interest in or admiration of themselves.
— South Carolina 79, Kentucky 62
South Carolina made 11-24 on the arc.
Gamecocks are 5-3 in last eight games vs Kentucky.
— Kent State 90, Bowling Green 84 OT
Bowling Green led by 3 with 1:38 left in regulation.
Falcons were 26-34 on foul line, but only 6-23 on arc.
— Creighton 85, Xavier 78
Xavier led by 7 with 11:56 left in the game.
Alexander scored 27 points, had 9 rebounds, 4 assists.
— TCU 74, Oklahoma State 69
Oklahoma State led by 17 late in first half.
Horned Frogs shot 64.3% inside the arc.
— Charlotte 76, UAB 70
Blazers led 35-15 late in first half.
Charlotte won its last six games, after a 6-7 start.
— Air Force 90, UNLV 58
UNLV trailed 39-24 at halftime, then it got worse.
Underdogs are 5-1 ATS in Rebels’ Mountain West games.
WASHINGTON is 9-1 Over (7.9 Units) in home games playing with 2 days rest over the last 2 seasons.
DETROIT is 19-40 ATS (-25 Units) in home games off a home loss against a division rival since 1996.
MEMPHIS are 11-2 Under (8.8 Units) when playing their 3rd road game in 5 days over the last 2 seasons.
PORTLAND is 41-63 ATS (-28.3 Units) after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
MILWAUKEE is 117-173 ATS (-73.3 Units) in home games after 2 or more consecutive wins since 1996.
PHOENIX is 1-11 ATS (-11.1 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 116+ points/game in the current season.
SAN ANTONIO is 13-1 Over (11.9 Units) in home games off a road loss by 10 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 11-30 ATS (-22 Units) in road games after a non-conference game in the last 3 seasons.
DETROIT is 19-40 ATS (-25 Units) in home games off a home loss against a division rival since 1996.
MEMPHIS are 11-2 Under (8.8 Units) when playing their 3rd road game in 5 days over the last 2 seasons.
PORTLAND is 41-63 ATS (-28.3 Units) after having lost 4 or 5 of their last 6 games in the last 3 seasons.
MILWAUKEE is 117-173 ATS (-73.3 Units) in home games after 2 or more consecutive wins since 1996.
PHOENIX is 1-11 ATS (-11.1 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 116+ points/game in the current season.
SAN ANTONIO is 13-1 Over (11.9 Units) in home games off a road loss by 10 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 11-30 ATS (-22 Units) in road games after a non-conference game in the last 3 seasons.
NBA
Wednesday, January 24
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Trend Report
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Minnesota @ Washington
Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Minnesota's last 5 games when playing on the road against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Minnesota's last 11 games when playing Washington
Washington
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 5 games when playing at home against Minnesota
Washington is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Minnesota
Charlotte @ Detroit
Charlotte
Charlotte is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Detroit
Charlotte is 17-4 SU in its last 21 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
Detroit is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Detroit is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Memphis @ Miami
Memphis
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Memphis's last 9 games when playing on the road against Miami
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Memphis's last 10 games on the road
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Miami's last 9 games when playing at home against Memphis
Cleveland @ Milwaukee
Cleveland
Cleveland is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Cleveland
Milwaukee is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games at home
Portland @ Houston
Portland
Portland is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Portland is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Houston is 16-6 SU in its last 22 games at home
Phoenix @ Dallas
Phoenix
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Phoenix's last 6 games
Dallas
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Phoenix
Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Phoenix
Oklahoma City @ San Antonio
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing San Antonio
Oklahoma City is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against San Antonio
San Antonio
San Antonio is 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Antonio's last 5 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City
Atlanta @ Golden State
Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games
Atlanta is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Golden State
Golden State
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Golden State's last 6 games at home
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Wednesday, January 24
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Trend Report
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Minnesota @ Washington
Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Minnesota's last 5 games when playing on the road against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Minnesota's last 11 games when playing Washington
Washington
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 5 games when playing at home against Minnesota
Washington is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Minnesota
Charlotte @ Detroit
Charlotte
Charlotte is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Detroit
Charlotte is 17-4 SU in its last 21 games when playing Detroit
Detroit
Detroit is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Detroit is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Memphis @ Miami
Memphis
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Memphis's last 9 games when playing on the road against Miami
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Memphis's last 10 games on the road
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Miami's last 9 games when playing at home against Memphis
Cleveland @ Milwaukee
Cleveland
Cleveland is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Cleveland
Milwaukee is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games at home
Portland @ Houston
Portland
Portland is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Portland is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
Houston is 16-6 SU in its last 22 games at home
Phoenix @ Dallas
Phoenix
Phoenix is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Phoenix's last 6 games
Dallas
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Phoenix
Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Phoenix
Oklahoma City @ San Antonio
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing San Antonio
Oklahoma City is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against San Antonio
San Antonio
San Antonio is 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Antonio's last 5 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City
Atlanta @ Golden State
Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta's last 5 games
Atlanta is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Golden State
Golden State
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Golden State's last 6 games at home
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Thursday’s 6-pack:
Most saves in major leagues, since 2019:
153— Josh Hader
152— Kenley Jansen
126— Raisel Iglesias
115— Liam Hendriks
111— Emmanuel Clase
105— Ryan Pressly
Quote of the Day
“To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved.”
George McDonald
Thursday’s quiz
New Orleans Saints started playing in 1967, but they didn’t win a playoff game until 2000; who was their coach when they got that first playoff win?
Wednesday’s quiz
Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing played 15 of his 17 seasons with the Knicks; he finished his career with the Orlando Magic, after playing a year with Seattle.
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Flacco was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl.
******************************************
Harbaugh just won a national title at Michigan; he was 86-25 in Ann Arbor, 144-42 overall in college ball. Before this season, Harbaugh had lost six bowl games in a row, but he won two of them this year and he leaves Michigan with a national title.
Harbaugh coached the 49ers from 2011-14, going 49-22-1, 5-3 in playoff games. His 49ers lost the Super Bowl 11 years ago- he lost to his brother John’s Baltimore team.
Next year, by the way, the Ravens will play the Chargers at SoFi in Los Angeles, which sounds like a Monday Night Football matchup.
— Football coaches are nomads, they move around a lot:
Packers fired defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
Dolphins fired defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
Next year, Dolphins will have their third defensive coordinator in three years under head coach Mike McDaniel. Eagles will have their third offensive coordinator in three years.
— Four QB’s have started a Super Bowl for two different teams:
Craig Morton
Kurt Warner
Peyton Manning
Tom Brady
Jared Goff tries to join this list Sunday night.
— QB Will Rogers bolted from Mississippi State to Washington after the season, but when Kalen DeBoer bolted from Washington to Alabama, Rogers put his name back into the portal, but now he’s taken his name out of the portal and will play for Jedd Fisch at Washington.
— Must be an interesting story going on in Milwaukee; the Bucks fired rookie head coach Adrian Griffin, even though the guy had a 30-13 record.
According to the Ringer, “…….(Griffin made) head-scratching in-game decisions that made the franchise’s star players believe he’s not capable of leading them to a championship.”
Doc Rivers is the new coach in Milwaukee; he is 1,208-867 as an NBA coach, 111-104 in playoff games, with one title, but that was 16 years ago.
— Baseball Note of the Day: 25-year old Bubba Thompson is one of the fastest players in baseball; he’s had an interesting last few months:
He hit .170 in 53 at-bats with Texas last year.
August 13- Royals claimed him on waivers.
October 26- Reds claimed him on waivers.
January 4- Bronx claimed him on waivers.
January 24- Twins claimed him on waivers.
Not many players change teams three times in one offseason.
— Word of the Day: Nomad- a person who doesn’t stay long in the same place.
— Home team is 9-0 ATS in Nebraska’s Big 14 games this season.
— Creighton Bluejays are 15-5, 6-3 in the Big East; in their last four games, Baylor Scheierman has played 174:18 of a possible 175:00.
Creighton is #351 in the country in bench minutes; this will hurt them in the Big East tournament, when the games are on consecutive days. In the NCAA’s, the games are every other day, so players can have down time between games.
— Northwestern 96, Illinois 91, OT
Three weeks ago, Illinois beat the Wildcats by 30 at home.
Northwestern made 11-18 shots on the arc.
— Alabama 79, Auburn 75
Alabama led 44-30 at the half, held on in second half.
Both teams are now 5-1 in the SEC.
— Virginia 59, NC State 53, OT
Virginia led by 14 with 12:44 left in regulation.
Cavaliers out-rebounded NC State, 54-32.
Teams combined to shoot 8-31 on the arc.
— Missouri State 83, Drake 80, 2OT
Drake led by 16 late in first half.
Alston Mason scored 36 points for the victorious Bears.
— Furman 78, Samford 68
Fifth straight win for the Paladins.
First loss for Samford in eight SoCon games.
— Iowa State 78, Kansas State 67
K-State never led, but game was 61-61 with 4:40 left.
Cyclones were 27-39 on foul line, K-State 15-23.
Most saves in major leagues, since 2019:
153— Josh Hader
152— Kenley Jansen
126— Raisel Iglesias
115— Liam Hendriks
111— Emmanuel Clase
105— Ryan Pressly
Quote of the Day
“To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved.”
George McDonald
Thursday’s quiz
New Orleans Saints started playing in 1967, but they didn’t win a playoff game until 2000; who was their coach when they got that first playoff win?
Wednesday’s quiz
Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing played 15 of his 17 seasons with the Knicks; he finished his career with the Orlando Magic, after playing a year with Seattle.
Tuesday’s quiz
Joe Flacco was the Baltimore Ravens’ QB, last time they won the Super Bowl.
******************************************
Thursday’s Den: Doing some thinking out loud…….
— Los Angeles Chargers hired Jim Harbaugh as their new coach Wednesday; he played for the Chargers for two years (1999-2000).Harbaugh just won a national title at Michigan; he was 86-25 in Ann Arbor, 144-42 overall in college ball. Before this season, Harbaugh had lost six bowl games in a row, but he won two of them this year and he leaves Michigan with a national title.
Harbaugh coached the 49ers from 2011-14, going 49-22-1, 5-3 in playoff games. His 49ers lost the Super Bowl 11 years ago- he lost to his brother John’s Baltimore team.
Next year, by the way, the Ravens will play the Chargers at SoFi in Los Angeles, which sounds like a Monday Night Football matchup.
— Football coaches are nomads, they move around a lot:
Packers fired defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
Dolphins fired defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
Next year, Dolphins will have their third defensive coordinator in three years under head coach Mike McDaniel. Eagles will have their third offensive coordinator in three years.
— Four QB’s have started a Super Bowl for two different teams:
Craig Morton
Kurt Warner
Peyton Manning
Tom Brady
Jared Goff tries to join this list Sunday night.
— QB Will Rogers bolted from Mississippi State to Washington after the season, but when Kalen DeBoer bolted from Washington to Alabama, Rogers put his name back into the portal, but now he’s taken his name out of the portal and will play for Jedd Fisch at Washington.
— Must be an interesting story going on in Milwaukee; the Bucks fired rookie head coach Adrian Griffin, even though the guy had a 30-13 record.
According to the Ringer, “…….(Griffin made) head-scratching in-game decisions that made the franchise’s star players believe he’s not capable of leading them to a championship.”
Doc Rivers is the new coach in Milwaukee; he is 1,208-867 as an NBA coach, 111-104 in playoff games, with one title, but that was 16 years ago.
— Baseball Note of the Day: 25-year old Bubba Thompson is one of the fastest players in baseball; he’s had an interesting last few months:
He hit .170 in 53 at-bats with Texas last year.
August 13- Royals claimed him on waivers.
October 26- Reds claimed him on waivers.
January 4- Bronx claimed him on waivers.
January 24- Twins claimed him on waivers.
Not many players change teams three times in one offseason.
— Word of the Day: Nomad- a person who doesn’t stay long in the same place.
— Home team is 9-0 ATS in Nebraska’s Big 14 games this season.
— Creighton Bluejays are 15-5, 6-3 in the Big East; in their last four games, Baylor Scheierman has played 174:18 of a possible 175:00.
Creighton is #351 in the country in bench minutes; this will hurt them in the Big East tournament, when the games are on consecutive days. In the NCAA’s, the games are every other day, so players can have down time between games.
— Northwestern 96, Illinois 91, OT
Three weeks ago, Illinois beat the Wildcats by 30 at home.
Northwestern made 11-18 shots on the arc.
— Alabama 79, Auburn 75
Alabama led 44-30 at the half, held on in second half.
Both teams are now 5-1 in the SEC.
— Virginia 59, NC State 53, OT
Virginia led by 14 with 12:44 left in regulation.
Cavaliers out-rebounded NC State, 54-32.
Teams combined to shoot 8-31 on the arc.
— Missouri State 83, Drake 80, 2OT
Drake led by 16 late in first half.
Alston Mason scored 36 points for the victorious Bears.
— Furman 78, Samford 68
Fifth straight win for the Paladins.
First loss for Samford in eight SoCon games.
— Iowa State 78, Kansas State 67
K-State never led, but game was 61-61 with 4:40 left.
Cyclones were 27-39 on foul line, K-State 15-23.
UTAH is 12-1 ATS (10.9 Units) after 2+ road games in the current season.
INDIANA is 8-0 Over (8 Units) off a home loss in the current season.
BOSTON is 85-60 ATS (19 Units) when the total >=220 in the last 3 seasons.
NEW YORK is 10-0 ATS (10 Units) in a home game where the total is 220 to 229.5 in the current season.
MINNESOTA is 9-0 ATS (9 Units) when the total is 210-219.5 in the current season.
SACRAMENTO is 13-3 ATS (9.7 Units) in road games vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
LA LAKERS are 55-85 ATS (-38.5 Units) off a road loss against a division rival since 1996.
INDIANA is 8-0 Over (8 Units) off a home loss in the current season.
BOSTON is 85-60 ATS (19 Units) when the total >=220 in the last 3 seasons.
NEW YORK is 10-0 ATS (10 Units) in a home game where the total is 220 to 229.5 in the current season.
MINNESOTA is 9-0 ATS (9 Units) when the total is 210-219.5 in the current season.
SACRAMENTO is 13-3 ATS (9.7 Units) in road games vs. division opponents over the last 2 seasons.
LA LAKERS are 55-85 ATS (-38.5 Units) off a road loss against a division rival since 1996.
NBA
Thursday, January 25
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Trend Report
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Philadelphia @ Indiana
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 5 games when playing Indiana
Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Indiana's last 5 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Indiana's last 8 games
Minnesota @ Brooklyn
Minnesota
Minnesota is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
Brooklyn
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 6 games when playing at home against Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 7 games at home
Denver @ New York
Denver
Denver is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Denver is 14-3 SU in its last 17 games when playing New York
New York
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games at home
Boston @ Miami
Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Boston's last 7 games when playing on the road against Miami
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Miami's last 7 games when playing at home against Boston
Sacramento @ Golden State
Sacramento
Sacramento is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Sacramento is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Golden State
Golden State
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Sacramento
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Golden State's last 7 games at home
Chicago @ LA Lakers
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
Chicago is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
LA Lakers
The total has gone OVER in 5 of LA Lakers's last 5 games when playing Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 6 of LA Lakers's last 8 games when playing at home against Chicago
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Thursday, January 25
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Trend Report
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Philadelphia @ Indiana
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 5 games when playing Indiana
Indiana
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Indiana's last 5 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Indiana's last 8 games
Minnesota @ Brooklyn
Minnesota
Minnesota is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
Brooklyn
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 6 games when playing at home against Minnesota
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Brooklyn's last 7 games at home
Denver @ New York
Denver
Denver is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
Denver is 14-3 SU in its last 17 games when playing New York
New York
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New York's last 5 games at home
Boston @ Miami
Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Boston's last 7 games when playing on the road against Miami
Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Miami's last 7 games when playing at home against Boston
Sacramento @ Golden State
Sacramento
Sacramento is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Sacramento is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Golden State
Golden State
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Sacramento
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Golden State's last 7 games at home
Chicago @ LA Lakers
Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
Chicago is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
LA Lakers
The total has gone OVER in 5 of LA Lakers's last 5 games when playing Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 6 of LA Lakers's last 8 games when playing at home against Chicago
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