Wednesday is usually a day to catch up on errands in the Tuley’s Takes home office as we also try to kill time waiting for the 4 p.m. PT starts of most of our betting action.
It wasn’t worth the wait this Wednesday as we lost with our Best Bet of the day on the Devils-Maple Leafs 1P Over 1.5 as they played to a scoreless tie. That dropped our record to 26-12-1 ATS with our top play of the day the past 39 days to fall below 70 percent at 68.4 percent.
We did, however, easily win with our secondary play on Washington State + 3.5 at BYU, so hopefully that’s a good sign as we stick with college basketball with the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 on Thursday.
Let’s get to the recaps of Wednesday’s betting – and the dogs were really barking in the NBA and NHL – before making our picks for Thursday, Note: we’ll also list our Friday Sweet 16 plays as well as we’re actually more confident in those dogs to cover..
Wednesday’s recaps
CBB: In the NIT quarterfinals, Washington State (+ 2.5, + 125 money line) upset BYU 77-58 (game stayed Under 143) and Texas A&M (-2.5) covered in 67-52 win over Wake Forest (stayed way Under 145) to set up NIT semifinal next Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. Xavier will face St. Bonaventure in the other semifinal.
NBA: Underdogs went 8-3 ATS Wednesday with 7 outright upsets by the Warriors (+ 10 at Heat), Knicks (+ 8.5 at Hornets), Kings (+ 6 at Pacers), Pistons (+ 5 vs. Hawks), Thunder (+ 2.5 vs. Magic), Suns (+ 1.5 at Timberwolves) and Grizzlies (+ 1 vs. Nets). The Lakers (+ 9.5 without LeBron James) covered in 126-121 loss vs. the 76ers. The only faves to cover were the Celtics (-5 vs. Jazz), Mavericks (-10 vs. Rockets) and Spurs (-9.5 at Blazers). Overs went 8-3
NHL: Dogs went 3-1 with upsets by the Sabres (+ 190 in 4-3 win vs. Penguins), Canucks (+ 235 in 3-1 win at Avalanche) and Blackhawks (+ 105 in 4-2 win at Ducks). The Maple Leafs (-290 in 3-2 win vs. Devils) were the only favorites to win on the night. Unders went 2-1-1 with the push in the Blackhawks-Ducks with a closing total of 6 goals.
Thursday’s Takes
Note: For the reasoning behind my Sweet 16 plays, see the regular weely version of this column in Point Spread Weekly or in the March Madness Best Bets file at VSiN.com as we mostly focus on how to time our wagers in this daily column.
Houston + 1.5 vs. Arizona: We were hoping for a few more points with No. 5 Houston vs. No. 1 Arizona, but a lot of people (including kenpom.com) have the Cougars actually rated higher. We hope we’re not falling into the trap of what we saw last as we were really impressed by Houston’s win vs. Illinois while Arizona struggled to beat TCU.
Texas Tech -1 vs. Duke: We know this is a short favorite, but when I filled out my brackets I had Texas Tech ending Coach K’s final dance, so I convinced this is the right side. And I’m still holding out hope that the Red Raiders could close as underdogs as we could see late money on Duke before tipoff.
Panthers-Canadiens First-Period Over 1.5 -165: Big NHL card on Thursday, but this is the standout game for our 1P Over 1.5 followers. The Panthers are on a 25-7 run with 1P Overs and are the top 1P Over team on the season at 43-19 (69.35 percent). The Canadiens are also an Over team at 34-28.
Friday
St. Peter’s + 12.5 vs. Purdue: The Peacocks of St. Peter’s are looking like a public underdog as this year’s biggest Cinderella story, so I’m grabbing this line now.
Providence + 7.5 vs. Kansas: This has been a pretty solid 7.5 all week, though Treasure Island in Las Vegas has dipped to 7 as has Bovada offshore, so again I think the time to buy the dogs is now.
Good luck today (and every day!).