The meaning of Ash Wednesday is to kick the sportsbooks ash. For those who have a bankroll deficit deeper than Lake Jocassee, stop buying those Mega Millions Lottery tickets and start investing wisely.

Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: Duke and UConn look for college hoops wins, the Celtics go to SoCal, and the Sharks and Red Wings hit the ice in Detroit.

Tipping off on the hardwood  . . .

The Celtics will be looking to cruise to an easy victory on Wednesday night when they arrive in Los Angeles to take on the Clippers. Boston (46-12 straight-up, 33-25 against-the-spread) trounced the Nuggets in their last contest, winning 114-76 despite Kevin Garnett’s absence. Los Angeles (14-43 SU, 22-35 ATS) is actually coming off a victory as well, as they beat Golden State 118-105 in their last game.

The Celtics/Clippers matchup will serve to finish off the NBA’s schedule for Wednesday night; there are 10 other games set to tip off earlier in the evening. Starting things off are Philadelphia at Washington and Memphis at Indiana, followed by Orlando at New York, Chicago at New Jersey, Utah at Minnesota, Detroit at New Orleans, Milwaukee at Dallas, Portland at San Antonio, and Atlanta at Denver. As well, the Bobcats will be in Sacramento for a 10pm ET start.

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The march toward Madness . . .

Connecticut, which has been dropped to No. 2 in the rankings this week, will try to get back to impressing voters on Wednesday night when they play on the road against No. 8 Marquette. The Huskies lost 76-68 to Pittsburgh last Monday, then beat South Florida 64-50 to sit at 25-2 SU and 12-11 ATS. The Golden Eagles are coming off a win over Georgetown, and they’re at 23-4 SU and 11-10-1 ATS.

There are three other Top-10 teams in action on Wednesday, with No. 7 Duke at Maryland, Iowa at No. 9 Michigan State, and No. 10 Villanova at DePaul. As well, it’ll be Kansas State at No. 11 Missouri, Virginia Tech at No. 12 Clemson, and Texas Tech at No. 25 Texas. The Longhorns are coming off a big upset win over Oklahoma on Saturday, getting 23 points from A.J. Abrams in the 73-68 victory.

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

A marquee Western Conference clash highlights the National Hockey League’s schedule for Wednesday night, with the Sharks on the road to take on the Red Wings. At 41-8-9 San Jose is coming off a 1-0 blanking of the Stars on Monday night. Evgeni Nabokov made 29 saves in that win, while Devin Setoguchi had the lone Sharks goal. The 39-13-8 Wings fell 5-2 to the Wild in their last game on Saturday. Tomas Kopecky and Ville Leino scored the Detroit goals in that defeat.

There are three other games on the ice on Wednesday night, including Los Angeles at Philadelphia, and the Islanders at Pittsburgh. As well, the Rangers will be in Toronto to face the Maple Leafs. New York lost 3-2 in overtime to the Leafs on Sunday, a result which cost Tom Renney his job as the team’s head coach. Former Lightning boss John Tortorella will move in behind the Rangers’ bench.

Rounding out the Roundup . . .

Tiger Woods returns to action on Wednesday in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at Dove Mountain’s Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Woods’ first-round opponent is Brendan Jones, and the twosome is scheduled to tee off at 12:02pm local time on Wednesday. The Vegas oddsmakers like Woods’ chances of winning this event yet again this week, as he’s been pegged as the 4/1 favorite.

Phil Mickelson, who won last week’s PGA Tour stop, is next at 8/1 odds to win the Match Play Championship, followed by Sergio Garcia at 10/1, Anthony Kim at 15/1, and each of Geoff Ogilvy, Henrik Stenson, Jim Furyk, and Ernie Els at 20/1. Woods won this tournament last year, Stenson in 2007, and Ogilvy in 2006. Steve Stricker, the ’01 champ, is listed at just 35/1 odds to get the win this week.

Sports headlines…

Providence moved on the proverbial bubble with their upset of Pittsburgh, a GodsTips Wise Guy winner…NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has taken a 20 percent pay cut…Future Hall-of-Famer Marvin Harrison has been released by the Indianapolis Colts. Bob Warner of Lines-Maker.com says the Philadelphia Eagles are the frontrunners for his services…Stephon Marbury and the New York Knicks have officially parted ways after reaching a settlement.