Steve Merrill
NBA
(3% play) UTAH -2 (vs. Sacramento) - 9:05 pm ET #710
Sacramento hits the road after playing three consecutive home games; the Kings went just 1-2 SU in those games, including last night’s 109-97 loss to the Pelicans. Sacramento must now hit the road, and play on a back-to-back set while playing in the thin air and altitude of Utah. The Kings will face a Utah team that plays at an extremely slow pace while playing excellent team defense. Sacramento has struggled mightily when held to less than 100 points this season. In fact, the Kings are just 2-12 SU when scoring less than 100 points this season with their two wins coming by a combined 8 points. Their average loss when held to less than 100 points has come by 11 points per game. Sacramento is just 1-5 SU on the road when held to less than 100 points with those losses coming by -9.6 points per game.
Utah failed for us last night in their 99-85 loss in Portland, but we have no hesitation in coming right back with the Jazz for the same reasons. Utah is playing much better now that Rudy Gobert is back on the court. Gobert missed a month of action which totaled 18 games; the Jazz went just 7-11 SU in those games. Since Gobert has returned to the starting lineup, Utah is 2-1 SU with their wins coming by 12 and 15 points. The biggest difference with Gobert on the court has been the play of the Utah defense. During that stretch without Gobert, the Jazz gave up 101 points per game while allowing 103 points or more eight times in their eleven losses. In their last three games, Utah has given up a total of 256 points. The Jazz are a perfect 2-0 SU at home when playing off a road loss the night before; Utah won those games by scores of 106-85 and 109-96. We’ll lay the points with Utah in this game on Thursday night.
Play JAZZ (-) as a 3% play.
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NCAA Basketball
(3% play) TULSA Pick (vs. Connecticut) - 7:00 pm ET (espn2) #714
Connecticut is 11-4 SU on the season, but the Huskies are not in the best of current form right now. They’ve won five of their last six games, but Connecticut is on an 0-3 ATS slide. The Huskies were in a terrific situational spot for their last home game against Memphis, but they barely survived that game in an 81-78 win. Now the Huskies must take to the road after playing six of their last nine games at home. Connecticut has been playing without their starting center, Amida Brimah, due to a finger injury. His absence has really affected Connecticut’s play on both ends of the court, especially inside the paint. Tulsa has the big guys inside to take advantage of Brimah’s absence.
Tulsa returned all five starters this season, including their top eight players from last year’s 24-win team. Tulsa’s offense is explosive; they are averaging 74 points per game. “We finally bought into Coach Haith’s system and the ball movement has been very good for us,” James Woodard said. “We’re getting a lot of assists off each other and moving off the ball, that’s what they’ve been preaching. It’s hard for teams to guard if everybody’s clicking on all cylinders.” Tulsa’s losses this season have come against strong teams like SMU, Cincinnati, South Carolina, and Oregon State. Connecticut is a notch below those teams, and Tulsa matches-up extremely well with the Huskies. We’ll back Tulsa in this game on Thursday night.
Play TULSA as a 3% play.
