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| NCAA Tournament Round 1 Information |
| 2008-03-19 15:09:00 |
Without question, the NCAA Tournament is the best sporting event in the nation. If you're not a fan of March Madness, then something is seriously wrong! College basketball's National Championship is at stake and 65 teams know that the first to six wins will walk away with the prize. College coaches break this tournament down into two-game affairs. Win the first two and then move on to the Sweet 16. Win the next two and then skip to the Final Four. Win those two and you're the National Champion. ...
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| College Hoops: Feeling the Pressure |
| 2008-03-19 15:08:00 |
It may be mid-March, but I am reminded of Game 7 of the 1988 NLCS between the Dodgers and Mets. The Mets had won 100 games, leading from wire to wire, and were expected to win the World Series. But they fumbled and bumbled Game 7 behind a slew of second-inning errors and lost the pennant 6-0 to the Dodgers. After the game, a baseball analyst wrote, "The Dodgers wanted to win Game 7. The Mets HAD to win it." His point was that the pressure was on the team that was expected to win. This is somethi...
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| College Hoops Challenges in the Tourney |
| 2008-03-18 15:23:00 |
Last week I talked about the weird year that fans were witnessing in college basketball. It was as if we had "A" teams, and "C" teams, but nobody in between. If you watched the conference tournaments, you saw exactly what I was talking about. In fact, all the media could talk about on the first day of action was how all the mediocre bubble teams kept losing! This odd class structure is going to create some challenges for handicappers who don't react to the changing times. *There are several team...
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| NBA Deadwood Packing it In |
| 2008-03-17 15:56:00 |
Last week I wrote about how the Rockets had won 18 in a row and it's best not to try and figure out when a hot team is going to cold. The smart handicapper rides the hot streaks. So what happened? Houston rips off 4 more wins in a row, going 3-1 against the spread. Again, if you tried to guess when the Rockets are going to go into a tailspin and wager against them, you would have continued to lose your shirt. Now let's flip-flop that wagering advice into something just as practical, and profitab...
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| Assessing NBA Injuries |
| 2008-03-17 15:52:00 |
Injuries are a part of all sports. For serious sports bettors, it's essential to keep a close eye on basketball injuries. That's especially true this time of the year, with college basketball tournaments in full swing and NBA teams fighting for division titles and postseason positioning. Injuries affect teams differently. This was evident with the Miami Heat. Dwyane Wade is going to sit the rest of the season to rehab his left knee. A four-time All-Star, Wade will have missed 91 games to injurie...
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| Tom Stryker's Conference Tournament Money-Maker |
| 2008-03-17 15:50:00 |
On Wednesday, March 12th, college basketball's major conferences will tip off their annual post season tournaments. This is the perfect appetizer to the Big Dance and this five-day hardwood run can provide all of us with excellent wagering opportunities.Thanks to my powerful hoops database, I've been able to grind out a nice profit in March Madness over the years. A great deal of my winnings has come in the first round (or donkey round) of the tournament. Some of the conference's worst teams can...
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| HOUSTON, WE HAVE LIFTOFF! |
| 2008-03-11 13:39:00 |
18 in a row! There's no better example of backing a hot roller at the dice table than the Houston Rockets. Some ascribe to the theory that a hot roller is going to cool off soon so they play against them. The more successful tried and true method is to ride the hot streak until they go cold and THEN jump off. The Rockets couldn't be hotter, winning 18 in a row. After they had won 8 in a row, the contrarian would have reasoned, "They're overvalued. I'm playing against them." That reasoning would ...
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| March Hoops: David Can Slay Goliath |
| 2008-03-11 13:38:00 |
It's that time of year again: Basketball games night and day, day and night and after a few hours of sleep, we wake up the next day and go through it all over again. NCAA tournament play is one of the most enjoyable times of the year for sports fans and bettors, with a seemingly endless stream of action and excitement. Big name schools often end up playing for the title. The last two years Florida took home national championships by beating UCLA and Ohio State. In 2005, Illinois, North Carolina,...
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| NBA Road Ahead: Tough Stretch for the Clippers & Bobcats |
| 2008-03-11 13:35:00 |
What's blue and red and has no home? The LA Clippers! That is, the Clippers have played 11 of the last 12 games in Los Angeles, and yet they are a miserable 1-8 straight up and 2-7 against the spread the last nine games. They.5?ve played only two official road games during that stretch, and one of them was against the LA Lakers in their own city. And it didn't help, as they got blown out 119-82. So, essentially, this team has no home court edge, getting beaten up wherever they play. That makes t...
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| Basketball Sideline Stability |
| 2008-03-03 15:49:00 |
The talent on the court determines how many wins and losses a team is going to ultimately end up with. However, there are important adjustments taking place on the sidelines that can significantly influence how a team performs, both straight up and against the number. A coach leaving a program in mid-season can tell a lot about what is going on with a team. A squad could be unhappy or unmotivated, they could tune out what the coach is saying, or a coach could have difficulties off the court that...
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| Crazy Year in the Big 10 |
| 2008-03-03 15:47:00 |
Tournament play runs wild this week! The Big 10 tournament is one of many major conference tournaments that will help whittle the field. Ohio State made the title game last year with Greg Oden while Michigan State won it all in 2000. Here's a look at some of the top teams of the Big 10 looking to make a similar run. Wisconsin: The Badgers don't mind the physical game, allowing just 38% shooting with their power frontcourt of 6-11 senior Brian Butch (12.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg), 6-7 junior Joe Krabbenhoft...
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| No Payback Payday |
| 2008-03-03 15:44:00 |
An Inside Look At Last Home Game Sets College basketball teams refer to this contest as "senior night." It is the final home game of the regular season where athletes get one last chance to walk off their homecourt a winner. This is an emotional evening for both players and coaches. There are times when this event leads to a lackluster performance because of all the distractions involved. However, for the most part, this is usually the one game where you know that a home team will give literally...
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| College Hoops: The Best of the Pac 10 |
| 2008-02-25 12:18:00 |
It's been a year of "The Big Two" for Pac 10 in basketball, with UCLA and Stanford duking -- or dunking -- it out much of the season. Here's a look at the strengths and weaknesses of some of college basketball's best teams in the Pacific 10. UCLA: Ben Howland has another super-talented team. Up front, 6-8 junior Luc Richard Mbah a Moute just returned from an ankle injury while 6-10 freshman center Kevin Love (17 ppg, 11 rpg) has been a force in the middle. They are joined by juniors point guard ...
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| The Texas Triangle |
| 2008-02-25 12:17:00 |
The Bermuda Triangle is etched in American folklore as a mysterious place where planes and ships have encountered all kinds of difficulties. It's an enigma dripping with fear, as some unfortunate people have entered the triangle and have never been heard from again. In the NBA, there.5?s a similar place not as deadly, but certainly one that elicits fear among professional athletes: The Texas Triangle. As we start the second half of the NBA season, who wants to play in Texas these days? The Houst...
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| The Big NBA Trades |
| 2008-02-25 12:15:00 |
We've had a few games to begin to digest the big NBA deadline trades. They were certainly blockbuster moves, garnering headlines from coast to coast, with one 11-player trade and stars like Shaq and Jason Kidd getting new area codes. Cleveland and Chicago appeared to get better with the three-team, 11-player deal involving Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Adrian Griffin and Larry Hughes. The Cavaliers went from being a defensive-oriented team with one star on offense (LeBron James) and a lot of offensive...
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| Dealing with the Whims of 3-Point Performance |
| 2008-02-18 14:48:00 |
Probably the biggest monkey wrench for college basketball handicappers is the seeming randomness of three-point shooting performances. Whenever you lose a game you love, it seems like your team will always have something like 2-12 or 3-18 on their three-point stat line. If not that, the opponent was 8-12 or 10-15. If three-point shooting had been normal, you would have won easily. Instead, something way out of line happened and you took a loss instead of a win. It's easy to forget that ALL s...
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| Big East: What A Conference! |
| 2008-02-18 14:46:00 |
Once again the Big East is loaded with talented teams. Marquette, Cincinnati and Louisville came aboard two years ago, among others, joining powerhouses like UConn, Syracuse and Pitt to form a 16-team Super Big East conference. A Big East representative won college basketball's national championship four years ago (UConn, 2004) and several will be knocking on the door again. Georgetown: Georgetown uses its outstanding frontcourt to play tough defense, allowing just 57 ppg. The frontcourt is ...
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| NBA Second Half Stretch Run |
| 2008-02-18 14:46:00 |
The NBA took the weekend off for the All Star break, but now it's back to action. The second half stretch run is one of the best times of the year for sports handicappers. Some teams are completely out of it and will pack it in, allowing for great go-against spots. Other "bubble" teams will attempt to make a second half push to try and squeeze into the playoffs, while still others are the elite teams jockeying for the top seeds in each conference. Here's a look at some of those top dogs that are...
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| NBA Davids to Goliaths |
| 2008-02-12 11:47:00 |
It's not often you see NBA trades or free agent moves that turn around the fortunes of teams fast. When you look at recent NBA champs (the Lakers, Spurs, Pistons and Heat) it was a combination of things that built them. The Spurs hit the draft lottery jackpot with Tim Duncan in 1997, while the Lakers and Heat won their titles with Shaq in the middle. Shaq went as a free agent to LA in 1996, then was traded to Miami in 2004. But the Lakers, Celtics and Suns have been the focus of the league this ...
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| College Hoops: Best of the SEC |
| 2008-02-12 11:45:00 |
The SEC has a bunch of teams that are loaded with talent, depth and athleticism. Kentucky won the national championship in 1998, Florida knocked on the door in 2000 getting to the title game against Michigan State, the won it all the last two seasons. Here's a look at some of college basketball's best teams in the SEC. Florida: Coach Bill Donovan has been the king of the SEC the last two years, as well as the college basketball world, with back-to-back titles. He is rebuilding with a talented, t...
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| Situational Basketball Handicapping |
| 2008-02-08 15:07:00 |
Situations can be just as important as matchups or trends when analyzing pro and college basketball games. Sometimes even more so. For instance, a team with outstanding rebounding ability, like the Pistons or Spurs, matchup-wise might have a clear defensive and rebounding edge going against an opponent with an undersized frontcourt, such as the Hawks or 76ers. However, if San Antonio is playing at Atlanta in the second of a back to back spot, or playing their third road game in four nights, that...
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| One of College Basketball's Toughest Encore's |
| 2008-02-08 15:06:00 |
Emotion plays a big part in sports. It doesn't matter if it's football, basketball or baseball, one team is usually "getting up" for another. Thankfully, this emotional part of the game exists because it leads sports handicappers and investors to an array of profitable opportunities. This specific technical situation is one of my favorites. It assembled from criteria that flat out works in the three major sports that I handicap. Here's a peek at a system that I call, "One of College Basketball's...
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| College Hoops: Rivalry and Revenge Spots |
| 2008-02-04 18:15:00 |
College basketball handicapping encompasses more than match-up angles and coaching. Home court, revenge, look-ahead spots and injuries all can be important factors when trying to determine who has the edge against the number. With conference play in full swing, revenge, rivalry and payback spots are all factors to be weighed. Last week I had a play on Syracuse when they were at Villanova. In my analysis on the game I wrote, "Nova was a winner at the Carrier Dome in the season's first meeting...
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| College Hoops Takes Center Stage |
| 2008-02-04 18:15:00 |
With the Super Bowl in the rearview mirror, the next big event on the sports stage is college basketball's season-ending tournaments. Since 1997, college basketball's national champion has come from several different conferences: the Pac 10 (Arizona), SEC (Kentucky and Florida), Big 10 (Michigan State), the ACC (Duke, Maryland, North Carolina), and the Big East (UConn, Syracuse). Over the next few weeks, let's examine some of the top hoop teams in each conference, starting this week with the ACC...
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| Recent History vs Season Totals |
| 2008-02-04 18:14:00 |
Understand that oddsmakers base their numbers in large part on stats. The Golden State Warriors, for example, average 112 ppg at home with their uptempo style. On the road, though, they average just 106 ppg. So when making a side or total, the oddsmaker has to factor in the difference whether that team is home or away. The Warriors are 13-8 over the total at home, 12-10 under on the road. But when we are this far along in the NBA season, for me it's more important to examine recent games rat...
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| Handicapping NBA Injuries |
| 2008-01-31 16:02:00 |
When injuries to key players happen in the NBA, oddsmakers certainly pay attention. No Shaq in Miami? The line most definitely will be adjusted, many times significantly. No Yao Ming or Tracy McGrady in Houston? Absolutely that will cause an adjustment.However, one needs to analyze each team very carefully when deciding to wager on or against clubs that have key injuries. Last year Miami without Shaq was a disaster. This season, the Heat WITH or WITHOUT Shaq has been a disaster! O'Neal wil...
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| College Basketball's Biggest Key |
| 2008-01-30 16:14:00 |
We take a week away from football as we await the Super Bowl that's coming up in the first weekend of February. My next article will talk about strategies for handicapping the big game and various propositions. Today, we take our first look at basketball for the 2007-08 season. I know many of you are starting to follow this sport very closely now. I wanted to make sure you were focused on the single biggest handicapping factor. Before I tell you, do you think you can guess what it is? Coac...
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| NBA Home/Road Dichotomy |
| 2008-01-22 16:45:00 |
There's often a significant difference in basketball handicapping with home/road play and stats. Not only scoring and defensive stats, but wins and losses, both straight up and against the spread. One key variable to take into account is experience. Take a look at what Detroit Pistons guard Chauncey Billups said last week: "Anytime we come back, and I don't care who we play, off a four-game trip with a split. We're an elite team and we feel like we can win in anybody's building." That's a comment that exudes confidence.Veteran teams, like the Pistons, can win anywhere. The biggest part of that is talent, of course, but it's also confidence. Success breeds confidence and veteran players are more likely to have it than young players. The Pistons are a veteran team that have been th...
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| College Basketball Defense! |
| 2008-01-21 14:57:00 |
Coming into this season, the Tennessee Volunteers were loaded, with four starters back to a team that led Ohio State by 20 in March before folding in the wake of a Sweet 16 appearance. Coach Bruce Pearl likes an uptempo style and this season they are averaging 86 ppg. A year ago they averaged 81 ppg behind a three-guard lineup. That uptempo attack is why they went 17-9 over the total two years ago and 19-13 over the total last season.However, that came at a cost: The Vols ranked last in the SEC in scoring defense (75.1 points per game), last in field-goal percentage (.457) and last in rebounding defense. "No doubt," coach Bruce Pearl said before the season, "defense is the area where we can show the greatest improvement and have the most impact."...
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| NBA Early Season Surprises |
| 2007-11-26 17:03:00 |
NBA Predictions courtesy of Jim Feist.comPreseason prognosticators and handicapping analysis focuses in on what they expect to happen, based on the draft and offseason moves, but there are always surprises at the start of each season. Here's a look at some of the early pleasant surprises of the NBA season.Celtics: On paper, it doesn't take a lot of moves to go from worst to first in the weak East. Boston is putting this to the test after making the most waves in the offseason. GM Danny Ainge basically shipped out a truckload of kids with potential to bring established veterans Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to play alongside Paul Pierce. They were expected to be very good, but they've been even better.I had the Celtics as my Game of the Week the first week of the season. In their ...
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