THE MAVS TRY TO STAY IN THE PLAYOFF HUNT AS THEY PLAY THE SPURS

by JEFF ALLEN SPORTS

The red-hot Mavericks try to avoid a season sweep from a Tony Parker-less Spurs team on Thursday night when they make the short trip to AT&T Center.

Line: San Antonio -9.5, Total: 206 (Track Line Movements)

Dallas has won four straight games (3-1 ATS), including the first three contests of its road trip that concludes on Thursday. The Mavs have scored 100+ points in all four victories, averaging 107.3 PPG on 50.4% FG (42% threes) during the win surge. San Antonio has been wildly inconsistent since its star point guard Parker suffered a knee injury on March 1. After winning three in a row, the Spurs lost by 30 at home to Portland, beat Oklahoma City by 12 and then got crushed by 24 points in Minnesota in their most recent game on Tuesday. San Antonio has dominated this series in the past three seasons with a 9-2 ATS mark (8-3 SU) including 4-1 (SU and ATS) against the Mavs at home. This includes a 3-0 (SU and ATS) record this season with the Spurs winning 129-91 in the lone meeting in San Antonio on Dec. 23, and then prevailing in Dallas by 25 points on Dec. 30 and by six points on Jan. 25. But the last time the Mavs were swept in this season series was 15 years ago, way back in 1997-98.

Dallas continues to produce big offensive numbers with 101.4 PPG (7th in NBA) on 45.7% FG (10th in league) and 37.1% threes (8th in NBA). But its defense ranks 4th-worst in the league with 102.3 PPG allowed despite respectable numbers of giving up just 44.4% FG and 36.1% threes. Much of this has to do with a soft interior that ranks 3rd-worst in the NBA with a minus-3.3 RPG margin. However, the team has made a bigger commitment on the boards recently, outrebounding its past two opponents by +9.0 RPG. PF Dirk Nowitzki (16.0 PPG, 6.7 RPG) has been red-hot during the team’s season-high-tying win streak with 17.3 PPG (52% FG) and 8.0 RPG in the four games. However, Nowitzki has been subpar in the season series with a mere 10.3 PPG and 5.0 RPG in the three meetings with the Spurs. SG Vince Carter (13.3 PPG, 4.0 RPG) has also played outstanding recently with six straight double-figure scoring games in March (17.2 PPG on 57% FG), which includes 22.5 PPG (8-of-11 threes) in his past two contests. Carter has 14.3 PPG on 53% FG in three meetings with San Antonio this season. SG O.J. Mayo (17.2 PPG, 4.4 APG, 3.7 RPG) has been quiet in the season series (9.7 PPG on 38% FG), but has a well-rounded 15.3 PPG, 5.3 APG and 4.0 RPG in March. PG Darren Collison (12.2 PPG, 5.3 APG) has shot lights-out against the Spurs this season (15.3 PPG on 63% FG), but has struggled to score during the four-game win streak with a mere 8.8 PPG on 10-of-32 shooting (31%). The Mavs could be without SF Shawn Marion (11.7 PPG, 7.9 RPG), who has missed three straight games with a contusion in his left calf. Marion has been dreadful against the Spurs though, making just 3-of-16 shots in the season series.

The Spurs offense continues to roll with 104.4 PPG (4th in NBA) on 48.7% FG (2nd in league) and 38.0% threes (4th in NBA). Defensively, San Antonio is also better than most, allowing 96.3 PPG (11th in league) on 44.0% FG (8th in NBA) and 33.7% threes (4th in league). The Spurs have been nearly impossible to beat at AT&T Center this season, where they are 26-4 SU (17-11-2 ATS), including a 22-2 SU mark in the past 24 home tilts. Their poor showing in Minnesota on Tuesday had a lot to do with the absence of big men PF Tim Duncan (16.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG) and SF Kawhi Leonard (11.3 PPG, 5.4 RPG), who were left home as they deal with sore knees. Both players are listed as questionable for Thursday. Without the two starting forwards against the Wolves, the Spurs shot 35.4% FG and turned the ball over 17 times. SG Manu Ginobili (12.4 PPG, 4.5 APG) must play better for the Spurs to win, as he has shot a paltry 33% FG (3-for-15 threes) in his past three games. Ginobili has also been off the mark against Dallas this season with just 8.7 PPG on 44% FG, but has added 5.0 APG in the season series. SG Danny Green (10.7 PPG) has been outstanding versus the Mavs though, with 14.7 PPG on 62% FG. He’s also shot 52% FG and 52% threes in the month of March. C Tiago Splitter (10.5 PPG, 6.1 RPG) had a huge night in Monday’s win over Oklahoma City with 21 points (9-of-11 FG) and 10 rebounds, but was held to four points on 1-of-10 shooting in Tuesday’s defeat. He’s been solid versus Dallas this season though, with 10.3 PPG (53% FG) and 8.3 RPG in the three meetings.

Source: Statfox

ATLANTA HAWKS SOARING OVER THE LAKES OF LOS ANGELES

by KYLE ROESLER

Just ten days ago these two playoff contenders faced off, in what proved to be a nail biting finish. The Lakers defeated the Hawks by a score of 99-98 in the Staple Center. This time around the Hawks will stay in their nest as the Los Angeles Lakers flock to Atlanta.

The Lakers made some off season moves and acquired superstars, Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, leading many to believe the dominance of the Lakers would continue, but thus far it is anything but. The Lakers have a straight up record of 34-31, which is shocking to the gambling world. The team is led by all-star Kobe Bryant, who is averaging 27.7 points a game and a 5.8 assist. The big man, Dwight Howard, has pulled down 12.3 rebounds and shoots 57.4%  from the field. Steve Nash has been able to aid the Lakers in their recent success by averaging 6.8 assist and 12.4 points a game. The Lakers are currently sitting in the last spot of the playoff race with a current win streak of 4.

The Hawks (34-29) have been soaring low as of lately, losing 5 of their last 6 games. The Hawks are currently tied for sixth in the Eastern conference playoff standings with Boston. The Hawks are led by Josh Smith, Al Horford, and Jeff Teague. Josh Smith is Atlanta’s do it all man as he averages 17.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.9 blocks a games. As Smith puts on a show,  Al Horford wastes no time scoring for the Hawks as he averages 17.4 points and 10.1 rebounds a game. Jeff Teague should be duly noted for his ability to amplify his teams potential by averaging 7 assists a game. The Hawks have been struggling, but with the Lakers meeting them at their end, maybe the Hawks will be able to set course once again.

Betting Information
The last time these two teams played each other the spread was set at +4.5 in favor of the Lakers, as the final outcome was 99-98. The over/under was set at 206.5 with the end result in under 197. Both teams record against the total are relatively even, which makes betting on this game difficult. With the playoffs approaching, be expecting both teams to come out swinging and the match up resulting in a close score.
This match the spread is set +1 in favor of Atlanta and a over/ under of 204.

TWO OF THE BEST OF THE WESTERN CONFERENCE: GRIZZLIES VS. CLIPPERS

by MICHAELANGELO MILLER

Line Breakdown

The Memphis Grizzlies are 36-25 against the spread, going 18-10 ATS while on the road and have gone 34-25-2 Under. The Los Angeles Clippers are 37-28 ATS, 20-12 ATS at home and have posted a 34-30-1 Over record against the total.

Injuries

Grizzlies forward, Darrell Arthur, will be questionable for the game. The Clippers will continue to be without Trey Thompkins (F), who is suffering from a knee injury. Fellow teammates, Eric Bledsoe (G) and Caron Butler (F) are likely to miss the game as well for the Clippers with a calf and elbow injury respectively.

Match-Up

The Grizzlies are no stranger to the Clippers as the two teams have faced each other twice before. In their last contest, the Grizzlies lost handedly, 99-73. The Clippers weren’t even at full strength as they were without Chris Paul (PG) in the game. They are 2-0 in this match-up and with two games left in the series, they’d like nothing more than to sweep the Grizzlies in the regular season. However, Memphis isn’t going to just roll over and let that happen. The Grizzlies have won 4 straight games and that could turn into 5 straight if they manage to beat the Portland Trailblazers.

A more interesting statistic is that in their last 13 games, the Grizzlies have only lost one time. They certainly have a lot of momentum carrying them into the Clippers game. Look for Memphis to rely on Zach Randolph (PF) who is averaging 15.7 points per game and 11.6 rebounds per game. As a team, the Grizzlies are averaging 93.7 PPG, 42.8 RPG, 21.3 assists per game and they have allowed only 89.4 PPG to opponents, which is best in the NBA.

The Clippers are considered one of the best teams in the NBA this season and they are certainly the best team in Los Angeles, much to the dismay of Laker fans around the world. They know how important a match-up like this is especially with Memphis nipping at their heels in the standings. Look for the Clippers to rely on the tandem of Chris Paul (PG, averaging 7 APG) and Blake Griffin (PF, averaging 18 PPG / 8 RPG) to pull them through this game and to represent the aptly named ‘Lob City’ moniker. Collectively, the Clippers are averaging 101.1 PPG, 41.5 RPG, 23.7 APG and are allowing 94.4 PPG to opposing teams.

Sources: ESPN

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: CHARLESTON VS. DAVIDSON

by JEFF ALLEN SPORTS

After surviving a scare in the conference semifinals, top-seeded Davidson tries to advance to the NCAA Tournament when it faces Charleston on Monday night in the Southern Conference Championship Game.

Tip-off: Monday, 7:00 p.m. ET

Line: Davidson -7

The third-seeded Cougars advanced to the finals with a pair of eight-points wins over Western Carolina and Elon, giving them three straight victories (SU and ATS) to start off March, a nice turnaround after seven straight ATS defeats to end February. The Wildcats had little trouble in Saturday’s quarterfinals, beating Georgia Southern by an 86-59 score, but nearly lost to 16-point underdog Appalachian State in Sunday’s semifinal action, prevailing 65-62 when a last-second, three-point attempt for the Mountaineers was off the mark. That gave Davidson its 16th straight SU victory (8-7-1 ATS). This series has been tight since 2009 with both teams going 5-5 SU against each other with Charleston holding the 6-4 ATS advantage. But the Wildcats took both meetings this season rather easily, winning 77-68 at home on Jan. 19, and 75-59 at Charleston on Feb. 14.

Charleston has held opponents to 57.5 PPG during its four-game win streak, but after limiting Elon to 19 first-half points on Sunday, the Phoenix tallied 41 points in the second half. Luckily for the Cougars, they shot lights-out in the semifinal victory, nailing 46% FG, 41% threes (7-of-17) and 83% free throws. Senior PG Andrew Lawrence (13.1 PPG, 3.9 APG) led the way with 19 points (5-for-10 FG, 7-for-9 FT), while junior PF Willis Hall (7.6 PPG, 6.4 RPG) went for 16 points and 10 rebounds. Neither player has enjoyed success versus Davidson this season though, as Lawrence shot 10-of-30 FG with seven turnovers in the two losses, while Hall scored just seven points in a combined 42 minutes in the season series. The only other double-digit scorer for this team is sophomore SG Anthony Stitt (10.9 PPG, 3.3 APG) who made just 2-of-9 shots in Sunday’s win, and is 4-for-18 against the Wildcats this season, including an 0-for-8 night on the road. But Charleston might be best served pounding the ball inside like it did on Jan. 19 against Davidson when frontcourt players C Adjehi Baru (9.7 PPG, 8.5 RPG) and F Anthony Thomas (8.6 PPG, 5.0 RPG) each had 13 points on a combined 12-of-18 FG (67%).

Davidson has eight players that log at least 20 MPG, but the main two scorers are senior PF Jake Cohen (14.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG) and junior SF De’Mon Brooks (13.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG) who both shoot better than 49% from the floor and 78% from the free-throw line. The duo combined for 33 points (13-of-23 FG) in Sunday’s semifinal win over Appalachian State. Cohen completely destroyed the Cougars in their most recent meeting on Feb. 14, scoring 32 points (13-of-24 FG) and registering four blocks on the defensive end. Senior PG Nick Cochran (10.1 PPG, 3.3 APG) also played well that day with 14 points (3-of-4 threes) and five assists. Cochran took just three shots in Sunday’s win, but pitched in with five assists and two steals. Junior swingman Chris Czerapowicz (9.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG) has been great from three-point range (56-for-140, 40%) and has a healthy 11.8 PPG and 5.8 RPG in his past four contests. He did very little versus Charleston this season though, scoring a total of nine points on 4-of-14 shooting.

Source: Statfox

THE BEST OF THE WEST: 46-16 THUNDER VS. 48-15 SPURS

by DAVID THE MAVEN CHICOTSKY

Both teams have their playoff berths locked up, now they’re just playing for pride.

The Spurs have Tony Parker out for a month with a severe ankle sprain – now they host the always tough Oklahoma City Thunder. The Spurs are coming off a home loss to the Trailblazers, 136-106, in a game where they were 11 point favorites. Before that, the Spurs had won and covered in 3 straight games (also as massive favorites of 14, 13 and 8 points). After Tony Parker got hurt, the Spurs played 2nd year player Cory Joseph (who has spent the better part of those two years in the D-league) against the Bulls. Even with a no-name guard running the show, the Bulls had no chance, getting blown out 102-72.

The Thunder are really on a roll, they’ve won their last 4 games in a row (3-1 ATS) and 7 out of their last 8 games (6-2 ATS). The Thunder have won their last 3 road games (2-1 ATS), beating the Clippers by 4, narrowly winning by 1 agains the Knicks and destroying the Bobcats by 22 points.

These two teams have met twice already this year, the first time was the first game of the year where the Spurs won at home 86-84 (in a game where the Spurs were favored by 2) and the 2nd game was in OKC where the Thunder won 107-93 (the Thunder were favored by 5).

Source: New York Daily News

NCAAB TOP 10 BATTLE: INDIANA VS. MICHIGAN

by DAVID THE MAVEN CHICOTSKY

#2 Ranked Indiana (25-5, 8-2 away) takes on the #7 Michigan (25-5, 20-0 home) in one of the most electric games of the year. This is a revenge game for the Wolverines as they were beat by the Hoosiers 81-73 on Feb. 2^nd. Over the past 4 years, the teams are 4-4 straight up in their matchup.

Betting Information

Indiana is 15-13 against the spread and 13-13 against the total. Michigan is 13-14-1 ATS and 17-11 Over on the year.

Michigan has been dreadful for sportsbettors as of late, going 1-8 ATS in their last 9 games.

In the last 8 meetings between these teams, the home team is 6-2 ATS. In their last 19 meetings, Indiana is 14-5 ATS.

This game has serious implications as Indiana is in first place in the Big 10, while Michigan sits one peg below them in second place.

Recent Games

Indiana lost to #14 Ohio State at home last game, 67-58, despite going 6-15 from the 3-point line. They were lead in scoring by their stud forward Cody Zeller who had 17 points on 5-9 shooting. Michigan is coming off back to back wins against #9 Michigan State and Purdue. Keep an eye on Michigan sophomore guard Trey Burke who leads the team in scoring with 19 points per game.

Sources: Bleacher Report, Covers

NCAAB TOP 10 BATTLE: INDIANA VS. MICHIGAN

by DAVID THE MAVEN CHICOTSKY

#2 Ranked Indiana (25-5, 8-2 away) takes on the #7 Michigan (25-5, 20-0 home) in one of the most electric games of the year. This is a revenge game for the Wolverines as they were beat by the Hoosiers 81-73 on Feb. 2^nd. Over the past 4 years, the teams are 4-4 straight up in their matchup.

Betting Information

Indiana is 15-13 against the spread and 13-13 against the total. Michigan is 13-14-1 ATS and 17-11 Over on the year.

Michigan has been dreadful for sportsbettors as of late, going 1-8 ATS in their last 9 games.

In the last 8 meetings between these teams, the home team is 6-2 ATS. In their last 19 meetings, Indiana is 14-5 ATS.

This game has serious implications as Indiana is in first place in the Big 10, while Michigan sits one peg below them in second place.

Recent Games

Indiana lost to #14 Ohio State at home last game, 67-58, despite going 6-15 from the 3-point line. They were lead in scoring by their stud forward Cody Zeller who had 17 points on 5-9 shooting. Michigan is coming off back to back wins against #9 Michigan State and Purdue. Keep an eye on Michigan sophomore guard Trey Burke who leads the team in scoring with 19 points per game.

Sources: Bleacher Report, Covers