Sunday was a pretty interesting day in the Tuley’s Takes home office (and the rest of the house) as we had my brother, sister-in-law and nephew over to the house in North Las Vegas for a BBQ, swim party for my wife’s birthday celebration.
Happy wife, happy life!
Her birthday is actually Tuesday, but it’s my annual challenge to make time for her during this busy, busy week, You see, in addition to her birthday on the Ides of March, it’s also our wedding anniversary on Thursday (St. Patrick’s Day). Yes, I made the mistake of getting married on Saturday, March 17, 2001, during one of my busiest weeks of the year as a sports betting writer (and, yes, i did have a TV at our reception showing NCAA Tournament games).
Anyway, we had a great time swimming and eating – marinated tri-tip steak, bratwurst, pasta salad, birthday cake(s) — before breaking up the party at 3 p.m. PT so I could get back to work with the March Madness Selection Show.
Even though I was enjoying family time, I was also tracking my bets, of course. Unfortunately, I lost my Best Bet of the day, dipping to 20-8-1 ATS the last 29 days since the Super Bowl. We did win our secondary best bet on Richmond as it upset Davidson for the A-10 title and we were happy we only parlayed our NHL 1P Overs as they went 0-3. Ouch.
But we didn’t have time to lament the day’s losses as it was time to get to work on our bracket and first-round picks, plus an appearance at 10:30 p.m. PT on VSiN’s “The Lookahead” show with Scott Seidenberg.
Let’s get to the general recaps of Sunday’s betting action, and then try to get on the winning track.
Sunday’s recaps
CBB: Iowa (+ 2.5) upset Purdue 75-66 to win the Big Ten title. Tennessee (-6.5) beat Texas A&M 65-50 in SEC title game. Houston (-3.5) beat Memphis 71-53 in AAC title game. Richmond (+ 3.5) upset Davidson 64-62 in Atlantic 10 title game to steal a bid from the bubble.
NBA: Faves went 7-1 SU Sunday, but dogs led 5-2-1 ATS as Nets (-5.5 vs. Knicks), 76ers (-11 at Magic), Grizzlies (-15 at Thunder) and Hawks (-12 vs. Pacers) failed to cover in wins, plus Clippers (-4) pushed in win at Pistons. The lone upset was by the Mavericks (+ 7 at Celtics). The only faves to cover were Pelicans (-6.5 vs. Rockets) and Suns (-7.5 vs. Lakers). Overs went 5-3.
NHL: Dogs went 6-4 with upsets by the Sabres (+ 250 vs. Maple Leafs), Predators (+ 160 at Wild), Blue Jackets (+ 135 vs. Golden Knights), Jets (+ 115 in OT at Blues), Canadiens (+ 135 at Flyers) and Canucks ( 135 vs Lightning in SO). Overs went 6-3-1 w/ push in Hurricanes-Penguins (6) game.
Monday’s Takes
Blazers + 12.5 at Hawks: This is a “swagger play” as the Blazers snapped their 6-game losing streak on Saturday against the Wizards (thus “getting their swagger back”), so we’re backing them in this spot. In addition to the confidence-building win, we also don’t think the Hawks should be favored by this many points, validated by the fact they just failed to cover as double-digit favorites on Sunday against the Pacers.
Jazz + 1.5 vs. Bucks: This is an “anti-swagger play” (the antithesis of a swagger play) as the Bucks had their 6-game losing streak snapped on Saturday and thus we fade them here.
Note: No NHL 1P Overs as only game on Monday is Coyotes-Senators.
Good luck today (and every day!).