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2021

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2021

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2021

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2020

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2019

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2019

Cashed Futures Wager on Washington Nationals @ 18-1 odds to win MLB World Series

2018

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2017

#1 NHL - Return on Risk

#3 March Madness - Net Wins

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2017

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2016

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2016

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Big Al's Daily Angle: NCAAF, MLB, NHL, WNBA and CFL Previews and Odds - 10/15/2021

by Big Al Staff

Friday, Oct 15, 2021

The Friday sports card features action in NCAAF, MLB, NHL, WNBA, and the CFL.Week 7 in the college football season continues with four games. Clemson visits Syracuse on ESPN at 7 PM ET. The Tigers come off a 19-13 win against Boston College as a 14.5-point favorite on October 2nd. The Orange lost in overtime at home to Wake Forest, 40-37, as a 5.5-point favorite on Saturday. Clemson is a 13.5-point road favorite with a total set at 45 (all odds from DraftKings). Marshall travels to North Texas on the CBS Sports Network at 7 PM ET. The Thundering Herd ended a three-game losing streak with a 20-13 win in overtime against Old Dominion as a 21.5-point favorite on Saturday. The Mean Green lost their fourth straight game with a 48-35 loss at Missouri as an 18.5-point underdog on Saturday. Marshall is an 11-point road favorite with an over/under of 66.5.Oregon hosts California on ESPN at 10:30 PM ET. The Ducks come off a 31-24 upset loss in overtime at Stanford as an 8.5-point favorite on October 2nd. The Golden Bears have lost two in a row after their 21-6 loss at Washington State as a 7.5-point favorite on October 2nd. Oregon is a 13.5-point favorite with a total of 54.San Diego State plays at San Jose State on the CBS Sports Network at 10:30 PM ET. The Aztecs won their fifth straight game to start the season with their 31-7 win against New Mexico as a 19.5-point favorite on Saturday. The Spartans have lost two of three with their 32-14 loss at Colorado State as a 3.5-point underdog on Saturday. San Diego State is a 9.5-point road favorite with an over/under of 45. The first game in the American League Championship Series begins at 8:07 PM ET, with Houston hosting Boston at 8:07 PM ET. The Astros have won five of their last six games after defeating the Chicago White Sox in four games with a 10-1 victory on the road on Tuesday. The Red Sox have won seven of their last eight games with their 6-5 victory against Tampa Bay to end their series in four games on Monday. Framber Valdez pitches for Houston against Chris Sale for Boston. The Astros are a -140 money line favorite with a total of 8.5. Three games are on the NHL docket. New Jersey hosts Chicago at 7 PM ET as a -125 money line favorite with 6. Phoenix plays at home against Vancouver at 7 PM ET as a -160 money line favorite with an over/under of 6. Minnesota plays at Anaheim at 10 PM ET as a -155 money line road favorite with a total of 5.5.Chicago plays at home against Phoenix on ESPN at 9 PM ET in the third game of the WNBA finals. The Mercury evened the series at 1-1 with their 91-86 victory as a 4.5-point favorite on Wednesday. The Sky are a 3-point home favorite with an over/under of 167.Week 11 in the Canadian Football League begins with Winnipeg traveling to Edmonton. The Blue Bombers won their sixth straight game after their 30-3 victory against Edmonton as a 9.5-point favorite last Friday. The Elks have lost in a row after a 30-3 loss at Winnipeg as a 9.5-point underdog on Friday. Winnipeg is a 12-point road favorite with a total of 43.

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Four 2021-22 NBA Win Total Projections

by Nelly's Sports

Thursday, Oct 14, 2021

The NBA season will officially start on Tuesday night and for the first time in two years the league will have an 82-game schedule as traditional win total assessments are back in order. Here are a handful of win total selections worthy of consideration ahead of the 2021-22 NBA season.  Toronto Raptors OVER 35.5 Toronto failed to make the playoffs last season going just 27-45 but the Raptors had a -0.4 average scoring differential, a figure that was better than three teams that did reach the play-in games. After going 53-19 in 2019-20 with one of the best home courts edges in the league, Toronto was only 16-20 at home last season but remember all those games were played in Florida, not in Toronto. The Raptors have clearance to play north of the border this season and stricter protocols and penalties in Canada could lead to some opponents being shorthanded when visiting.  While Kyle Lowry being traded this summer signals a rebuild, Nick Nurse is still regarded as one of the best coaches in the league in terms of adjustments and personnel management and the roster looks strong enough to compete in an Eastern Conference that has a few great teams but looks wide open after that. Pascal Siakam will miss several weeks to start the season, but Toronto played through multiple different rosters last season. OG Anunoby had a breakthrough season while midseason acquisition Gary Trent proved to be a nice fit. Malachi Flynn had a nice rookie season while Goran Dragic adds stability to an excellent backcourt alongside Fred VanVleet as this looks like a .500 caliber team that can climb back into the playoff race.  Chicago Bulls OVER 42.5 Not unlike Toronto, Chicago had a 31-41 record last season despite a -0.9 average scoring differential as this was a competitive team that likely deserved a slightly stronger record. The opportunity to move up in the Eastern Conference is there with Washington and Charlotte much worse scoring teams than the Bulls last season while the Knicks, Hawks, and Heat have metrics that suggest a regression is ahead this season after being solid playoff teams in the top six last year.  Not too much stock should be put on the NBA preseason, but the Bulls have been one of the more impressive teams this October. The pairing of Lonzo Ball and Zach LaVine in the backcourt has a lot of potential while having Nikola Vucevic for the entire season should pay dividends. Patrick Williams had a solid rookie season and acquiring DeMar DeRozan does add some experience to this team even if his impact may be overstated. The Bulls were a winning team from mid-April to the end of the season last year despite falling short of the play-in field. Billy Donovan’s only losing season as an NBA head coach was last year as his track record does deserve some respect as well.  Portland Trailblazers UNDER 44.5 The Western Conference is stacked with quality teams and the expectations from most expect that the Warriors and Lakers are going to jump back to being top tier contenders this season. Those wins will have to be taken from someone else in the West as a few of the teams that were in the middle of the playoff pack last season seem likely to tumble in the standings in 2021-22. Portland is a prime candidate for a slide after going 42-30 last season but with just a +1.8 average scoring differential. Portland was only 32-28 before a 10-2 run to close the regular season last year, passing up the Lakers for the #6 spot in the West and this team does not project to be much better than a .500 squad over 82 games.  Portland had a minimal home court edge last season at just 20-16 and this is a team with a first-time head coach in Chauncey Billups after Terry Stotts was let go despite eight straight playoff appearances and a trip to the conference finals in the last full season. It isn’t clear what Billups will offer in that role but the preseason returns for Portland have been poor so far. To what extent the rumblings about Damian Lillard seeking a trade in the offseason are true remain unknown but this does seem like a situation with more volatility than most. The Blazers are opening the season with a lengthy injury report right now and eight of the first 14 will be road games as a slow start in the transition seems likely.  Dallas Mavericks UNDER 48.5 With a matching 42-30 record to Portland last season and an average scoring differential of just +2.2 Dallas was a clear step below the top four in the Western Conference last season. Add improvement to the Lakers and Warriors this season and Dallas could lose some ground after being the only top six playoff team in the West last season that didn’t have a winning record in the Western Conference. Luka Doncic is a serious MVP threat that will post big numbers, but the roster does not look much different than last season with Reggie Bullock and Frank Ntilikina the only notable additions.  Josh Richardson and JJ Redick are notable departures from last season and Richardson was the team’s fifth leading scorer last season. While Dallas has plenty of quality outside shooters on the roster, the team looks thin up front and Kristaps Porzingas and Maxi Kleber both battled injuries much of last season. Dwight Powell is moving into a starting role despite mostly being a reserve in his career. A bigger issue may be the coaching change with Rick Carlisle owning a tremendous track record as the head coach of the Mavericks. Jason Kidd is a below .500 NBA coach in 373 games with two teams and his personal baggage will add extra pressure to question the hire if things don’t start smoothly. 

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NFL Week 6: Top 10 Teams

by Wayne Root

Thursday, Oct 14, 2021

1. Buffalo Bills, 4-1 There’s currently a gap between the Bills and everyone else. So it's only right to put the Bills at No. 1 after a convincing win in Kansas City. Josh Allen has the offense humming and this team looks like its the best in the AFC right now. Difficult MNF game this week.  2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 4-1 Remember Tom Brady's inexplicable loss on "Thursday Night Football" against the Bears last year? Yeah, he probably does too. However, Brady continues to play ridiculous football for his age and the Bucs' lock in at No. 2  3. Arizona Cardinals, 5-0  The last unbeaten team still has work to do to get to the very top of the list.The Cardinals weren’t great against the 49ers last week…but won. The defense has come around and was flying all over the field against the 49ers and if that's sustained, the Cardinals look like a legitimate threat in the NFC.  4. Los Angeles Rams, 4-1  Are the Rams even the best team in L.A? The gap is getting narrower. The Rams got a little bit of a break with Russell Wilson getting hurt, but anytime you leave Seattle with a win, it's a good thing. They’re a double digit favorite this week.   5. Los Angeles Chargers, 4-1 What a game against the Browns. Justin Herbert is crazy good and the Chargers are for real. They don’t like to punt or kick field goals and get huge smiles at any fourth and whatever. They”ll go for it from anywhere. They need to play a powerhouse team and win both sides of the ball to prove a few things.   6. Dallas Cowboys, 4-1  Putting up 44 on the Giants is good. Maybe not great but more than expected. The Cowboys have been enjoying a soft schedule the last few weeks and they have another game they should win Sunday at New England. Both sides of the ball are in harmony.   7. Baltimore Ravens, 4-1  The Ravens were awfully sleepy early against the Colts, but woke up in a big way. The Ravens discovered their passing game, by necessity. That could take the offense, and the team, to new heights. Lamar Jackson had an all-time performance.  8. Cleveland Browns, 3-2 They could be 5-0. After Sunday, they actually could be 3-3. The Browns tried to out score the Chargers and forgot about playing any kind of defense. They'll face a tough test this week against The Gunslinger from Arizona.   9. Green Bay Packers, 4-1  Their all-star kicker had three misses before getting lucky to even get another opportunity from the Bengals. It certainly wasn't pretty, but the Packers survived in Cincinnati. They can seize control of the NFC North with a win at Soldier Field Sunday.  10. Kansas City Chiefs, 2-3  The Chiefs are still very talented, but they seem stuck in the classic Super Bowl hangover. The good news is they have Patrick Mahomes and can probably get out of it. After Mahomes big payday, does KC have any money left for defense? Who would have predicted they’d be under .500 after five weeks.   —————— They’re coming after you!! 11. Cincinnati 12. Tennessee  13. New Orleans  14. Seattle  15. Denver

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