SPORTS ADVISORS
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Michigan (5-1, 3-1 ATS) at Maryland (4-2, 2-2 ATS)
Maryland, coming off its first two losses of the season, looks to get back on track when it hosts Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
The Terrapins started the season with four consecutive wins, including Thursday’s 80-62 upset victory over then-No. 5 Michigan State of the Big Ten as a 7½-point underdog in the Old Spice Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. However, Maryland followed that up with blowout losses to No. 9 Gonzaga (81-59 as a six-point underdog) and No. 21 Georgetown (75-48 as a five-point pup) at the tournament.
Michigan rebounded from its first loss of the season – a 71-56 setback to Duke in the Coaches vs. Cancer Clinic on Nov. 21 – with consecutive home wins, but the Wolverines barely skated past Savannah State 66-64 in overtime on Saturday in a non-lined contest.
These schools last met in 2000, with Maryland cruising to an 82-51 victory in a non-lined game. The Terps have won six straight games against the Big Ten (5-1 ATS), including last week’s win over Michigan State. Meanwhile, last month’s loss to Duke dropped Michigan to 0-5 SU and ATS in its last five games against the ACC.
The Wolverines are mired in ATS slumps of 11-23-1 on the road, 2-10 in non-conference play, 1-7 on Wednesdays and 6-14 after a SU win. Meanwhile, Maryland is 1-4 ATS in its last five at home, but 36-15-1 ATS in its last 52 on Wednesday.
The over is 5-1 in Michigan’s last six games against the ACC and 8-2 in its last 10 on Wednesdays. However, the under for the Wolverines is on runs of 12-2 overall and 8-0 on the road, while the Terps are on under streaks of 4-0 overall (all in non-conference play), 19-7 at home and 5-0 against the Big Ten.
ATS ADVANTAGE: MARYLAND and UNDER
(1) North Carolina (7-0, 3-2 ATS) vs. (13) Michigan State (4-1, 2-2 ATS)
(at Detroit)
North Carolina treks to the site of this year’s Final Four when it battles Michigan State in an ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup from Ford Field.
The top-ranked Tar Heels rolled to the Maui Invitational championship last week, then came home Sunday and feasted on North Carolina-Asheville 116-48 in a non-lined contest. Roy Williams’ team has won all seven of its games by 15 points or more, even though reigning national player of the year Tyler Hansbrough has seen limited action.
Michigan State suffered a surprising 80-62 loss to Maryland in Thursday’s opening round of the Old Spice Classic in Florida, but the Spartans rebounded the next two nights with victories over Oklahoma State (94-79, easily covering as a 5½-point chalk) and Wichita State (65-57, falling short as a 14-point favorite). Despite the non-cover against Wichita, Tom Izzo’s club is on an 8-4 ATS roll since last March.
North Carolina eliminated Michigan State on its way to last year’s Final Four, rolling 81-67 as a 10-point favorite in a second-round matchup. Two years earlier, the Tar Heels beat the Spartans in a Final Four matchup, winning 87-71 as a 4½-point chalk. These schools have met five times in the last 10 years, with UNC going 3-2 SU and ATS. The winner cashed in all five games, and the favorite went 4-1 ATS.
The Tar Heels have topped the century mark three times and they’re averaging 93.8 points against Division I opponents, shooting 50 percent from the field and 42 percent from three-point land in those contests. Meanwhile, Michigan State is putting up 78.2 ppg on 49.6 percent shooting (38.1 percent from long range).
North Carolina is on ATS streaks of 7-3 overall, 37-14 in non-conference play, 5-1 against the Big Ten, 5-2 on Wednesdays and 7-1 after scoring at least 100 points in its previous game. Meanwhile, the Spartans are 4-1 ATS in their last five after a non-cover and 5-2 ATS in their last seven on Wednesdays, and even though this isn’t technically a home game, Michigan State is 5-2 ATS in its last seven as a host.
The over is 9-3 in Carolina’s last 12 on the road, 5-0 in its last five on Wednesdays and 5-1 in Michigan State’s last six after an ATS setback.
ATS ADVANTAGE: NORTH CAROLINA and OVER
NBA
L.A. Lakers (14-2, 10-6 ATS) at Philadelphia (8-10, 7-11 ATS)
One night after a stunning buzzer-beating loss at Indiana, the Lakers look to regroup when they head to Philadelphia for a matchup against the 76ers.
Los Angeles entered the fourth quarter last night with a 15-point lead, but couldn’t hold it, falling 118-117 as a nine-point favorite when a tip-in by Danny Granger rattled around the rim and dropped in as time expired. That snapped the Lakers’ seven-game winning streak (4-3 ATS) and was their first road loss of the season (5-1 SU, 4-2 ATS). L.A. has scored at least 93 points in every game this year, topping triple digits in 13 of its 16 contests, including each of the last eight. However, Phil Jackson’s squad managed just 16 points in the fourth quarter Tuesday.
The 76ers snapped a four-game SU and ATS losing skid in Chicago last night, winning 103-95 in overtime as a two-point road underdog, the first time in six games that Philadelphia scored more than 96 points. Despite that triumph, the Sixers are still just 2-6 against the number in their last eight. They’ve also followed up a three-game home winning streak by losing consecutive contests (0-2 ATS) at the Wachovia Center.
Los Angeles swept the season series last year, including a 106-101 victory in Philly as a 2½-point road chalk. The host is on an 8-2 SU and ATS roll in this rivalry, with the Sixers going 4-1 SU and ATS the last five times they’ve hosted the Lakers. Finally, the favorite has cashed in five of the last six head-to-head battles.
The Lakers are on ATS upticks of 5-1 when playing the second game of a back-to-back, 5-2 on Wednesdays and 20-9 against losing squads, but they’re 2-7 ATS in their last nine against the Atlantic Division and 2-12 ATS in their last 14 versus the Eastern Conference. The Sixers are 1-6 ATS in their past seven Wednesday outings and 2-6 ATS in their last eight when playing on back-to-back nights.
For the Lakers, the over is on stretches of 10-3 overall, 7-0 against the Eastern Conference and 15-6 versus the Atlantic Division, but the under is 4-2 in their last six road games and 4-0 in their last four in back-to-back situations. Meanwhile, the over is 7-3 in Philadelphia’s last 10 games on Wednesdays and 12-5-1 in its last 18 back-to-backs, but otherwise the 76ers are on under stretches of 11-5-2 overall this season, 21-7-1 at home and 4-1 against the Pacific Division.
Finally, the over has hit in four of the last five Lakers-76ers battles.
ATS ADVANTAGE: L.A. LAKERS
Phoenix (11-7, 8-10 ATS) at New Orleans (9-6, 5-9-1 ATS)
The Hornets go for their sixth consecutive win over the Suns when these Western Conference powers clash in the Big Easy
New Orleans had a four-game winning streak (3-1 ATS) snapped in its most recent contest on Friday in Portland, falling 101-86 as a five-point underdog. The Hornets, who have played five of their last seven games on the highway, are kicking off a three-game stretch at New Orleans Arena, where they are just 4-3 SU and 1-5-1 ATS this season.
Phoenix hits the road after two surprising home losses over the weekend, a 107-92 setback to Miami on Friday as a seven-point chalk and a 117-109 setback to New Jersey on Sunday as a nine-point favorite. On the bright side, the Suns are 7-2 SU on the highway so far, but after starting out 4-1 ATS on the road, they have failed to cover in three of their last four as a visitor.
The Hornets went to the desert on Oct. 30 and routed the Suns 108-95 as a three-point road underdog. New Orleans not only has won five straight meetings in this series, it has covered in each of the last seven, going 3-0 ATS (2-1 SU) at home during this stretch. However, New Orleans has been a ‘dog six times during its 7-0 ATS run against Phoenix.
The Suns are 12-5 ATS in their last 17 games after a non-cover, but otherwise the trends are all negative for Terry Porter’s team, including 3-8 overall, 2-6 against the Western Conference, 2-5-1 against the Southwest Division, 1-4 when playing on two days’ rest and 0-6 after scoring in triple digits the previous game.
The Hornets are in negative ATS slumps of 3-8-1 overall, 0-5-1 at home, 0-5 on Wednesdays and 4-9 against the Western Conference, but they’re 20-7 ATS in their last 27 against the Pacific Division, 37-18-2 in their last 57 after a SU defeat and 41-18-1 in their last 60 following an ATS setback.
The over is 11-4 in Phoenix’s last 15 Wednesday outings, 4-0 in its last four against winning teams, 11-5 in New Orleans’ last 16 on Wednesdays and 4-0 in New Orleans’ last four versus winning clubs. However, for the Hornets, the under is on stretches of 9-3 overall and 8-1 following a SU loss.
Finally, the over is 4-0 in the last four meetings in this rivalry, but the under is 4-1 in the last five clashes in the Big Easy.
ATS ADVANTAGE: NEW ORLEANS
Miami (9-9, 7-10-1 ATS) at Utah (12-7, 10-9 ATS)
The Heat will try to climb back over .500 when they close out a five-game Western Conference road trip against the Jazz at Energy Solutions Arena in Salt Lake City.
Miami earned a thrilling 130-129 overtime win at Golden State on Monday, but failed to cover as a 2½-point road favorite, moving to 2-2 SU and 1-3 ATS on this road swing. The Heat have won consecutive games just once this season, and they’re just 4-8-1 ATS in their last 13 contests (2-4-1 ATS on the highway).
Utah traveled to Sacramento last night and rallied for a 99-94 victory as a two-point road favorite, rebounding from Saturday’s embarrassing 105-88 home loss to the Nets as an 8½-point home chalk. Prior to the last two games, the Jazz had scored at least 100 points in four straight contests and six of their previous seven, going 5-2 SU and ATS during that streak. The SU winner has cashed in each of Utah’s last 14 outings.
Surprisingly, Miami has had its way with the Jazz in recent years, winning eight of the last nine meetings both SU and ATS, covering the spread in seven straight head-to-head battles, including four in a row in Utah. Last year, the Heat prevailed 104-102 as a one-point home underdog and lost 110-101 in Salt Lake City, but barely cashed as a 10-point underdog.
In addition to its current 1-4 ATS slump, the Heat are 1-4 ATS in their last five games on Wednesdays, 1-5 ATS in their last five against the West and 5-13-1 ATS in their last 19 against winning teams. As for the Jazz, they’re 45-20-2 ATS in their last 57 home games, but otherwise are riding negative pointspread skids of 1-5 against the Eastern Conference, 4-11 versus the Southwest Division and 2-5 when playing on back-to-back nights (1-3 in that situation this year).
In this rivalry, the over is on stretches of 5-1 overall and 4-1 in games played at Energy Solutions Arena. Also, the over is on runs of 8-3 for the Jazz overall, 6-2 for the Jazz at home, 6-2 when the Jazz play on back-to-back nights, 8-2 for the Jazz on Wednesdays, 6-1 for the Heat overall and 20-7-1 for the Heat against Northwest Division foes.
ATS ADVANTAGE: MIAMI and OVER
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