NFL Game of the Day – Vikings at 49ers (-2½, 35) By Steve Merril

Opening Line and Weather Report

The oddsmakers opened San Francisco as a 3-point home favorite earlier this week on Monday and the line later dropped to -2½ on Saturday morning. The Over/Under opened at 34½ and has risen to 35 in some locations.

The weather looks fantastic on Su ...  read more

It feels like it’s been Years since we Won my Super Bowl play with Saints/Colts UNDER. I like most of you guys have the Football Action Jones and can’t wait for kickoff tonight Sat August 14. However, keep in mind that Pre Season is not as profitable as it once was for bettors. The Bookmakers have also learned how to use the internet for information and will move numbers on the fly ...  read more

One of the most frequently asked questions that professional handicappers get is how many games should I play each day or week. That isn’t easily answered as there are many ways to skin the proverbial cat, but this is a matter of basic strategy that handicappers answer in many different ways. I have always approached it as if I am managing a stock portfolio, and that method involves diversifi ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Wednesday afternoon:

RAYS at TIGERS (Under 7 ½, -110) – 1:05 pm ET #967-968

Not an official play, but I would rate the Under as a light lean this afternoon.

The Rays have won two straight games and they can sweep the Tigers with a win on Wednesday afternoon. The last time Matt Garz ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Tuesday night:

RAYS at TIGERS (+105) – 7:05 pm ET #917

Not an official play, but I would rate Tampa Bay as a light lean tonight.

Jeremy Hellickson makes his second career start as the Rays continue their series with the Tigers on Tuesday night. Hellickson made a great first impress ...  read more

Many handicappers have the opinion that the preseason games should be left alone and not bet on. I feel just the opposite.  I feel the NFL preseason is a great opportunity to start and build a nice bankroll for the upcoming regular season, especially t ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Friday night:

ROCKIES at PIRATES (Over 8, -110) – 7:05 pm ET #905-906

Not an official play, but I would rate the Over as a light lean tonight.

The Pirates have won two of their last three games as they continue their home series with the Colorado Rockies tonight. Pittsburgh turns t ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Thursday afternoon:

WHITE SOX at TIGERS (Under 8 ½, +100) – 1:05 pm ET #963-964

Not an official play, but I would rate the Under as a light lean this afternoon.

For the third time this season, Freddy Garcia gets to face the Detroit Tigers. Garcia is 2-0 with a 3.46 ERA against Detro ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Tuesday night:

PHILLIES at MARLINS (Under 7 ½, +100) – 7:10 pm ET #955-956

Not an official play, but I would rate the Under as a light lean tonight.

The Marlins will get their fourth look at Roy Halladay this season. So far he is 2-1 with a 1.08 ERA against Florida giving up three ...  read more

By: Steve Merril

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Monday afternoon:

GIANTS at BREWERS (-120) – 4:10 pm ET #952

Not an official play, but I would rate the Brewers as a light lean this afternoon.

San Francisco comes to Milwaukee after exhausting their bullpen in a 15 inning loss to Colorado late Sunday afternoon. The Giants hope tha ...  read more

Below is a free MLB play with analysis for Sunday afternoon:

ASTROS at PADRES (Under 7, -110) – 4:05 pm ET #911-912

Not an official play, but I would rate the Under as a light lean this afternoon.

The Astros and Padres have had a pair of pitcher's duels the last two nights. They'll wrap up their series on Sunday afternoon in San Diego. Brett Myers g ...  read more

NBA Game of the Day – Lakers/Celtics (Game 5)

Line Move

The early money quickly came in on the Under as the oddsmakers opened the Game 5 total as high as 189½ and it quickly dropped to 187½ and 187 in most locations. It is not a surprise as the Under is now 3-1 in this series and 5-1 in all six meetings this season.

The oddsma ...  read more

NBA Game of the Day – Celtics at Lakers (-6, 190) By Steve Merril

Line Adjustment

The Lakers were a 5½-point favorite in Game 1 and they have now been installed as a 6-point favorite in Game 2 after their easy win on Thursday. Los Angeles led by 20 points entering the fourth quarter in their eventual 102-89 win and the oddsmakers have now adjusted the ...  read more

Current Odds

The oddsmakers have made a substantial adjustment on the both the side and total for Game 3. The Lakers were 6½ and 7½-point favorites at home in both Games 1 & 2, but now the Suns are a 2½-point home favorite. This 10-point adjustment is largely due to the fact that teams down 0-2 usu ...  read more

NBA Game of the Day

by Steve Merril

Phoenix Suns at San Antonio Spurs (-3½, 207) – 8:05 pm ET (TNT)

Opening line

Despite trailing 3-0 in this playoff series, the early money quickly came in on San Antonio when an opening line was posted on Saturday morning. Oddsmakers initially made the Spurs a 2½-point home favorite and ...  read more

By Matt Josephs for Steve Merril Sports

Baseball begins this week and below is a list of play-on and play-against pitchers for the 2010 MLB season.

Five Pitchers to back:

Wade Davis (Tampa Bay)

This 5th starter made six starts last year for the Rays going 2-2 with a 3.72 ERA on the season. Davis started his career giving up one run and three ...  read more

1. read more

Kansas is the best team in the nation, but there is not much value at 2/1 to win the NCAA Championship. Below are 3 long-shots that could make some noise next month.

West Virginia

Opened 15/1 Current 30/1

There is excellent value with West Virginia at 30/1 as their odds have doubled since the start of the season, due mainly to their recent two-game losing str ...  read more

NFC Play-off Picture December 1, 2009

As the Saints continue to dominate – nailed MNF 10* Titan on the Saints and the 7* Titan UNDER for a nice big time parlay winner – and the Colts continue to remain unbeaten, the media focus is justly focused on these two teams. This week however, is a significant week for the NFC contenders and how these games will shape the play-off picture.

Looking for teams that should be improved from last season, appear ready to take the next stop, and seem to be flying under the radar in preseason publications.

Atlantic 10 St. Bonaventure- 15 wins in the second year of Mark Schmidt's regime were the most the Bonnies' have had in 6 years. Covered 7 out of 9 to close out the regular season last season, with one of the non-cove ...  read more

As Favorites in the NFL are on a 21-9 ATS run the last 2 weeks, I figured it was a good time to share some team notes and trends after the first 4 games of the season.

Baltimore 3-1 OVER, if the total is reasonable, the Ravens look like an Over team. The Ravens defense is good vs the run, but opponents offenses can pass on Ravens weak DB's. Baltimore's offense can run and pas ...  read more

Matty B’s SEC Coaching Blitz: Gus Malzahn is all the rage on The Plains. Auburn’s new offensive coordinator is getting more credit and more attention than new head coach Gene Chizik for Auburn’s 4-0 start. And there certainly is a good reason for it since the Tigers have done a complete 360 as far as offensive production goes. In 2008, Auburn’s offense was abysmal as they scored 21 po ...  read more

Matty B’s Coaching Blitz:

Missouri showed a lot of patience with Gary Pinkel. He was hired as the head coach going into the 2001 season. From 2001 through 2006, the Tigers went just 37-35. A win – loss record like that isn’t really tolerated in this modern era of “win now” college football. But the Missouri brass kept Pinkel around, and their faith in him paid off in spades ...  read more

September 19, 2009 by charliescottsports

Boxing Mayweather/Marquez- Old time handicappers Bob McCune and Lem Banker’s advice on handicapping Vegas fights was always, if one boxer has an opportunity for another big pay day for himself and Vegas with a win, Bet on him ! In this case if Mayweather wins, he probably gets Pacquiao and a big pay day next.

Cal @ Minn read more

Paul Johnson has proven himself to be one heck of a college football coach. Johnson started to get recognition during his final four years at Navy where he guided the Midshipmen to a 35-15 winning record. His team also covered the pointspread at a 58.7% clip (27-19-1) from 2004-2007.

Prior to going back to Navy as the head coach in 2002 (he was their offensive coordinator in `95 a ...  read more

This is actually a very important game for both teams to begin the season and to get off a solid victory. AiS shows a 70% probability that 39 or more points will be scored in this game. Public has bet this total down from an opening of 42 and I always like being on the house side of the money. AiS also projects a 65% pro ...  read more

Wow…. Will Federer lose a set? Interesting prop bet with Federer a -185 favorite to sweep Soderling. Weather could be a factor for this evening televised match and it may actually get canceled with a very slow moving front creating weather problems on the East Coast. Soderling has publically admitted he has little chance in this match and that is one of the best ways to go down quickly in defea ...  read more

With the 2009 college football season already underway and the NFL set to kick-off on Thursday night, it’s time for us to bring you a new weekly series, The Inside Blitz. This new weekly report will take you inside the pointspread during the football season. We’re going to be delivering you a weekly column that will reveal winning coaching spread patterns, get you inside the SEC confer ...  read more

Our 2009 NFL previews wrap-up with a peek at the NFC West. In last year’s edition of these previews, we called for the Arizona Cardinals to make some serious noise in 2008. And they did exactly that as they were 2:30 away from a Super Bowl championship. The Cardinals were the class of this division in ’08 as the Rams, 49ers, and Seahawks all had terrible seasons. We do anticipate this divis ...  read more

Here we are going to take a look at some CFB teams that appear to me to be headed in the right direction. I look for an improvement from last year or even recent years. I'm not focused on what bowl these teams can make or how many games they will win, I'm simply looking for teams that I think are "under the radar" and can be better that what the media and the betting public are expecting. Th ...  read more

TENNESSEE TITANS

2008 S/U 13-3 ATS: 12-4 O/U 7-9

2008 Spread Fact: 3-0 as a Favorite of -8 or higher

2008 Spread Fact: 3-0 as an Underdog

2008 Total Fact: 7-4 Under Totals of 39.5 or less

2009 Season Win total: O/U 8.5

Fantasy Tip: RB Chris Johnson emerged as both a running and passing threat last year and was the Titans be ...  read more

We’re coming down the home stretch with our 2009 NFL previews.

The NFC South appears to be a division that may regress this season. In 2008, NFC South teams were extremely tough to beat on their home fields, both straight-up and against the spread. But we think it will be extremely difficult for three of these teams to duplicate that success. There is one team in this group that ...  read more

Weather and line movement

Weather will not be a factor tonight as the forecast is calling for 71 degrees and clear skies with just a 20% chance of showers and only a 4 mph wind.

The Ravens opened as a 3-point favorite earlier this week and the oddsmakers have been reluctant to move off this key number. The early action has come in on the underdog Jets and the line has now ...  read more

The NFC North has a lot of interesting quarterback situations heading into the 2009 season. Three of the four teams will be playing a different QB from a season ago; only Green Bay will have last year’s starter (Aaron Rodgers) back.

Chicago made a big splash by trading for former Denver starter Jay Cutler. But as you’ll read in my write-up below, Cutler’s acquisition is meaningless ...  read more

By now I’m sure you’ve heard the sad news of Philadelphia’s longtime defensive coordinator Jim Johnson. He passed away in July at the age of 68 after a long battle with cancer. Johnson was an NFL assistant for 22 years, and he was widely regarded as the best defensive mind in the game. We wrote the previews below way back in early May, and in our write-up of the Eagles, we mention that as lo ...  read more

Let me start off by saying that I feel the NFL preseason is a great opportunity to start and build a nice bankroll for the upcoming regular season.  Many handicappers have the opinion that the preseason games should be left alone and not bet on. I feel just the opposite. If you do your homework the preseason games offer the betting public a tremendous ch ...  read more

Here is our take of the AFC West.

This division is the weakest quartet in the American Football Conference. The Chargers are a substantial favorite to win the division at – 430 while the Broncos, Chiefs, and Raiders are field listed at + 390. To compare, the Chargers are almost double the favorite price of the defending Super Bowl champs as the Steelers are a – 240 favorite to tak ...  read more

This is a portion of the Saints write up from CHARLIE SCOTT SPORTS 2009 PRO FOOTBALL ANNUAL that goes on sale at the Gamblers Book Club this week.

2008: S/U: 8-8 ATS:11-4-1 O/U: 10-5-1

2008 Spread Fact: 7-1 ATS as a Favorite

2008 Spread Fact: 6-1 ATS at Home (Dome team)

2008 Total Fact: 5-1 Over with totals of 50 or higher

2009 Season Win Total: O/U ...  read more

Here’s our preview of the AFC South. Just another reminder so you guys don’t think I’m giving you stale information. I told you that these previews were written way back in May. And some things have changed. But these quick-hitters will be a good tool to use and compare when you pick-up a copy of my Blitz Report Preseason Football Annual. I cover teams in that publication in much mo ...  read more

In our AFC East preview, I told you that these previews were written way back in May. And some things have changed. But these quick-hitters will be a good tool to use and compare when you pick-up a copy of my Blitz Report Preseason Football Annual. I cover teams in that publication in much more depth and detail, and give you very specific ways to play teams I’ve isolated either to imp ...  read more

Football is close, and welcome to Matty B Sports’ 2009 NFL previews. These quick-hitters first appeared in Marc Lawrence’s Playbook magazine which is currently on newsstands across the country. If you haven’t picked-up a copy yet, I strongly recommend you do so soon. Marc Lawrence gave me a great opportunity back in 2007 when he asked me to write the NFL Previews for his Playbook Magazine. ...  read more

Long known as one of the best online sportsbooks, BoDog.com does it all:

It’s easy to bet on every game – they have every major sport & league covered, their software’s a cinch to learn and they have some nice extras, like live betting and tons of fantasy leagues. This is a big part of w ...  read more

Oddsmakers have reduced the line for game 4 to Orlando -2.5, that is a 1.5 point drop from game 3. The best sports handicappers predict gameplan changes before the ...  read more

The NBA Finals begin this Thursday, June 4th in Los Angeles. Below is a look at some key numbers in the matchup between the Lakers and Magic.

16.7

This was the regular season scoring average for Orlando point guard Jameer Nelson who averaged 16.7 points in the 42 games he played in before injuring his shoulder against Dallas on February 2nd. Nelson was ruled out for the r ...  read more

Lakers vs. Nuggets (-4½, 208½) – 9:05 pm ET (ESPN)

Updated odds

When a 7-game series is tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 has historically won that series 76% of the time. The updated series odds now reflect this fact as Los Angeles is a -360 favorite, while Denver is a +300 underdog, even though the Nuggets are favored in Game 4 tonight. Phil Jackson coached t ...  read more

Below is a look at some of the hottest bets this week, covering an array of different sports and events.

NBA

DENVER NUGGETS

Despite their 105-103 loss in Game 1 on Tuesday night, the Denver Nuggets still got the pointspread win as a 6½-point road underdog. The Nuggets are now 10-0-1 ATS in their eleven playoff games this season. Denver has also bounced back w ...  read more

How is Sports Betting Like Investing?

There are a lot of parallels between the sports betting world and the investment markets.  And the ability to succeed in one can really give you a step up on succeeding in the other. 

That’s why the story of one former sports handicapper and sports bettor is so interesting. 

Whether you are eager to profit in the financial ...  read more

Nuggets at Mavericks (-1½, 210) – 9:35 pm ET (TNT) #732

Controversial Finish

Dallas led 105-101 with 0:31 remaining in Game 3 on Saturday, but the Mavericks allowed the Nuggets to score the final five points in a controversial 106-105 win. The Mavericks’ Antoine Wright tried to intentionally foul the Nuggets’ Carmel Anthony two different times in the f ...  read more

Rockets at Lakers (-8, 193½) – Game 1 - 10:35 pm ET (TNT)

Regular season dominance

The Lakers were a perfect 4-0 straight-up in the four head-to-head meetings during the regular season and this is a bad sign for the Rockets as teams that were swept in the regular season (3+ games) are 0-25 all-time in a NBA playoff series. Los Angeles is currently -900 ...  read more

Nuggets at Hornets (-2½, 193) – Game 4 – 8:35 pm ET (NBA-tv)

Line movement

The oddsmakers opened the Hornets as a 3-point favorite, but the early money quickly moved the line down to 2 ½ by Sunday afternoon. This is a full two points less than the line in Game 3 which saw New Orleans as a 4½-point favorite. New Orleans only won by two points and has n ...  read more

21. Philadelphia Eagles

• Needs: Offensi ...  read more

Bulls at Celtics (-8, 196) – 7:05 pm ET (TNT)

Tale of Two Teams

The Bulls pulled the upset in Game 1 as an 8½-point underdog and they covered from start to finish as they never trailed by more than five points the entire day. Chicago became a better team in late February after they acquired John Salmons and Brad Miller from the Kings. Salmons averages ...  read more

Here are some tidbits on each of the opening round series matchups. Be sure to check out my NBA Playoff Package, as I've hit a documented 60% in this league over the last two seasons. The Game 1 free play at the end is an actual phone service selection!

Pistons vs. Cavaliers- Pistons played better ball down the stretch without Iverson, and their young guards Stuckey and By ...  read more

11. Buffalo Bills

• Needs: Bills need to address three issues this draft TE, OL, and DE. Have seen a ...  read more

Bulls at Pistons (-4, 196) – 7:35 pm ET (NBA-tv)

Playoff Positioning

The good news for Chicago and Detroit is the fact they have both clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The bad news is that they will have to face Cleveland, Boston, or Orlando in the first round. Chicago (40-40) is currently 7th in the conference and one spot ahead of ...  read more

1. Detroit Lions

• Needs: QB- Team has restructured Daunte Culpepper’s contract but stil ...  read more

Cleveland Cavaliers (-200): The best record in the league currently and the b ...  read more

So how come you’re not betting on baseball every day? (And I know you’re proba ...  read more

 1) Pitchers: There are at least 9 guys in a game at a time for any given team (10 if you count the DH in the American League), but the 2 who effectively control the outcome of the game ...  read more

Michigan State vs. North Carolina (-7½, 152½) – 9:15 pm ET (CBS)

Line Movement

The oddsmakers opened North Carolina as a 7-point favorite on Saturday night after the semi-final games were complete and the early money has since pushed the line to -7½. The Over/Under line opened at 153 total points and was quickly bet down to 152, before settling at 152½ ...  read more

U Conn What they do well: Has 2-3 future first round NBA Draft picks. Can shut down opponents on defense. Their defense creates fast breaks for the offense.

Questions: Struggles at times to score in half court offense. Can anybody besides AJ Price shoot from outside ? Will they miss PG Dyson in a close game ? Free Throw shooting ? Bench depth ?

Michigan St The Ho ...  read more

Without a doubt this team has t ...  read more

It took a while, but we finally got to see some well played College Basketball games.

Louisville- They looked flat or hungover in Sunday’s loss to Michigan State. Head Coach Tom Izzo out -coached Pitino and showed why he is one of the best in the business. Michigan St/Kansas on Friday was as well- played and well-coached as any game that I can remember.

In Louisville ...  read more

Below is a look at a key matchup in the Eastern Conference tonight:

Orlando Magic (-3, 194) at Miami Heat – 7:35 pm ET

Playoff Positioning

The Magic have clinched the Southeast division title and a top three seed in the upcoming playoffs; however Orlando is still battling with the Boston Celtics for the overall #2 seed and home court advantage in ...  read more

North Carolina (-175): read more

Controversial bid

When the 34 at-large teams were announced for the NCAA tournament, the most controversial bid went to Arizona which extended Wildcat’s NCAA-leading streak of tournament appearances to 25 in a row. Arizona was just 19-13 straight-up and many felt that a non-BCS team such as San Diego State, St. Mary’s-CA, or Creighton should have been dancing. Arizona re ...  read more

Below is a look at tonight's top game in the NBA:

Nuggets vs. Suns (-3½, 236½) – 10:05 pm ET

Playoff Positioning

Nuggets vs. Suns (-3½, 236½) – 10:05 pm ET

Playoff Positioning

The Nuggets are currently in first place in the Northwest division and one game ahead of Portland in the standings. As a division wi ...  read more

Here is a preview of the 6 teams that ESI sees having a realistic chance to cut down the nets this season. Last season in this article, we correctly predicted Kansas as the national champion, but this year things truly are a little more wide open, as no team appears to be as complete a team as Kansas was. UConn may have been that team, but they lost not only a great player in Jerom Dyson a fe ...  read more

As we approach March Mayhem tip off, our brackets are filled out, and we're sure we have isolated this Year's Davidson. Have you noticed that when the media hypes the NCAA Tournament, it highlights the upsets of the George Masons,Vermonts, and Davidsons? The media doesn't say much about #1 seeds blowing out #16 seeds. The general public loves the David beats Goliath story.

So I wen ...  read more

Rockets vs. Hornets (-3½, 182) – 8:05 pm ET

Playoff Battle The Western Conference is once again the dominant conference in the NBA this season with seven of the current eight playoff teams with a win percentage of 61% or better, compared to the weaker Eastern Conference that has just three teams with a win percentage above 58%. Houston enters tonight’s ...  read more

As a handicapper it is our job to try and find ways to make ...  read more

#1 seeds: read more

By Matt Josephs for Steve Merril Sports

The Florida Gators are two years removed from a national championship and they are now firmly on the bubble with a strong chance of missing the Big Dance for the second straight season. Florida plays a must-win game on Thursday night in the SEC tournament versus Arkansas, so now is an excellent time to take a closer look and to decide if t ...  read more

1. Pittsburgh: Best team from the best conference makes it hard ...  read more

As Conference Tournaments begin, keep in mind two important handicapping factors for Conference Tournament play. One is team motivation, for some teams ( Louisville) they might be better off losing in the first game of the Big East Tournament and getting a week off to rest before the NCAA Tourney starts, than having to play 3 consecutive games to win the Big East. Can you remember who won l ...  read more

By Matt Josephs for Steve Merril Sports

March is upon us and there is nothing like making a last minute push for an at-large bid. One team that is gaining some “bubble” notice is Rhode Island as the Rams have won six straight and are 10-1 straight-up in their past eleven games overall. This strong finish down the stretch is a reversal from last season when Rhode Island started ...  read more

Arizona Sta ...  read more

North Carolina has b ...  read more