New Orleans Hornets vs. Orlando Magic
Free Pick: Orlando Magic -7.5 (February 8th 2010 – Jack Jones)
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The Magic just beat the Celtics last night, but I don’t expect any kind of letdown as they host the New Orleans Hornets on Monday. The Hornets have not played that well on the road this year and they have really struggled with Chris Paul out of the line up. New Orleans is only 11-16 on the road this season to begin with, but throw in the fact that they’ve lost 3 of their last 4 with their best player on the bench and you have a strong reason to play against them. The Magic have been dominant on their home court, sporting a 19-5 record in Orlando. They average better than 103 points per game on offense at home while their defense has held opposing teams to only 93 points per game. These two teams haven’t played yet this season, but it’s a safe bet that the Magic are a much, much better team with Paul out of the line up.
North Carolina vs. Maryland
Free Pick: North Carolina +6.5 (February 7th 2010 – John Ryan)
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3* graded play on North Carolina as they take on Maryland set to start at 2:00 EST in ACC action. Obviously a must win for UNC and our proprietary sports handicapping model and simulator shows a high probability that UNC will lose this game by 5 or fewer points. Maryland is a strong team and they shoot well, but they actually set-up poorly against UNC. UNC is a solid 13-4 ATS (+8.6 Units) in road games versus good shooting teams that are making >=45% of their shots after 15+ games over the last 3 seasons. UNC is certainly having a disappointing season to date and are coming off a tough loss At VA-tech losing 74-70. Note, however, that UNC is a 26-10 ATS (+15.0 Units) after a loss by 6 points or less since 1997. We also believe that UNC will dominate the boards and will have a minimum of 45 in this game. Note that in past games getting 45+ boards UNC is a solid 23-10 ATS over the past 3 seasons and 72-29 ATS since 1997. Take UNC.
BYU vs. UNLV
Free Pick: UNLV (February 6th 2010 – Matt Fargo)
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UNLV is riding a four-game winning streak heading into this game and possibly even more importantly is that the Rebels have had eight days off since their last game prior to Wednesday so they will nice and fresh heading into this BYU game which beings a tough three-game stretch. After this the Rebels host New Mexico and then are at San Diego St. so they will be facing the top three teams, besides themselves, starting with this game on Saturday. This series is turning into one of the better rivalries in the conference and UNLV will be playing for some revenge in this rematch. The Rebels lost the first meeting in Provo by four points but there is no shame in that defeat as BYU is 13-0 at home this season and that four-point margin is the only single-digit margin of victory for the Cougars at home this season. The Rebels had won the previous three meetings including a two-game series sweep a season ago so BYU was playing with its own revenge in mind back in early January. UNLV had every chance of winning that game as it outshot BYU 46 percent to 36.8 percent but it was at the wrong end of free throws as the Cougars had double the amount of attempts and had a 19-8 scoring edge from the charity stripe and that was the ultimate difference. Offense has been key for UNLV during this recent run as it has shot 50.0 percent or better from the field in four consecutive games after topping 50 percent just twice in the first 18 contests. It will need a strong offense to match that of the Cougars. All-American guard Jimmer Fredette was not 100 percent in that first meeting as he was battling a case of mono and he was held to just seven points on 2-10 shooting in that first meeting so you know that he will be stoked for this rematch. BYU had its 15-game winning streak snapped in its last road game at New Mexico and at 6-2 on the season, it is clear that the Cougars are not same team on the road. That record is outstanding for a road mark for most teams but it could be worse as of those six wins, three came by six points or less so there is definitely some vulnerability there. One aspect that the Cougars thrive in taking case of the ball and playing efficiently as they have a 1.38 assist/turnover ratio on the season. This is one game where they will not have a big advantage however as UNLV comes in with a 1.33 ratio. The loss of guard Derrick Jasper is a big absence for the Rebels but this is a guard-oriented team and a deep one at that. The fact that UNLV has used such a deep rotation this season could now prove beneficial as it will take several replacements to fill the void left by Jasper. Guard Kendall Wallace’s experience, as he’s already started six games this season, is important making him a nice fit in the rotation with the first-teamers. A win here will put the Rebels into a first place tie with BYU in the MWC, making this a huge game in front of the raucous home crowd. 3* UNLV Runnin’ Rebels
Iona vs. Siena
Free Pick: Under 135.5 (February 5th 2010 – Rob Vinciletti)
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On Friday the Free NCAAB Play is on the Under in the Iona at Siena game. Rotation umbers 833/34 at 7:00 eastern. Both of these teams show under indicators for this game tonight. Iona has played under 16 of 18 times in the second half of the season the past few years vs winning teams and has been an under team this year going under in 11 of 15 lined games this season. Siena has played under both times as a home favorite this season in this line range. When Siena plays teams who average 65 point per game or less they have gone under 4 of 5 times and 5 of 7 times this season when the total is 130 to 140. Look for this one to stay under the 135 tonight. Tonight I have a 5 Star NBA Blowout game that is backed with another big cutting edge blowout system. For the free play take the Under in the Iona at Siena game.
Chicago Bulls vs. Atlanta Hawks
Free NBA Pick: Atlanta -7 (February 5th 2010 – Matt Fargo)
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It is starting to get tough to get a good read on the Bulls as they have been everywhere this season. They started their most recent roadtrip with losses against the Warriors and Clippers before rebounding to win the final five games against top quality teams in Phoenix, Houston, San Antonio, Oklahoma City and New Orleans. So what has Chicago done for an encore? It lost at home against the Clippers, getting swept in the season series with the other Los Angeles and then going to Philadelphia and losing to the Sixers in overtime. Now the Bulls face an even tougher task as they head to Atlanta to face the Hawks for the third time this season. The last meeting took place in Chicago with the Bulls prevailing in overtime so Atlanta is in revenge mode after that game. The Hawks won the first meeting at home by a whopping 35 points and while the Bulls certainly have not forgotten, any sort of payback from that means little especially with a win at home shortly thereafter. The Bulls will also be shorthanded tonight as Joakim Noah is out and will be out until after the All-Star break with a foot injury. Noah was on his way to the most improved player award and hopefully he won’t miss much time. He was not a factor in the first two meetings on the scoreboard but he was a major factor on the glass as he recorded 11 rebounds in each of the two games and that is where he has thrived this season. Atlanta is coming off a very sloppy win over the Clippers on Wednesday as it trailed by three points heading into the final quarter before it was able to put it away. The Hawks were killed on the offensive glass in that game as Marcus Camby corralled 20 rebounds, 10 on each end of the floor. That would present a problem for the Hawks here but with Noah and his team leading 552 rebounds (176 offensive) not around, Atlanta is in great shape. The win over Los Angeles moved the Hawks to 20-5 at home this season and kept them on pace with Orlando in the Southeast Division, trailing the Magic by just a game and a half. That deficit makes every game important so there will be no lack of effort tonight especially with a game at lowly Washington on deck for tomorrow. The Bulls have been on a strong covering run but they are just 8-21 ATS in their last 29 games against the Southeast Division while the Hawks are 20-7-1 ATS in their last 28 home games against teams with a losing road record. Also, Atlanta is 11-4 ATS this season when favored by seven or more points while the Bulls are just 3-8 in their 11 games this season as an underdog of seven or more points. Atlanta takes this one going away. 3* Atlanta Hawks
