Miscellaneous Articles

NHL Power Rankings
by T.O. Whenham - 2/4/2010

There is a lot of movement in the rankings this week as there has been over the last few rankings. There's a good reason for that - I'm just not convinced that there is a lot of quality in the league right now. I really believe in the top three teams, but beyond that there isn't a lot of consistency, and it seems to be impossible to get a lasting impression of a team - as soon as you start to believe in them they go into the tank, or vice versa.

Free Sports Picks: College Basketball Wednesday Night
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 2/3/2010

The Pitt Panthers are starting to play like everyone thought they would entering the season. Things seem to be unraveling after losing three out of four, including a home game against Georgetown and road games against mid-level Big East teams Seton Hall and South Florida. Pitt remains the only team in the country to defeat Syracuse, they did it on the road by 10 points, no less, and they also own impressive wins at Cincinnati and Connecticut.

NCAA Tournament Projections
by Robert Ferringo - 1/29/2010

It’s starting to get intense. That’s the most obvious thing that I noticed this week watching the college hoops landscape unfold. Lines are getting tighter, teams are getting more emotional, and things are really starting to tighten up. It’s not exactly the stretch run yet and there is still a lot of ball to be played.

NCAA Hoops Betting: Under the Radar
by Christopher G. Shepard - 1/29/2010

Villanova is the top money-earner in NCAA men’s hoops, commanding a 19-1 straight-up and 15-4 ATS record and a healthy +1060. However, Sacramento State, a team I profiled in the inaugural Under-the-Radar article back in December, is second in the nation at 7-14 SU but 14-4 ATS and +960; good enough to earn almost +400 in the past month.

NBA Free Picks: Thursday Doubleheader On TNT
by Matt Severance - 1/28/2010

The Celtics have won both games since Kevin Garnett returned from injury. But be aware that one was over a Portland team missing Brandon Roy and the other was at home against the road lousy Clippers. Boston had lost eight of 12 before KG got back. Orlando enters off a loss in Memphis – no shame in that anymore – but had won its previous three games.

Free Sports Picks: College Basketball Wednesday Night
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 1/27/2010

Villanova is starting to be discussed as a potential No. 1 team in the country. Its only loss remains a 75-65 defeat at Temple back in mid-December. Since then the Wildcats have steamrolled their Big East competition although their schedule is back loaded with most of their tough conference games still to come.

NCAA Tournament Projections – Updated Jan. 22
by Robert Ferringo - 1/22/2010

There are 65 slots in the NCAA Tournament Field. There are 31 automatic bid leagues in college basketball and my projections for the 2010 field show that there are 17 one-bid conferences. That means that there are essentially 48 slots open for tournament teams. That seems like a lot, but when you consider that, by my count, there are 26 teams that have sealed up bids now we’re down to just 22 at-large bids that about 90 other schools are fighting for just 22 openings.

NBA Free Picks: Thursday Doubleheader On TNT
by Matt Severance - 1/21/2010

It’s an all-L.A. doubleheader tonight on TNT (the only two games on the NBA schedule Thursday), with the can’t-miss game obviously being the nightcap between the Clippers and Nuggets – you might as well skip the 8 p.m. game as it won’t have any players you’ve heard of.

Searching for Value in Winter Olympics Betting Odds
by T.O. Whenham - 1/21/2010

The closer we get to the start of the 2010 Winter Olympics (well under a month now - opening ceremonies go Feb. 12), the more intrigued I get by the betting opportunities that will be presented by the event. As a hockey fan and a Canadian I am of course on the edge of my seat about the hockey tournament, and hopeful that my boys can avenge their disastrous outing in Torino and reclaim Salt Lake City's gold medal.

NHL Power Rankings
by T.O. Whenham - 1/20/2010

There have been some missteps - like a dull 4-2 loss at Ottawa on Tuesday - but the Blackhawks haven't really done anything to deserve a demotion out of the first spot. They are arguably the best team in the league regardless of some small struggles the last couple of weeks.

Free Sports Picks: College Basketball Wednesday Night
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 1/20/2010

After a 7-1-2 run in the NFL and a 9-2 mark in college football to put me at 16-3-2 overall in football I will be moving on to college basketball just in time for the heart of conference play. For Wednesday night we have a pair of games featuring ranked opponents in the ACC and the Big East.

NBA Power Rankings
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 1/20/2010

It is mid-January and that means most of the NBA talk focuses to All-Star controversy about who will compete in the dunk contest, who is “injured” and will have to miss the game, not to mention which players are getting snubbed by the fan voting. But we still have plenty of meaningful games going on and surprisingly tight playoff races.

Free Sports Picks: Thursday NBA Doubleheader on TNT
by Matt Severance - 1/14/2010

The Bulls haven’t played since Monday when they beat sliding Detroit by 33 points and shot 57.1 percent from the field. That was Chicago’s second win in a row, but both came over bad teams at the United Center (the other being Minnesota). Chicago should have the advantage of fresh legs because the Celtics played Wednesday night (their sixth game in nine days), although they didn’t have to exert themselves too much in a 111-87 win over the Nets.

Sports Betting Scams
by Max Powers - 1/11/2010

With the birth of the Internet many sports handicapping services have developed overnight and many of them claim to be well-established and well-respected businesses. Most are just fly-by-night operations and they are in the business to make a quick buck. Experience is one thing most of these companies lack and many of them try to compensate for that by saying them have been gambling for over two decades.

NBA Power Rankings
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 1/7/2010

With the first NBA power rankings of the new decade not much has changed since 2009. The rich are getting richer in the NBA and the poor are getting poorer. Only in the NBA can an upcoming offseason affect the current season. You will hear the term expiring contract come up more often in the following months than talk of playoffs.

NHL Power Rankings
by T.O. Whenham - 1/7/2010

The Blackhawks have won seven of their last eight games, and they beat up on New Jersey when they got the chance. We knew coming into the season that these guys had a chance to be special, and they are certainly living up to the hype. Key stat - they allow the fewest shots against in the league. With an offense like theirs that's deadly.

2010 BCS Championship Game Odds and Predictions
by Robert Ferringo - 1/4/2010

Run the ball and play good defense. That is what wins in the violent game known as football. And the team that is most capable of accomplishing those seemingly basic goals will be the team that walks out of Pasadena with the BCS National Championship.

Free Sports Picks: New England at Houston and KC at Denver
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 12/31/2009

One final week of the NFL regular season and only a few games carry significance in terms of playoff seeding. After last week with the Buccaneers winning outright as 14-point underdogs and my other two-touchdown underdog, Kansas City, covering, I am 5-1-2 in the NFL this regular season. Including my 6-2 record in college football I am 11-3-2 overall in football picks. For Week 17 here are two more free NFL picks.

2010 Orange Bowl Odds and Predictions
by T.O. Whenham - 12/30/2009

The BCS bowls are always a big deal, but if there is one this year that is an afterthought it is definitely the Orange Bowl. There are some sexy matchups this year, but a showdown between an ACC champion which lost to two of the three best teams it faced and the second best team in the Big Ten that somehow managed to lose to Northwestern isn't exactly the kind of pairing that has people drooling

NFL Sunday Predictions - Week 17
by Josh Nagel - 12/30/2009

In the final week of the NFL season, finding games in which both teams are motivated is paramount to finding a good bet. Some gamblers found this out the hard way last week, when the previously unbeaten Indianapolis Colts pulled their starters early in the third quarter and ended up gift-wrapping a 29-15 win to the desperate New York Jets.