Jeremy Lin and Carmelo Anthony finally got on the court together Monday. The results weren’t so great. The New York Knicks have some hope for the future with Lin directing the offense, but they still need some work on the defensive end. Lin was torched by Deron Williams in the loss to New Jersey on Monday. SportsOptions and Tony Finn offer up betting previews and free picks.
Atlanta at New York (-6, 186)
When: 7:30 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
The Atlanta Hawks are having the opposite problem, with the offense consistently unable to keep pace. The stumbling Hawks have dropped seven of 10 this month while putting up 86.2 points. Atlanta could use the All-Star break to get its shooting back together. The Hawks have scored more than 90 points twice in the last 10 games and have been held to less than 80 in dropping each of the last two. Atlanta came back from a 20-point deficit in Chicago on Monday to cut the lead to five but then went the final 3:24 without a point in the 90-79 setback. Joe Johnson was injured late Monday and will miss the final two games before the break. No one on the team needs a rest more than the All-Star guard, who is shooting 17.2 percent (5 for 29) from 3-point range in the last five games. New York dropped below .500 again with the 100-92 loss to the Nets and have a trip to Miami looming on Thursday. The star has dimmed around “Linsanity” a bit with losses in two of the last three but the early returns with Anthony are good. The All-Star forward returned to the lineup and had no trouble deferring and distributing, finishing with six assists. The Knicks are also attempting to integrate Baron Davis and J.R. Smith into the rotation.
Take the Knicks and the lay the points
PREDICTION: Knicks 95, Hawks 88
————–
West Virginia at Notre Dame (-3, 125)
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Joyce Center, South Bend, Indiana
Riding an eight-game win streak all the way to a No. 18 national ranking, Notre Dame takes aim at a season sweep of West Virginia after rallying for a 55-51 victory in Morgantown, W.Va., on Feb. 8. The Fighting Irish had made just 2 of 18 3-point shots in the game before hitting three straight during a late 11-0 run to seize control of the game. Including that setback, West Virginia had lost five of six before posting a 66-48 win at rival Pittsburgh last Thursday. Since losing star forward Tim Abromaitis to a season-ending injury in November, the red-hot Fighting Irish have found surprising success by slowing the pace of the game. Their 61.1 possessions per contest in conference action are the second fewest among Big East teams, and they are allowing a league-best 58.7 points against conference opponents. Junior PF Jack Cooley (12.2 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 1.5 bpg) leads the Big East in field-goal percentage (61.8) and has posted four consecutive double-doubles, a run that began with a 21-point, 12-rebound effort at West Virginia. Senior F Kevin Jones has carried the load inside for the Mountaineers, leading the Big East in scoring (20.4) and rebounding (11.3). He and junior PF Deniz Kilicli (11.6 ppg, 5.4 rpg) pace a frontcourt that has West Virginia ranked second in the Big East in rebounding margin (plus-6.0). Senior G Truck Bryant is tied for seventh in the league with 16.7 ppg, but he is shooting just 31.3 percent on 192 3-point attempts (most in the Big East) and 36.2 percent overall. Bryant was held scoreless in the home loss to Notre Dame earlier this month.
Take the Irish and lay the small number
PREDICTION: Notre Dame 68, Mountaineers 58
—————
Los Angeles at Colorado (-104, 5 u-120)
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Colorado Avalanche coach Joe Sacco admitted he was frustrated by his team’s effort in Sunday’s lackluster 5-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets. If Sacco’s charges don’t put forth a better performance on Wednesday when the Avalanche host the Los Angeles Kings, a chance at the postseason may soon slip away. Goals will likely be at a premium in this contest between these light-scoring clubs. After getting blanked in its previous two games, Los Angeles actually gave the scoreboard operator some work in its 5-4 shootout loss to the Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday. The lowest-scoring team in the NHL, the Kings netted their first three goals in a span of 8:26. Prior to that, their last three goals were scored in a span of 157:56. Dustin Brown snapped a three-game streak without a point by scoring and setting up a goal on Tuesday. The captain had a goal and two assists in three games this season versus Colorado.
Colorado acquired pesky Steve Downie from the Tampa Bay Lightning for defenseman Kyle Quincey on Tuesday. The Lightning then turned around and shipped the blue-liner to the Detroit Red Wings for minor-league defenseman Sebastien Piche and a first-round pick in the 2012 draft. Downie, 24, has collected 12 goals, 16 assists and 121 penalty minutes in 55 games this season.
Take the visiting Kings
PREDICTION: Kings 2, Avalanche 1.
Related posts:
NBA - Today’s Best Bets: NHL, NBA and College Hoop winners (Tony Finn) 
0
NBA - Today’s Best Bets: Wednesday’s NBA, CBB and NHL winners (SportsOptions.com) 0
NBA - Today’s Best Bets: NBA, College Hoops and NHL winners (Tony Finn) 0
NCAAB - College basketball betting preview: W Virginia at Syracuse (Tony Finn) 0
NBA - Today’s Best Bets: NBA, College Hoops and NHL (Tony Finn) 0
RSS
Google
MyYahoo!
MyMSN
NewsGator
BlogLines