SPORTS ADVISORS
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Connecticut (13-8, 8-11 ATS) at Louisville (13-8, 6-10 ATS)
UConn tries to snap a two-game losing streak when the Huskies travel to Freedom Hall for a Big East showdown with the Cardinals.
Connecticut dropped a 70-68 decision to Marquette on Saturday as a five-point home favorite. The Huskies dominated the game statistically, holding Marquette to 38.1 percent shooting and outrebounding the Golden Eagles 41-18, but they turned the ball over 16 times compared to Marquette’s two giveaways. Despite knocking off then-No. 1 Texas nine days ago, UConn has lost five of seven (SU and ATS) overall and is just 1-6 SU (3-4 ATS) away from home this season.
Louisville has lost four of five overall (SU and ATS), including Saturday’s 77-74 road setback at West Virginia, but the Cardinals got the cash as 6½-point ‘dogs to snap an 0-5 ATS slide. Louisville shot 51.9 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Mountaineers 32-30, but they turned the ball over 17 times and blew a 12-point lead with 10 minutes to play. The Cardinals are 11-3 at home this season but they have cashed in just three of nine lined contests at Freedom Hall.
The Huskies went to Freedom Hall last season and scored a 68-51 win as a 2½-point underdog. UConn has won two straight in this rivalry and five of the last seven (3-3-1 ATS) dating back to 2006. The road team is 4-1-1 ATS in the last six series clashes.
UConn is just 1-4 ATS in its last five after a non-cover and 3-7 ATS in its last 10 after a straight-up loss. Louisville is 43-17-2 ATS in its last 62 Big East games and 7-3-1 ATS in its last 11 Monday contests, but otherwise the Cardinals are on negative ATS runs of 1-5 overall (all in Big East play), 1-4 at home, 0-6 after a spread-cover and 1-4 after a straight-up loss.
The Huskies are on “under” streaks of 9-3 on the road, 5-1 after a non-cover and 9-3 on the road against a team with a winning home record. Louisville has stayed below the total in seven of 10 Monday contests but it is on “over” runs of 11-4 overall, 6-2 at home, 5-1 in Big East contests and 11-5 after a straight-up loss. In this rivalry, the “under” has been the play in three of the last four contests.
ATS ADVANTAGE: LOUISVILLE
(6) Texas (18-3, 7-10 ATS) at Oklahoma State (16-5, 9-5-1 ATS)
The slumping Longhorns make the trek to Gallagher IBA Arena in Stillwater, Okla., for a Big 12 matchup with Oklahoma State.
Since moving to the No. 1 ranking two weeks ago, Texas has lost three of four overall and it has failed to cash in eight straight contests. On Saturday, the Longhorns hosted Baylor and lost 80-77 in overtime as a nine-point home favorite, shooting just 38.6 percent from the floor and going just 4-for-15 from beyond the three-point line. Rick Barnes’ won its first six games (5-1 ATS) away from home but has dropped its last two on the highway both SU and ATS.
The Cowboys went to Missouri on Saturday and got stomped 95-80 as a 7½-point underdog, ending a three-game winning streak. Oklahoma State has won 16 straight at Gallagher Iba Arena dating to last season (11-0 this year), going 8-0-1 ATS in nine lined contests in front of the home fans. That includes a 7-0 SU and ATS mark when hosting Big 12 rivals.
The host has won eight of the last nine series clashes (7-2 ATS), including both meetings last season when Texas scored a 99-74 home win as an 8½-point favorite and then 18 days later the Cowboys won 68-59 in Stillwater as a one-point home chalk. Oklahoma State is 3-1-1 ATS in the last five overall against Texas 6-2 ATS in the last eight clashes at Gallagher Iba Arena.
Texas is 13-5 ATS in its last 18 Monday games, but otherwise the Longhorns are on a plethora of ATS slides, including the aforementioned 0-8 overall, 0-5 on the road 5-20-1 in Big 12 games and 3-12-1 on the road against teams with winning home records. Oklahoma State is on positive ATS streaks of 20-6-1 overall, 34-16-3 at home, 13-4 in Big 12 action and 4-1 after a straight-up loss.
The Longhorns have stayed below the total in 12 of 16 Monday games, but they’re otherwise on “over” streaks of 6-2 overall, 5-1 on the road, 5-2 in conference game and 6-2 after a non-cover. The Cowboys are on “over” runs of 4-1 overall and 4-1 in Big 12 games, but they’ve stayed below the posted number in 18 of 25 Monday games, eight of 11 at home and six of seven against winning teams. Finally, the “under” has been the play in six of the last seven in this rivalry.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OKLAHOMA STATE
NBA
L.A. Lakers (37-11, 22-24-2 ATS) at Memphis (25-21, 26-19-1 ATS)
The Lakers wrap up their eight-game, 11-day road trip with a stop at the FedEx forum to face the Grizzlies, who look to resume their home dominance..
Kobe Bryant hit a fade-away jump shot with less than eight seconds to play as Los Angeles rallied from a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Celtics 90-89, pushing as a one-point road favorite. The Lakers have won four in a row (3-0-1 ATS) and are 5-1 (4-1-1 ATS) in their last six games on this trip. The SU winner is 14-0-2 ATS in the Lakers’ last 16 games, including 6-0-1 ATS in the last seven, and the winner is 14-0-1 ATS in their last 15 on the highway.
Memphis has dropped two in a row, including a 109-102 overtime setback to New Orleans on Saturday, falling as a 7½-point home chalk. The Grizzlies saw their 11-game home winning streak come to an end in the defeat despite 25-point games from both Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, who also chipped in a combined 28 rebounds. The Grizzlies are 17-6 at home this season and they’ve cashed in 14 of those 23 contests.
The Lakers have won five straight series clashes (3-2 ATS), including a 114-98 blowout in Los Angeles on Nov. 6, easily cashing as a 9½-point favorite. L.A. has also won four straight games in Memphis (2-2 ATS), including a 115-98 victory in their final visit a year ago, cashing as 10½-point favorites. Despite all that, the Grizzlies are 14-6 ATS in the last 20 meetings, cashing in nine of the last 13 at the FedEx Forum.
Los Angeles is on ATS slides of 0-5-1 on Monday and 1-6-1 on the road against teams with winning home records, but it is on positive pointspread runs of 4-1-1 on the road and 5-2 on the second night of a back-to-back. Memphis is just 8-18-1 ATS in its last 27 home games against teams with winning road records, but the Grizzlies are on positive ATS streaks of 14-6-1 overall, 19-8-1 at home and 3-0-1 on Mondays.
The Lakers have stayed below the posted number in 10 of 14 against Southwest Division teams, but they’ve topped the total in four of six overall on this road trip. The Grizzlies are on “over” streaks of 13-6 overall, 11-5 at home against teams with winning road records, 4-1 against Western Conference teams and 8-1 on Monday. In this series, the “over” has been the play in four of five played in Memphis.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OVER
Dallas (30-17, 20-27 ATS) at Utah (28-18, 27-17-2 ATS)
The Mavericks try to snap a two-game losing streak when they visit EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City for a matchup with a Jazz squad that has rattled off five straight wins.
Dallas fell at home in overtime on Saturday, losing 114-112 to the Blazers as 8½-point favorites. The 28-point, nine-rebound performance from Dirk Nowitzki wasn’t enough as the Mavericks failed to cash for the 11th time in their last 14 contests. They are 16-9 (15-10 ATS) on the road this season, but they’ve lost two of their last three SU and ATS on the highway.
Utah has won nine of 10 overall (7-1-2 ATS), including a 101-94 victory over Sacramento on Friday, falling short as an 8½-point favorite without the services of point guard Deron Williams (listed as probable for tonight) and power forward Carlos Boozer (who is out seven to 10 days with a calf injury). The Jazz have gone 9-1-2 ATS in their last 12 games overall, and they are 19-6 at home this season (16-8-1 ATS).
These teams have split two matchups this season, both in Dallas. The Mavericks prevailed 96-85 as a 6½-point home favorite on Nov. 3, but Utah got revenge in a big way with a 111-93 rout as a 5½-point underdog on Jan. 9. The Jazz are 13-3-1 ATS in the last 17 clashes in Utah as the home team has dominated this series, going 21-5-1 ATS in the last 27 games. In fact, the host had won nine in a row prior to Utah’s victory in Dallas last month.
The Mavericks are on a slew of negative ATS tends, including 8-20 overall, 0-5 against Western Conference teams, 1-8 after getting a day off, 1-4 against Northwest Division teams and 2-6 on Monday. On the opposite side, it’s been nothing but positive for Utah at the betting window lately, currently on ATS streaks of 9-1-2 overall, 35-17 against Southwest Division teams, 23-8 on Monday, 3-0-1 after two days off, 8-1 after a non-cover and 6-0-2 against teams with a winning record.
Dallas has stayed below the total in 10 of 14 Monday games, but it is on “over” streaks of 4-0 overall, 6-1 against Western Conference teams and 11-5 against teams with a winning record. The Jazz are on “over” runs of 5-2 overall, 10-4 against southwest Division teams, 6-1 on Monday and 5-1 against the Western Conference. However, in this series, the “under” has cashed in eight of the last 10 in Salt Lake City.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OVER
