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This Week in Sports Betting, A-Z


by - 10/10/2018

Toronto Maple Leafs Center Auston Matthews

A. Auston Matthews . Matthews has a thing for season-opening games. The No. 1 overall pick in 2016 scored four goals in his NHL debut two years ago, had a goal and two assists in the 2017-18 opener, and lit the lamp twice in last Wednesday's 3-2 OT win over Montreal. He now has a ridiculous seven goals and three assists through four games for the 3-1 Maple Leafs. BetOnline Sportsbook has Toronto as a +800 co-favorite along with Tampa Bay and Winnipeg to win the Stanley Cup.

B. Butler, Jimmy . Butler recently returned to Minnesota; no, not to the Timberwolves-quite the opposite. He returned to reiterate his trade demands and he reportedly wants a deal done by Friday. Miami was apparently close to pulling the trigger this past weekend before talks dissolved when the T-Wolves started asking for more in return.


C. C.J. Fuller . The former Clemson running back died last week at the age of 22. He was a key contributor during the Tigers' 2016 National Championship season. R.I.P.

D. Dejounte Murray . It's the end of another era in San Antonio with Manu Ginobili's retirement. It's also the end of Murray's season, as the Spurs' starting point guard suffered a torn ACL during last weekend's preseason game against Houston. Adding insult to injury, rookie guard Lonnie Walker IV is expected to miss at least six weeks due to a torn right meniscus. The Spurs are -155 at MyBookie.ag to make the playoffs.

E. Eddie Flores . Flores, an Astros fan, bought $500 worth of beer for a lot of new friends after he told them he would do so if George Springer homered to lead off the fifth inning of Game 1 against Cleveland. Springer did, Flores lived up to his promise, and then Jose Altuve made it back-to-back so Flores bought even more. At the Astros' current pace, this could be a real costly postseason…. Houston is a +210 favorite at XBet.ag to win the World Series.

F. FC Barcelona . Lionel Messi scored twice in Barcelona's 4-2 victory over Tottenham Hotspur during Champions League group-stage action last week. Only twice?!?!

G. Graham Gano . In the most ridiculous finish to a football game since Remember the Titans and real-life Vikings vs. Saints from last year's playoffs, Gano kicked a 63-yard field goal with one second left as the Panthers beat the Giants 33-31 last Sunday. 5Dimes Sportsbook has Carolina as a +1 underdog at Washington in Week 6.

H. Haselwood, Jadon . The five-star receiver prospect decommitted from Georgia last week, perhaps realizing that the program is Running Back U and not Wide Receiver U. As for the current season, things are going just fine for 6-0 Georgia. The Bulldogs are -7.5 favorites at LSU on Saturday, per Bovada Sportsbook.

I. Incredible comeback . As a -13 favorite, Miami (FL) should never have found itself down 27-7 to Florida State. But that was the case for the Hurricanes midway through the third quarter of last Saturday's ACC showdown. With a 4.9 percent win percentage at one point, the 'Canes stormed back for a 28-27 victory over the Seminoles.

J. Juan Martin Del Potro . For the first time since 2013, Del Potro will play in tennis' year-end championship. The 30-year-old, who finished runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the U.S. Open, officially qualified last week.

K. Khabib Nurmagomedov . "Khabib Nur-…Nurma-…Not-gonna-work-here-anymore-anyway." That's what the Nevada Athletic Commission may end up saying after it investigates the controversial aftermath of the recent fight against Conor McGregor.

L. Love, Bryce . If Lloyd Christmas had a chance with Mary Swanson in Dumb and Dumber, then Love has a chance to get invited back to the Heisman Trophy ceremony. But it's looking like one in a million. Stanford's star running back rushed for just 73 yards on 17 carries against Notre Dame and then missed last week's game against Utah because of an ankle injury. The Cardinal lost both contests by at least 19 points-meaning they have no chance at the College Football Playoff.

M. Milwaukee Brewers . In Milwaukee, the only thing they do better than brew beer is play baseball. The Brewers are Milwaukee's best thing going right now, and Christian Yelich is the beast. They have won eight in a row-seven to end the regular season, one to win the National League Central in a tiebreaker against the Cubs, and three to sweep Colorado in the NLDS. Milwaukee did not give up a single run in the final two contests, rolling over the Rockies by scores of 3-2, 4-0, and 6-0. The Brewers are +125 underdogs at GT Bets in the NLCS against the Dodgers.

N. Nick Saban . Alabama's head coach called out the fans for not showing up or staying all the way through a 56-14 beatdown of Louisiana-Lafayette on Sept. 29. Um, most people-even 'Bama fans-have better things to do that watch meaningless blowouts. Alabama is a -215 favorite at BookMaker to win the National Championship.

O. Oklahoma . Mike Stoops was fired as the Sooners' defensive coordinator following a 48-45 loss to Texas. No team has given up that many points to the Longhorns since San Jose State allowed 56 on Sept. 9, 2017. And San Jose State (1-15 in its last 16 games) sure ain't Oklahoma.

P. Packers . Green Bay is 0-1-1 in its last two games against NFC North rivals; it could be 2-0 in such contests. But like so many other current NFL kickers not named Graham Gano, Mason Crosby has a hard time booting a piece of pigskin through some uprights. The 12-year veteran missed a 52-yarder at the end of regulation in what became a 29-29 Week 2 tie against Minnesota and he missed from 41, 42, 38, and 56 yards in last week's 31-23 loss to Detroit. Crosby even botched a PAT, too, so that's five misses in one game for those keeping score at home. Green Bay is a -9.5 home favorite over San Francisco next Monday night, according to MyBookie.ag.

Q. Quarterbacks . Last Sunday marked the first time four rookie quarterbacks have all won starts on the same day. All four of the first-round picks-Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, and Josh Allen-led their teams to victories, an especially impressive feat given that all four were underdogs. And they did so after all losing one week earlier.

R. Ronaldo, Cristiano . Portugal's national team has left Ronaldo off the roster for matches later this month against Poland and Scotland. An investigation into an alleged 2009 rape was recently reopened.

S. Safeway Open . As we learned at the Ryder Cup, no fan is safe when American golfers are hitting drives. There were no reported incidents at last week's Safeway Open, but Phil Mickelson certainly did some exploratory research of the Silverado Country Club North Course. After shooting 65 and 69 in the first two rounds, Mickelson went wayward to the tune of 74-72 to finish T17. Kevin Tway ended up winning in a playoff over Ryan Moore and Brandt Snedeker.

T. Tupac Shakur . Suge Knight's son made recent claims that Tupac is alive and living in Malaysia, perhaps even partying with Beyonce and 50 Cent! That's like Kyrie Irving saying the world is flat.

U. Undefeated . In a classic matchup of offense vs. defense, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs did more than enough to beat Jacksonville in Week 5, earning a 30-14 home win and remaining undefeated at 5-0. Mahomes had no passing touchdowns, no left-handed completions, and two interceptions, and the Chiefs still rolled; that's how good they are. Bovada Sportsbook has Kansas City as a +240 favorite to win the AFC.

V. Vancouver Canucks . The Canucks have banned their players from playing "Fortnite" this season after finishing second-to-last in the Western Conference with 73 points in 2017-18. But are they allowed to sit around watching Ninja play "Fortnite" on Twitch?

W. Wilson, Tom . Not one, not two, not three, not four, not five…not 18, not 19…. No, Wilson was suspended 20 games for a hit to the head of St. Louis forward Oskar Sundqvist during a Sept. 30 preseason contest. The Capitals' 24-year-old forward is a repeat offender, thus incurring a harsh-but-deserved punishment. Washington is a -160 home favorite over Vegas on Wednesday in a rematch of the 2017-18 Stanley Cup Finals, as indicated by GT Bets.

X. Xander Bogaerts . In their first postseason meeting since the you-know-what series in 2004, the Red Sox beat the Yankees in four games. Bogaerts hit safely in all four contests, including a home run in Game 2.


Y. Yasiel Puig . It's been a hug-it-out October, with Javier Baez of the Cubs wrapping up Colorado third baseman Nolan Arenado in the middle of a play before Puig hugged and even kissed Atlanta's Charlie Culberson when the former got caught stealing in Los Angeles' 3-0 win over the Braves in Game 2 of the NLDS last Friday. Apparently, postseason baseball is the antithesis of Khabib vs. McGregor.

Z. Zero . That is the percent chance Louisville's defense had of stopping Georgia Tech last Friday night. Head coach Bobby Petrino's defense was utterly hopeless, watching the Yellow Jackets rack up 542 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns in a 66-31 romp. Those numbers aren't misprints. YouWager.eu has Georgia Tech as a -3 home favorite over Duke on Saturday.

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