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Tuesday, February 14, 2006
The Center of the Handicapping Universe Godspicks.com wins again on Monday. We go 3-2 and despite the brief bump we had in the road, the long-term windfall since the Demarcation Point continued with last night’s 3-2. Since Thanksgiving Day 2004, the demarcation point from where our mastery of modern technology made the gap between us and the rest of the industry insurmountable.
Tonight we have a 5-0 sweep led by a Wise Guy. The ENTIRE card is just $17 at www.godspicks.com. We now take virtually every credit card, PayPal and eCheck. Also we now have yearly and other packages available via Western Union. Every play, every sport for a year is $2,450. Email us at godspicks@bellsouth.net to make arrangements or for Neteller payments.
NBA
Sonics-Bucks
News Tribune
Sonics forward Rashard Lewis is expected to play after missing Sunday’s game with a right quadriceps contusion. If he can’t go, he will be replaced by Damien Wilkins, who has averaged 23.5 points the past two games. Coach Bob Hill said he briefly considered playing Lewis at the power forward spot and Wilkins at small forward, but he was not a big fan of Lewis at power forward. The Sonics have lost five of their past six games. They have two games left before the All-Star break. The Bucks are coached by former Sonics assistant Terry Stotts. The Bucks have had two in-flight incidents in the past week in which mechanical problems forced their flights to land.
CBB
Princeton-Penn
Press Notes
The Tigers’ four-game winning streak is their longest since early last season. Penn (14-6, 6-0 Ivy) has not only won four in a row but also eight of its last nine and 11 of its last 13. The Tigers have been shooting well themselves throughout their winning streak, connecting on better than 42% of their three-point shots in that time. The Quakers have won seven of the last eight games in the series. Only twice in the last 15 seasons has there been a split in the season series (1998-99 and 2003-04). Princeton is shooting 38 for 90 from three-point range (42%) and 42 for 52 from the foul line (80.8%) during its current four-game winning streak. The Tigers have shot 40% or better from the field in five straight games after doing that just five times in their first 14 games. Princeton won at The Palestra two years ago and led Penn by 18 points with 7:35 left at The Palestra last season before the Quakers made a late-game comeback and won in overtime. Each of the last two Princeton-Penn games at the Palestra has gone to overtime.
St. Joseph’s-Temple
Press Notes
After back-to-back losses to Top 10 teams, Saint Joseph’s will look to get back on the winning track when it visits crosstown rival Temple. The Hawks have won seven consecutive games against the Owls, including a 59-57 win on January 8. Dave Mallon returned to the starting lineup against GW after missing two games with a sprained ankle. Despite being limited to 19 minutes, Mallon scored 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting, and played aggressively on both ends of the floor. For those who bet halftime lines: The Hawks are coming off consecutive games in which Top 10 teams (Villanova, GW) made double-digit runs in the second half. But they weren’t the only games this year in which that’s happened. Against Xavier, the Hawks held a 29-22 halftime lead but saw XU go on a 15-5 run to eventually take the edge and the 62-58 win. In another home game against Charlotte, SJU led 31-24 at the break, but the 49ers outscored the Hawks, 17-7, to earn the 57-50 win.
Michigan State-Iowa
Press Notes
Iowa (19-6, 8-3) plays its second and final February home game Tuesday, Feb. 14, hosting Michigan State (18-6, 6-4). Iowa is ninth in the RPI Index and 18th in the Sagarin Ratings. Iowa’s strength of schedule is 22nd in the RPI Index and 18th by Sagarin. Iowa has played 11 games against top 50 teams in the RPI Index and the six teams that have defeated Iowa hold a combined record of 98-38 (.721). Iowa joins Duke, Connecticut and West Virginia as one of four Division I teams with 11 games against top 50 teams, with only Duke and Connecticut (10 each) having more wins against top 50 teams. Iowa has posted a 7-3 record against teams in the top 25 rankings at the time of the game, including a 2-1 mark against top 10 teams. For the only time in its basketball history, Iowa has posted 14 consecutive home wins in a single season.
Loyola-Sienna
Press Notes
Siena will play Loyola at Pepsi Arena Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. The Saints currently sit in a fifth place tie with Niagara at 7-8 in MAAC play, one game ahead of the Greyhounds. Siena defeated Loyola 89-83 in Baltimore February 2.
Bowling Green-Akron
Press Notes
BGSU leads the all-time series 23-13, but UA won the season’s first meeting 77-72 in overtime on Jan. 29 in Bowling Green. The Zips have won two-straight in the overall series, but the Falcons claimed the last meeting at Rhodes Arena (77-72/Jan. 14). The University of Akron men’s basketball team (18-5, 11-2 MAC) attempts to maintain its first-place standing in the Mid-American Conference East Division (tied with Kent State) and to extend its 15-game home win streak when it plays host to Bowling Green (9-14, 5-8) Tuesday. Akron, winners of two straight and five of its last six games, comes off a 77-72 victory at Eastern Michigan on Saturday. Bowling Green, which has dropped four of its last five games, looks to rebound from a 72-64 loss at Toledo on Saturday. UA leads the MAC in five categories – scoring (74.2 ppg), scoring margin (+9.9), assists (16.8), assist-turnover ratio (1.4) and 3-pointers made (8.3 per game). The Zips are second in the league in field goals (46 percent), 3-point field goals (38 percent) and turnover margin (+3.0).
Drake-Illinois State
Press Notes
Illinois State and Drake will meet for the second time in a week. The Redbirds are in the midst of a five-game losing skid, while Drake has dropped six of its last seven, with the lone win coming against Illinois State. The two teams could meet each other again at the Valley Tournament in the play-in game, as the Bulldogs need to win out and have Bradley drop its final three games to stay out of Thursday night’s game. Despite not having anyone on their roster over 6-foot-7, the Bulldogs rank second in the conference in rebounding margin (+5.7), first in rebounding defense (30.5) and first in offensive rebounds (14.08). In addition to having their sights on the school record for points allowed per game, the Redbirds are also in pursuit of the school record for defensive field goal percentage. Currently, ISU foes are shooting 40.1 percent from the field, while the school mark is 40.2 percent, which was set during the 1996-97 season. The Bulldogs rank last in the conference in three-point percentage defense at 38.4 percent. DU also ranks last in three-point field goals made with 5.08 treys per game.
Maryland-Clemson
Press Notes
Clemson starting point guard Vernon Hamilton was injured in the final moments of Clemson’s 67-61 loss at Boston College on Saturday, February 11. The junior from Richmond, VA suffered an elbow injury and a sprained thumb while diving for a loose ball. As a result, he is doubtful for the Maryland game on Tuesday. For the year, Hamilton is Clemson’s top scorer and assist maker and the team’s leader in steals and playing time. He has 65 steals to lead the conference and averages 31 minutes per game. He is ranked among the top 20 in the nation in steals.