The NCAA dominated the hardwood on Saturday with a massive slate of games taking place throughout the day. In the Top 25, favorites finished 11-4-1 ATS while Under bettors finished 9-7. In the NBA, “activated” LeBron could not overcome a rest — ahem — injury-laden Pelicans squad. The Brooklyn Nets upset the Hornets in Charlotte while the Blazers pounded the 76ers in Philadelphia. Here is a sports betting recap from Saturday followed by a preview of a few key events today.
No Harden? No Problem
James Harden was ruled out for Saturday’s road matchup versus the Warriors. Already a 9-point underdog, the Rockets battled uphill without their main cog. Chris Paul posted a 23-point, 17-assist double-double in Harden’s absence as the Rockets nearly went wire-to-wire against their heavily-favored foe. Eric Gordon poured in 25 points while Kenneth Faried and PJ Tucker both contributed double-doubles of their own to round out a well-balanced set of contributions in the victory. The road victory paid +575 to Houston backers .
Tigers Send Fans Home Happy In Overtime
The No. 13-ranked LSU Tigers won a thriller in Baton Rouge on Saturday as the Tigers came back late in overtime against No. 2 Tennessee Volunteers in an 82-80 victory. A two-point home dog, LSU tied the game with about 8 seconds left in overtime and claimed victory after a rebounding Javonte Smart was fouled with 0.6 seconds left in the game. Smart netted both free throws to steal a victory in front of an excited home crowd.
Virginia Puts The Clamps On Louisville In the Second Half
The No. 3-ranked Cavaliers rallied from a 12-point deficit in the second half to silence the Louisville crowd. A 6-30 Louisville shooting drought from the field in the second half coupled with an efficient Virginia 46 FG% landed the Cavaliers a fourth consecutive victory. Virginia will host Georgia Tech on Wednesday as the Cavaliers aim for the top spot in the polls.
Temperature Check: No Oasis In The Desert
The hapless Phoenix Suns continued their futility on Saturday night with a 19th consecutive loss in Atlanta. During the long losing streak, the Suns are 7-12 ATS and appear to be endeavoring for another high pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
Prop Shop: 3 Ball On FanDuel
FanDuel Sportsbook offers 3 Ball props for the final round of the WGC Mexico today. Rory McIlroy (+130), Dustin Johnson (+165), and Patrick Reed (+300) are the last threesome available for today’s final round. Johnson currently holds a four-stroke lead at -16 to enter the final pairing. Reed will need to make things happen on Sunday if he plans to overcome a seven-stroke deficit.
Speaking Of The WGC Mexico
Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy (pictured above) will be paired together on Sunday with McIlroy aiming to make up a four-stroke deficit. McIlroy, currently sitting at -12, has not won on the PGA Tour since the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March 2018. DJ — currently atop the leaderboard at -16 — hopes to close out the tournament for his first PGA victory since the RBC Canadian Open last July. Johnson is currently a marked favorite at -380 to win today while McIlroy offers +470 to bettors hoping to speculate on the comeback.
Stat of the Day
Kyle Busch broke a tie with Roy Hornaday Jr. for the NASCAR Truck Series victory record with his 52nd victory on Saturday in Atlanta. Busch overcame a late weather delay to claim the record-setting win. Busch, along with Kevin Harvick, are +500 to win today’s 2019 Monster Energy Nascar Championship.
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