NFL IN THIS ISSUE CLEMSON WILDCARDS ALABAMA VS. COLTS VS. TEXANS SEAHAWKS VS.. COWBOYS CHARGERS VS.. RAVENS EAGLES VS.. BEARS

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1 VOL 49/19 WED. JANUARY 9, 2019 NOT FOR SALE IN STORES! COPYRIGHT PROTECTED NFL WILDCARDS 4 BIG GAMES THIS WEEK COLTS VS. TEXANS SEAHAWKS VS.. COWBOYS CHARGERS VS.. RAVENS EAGLES VS.. BEARS CLEMSON VS. ALABAMA IN THIS ISSUE -NFL LOGS -COLLEGE HOOPS -NBA Copyright 2019 Starpoint Publishing Corp Lexington Ave #331 New York, NY (877)

2 Indianapolis over *Houston by 3 (Saturday) Rookie head coach Frank Reich has shown a creative mind and steady hand. But the Colts best coaching hire was Matt Eberflus to be their defensive coordinator. The Colts went from ranking 30th defensively in yards and points last season to the top 11 in each of those two major statistical categories. The Texans have superstars DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt. The Colts have Andrew Luck. But there is more to the Colts than just Luck, which wasn t the case in past seasons. Indy has some unsung studs that have made them a much more talented and physical team than the finesse one they were before thanks to guard Quenton Nelson, linebacker Darius Leonard, free safety Malik Hooker and defensive tackle Denico Autry. Both teams are riding hot streaks. The Texans are 11-2 in their last 13 games. The Colts are 9-1 in their last 10 games. These AFC South Division rivals are real close and know each other extremely well so even a couple of points on the betting line matter. The Colts should have gotten a tie with the Texans in the first meeting of the season, but ended up losing by three points in overtime when they decided to go for a first down from their own 43-yard line near the end of overtime instead of safely punting and likely getting a tie. The Texans ended up kicking a game-winning field goal at the gun. Indianapolis got its revenge in Week 14 winning, 24-21, while outgaining Houston, The Colts also outgained the Texans during the first meeting. Luck torched the Texans for a combined 863 passing yards and six touchdowns in the two games. Houston may be minus starting cornerback Johnathan Joseph, who has a neck injury. A weak offensive line and vulnerable secondary are danger spots for the Texans that a good team can exploit. Luck is more consistent than DeShaun Watson. Luck also has 39 touchdown throws, second-most in the league. Luck plays behind the best pass blocking line in the NFL, too, as the Colts gave up a league-low 18 sacks. Houston, on the other hand, allowed 62 sacks. That was the highest number of sacks given up since Hopkins is the best receiver on the field. T.Y. Hilton and tight end Eric Ebron have been effective, though, against the Texans. Hilton is a dangerous deep weapon. Hilton has had three receiving games of more than 175 yards against the Texans. Houston s ground game is pedestrian. The Colts running attack has picked thanks to Nelson and Co. providing holes for Marlon Mack, who has put together four games of at least 119 rushing yards. INDIANAPOLIS Seattle over *Dallas by 3 (Saturday) The Seahawks have had the Cowboys number beating them four of five times since Russell Wilson s rookie season in 2012, including at home in Week 3 this season. The Seahawks jumped out to a 17-3 halftime lead and Dallas couldn t get back into the game. Dak Prescott had just 58 net passing yards entering the fourth quarter and was sacked five times in the game. Ezekiel Elliott was held out of the end zone. That was Seattle s third straight victory versus Dallas, which has failed to break 13 points during any of the past three games against the Seahawks. Seattle won that game despite missing its best receiver, Doug Baldwin. He is back now after being injured. The Seahawks defense isn t dominant anymore because their Legion of Boom secondary has been split up between defections, injuries and retirement. However, the Seahawks still have some first-rate defenders headed by star middle linebacker Bobby Wagner, who is having a defensive MVP-type of season. The Cowboys have a strong defense, too, and NFL rushing leader Elliott to carry the offense. The Seahawks have Wilson, a more experienced big-game head coach in Pete Carroll and loads of intangibles such as more postseason experience and an NFL-best plus 15 turnover margin. Seattle committed only 11 turnovers. That was the second-lowest ever for a 17-game season. So it s safe to assume the Seahawks are not going to beat themselves. The same cannot be said for the Cowboys. Wilson had another splendid season throwing for 3,448 yards and 35 touchdowns with only seven interceptions. Prescott can t match those numbers, nor can he match Wilson s dangerous deep throws and the downfield threat that he is both passing and taking off with the football. Prescott has a 22-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Seattle s offensive line became much better as the season progressed helping Chris Carson quietly became a difference maker rushing for 1,151yards the fifthhighest total in the league with nine touchdowns. The onus isn t strictly on Wilson now to make all the plays either. Dallas was 7-1 at AT&T Stadium this year. Seattle was mediocre on the road going 4-4 with all of its away victories coming against below.500 opponents the Cardinals, Raiders, Lions and Panthers. Wilson and an opportunistic defense, though, trump the Cowboys home edge. Jason Garrett has won one playoff game in his seven previous years as Dallas head coach. Seattle has won eight playoff games, including a Super Bowl, since 2012 when Wilson first came on the NFL scene. Garrett and Prescott just don t have the track record that Wilson and Carroll do. The Cowboys offensive line still is good, but it is not great like before. SEATTLE INDIANAPOLIS HOUSTON SEATTLE DALLAS NFL FOOTBALL Saturday, January 5, :35P 3:35C 4:35E 21/2 471/2 5:15P 7:15C 8:15E 21/2 43 NFL Los Angeles Chargers over *Baltimore by 5 (Sunday) If you can t win on the road and stop the run, then you can t beat Baltimore. The Chargers can do both. They have a top-10 rush defense and went 7-1 on the road winning games in five different time zones counting London. Among the teams the Chargers defeated on the road were the Chiefs, Steelers, and Seahawks. They are ATS during their past 30 away matchups. The Chargers have proven resilient. The early weather report is for partly cloudy skies with temperatures ranging from 38 to 49 degrees. Just two weeks ago, the Chargers suffered a humbling home loss to the Ravens. Until that defeat, the Chargers were in the discussion for best all-around team in the NFL. Have the Chargers dropped so much just from that one flat performance? The Ravens have the No. 1 statistical defense in the league ranking first in fewest yards allowed and No. 2 in scoring defense. Yet rookie Baker Mayfield threw for 376 yards and three touchdowns this past Sunday as the Browns nearly upset the Ravens in Baltimore, losing The Ravens had yielded multiple touchdown passes in a game only once before this season until the Browns. Philip Rivers has had a very good season finishing with the fifth-highest passer rating while throwing 32 touchdown passes. If Mayfield can put up numbers against the Ravens, so can Rivers especially in a short revenge spot and being fully prepared for what is coming his way. Rivers didn t play well in that loss to the Ravens. Baltimore stopped Rivers string of 27 straight games of throwing at least one touchdown pass. Rivers has far better weapons at his disposal than Baltimore rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson. The Chargers have the best wide receiver in Keenan Allen and the top running back, Melvin Gordon. There s the possibility that the Chargers also could get back big-play tight end Hunter Henry. He has been out all season with a knee injury. Henry would provide a tight end threat the Chargers have lacked all season. The Ravens took off when Jackson replaced injured Joe Flacco. Baltimore was 4-5 with Flacco under center. They have gone 6-1 since Jackson became the starting quarterback. Jackson can t throw very well, but he gives the Ravens another good runner to go with Gus Edwards and Kenneth Dixon. Jackson has provided a spark. Note, though, the Ravens victories achieved with Jackson aside from the Chargers - have occurred against the Bengals, Raiders, Falcons, Buccaneers and Browns. None of those teams finished above.500. Their combined record was LA CHARGERS *Chicago over Philadelphia by 10 (Sunday) Matt Nagy is this year s version of last season s Doug Pederson. A bright, innovative offensive-minded coach not afraid to take chances and be aggressive. The irony isn t lost that Nagy meets up with Pederson, both of whom were prominent branches of the Andy Reid coaching tree. It may be a stretch to believe the Bears will repeat what Pederson s Eagles did last season capturing the Super Bowl. But it s certainly within the realm of possibility that Chicago can defeat the Eagles by double-digits at home, where the early weather forecast is for cloudy skies with temperatures in the 30s with around a 10 mph wind. This marks Philadelphia s fourth road game in five weeks. The Eagles crushed the Bears, 31-3, at Lincoln Financial Field in Week 12 last year outgaining them by 280 yards. That was then. This is now. The Eagles had to go 5-1 down the stretch to sneak in the playoffs, aided by the Bears knocking out the Vikings with an impressive underdog road victory Sunday. Philadelphia is winning again with backup Nick Foles, who may not be 100 percent because of bruised ribs. Carson Wentz has a bad back, but he is on the active roster. The Bears are an entirely different team from last season s 5-11 John Fox model. Nagy has jump-started the Bears offense, made Mitch Trubisky a far better quarterback than he was in his rookie season under Fox, and Chicago s defense has become an elite unit having traded for Khalil Mack and drafted Roquan Smith. Mack recorded 12.5 sacks in 14 games. The Bears surrendered the fewest points in the league at They led the league in points off takeaways and also ranked No. 1 in rush defense. The Eagles don t run the ball well ranking 28th in rushing. Foles was brilliant in the Super Bowl. He can run hot-and-cold, though. Foles is going to face pressure from a very strong Bears defensive front seven that has above average players Mack, Akiem Hicks, Smith, Danny Trevathan and Eddie Goldman. Under Fox, the Bears were a boring, ground-and-pound team featuring Jordan Howard. Chicago has much better receivers this season especially if Allen Robinson is healthy enough to play. Nagy knows how to properly feature dangerous scatback Tarik Cohen and has former Eagle Trey Burton at tight end. Nagy s sharpest coaching moves have been in setting up Trubisky to succeed with excellent play-calling. The Bears offensive line received a boost with the return of guard Kyle Long from injured reserve. Chicago is one of the hottest clubs going 9-1 in its last 10 games. If Trubisky can protect the ball and make good decisions, the Bears can go far given their excellent defense. CHICAGO L.A. CHARGERS BALTIMORE PHILADELPHIA CHICAGO NFL FOOTBALL Sunday, January 6, :05P 12:05C 1:05E 21/2 411/2 1:40P 3:40C 4:40E 6 41

3 BALTIMORE-Momentum Turf O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME BUFFALO -8 W /O / / /6 0/2 1/ at Cincinnati (Thur) pk L /O 22-66/ / /0 2/0 1/ DENVER -5.5 W /U 28-77/ / /3 0/1 0/ at Pittsburgh +3 W /U 30-96/ / /1 0/1 1/ at Cleveland -3 L /U / / /5 1/1 1/ at Tennessee -2.5 W /U / / /11 1/0 0/ NEW ORLEANS -2.5 L /U 23-77/ / /1 0/0 0/ at Carolina -2.5 L /O / / /0 2/0 1/ PITTSBURGH -1.5 L /U 16-61/ / /1 0/0 0/ CINCINNATI -6.5 L /O / / /1 1/0 0/ OAKLAND -13 W /O / / /1 2/0 0/ at Atlanta +2.5 W /U / / /3 0/0 1/ at Kansas City +6.5 W /O / / /3 0/1 1/ TAMPA BAY -8.5 L /U / / /1 0/1 2/ at LA Chargers (Sat) +4 W /U / / /4 0/2 1/ CLEVELAND -7 L /O / / /0 0/3 1/ HOUSTON-Natural Grass O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME at New England +6 L /U / / /2 1/1 1/ at Tennessee -3.5 L /U / / /1 1/0 0/ NY GIANTS -6 L /O 19-59/ / /4 1/0 1/ at Indianapolis -1 W /O / / /4 1/0 0/ DALLAS -3.5 L /U 31-88/ / /2 1/2 0/ BUFFALO -10 L /U 24-74/ / /2 2/2 1/ at Jacksonville +3.5 W /U / / /4 0/1 0/ MIAMI (Thur) -7.5 W /O / / /2 0/1 0/ at Denver +1 W /U 33-98/ / /2 0/0 0/ at Washington -3 L /O / / /5 2/2 1/ TENNESSEE (Mon) -4 W /O / / /6 0/0 0/ CLEVELAND -5 W /U / / /0 0/3 0/ INDIANAPOLIS -4 L /U 25-89/ / /2 0/1 0/ at NY Jets (Sat) -7 T /O 17-47/ / /3 0/0 0/ at Philadelphia +2 T /O 19-62/ / /1 0/1 1/ JACKSONVILLE -7 W /U / / /3 0/1 1/ INDIANAPOLIS-FieldTurf O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME CINCINNATI +1 L /O 22-75/ / /2 1/1 1/ at Washington +6 W /U / / /3 2/0 0/ at Philadelphia +6.5 W /U 13-68/ / /5 0/1 0/ HOUSTON +1 L /O 17-41/ / /7 0/1 2/ at New England (Thur) +11 L /O 21-84/ / /0 2/2 1/ at NY Jets +2.5 L /O / / /2 3/1 1/ BUFFALO -7 W /U / / /2 0/3 0/ at Oakland -3 W /O / / /0 0/0 0/ JACKSONVILLE -3 T /O 23-81/ / /0 1/0 0/ TENNESSEE -2 W /U / / /5 0/2 0/ MIAMI -8 L /U / / /1 2/0 1/ at Jacksonville -4 L /U 16-41/ / /3 1/0 1/ at Houston +4 W /U 23-50/ / /5 1/0 0/ DALLAS -3 W /U / / /3 0/1 1/ NY GIANTS -9.5 L /O 16-49/ / /0 1/1 0/ at Tennessee -4.5 W /O / / /0 1/2 1/ LOS ANGELES CHARGERS-Natural Grass SPREAD SCORE O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS SACKED INT. OPPONENT FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME KANSAS CITY -3.5 L /O / / /1 1/0 1/ at Buffalo -7.5 W /O / / /5 0/2 0/ at LA Rams +7 L /O / / /1 0/1 2/ SAN FRANCISCO -10 L /O / / /1 1/2 0/ OAKLAND -5.5 W /U 31-79/ / /3 0/1 0/ at Cleveland pk W /O / / /5 1/2 0/ Tennessee (London) -6.5 L /U 16-47/ / /2 0/1 0/ at Seattle +1 W /U / / /4 0/1 0/ at Oakland -10 W /U / / /4 1/0 0/ DENVER -7 L /U 26-95/ / /0 2/0 0/ ARIZONA -14 W /O / / /2 0/1 1/ at Pittsburgh +3 W /O 22-85/ / /1 0/1 0/ CINCINNATI -16 L /U 25-85/ / /3 0/0 0/ at Kansas City (Thur) +3.5 W /O / / /2 2/0 0/ BALTIMORE (Sat) -4 L /U 16-51/ / /3 2/0 1/ at Denver -7 W /U / / /1 2/1 2/ COLLEGE FOOTBALL Monday, January 7 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (Santa Clara, CA) Clemson over Alabama by 3 A matchup many have expected all season finally comes to fruition in the National Championship Game. Clemson and Alabama meet for the third time for all the marbles and fourth time in as many seasons in the CFB playoff, with the Tide alternating wins and taking two of three. Strengths will meet strengths across the board here, with Bama and QB Tua Tagovailoa bringing a passing attack that has 50 touchdowns to six interceptions, while the Tigers defense has nine times failed to yield a passing touchdown, three other times ceding just one. Clemson meanwhile has enjoyed a stellar rushing attack all season, averaging 6.68 yards per carry while scoring 47 touchdowns, the second-most nationally. Alabama will counter with a defense that allows 3.47 yards per carry and only nine rushing touchdowns, seven times not allowing a TD on the ground. These two truly are elite at all levels and everything suggests a battle for the ages. Last year s 24-6 Alabama victory in the semi-finals was the first meeting decided by multiple scores, with Alabama previously winning by five and Clemson by four. The difference last year was Clemson s inability to stretch the field offensively with the limited downfield passing ability of quarterback Kelly Bryant. That shouldn t be a problem this time around as freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence embraced the spotlight against Notre Dame last week, throwing for 327 yards and three scores, his second 300+ yard game in his last three outings. That could spell trouble for Alabama, who while statistically stout against the pass, have surrendered over 300 yards to the last two offenses they ve faced in Georgia and Oklahoma. All else equal, Lawrence s ability to throw downfield to emerging wideouts Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross will give the Tigers enough balance to pull of an upset and even this budding playoff rivalry. CLEMSON NFL LOGS CHICAGO-Natural Grass O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME at Green Bay +7 W /O / / /4 0/1 1/ SEATTLE (Mon) -4.5 W /U 27-86/ / /6 2/1 0/ at Arizona -5.5 L /U / / /4 1/3 1/ TAMPA BAY -3 W /O / / /4 0/3 0/ at Miami -6 L /O / / /0 1/2 2/ NEW ENGLAND +2 L /O / / /1 2/1 0/ NY JETS -8.5 W /U / / /1 0/0 0/ at Buffalo -10 W /O 25-64/ / /4 1/3 0/ DETROIT -7 W /O 22-54/ / /6 0/2 0/ MINNESOTA -2.5 W /O / / /2 2/2 1/ at Detroit (Thur) -3 W /U 15-38/ / /2 0/2 1/ at NY Giants -3.5 L /O / / /3 2/1 1/ LA RAMS +3 W /U / / /3 3/4 0/ GREEN BAY -6 W /U 29-97/ / /5 0/1 1/ at San Francisco -4 W /U 28-90/ / /1 0/1 2/ at Minnesota +6 W /U / / /4 0/0 0/ DALLAS-FieldTurf RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE O/U SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME at Carolina +3 L /U 22-94/ / /3 0/0 1/ NY GIANTS -3 W /U / / /6 0/0 0/ at Seattle +1.5 L /U / / /2 2/0 1/ DETROIT -2.5 L /O / / /3 0/0 0/ at Houston +3.5 W /U 29-98/ / /1 2/1 0/ JACKSONVILLE +3 W /O / / /3 0/1 0/ at Washington -2 L /U 22-73/ / /1 0/0 2/ TENNESSEE (Mon) -4.5 L /O 19-72/ / /4 1/0 1/ at Philadelphia +7.5 W /O / / /2 0/1 0/ at Atlanta +3.5 W /U / / /3 0/1 0/ WASHINGTON (Thur) -7 W /O / / /3 0/3 0/ NEW ORLEANS (Thur) +7.5 W /U / / /2 0/1 2/ PHILADELPHIA -3.5 W /O / / /2 2/0 1/ at Indianapolis +3 L /U / / /0 1/0 1/ TAMPA BAY -7 T /U 24-80/ / /3 0/0 0/ at NY Giants +7 W /O 22-51/ / /1 0/1 1/ PHILADELPHIA-Natural Grass SCORE O/U RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME ATLANTA (Thur) pk W /U / / /4 1/1 1/ at Tampa Bay -3 L /O 24-91/ / /2 0/1 2/ INDIANAPOLIS -6.5 L /U / / /2 1/0 1/ at Tennessee -3 L /O / / /3 0/1 1/ MINNESOTA -3.5 L /U 17-81/ / /1 0/0 2/ at NY Giants (Thur) -2 W /O / / /4 0/1 0/ CAROLINA -5 L /U 24-58/ / /2 0/0 1/ Jacksonville (London) -4 W /U / / /4 1/0 1/ DALLAS -7.5 L /O 16-71/ / /1 1/0 0/ at New Orleans +7 L /U 12-58/ / /0 3/0 0/ NY GIANTS -4.5 L /U / / /2 0/1 0/ WASHINGTON (Mon) -6 W /U / / /3 1/1 0/ at Dallas +3.5 L /O 14-34/ / /3 0/2 1/ at LA Rams +13 W /T / / /1 1/2 0/ HOUSTON -2 T /O 22-57/ / /4 1/0 2/ at Washington -6 W /U / / /4 1/1 0/ SEATTLE-FieldTurf RUSHES PASS-COMP/ATT-YDS OPPONENT SPREAD SCORE O/U SACKED INT. FUM. YDS PEN POS TIME at Denver +3 T /O 16-64/ / /1 2/3 1/ at Chicago (Mon) +4.5 L /U 22-74/ / /2 1/2 1/ DALLAS -1.5 W /U / / /5 0/2 0/ at Arizona -3.5 L /U / / /1 0/0 0/ LA RAMS +7.5 W /O / / /1 0/2 0/ at Oakland (London) -3 W /U / / /6 1/0 0/ at Detroit +3 W /U / / /3 0/1 0/ LA CHARGERS -1 L /U / / /2 1/0 0/ at LA Rams +9 W /O / / /2 0/0 1/ GREEN BAY (Thur) -3 T /O / / /5 0/0 1/ at Carolina +3 W /O 28-75/ / /0 0/1 0/ SAN FRANCISCO -9.5 W /O / / /3 0/1 0/ MINNESOTA (Mon) -3 W /U / / /2 1/0 0/ at San Francisco -4 L /O / / /3 0/0 0/ KANSAS CITY +1.5 W /O / / /1 0/0 0/ ARIZONA -15 L /O / / /6 1/0 0/ POWER RATINGS COLLEGE Pers. C HF Clemson COLLEGE Pers. C HF Alabama COLLEGE LOGS CLEMSON (ACC-Atl) (Run Yds-Pass Yds-TO) FURMAN -50 L texas a&m -12 L GA SOUTHERN -34 L ga tech -16 W SYRACUSE -25 L wake forest -20 W NC STATE -18 W florida st -18 W LOUISVILLE -39 W boston col -18 W DUKE -30 L SO CAROLINA -26 L pittsburgh* -28 W notre dame* -11 W SCHEDULE & TIME Monday, January 7, 2019 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP at Santa Clara, CA CLEMSON ALABAMA ALABAMA (SEC-West) (Run Yds-Pass Yds-TO) louisville* -24 W ARK ST -37 W mississippi -22 W TEX A&M -24 L LA LAF -49 L arkansas -35 L MISSOURI -28 W tennessee -30 W lsu -14 W MISS ST -23 W CITADEL -54 L AUBURN -26 W georgia* -12 L oklahoma* -14 L :00P 7:00C 8:00E 6 591/2

4 Thursday, January 3 *San Antonio over Toronto by 1 The Spurs started slow this season, but they have beaten the Raptors nine straight times at home going ATS. San Antonio also is 23-8 ATS in its past 31 games at AT&T Center through this past Sunday. SAN ANTONIO Denver over *Sacramento by 2 Keep an eye on the injury report as the Nuggets could be getting back some of their walking wounded, including Will Barton, Gary Harris and Isaiah Thomas. The Kings have revenge for a road loss to the Nuggets on Oct. 23 when they weren't playing as well as they are now. DENVER *Golden State over Houston by 17 The spread may be inflated for this TNT nationally televised matchup, but the Warriors should be primed for a big effort having last played on Monday and remembering how Houston embarrassed them, , on Nov. 15 at Toyota Center. The Warriors were minus Stephen Curry in that game. Now they have Curry while the Rockets are without injured Chris Paul. Houston was 4-3 SU and ATS in its first seven games without their star point guard. GOLDEN STATE Friday, January 4 *Boston over Dallas by 10 The Celtics have gotten healthy again in the front line with the return of Al Horford and Marcus Morris. Boston has covered 25 of its last 33 home games through this past Tuesday and catch Dallas played its third road game in five days. BOSTON Utah over *Cleveland by 6 Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell are performing well again, but the Jazz are 0-3 SU and ATS the past three times they have been road chalk losing to the Heat, Spurs and Magic in December. UTAH *Memphis over Brooklyn by 4 Mike Conley and rookie Jaren Jackson combined for 73 points when the Grizzlies beat the Nets, in double overtime, during the first meeting on Nov. 30. The revenge-minded Nets have played their finest ball since then going 9-3 SU, 8-4ATS through this past Tuesday. MEMPHIS *Miami over Washington by 16 This isn't a good matchup for the Wizards, who need to get plenty of backcourt scoring from Bradley Beal. Miami came out of Christmas ranked in the top-seven in defensive field goal percentage and 3-point defense. Washington was 1-8 ATS against Eastern Conference foes through Tuesday and was ATS in its past 53 away matchups. MIAMI *Minnesota over Orlando by 9 Orlando hasn't looked much different under Steve Clifford than with its previous failed head coaches going 3-7 SU and ATS through this past Saturday. Minnesota was 5-3 SU and ATS in its last eight games at Target Center. MINNESOTA Indiana over *Chicago by 4 The Bulls have hung tough against the Pacers losing at home and falling on the road, covering both games. Indiana has to guard against looking past the Bulls with a road game looming against the Raptors on Sunday. INDIANA *Milwaukee over Atlanta by 13 The Bucks were leading the NBA in scoring at the end of December and had won an NBA-high 17 games by double-digits, while the Hawks ranked second-to-last defensively and in 3-point defense. MILWAUKEE *Phoenix over Los Angeles Clippers by 8 The Suns have been home for more than a week. They have double revenge. The Clippers defeated them twice this season, including nipping the Suns, , on Dec. 10 when Devin Booker was out. The Suns have been performing much better since Booker returned from injury going 5-4 SU, 8-1 ATS through this past Sunday. Deandre Ayton gives the Suns a major edge in the middle. PHOENIX *Los Angeles Lakers over New York by 10 Even if LeBron James can't go, the Lakers have the necessary firepower with Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram to exploit the Knicks' bottom-four defense and playing in their fourth straight road game. LA LAKERS Oklahoma City over *Portland by 1 Portland has struggled vs. upper-tier defenses. The Trail Blazers are in big trouble if Damian Lillard is having an off-night. The Thunder have one of the best defenses in the league. OKLAHOMA CITY NBA Saturday, January 5 *Denver over Charlotte by 2 Charlotte embarks on a six-game road swing beginning with this matchup. The Hornets have been idle since Wednesday and could be worth backing depending on Denver's injury situation. DENVER *Detroit over Utah by 7 Detroit last played at home on Dec. 26. The Pistons have been idle since Wednesday night after concluding a four-game road trip. Detroit has a winning ATS mark as a home 'dog and draw Utah playing without rest and with a look-ahead marquee Monday matchup against the Bucks. DETROIT *Philadelphia over Dallas by 5 After five consecutive road contests, the 76ers are back home where they have an NBA-best 16-3 record and are 11-8 ATS. Dallas is spunky. The Mavericks haven't lost by more than seven points in nine of their last 11 games through last Saturday. Luka Doncic can match Ben Simmons. PHILADELPHIA New Orleans over *Cleveland by 6 Talent-wise New Orleans has it all over Cleveland with Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday and Julius Randle. The Pelicans have been a money-burner, though, as since opening with four straight victories they have gone SU and ATS. NEW ORLEANS *Milwaukee over Toronto by 4 Milwaukee is 2-0 versus Toronto this season winning at home on Oct. 29 and then defeating the Raptors, , as 4.5-point road 'dogs on Dec. 9. The Bucks held Kyle Lowery scoreless. MILWAUKEE *San Antonio over Memphis by 18 During the past four plus weeks, the Grizzlies have played only two games without rest. Those results were losses by 23 points to the Lakers and by eight points to the Rockets both at home. Now Memphis is without rest and at an extremely tough road venue. The Spurs have come on to go 9-3 SU, 10-2 ATS in their last 12 games through this past Sunday with seven of those victories coming by 13 or more points. SAN ANTONIO Houston over *Portland by 3 Portland ended December ranking last in 3-point defense. The Rockets fire up 3- pointers at will and have the marksmen to exploit the Trail Blazers' weak perimeter defense. The Rockets made only 9-of-29 shots from beyond the arc during the team's last meeting, yet still won, , at home on Dec. 11. HOUSTON Golden State over *Sacramento by 6 The Warriors are 2-0 versus the Kings this season, but the victories haven't come easy with Golden State nipping the Kings, at home, and winning, , at Sacramento as 7-point road favorites on Dec. 14 needing a 17-2 finishing run to achieve the win. GOLDEN STATE Sunday, January 6 Brooklyn over *Chicago by 10 The Nets have turned a corner. They are now a playoff contender with a number of key underrated role players such as Spencer Dinwiddie, Joe Harris and Jared Allen. The Bulls have yet to find the right coach and rotation combination. Jabari Parker has been a bust. BROOKLYN *Los Angeles Clippers over Orlando by 10 The names aren't big, but their scoring is. The Clippers have produced 118 points or more points in six of their last seven games through this past Monday with Tobias Harris, Danilo Gallinari, Lou Williams and Montezl Harrell all averaging at least 15 points. The Magic don't come close to matching that. LA CLIPPERS *Minnesota over Los Angeles Lakers by 5 Santa did the Lakers no favors as LeBron James suffered a groin injury in the Lakers' Christmas Day game and may not be back for this matchup leaving LA vulnerable both matchup-wise and mentally. The Timberwolves perform much better at home where they were 11-7 ATS through their first 18 games at Target Center. MIN- NESOTA Miami over *Atlanta by 3 The Heat are built the old-fashion way, a half-court, defensive-minded squad. So they aren't equipped to provide comfort as road chalk. This is the Hawks' lone home matchup during a seven-game span. MIAMI

5 *Oklahoma City over Washington by 11 Oklahoma City entered this coming Monday's game against the Mavericks going 12-2 SU, 9-5 ATS during its past 14 home games. Russell Westbrook and Paul George are living up to their superstar status with huge seasons. The Wizards' bottom-three defense is ill-equipped to handle them. OKLAHOMA CITY Indiana over *Toronto by 4 Quietly the Pacers entered the tail end of December ranked first in the NBA in fewest points allowed per game. They have the defense to frustrate the Raptors, who are coming off a huge road showdown game against the Bucks last night. Indiana had held 11 of its past 13 foes to 101 or fewer points through last Sunday. INDIANA *Phoenix over Charlotte by 2 Shootout time between Kemba Walker and Devin Booker, both of whom were averaging 25 points. The Hornets have the disadvantage of having played last night in Denver's thin air. PHOENIX Monday, January 7 *Detroit over San Antonio by 5 The Spurs lost by 14 points last season on the road against the Pistons. They could get ambushed again having just played seven consecutive games against good teams. DETROIT *Boston over Brooklyn by 8 The Celtics have won the past nine meetings in the series, but are just 4-5 ATS. The teams will meet again next Monday at Brooklyn. BOSTON *New Orleans over Memphis by 2 The Pelicans' starting talent level hasn't translated into a good record. The Grizzlies exposed the Pelicans' weak bench in the first meeting winning, , as 5-point road 'dogs on Dec. 7. Memphis' reserves outscored New Orleans' bench, NEW ORLEANS *Milwaukee over Utah by 8 Not only do the Jazz face the league's No. 1 scoring team, but a fatigue issue as well. This marks the end of the Jazz's four-game, seven day road swing. It is their third game in four days. MILWAUKEE *Houston over Denver by 9 James Harden is looking like an MVP and the Rockets have been playing like the Rockets again going 9-1 SU, ATS through Dec. 30 with victories against the Celtics, Thunder, Spurs, Jazz, Grizzlies, Lakers and Trail Blazers during this span. HOUSTON Los Angeles Lakers over *Dallas by 8 Dallas may be due for a regression at home after winning 14 of its first 17. The Lakers have talent with or without LeBron James and draw the Mavericks returning home after four consecutive road games with the last two coming against tough East Coast opponents the Celtics on Friday and 76ers on Saturday. LA LAKERS *Sacramento over Orlando by 7 The Magic could be dragging as they are on their longest road trip of the season. This marks their fifth of six away games in a row and they are playing for the second consecutive day. SACRAMENTO *Portland over New York by 8 Portland went into the final Sunday of December failing to cover seven of the past 10 times when favored. Despite a combined 60 points from Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, the Knicks played the Trail Blazers tight in the first matchup this season, losing, , as seven-point home 'dogs on Nov. 20. PORTLAND Tuesday, January 8 *Philadelphia over Washington by 11 New faces getting adjusted to the team and John Wall's injured heel make the Wizards a risky play on the road, where they had lost and failed to cover the past seven times through this past Thursday. PHILADELPHIA Indiana over *Cleveland by 8 A potential ambush spot for Indiana since this matchup is sandwiched between much more important road games against the Celtics and Raptors. A home loss as 12.5-point favorites to the Cavaliers on Dec. 18 should keep the Pacers focused, though. INDIANA NBA *Toronto over Atlanta by 8 The Raptors are a top-10 offensive and defensive club, but haven't been reliable lately as chalk going 4-10 ATS the past 14 times laying points entering the final Sunday of December. TORONTO *Miami over Denver by 3 Rotten scheduling from Denver's perspective as the Nuggets had to play on the road against the Rockets last night. Miami had held six of its last seven opponents under triple digits through Dec. 29. MIAMI *Oklahoma City over Minnesota by 8 The Timberwolves made 14 of 27 3-point shots when they upset the Thunder, , as 6.5-point road 'dogs on Dec. 23. That game still should be fresh enough in Oklahoma City's mind to be a major revenge spot. OKLAHOMA CITY *Phoenix over Sacramento by 11 The Suns catch the Kings during Sacramento's lone road appearance in an eight-game span. Sacramento just hosted Orlando last night, too. Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton provide the Suns with the two best players on the court. PHOENIX *Golden State over New York by 17 New York actually was tied with Golden State after the first quarter before losing to the Warriors as 12-point home 'dogs on Oct. 26. GOLDEN STATE Charlotte over *Los Angeles Clippers by 2 The Clippers defense has been too shaky to back as mid-sized favorites. LA has surrendered an average of points in its last 12 games going into January. CHAR- LOTTE Wednesday, January 9 Philadelphia over *Washington by 6 The teams just met last night. The Wizards are 5-11 ATS the past 16 times when playing with no rest. PHILADELPHIA *Boston over Indiana by 2 The Pacers have won and covered the past three meetings holding the Celtics to an average of 96.3 points. BOSTON *Brooklyn over Atlanta by 15 The Nets were 5-2 ATS laying points the past seven times entering January. Brooklyn rolled past the Hawks for the seventh time in the last eight meetings, , at home on Dec. 16. BROOKLYN *Houston over Milwaukee by 4 Under the total may be the way to go with the Bucks slowing pace recently and producing better defense. Milwaukee entered January yielding an average of 100 points in its last four games. HOUSTON *Memphis over San Antonio by 3 The teams just met five days ago in San Antonio. The Spurs are ATS during their last 28 road contests through this past Sunday. MEMPHIS *New Orleans over Cleveland by 7 The Pelicans were 5-12 ATS the past 17 times laying points through Dec. 30. NEW ORLEANS *Dallas over Phoenix by 13 Dallas has double revenge against the Suns this season. The Mavericks catch Phoenix on the road for the first time since Dec. 26 and also in action for the second time in two nights. The Suns have yet to win in six tries when playing without rest going 2-4 ATS in those games. DALLAS *Utah over Orlando by 13 Since the beginning of December, the Jazz have been dominating foes at home defeating the Spurs by 34, the Rockets by 27, Heat by 27, Trail Blazers by 21 and Warriors by five and Knicks by 32 with just losses to the Thunder and 76ers, two teams much better than the Magic. UTAH *Portland over Chicago by 11 The Bulls entered last Sunday by failing to cover 15 of the past 22 times on the road when meeting a team with a winning home mark. PORTLAND *Los Angeles Lakers over Detroit by 8 Detroit opens a four-game road swing here. The Pistons had held three of their last four opponents to 98 points or fewer through Dec. 29. LA LAKERS

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7 COLLEGE BASKETBALLALL Thursday, January 3 Southern Miss over Rice* by 9 Doc Sadler has Southern Miss playing like a real team again, up to 74 ppg from the doldrums of ppg, where they d been for three seasons before last year s 71 ppg. Rice is giving up 80 ppg. SOUTHERN MISS, Troy* over Coastal Carolina by 15 The Sun Belt foes had a 1-1 series won by 1 point by the road team last season. With but one double-figure scorer, Zac Cuthbertson, Coastal is an easy defensive prep. TROY, Iowa over Purdue* by 8 Iowa head coach Fran McCaffrey called his team a veteran group playing like a veteran group recently. Matt Painter is saying things about his team that are nowhere close to that. Like, We have too many guys who are searching for answers through their jumper. Purdue enters this 0-2 ATS in the Big Ten. IOWA, Drexel* over Elon by 8 We are not fans of Elon s first-available chuck style. Drexel s freshman point guard Camren Wynter impressed in the team s final non-conference game vs. Temple and his first CAA games at Northeastern and Hofstra. DREXEL, Old Dominion* over Marshall by 14 Double-revenge outing for the road dog, who was in each 6- and 5-point loss to the end last season. Their 6 9, 350 freshman project Iran Bennett has been seeing fewer and fewer minutes as conference season was nearing. OLD DOMINION, North Carolina State over Miami-FL* by 1 The Hurricanes shot 58% from the field to win at NC State last season. NC State shot 54.4% in defeat. Markell Johnson was an awful 0-for-6 with 6 turnovers in that game for NC State. NC STATE, Wright State over Detroit* by 2 Mike Davis has the home team looking a lot tighter than the two-season clown coach he replaced, who d been overseeing some of the worst defense played anywhere. Wright s big Loudon Love has returned from an ankle injury but isn t seeing his usual minutes yet. WRIGHT STATE, Indiana* over Illinois by 26 The Illini don t seem to be very good. They could only score 26 first-half points vs. Florida Atlantic in their tune-up game for this and eventually lost the home game outright to a Sun Belt also-ran whose leading scorer and rebounder had been injured and lost for the season two games earlier! We re pretty sure that qualifies as a bad tuneup for Big Ten play. Archie Miller s Indiana team has run off a string of narrow victories recently, so many people will assume that this should be close. INDIANA, Towson* over College of Charleston by 3 The home side doesn t have the most efficient bunch of scorers but they play good enough defense and the visitor lacks scoring depth. TOWSON, Michigan* over Penn State by 14 A Penn State team looking for extra scorers to step up and show themselves probably won t see that happen in a road game against an opponent allowing a mere 55.3 ppg. MICHIGAN, James Madison* over NC Wilmington by 1 William & Mary over Delaware* by 5 Northern Kentucky over Oakland* by 3 St. Joseph s* over George Mason by 5 GMU recently gave Kansas State a scare in a road loss, in which they trailed by 20 points at halftime. Interesting. St. Joe s doesn t play D like K-State does. Road dog lean. ST. JOSEPH S, Western Kentucky over Charlotte* by 12 We ll take that bow for BEST BET WKU outright over Wisconsin, thank you. Charlotte may be bad enough to lose a style contrast game on their home floor by more than three possessions, because they score only 58 ppg. You can t rely on teams that score so little and haven t been on the college hoops map in a while. WESTERN KENTUCKY, Middle Tennessee* over Florida International by 4 South Alabama* over Appalachian State by 9 UAB* over Florida Atlantic by 5 Wisconsin-Milwaukee* over Cleveland State by 8 North Texas* over Louisiana Tech by 6 Double-revenge for the home side, which showed well in each defeat under then-first season head coach Grant McCasland. NORTH TEXAS, Georgia Southern over Texas State* by 2 Ike and Tookie enter this Sun Belt opener off a pair of road losses at Radford (a good team!) and Dayton (by only 4!). Texas State is 11-2 against nobodies. Ike and Tookie, and fellow guard Quan Jackson, are somebodies. GEORGIA SOUTHERN, Louisiana-Lafayette* over Arkansas State by 17 Wisconsin-Green Bay* over Youngstown State by 12 Arizona State* over Utah by 13 Still waiting for those transition points that Larry Kyrstowiak said Utah would be getting this season. Actually, we re not. We knew at the time he was full of it. ARI- ZONA STATE, Texas San Antonio* over UTEP by 8 Georgia State over Texas-Arlington* by 8 UL-Monroe* over Arkansas-LR by 11 Wisconsin* over Minnesota by 4 The road dog resembles that Western Kentucky team that we knew the Badgers could not handle. The Gophers are far from being overmatched but maybe a little point guard play away from pulling it out at crunch time. WISCONSIN, Arizona* over Colorado by 1 Sean Miller, Arizona head coach: We could lose at any moment. How encouraging. The Buffs hate the heck out of them. ARIZONA, San Francisco* over Saint Mary s by 5 USF is allowing only 59.9 ppg, playing home, and will probably be a small underdog. Gotta go Dons with all that in place. SAN FRANCISCO, Memphis* over Wichita State by 12 San Diego over Santa Clara* by 5 USC* over California by 12 Loyola Marymount over Pepperdine* by 9 Romar now hits WCC conference play hosting a 12-2 visitor. LOYOLA MARY- MOUNT, Stanford over UCLA* by 1 Bruins enter conference play off four straight losses home vs. Belmont, at Cincinnati, neutral floor vs. Ohio State, home vs. Liberty. Say, we re not coaching experts, but that s probably not the best way to prepare for Pac 12 season! Guard Cormac Ryan, Stanford s third leading scorer, had missed three straight games with an injury as of this paper s posting. STANFORD, Pacific* over BYU by 2 The home side beat BYU here by 1 point last season, lost by 15 in Provo. BYU is up to 30.4% on three-pointers. PACIFIC, Added Board College Hoops action exclusively for Winning Points Ultra-Sharp members. Game-day posting on the Web. Friday, January 4 SMU over Tulane* by 1 Better free-throw shooting and attempting twice as many three-pointers helped Tulane come away with a win here last season. TULANE, Illinois-Chicago* over IUPUI by 10 UIC leveraged its athleticism for a road win at Wright State and has similar edges here, which they put to good use in last year s season sweep of the Jaguars. ILLINOIS- CHICAGO, Toledo* over Ball State by 2 The home side has double-revenge for 12 and 28-point losses. Does Ball State actually have the number of somebody good? That s something you don t see every year. TOLEDO, Buffalo over Eastern Michigan* by 12 The visitor brings NCAA Tournament form into the gym of a host in horrible form. If you like bricked three-pointers and missed free throws, then give home dog EMU a try. Among main-board betting teams, EMU s average halftime differential of -9.0 points is the nation s worst. BUFFALO, Saturday, January 5 Connecticut* over Central Florida by 1 This UCF with 7 6 Tacko is fun and all that, but it s still a Johnny Dawkins-coached team (he s Mr. NIT!) with no margin for error in a true road game. UCONN, Duke* over Clemson by 24 Something tells us that this won t be as easy a road game as South Carolina was for Brad Brownell s Tigers. DUKE, Ohio State* over Michigan State by 2 Opponents are hitting a mere 38.1% from the field vs. the Buckeyes, and only 29.3% from three-point range. OHIO ST., North Carolina over Pittsburgh* by 9 Kentucky over Alabama* by 3 Notre Dame* over Syracuse by 1 Creighton over Butler* by 1 Plenty of red flags surround Butler off their no-show loss at Florida, the alleged tuneup for Big East season that began with them hosting Georgetown earlier this week. CREIGHTON,