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It took overtime once again, but the Boston Bruins evened up the series with the Washington Capitals with a Game 2 victory two nights ago. Now, the teams go to Boston with the series tied at 1-1 and now the Bruins are a huge favorite on home ice to take a 2-1 series lead.

BetUS <a href="http://bangthebook.com/sportsbooks/us/">Sportsbook lists</a> Boston in the -170 range with a total of 5.5 for Game 3 on Wednesday night with a 6:30 p.m. ET puck drop. The other games feature big favorites as well, especially Colorado in the late game. Carolina is a -190 favorite against Nashville. The lines don’t suggest a lot of drama today, but it’s the NHL Playoffs, so we know better.

Let’s dig deep into Game 3 and see if the Bruins money is right or if Washington can steal home ice back from the favorites.
<h2><strong><u>Washington Capitals</u></strong></h2>
After a tight-checking, low-scoring Game 1, the teams erupted for four first period goals in Game 2. It was imperative for Washington to get off to a good start against a Boston team that was going to come in hyper-motivated, especially after head coach Bruce Cassidy criticized his top-line guys following Game 1.

At least Washington matched Boston on the scoresheet, but the Bruins were the better team throughout the game. They fired 48 shots on net and were dominant at 5-v-5. In other words, the Capitals need to be better. They need to adjust. Game 1 was pretty even at full strength. Game 2 was not.

Washington surrendered 17 high-danger scoring chances at 5-v-5 in that Game 2 matchup. Boston scored all four goals at 5-v-5, while the Capitals had two and a power play goal. Even with Boston’s offensive onslaught, the Capitals were less than three minutes from a win before Taylor Hall’s game-tying goal at the 17:11 mark of the third.

How does Washington adjust? That is a big question going into this game, especially because Boston now has the luxury of the last line change being at home. That means favorable matchups for the B’s throughout and it means that Washington needs its top line and top defensive pairings to really make a difference with every shift.
<h2><strong><u>Boston Bruins</u></strong></h2>
The Bruins have been steamed in all three games of this series. Sharp bettors out there that mold and shape the <a href="http://bangthebook.com/nhl/">NHL betting</a> markets clearly like what Boston brings to the table more than what Washington brings. The two teams were fairly similar during the regular season in a lot of ways. This could simply be a case where Tuukka Rask is simply thought to be a lot better than both Vitek Vanacek and Craig Anderson, which is hard to argue against.

The Bruins have also controlled a lot of things about the first two games. While the expected 5-v-5 scoring was very close in Game 1, it was not in Game 2. Boston had a 3.79 to 1.59 edge in expected 5-v-5 scoring in Game 2. They had 17 high-danger scoring chances to just seven for Washington.

Something else the Bruins have done well with thus far is faceoffs. Faceoffs are really important. Not only do they establish possession, but defensive zone faceoff wins usually keep the opposition from getting shots and scoring chances. The scoring chances at 5-v-5 in the series are 52-51, but Boston has had the higher-quality chances, with the faceoff advantage likely playing a big role in that department.

Rask has allowed six goals on 71 shots in this series. He had a .913 SV% during the regular season and is off to a .915 SV% start here. The Bruins can make life easier on Rask by staying out of the box. They were only shorthanded once in Game 1, but four times in Game 2, leading to Washington’s lone power play goal of the series. At 5-v-5, Boston can control this series. If the Washington PP gets a chance to get going, that will be the difference.
<h3><strong><u>Capitals vs. Bruins Free Pick</u></strong></h3>
The Capitals have to make a lot of adjustments coming out of Game 2 and I’m not sure that they can make them. Having the last line change helped in Game 1, but Boston cracked the code and controlled Game 2. Now Washington has to figure out how to match up with a top line for Boston that actually had a better Game 1 than the stat line would suggest.

It’s a big number, but the Bruins have a lot of advantages and a better goalie here, so even at -170, they are the side.

<strong>Pick: Boston Bruins</strong>

Capitals vs. Bruins Game 3 Free Pick 05/19/21

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<p>Planning on watching today's Mustangs and Gaels game? Catch the action at University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga, CA, as the Gaels hosts this showdown at 8:00 ET on ESPN+. The over/under line for this matchup is currently at 148.5 points, and Saint Mary's is favored by -19.5 at home against Cal Poly.</p><h3>CAL POLY MUSTANGS VS SAINT MARY'S GAELS BETTING PICK</h3><p>The Pick: Cal Poly Mustangs +19.5</p><p>This game will be played at University Credit Union Pavilion at 8:00 ET on Saturday, November 23rd.</p><h3>WHY BET THE CAL POLY MUSTANGS:</h3><ul><li>We have this one finishing with a projected score of 74-73 in favor of the Gaels.</li><li>Even though we have Saint Mary's winning straight-up, we like Cal Poly at +19.5.</li><li>The over/under is currently sitting at 148.5 points, and we like the under with a projected 147 points.</li></ul><h3>Do the Mustangs Stand a Chance in Moraga?</h3><h3>Cal Poly Mustangs Recent Game/Games</h3> 

<p>The Mustangs put up a strong fight against Arizona State on Wednesday, losing 93-89 on the road. Despite being +16.5 point underdogs, Cal Poly kept the game much closer than expected.</p> 

<p>Cal Poly trailed 46-38 at halftime but came out strong in the 2nd half, scoring 51 points while allowing 47. The total points for the game hit 182, going over the 154.5 O/U line.</p><p>Cal Poly's offense was firing on all cylinders in their last game, putting up 89 points with a field goal percentage of 51.6%. Their effective field goal percentage was an impressive 62.5%, thanks in part to their 74.1% shooting on two-point attempts. From beyond the arc, they hit 13 of 37 threes, good for 35.1%.</p> <p>Jarred Hyder led the way with 27 points, connecting on 7 of 14 threes, while Joson Sanon added 22 points. Isaac Jessup contributed 17 points, hitting 4 of 7 from deep, and Adam Miller knocked down 4 of 5 threes, finishing with 16 points. The Mustangs dished out 18 assists, with Alston Mason and BJ Freeman each recording 5.</p><p>Cal Poly's defense struggled in their last game, giving up 93 points while allowing the opponent to shoot 48% from the field. The Mustangs allowed 18 two-point field goals on 34 attempts, a 52% conversion rate.</p> <p>From beyond the arc, Cal Poly's opponents hit 10 threes on 24 attempts, shooting 41%. The Mustangs also sent them to the free-throw line 41 times, where they made 27 free throws, a 65% success rate. Cal Poly gave up 13 offensive rebounds.</p><h3>Are the Gaels Ready for a Home Win?</h3><h3>Saint Mary's Gaels Recent Game/Games</h3> 

<p>Saint Mary's picked up a 77-74 win over Nebraska on Sunday, November 17th. The Gaels were -4 favorites going into the game, but they didn’t cover the spread. The total points for the game were 151, surpassing the O/U line of 139.5.</p> 

<p>Saint Mary's led 46-43 at halftime and both teams scored 31 points in the 2nd half, resulting in a tight finish.</p><p>Saint Mary's put up 77 points in their latest game, shooting 42.6% from the field. Their effective field goal percentage was 52.5%, thanks in part to hitting 47.8% from beyond the arc, connecting on 11 of 23 attempts. They struggled inside, making just 39.5% of their two-point shots, and shot 56% from the free-throw line.</p> <p>Brice Williams led the Gaels with 28 points, shooting 66.7% from the field. Mikey Lewis added 23 points, hitting 5 of 7 from three-point range. Saint Mary's grabbed 17 offensive rebounds and dished out 14 assists in the win.</p><p>Saint Mary's Gaels gave up 74 points in their last game, with the opposing team shooting 44% from the field, hitting 22 of their 49 attempts. Inside the arc, the Gaels allowed 53% shooting, as the other team went 17/32 on two-point shots.</p> <p>From three-point range, Saint Mary's held their opponent to 29% shooting, with just 5 made threes on 17 attempts. However, they sent the other team to the free-throw line 29 times, where they converted 25 for 86%. The Gaels also gave up 13 offensive rebounds.</p>

Cal Poly Mustangs vs Saint Mary's Gaels NCAA Basketball Betting Pick & Prediction 11/23/24

<p>Looking to win big? The Broncos and Gaels face off at 10:30 ET on FS1. The Gaels are hosting the game at Mountain America Center in Idaho Falls, ID. This non-conference matchup has an over/under of 130.5 points, and the Gaels are favored to win at home vs. the Broncos.</p><h3>BOISE STATE BRONCOS VS SAINT MARY'S GAELS BETTING PICK</h3><p>The Pick: Saint Mary's Gaels -4</p><p>This game will be played at Mountain America Center at 10:30 ET on Friday, December 1st.</p><h3>WHY BET THE SAINT MARY'S GAELS:</h3><ul><li>We have this one finishing with a projected score of 75-70 in favor of the Gaels.</li><li>Not only will Saint Mary's pick up the win, but look for them to cover at -4.</li><li>The over/under is currently sitting at 130.5 points, and we like the over with a projected 145 points.</li></ul><h3>Does Boise State Have a Shot at a Road Win?</h3><p>Boise State comes into today's game against Saint Mary's with a 3-3 record. So far this season, all of the Broncos' games have taken place on the road. Boise State has a subpar ATS performance, sitting at 1-4. Over their last five games, the team has gone 1-4 vs. the spread.</p><p>Through six games, Boise State has an over/under record of 2-3-0 with their games averaging a combined 136.6 points per game so far. In the Broncos' last five games, the combined scoring average stands at 136 points per game, accompanied by an over/under record of 2-3.</p><p>In their most recent game, the Boise State offense put up just 56 points vs. the Butler Bulldogs. Overall, they are now averaging 69.3 points per game which is 318th in the country. One area that the Boise State offense has been good this season is getting to the line. Currently, they are 155th in free-throw attempts per contest. Overall, they have a field goal percentage of 41%.</p><p>So far, the Broncos' defense is ranked 90th in the country at 68.5 points per contest. In today's game, the Boise State defense will be looking to once again do a good job defending the three-point line, as they gave up just 5 three-pointers while giving up 70 points.</p><h3>Will the Gaels Live Up to Expectations at Home?</h3><p>Saint Mary's is about to play their 8th game of the season, and currently has a record of 3-4. In their last ten home games, including those from last year, Saint Mary's has gone 7-3. In terms of Saint Mary's performance vs. the spread, they come into today's game with a 2-4 ATS record. Looking at their performance in the last five games, they are 1-4 vs. the spread.</p><p>Up to this point, games involving Saint Mary's have had an average of 131.5 points per game, with the average over/under line set at 132.7 points. Their over/under record is 3-3-0. The Gaels' have recorded an over/under record of 2-1 in their last three games, with their games averaging 135 points per game.</p><p>In their previous game, the Gaels' offense finished with 71 points, which is right in line with their current average of 71.3 points per contest. Offensively, the Gaels have a season long field goal percentage of 42%, which is 316th in the nation. In terms of three-pointers, they are 307th in percentage and 173rd in three-pointers made.</p><p>The Gaels' defense is presently ranked 15th nationally, allowing an average of 60.7 points per contest. So far, the Saint Mary's defense is giving up an average of 6.6 offensive rebounds per game and are turning teams over 10.6 times per game (310th).</p>

Boise State Broncos vs Saint Mary's Gaels Betting Pick & Prediction 12/1/23

Even if you don’t want to bet into the division futures market, you can still use the odds to your advantage. You can get a look at how things are expected to shake out and get a feel for what the oddsmakers and the market believe about these teams.

In looking at the American League West Division, two things really stand out. The first is that the Houston Astros have their lowest price in a few years to win the division. The second is that the gap between the Oakland Athletics and the Los Angeles Angels does imply that the A’s are getting the respect that they very much deserve after back-to-back 97-win seasons.

Remember that the offseason can shape and mold a lot of narratives about these teams. The Astros lost Gerrit Cole, went under the Commissioner’s microscope for stealing signs, and have become Public Enemy #1 for anybody outside of Houston. And that includes MLB players from around the league.

The A’s did next to nothing of consequence in free agency or the trade market. In fact, it was the other California team that made the big splash by signing Anthony Rendon. And, yet, the A’s still have a much shorter price than the Angels do.

We also have one team sort of on the fringes and one team completely out of it, as the Texas Rangers will hope to rely on Lance Lynn, Mike Minor, and newbies Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson, and Jordan Lyles to make a push. The Seattle Mariners will not be making any push at all.

Here are the odds to win the AL West per <a href="http://bangthebook.com/sportsbooks/5dimes"><strong>5Dimes Sportsbook</strong></a> as of February 20, 2020:

<a href="http://bangthebook.com/houston-astros-win-total-analysis/152/"><strong>Houston</strong></a><strong><a href="http://bangthebook.com/houston-astros-win-total-analysis/152/"> Astros</a> -240</strong>

<a href="http://bangthebook.com/oakland-athletics-win-total-analysis/143/"><strong>Oakland</strong></a><strong><a href="http://bangthebook.com/oakland-athletics-win-total-analysis/143/"> Athletics</a> +450</strong>

<a href="http://bangthebook.com/los-angeles-angels-win-total-analysis/150/"><strong>Los Angeles</strong></a><strong><a href="http://bangthebook.com/los-angeles-angels-win-total-analysis/150/"> Angels</a> +750</strong>

<a href="http://bangthebook.com/texas-rangers-win-total-analysis/135/"><strong>Texas</strong></a><strong><a href="http://bangthebook.com/texas-rangers-win-total-analysis/135/"> Rangers</a> +1850</strong>

<a href="http://bangthebook.com/seattle-mariners-win-total-analysis/138/"><strong>Seattle</strong></a><strong><a href="http://bangthebook.com/seattle-mariners-win-total-analysis/138/"> Mariners</a> +15000</strong>

This is such a strange season for the Astros. They have already embraced the “us against the world” mentality and it seems to get stronger with each passing day. The Astros will get everybody’s best shot. In theory, they already should have been, given that they have won the AL Pennant two of the last three seasons, including a World Series win. All of their games are just going to take on a different feel.

I mentioned in the intro that it is nice to see the A’s get some respect, but they are also a team with 194 wins over the last two years still sitting at +450. If you really, truly believe that the Astros are going to regress a little bit, wouldn’t this be a little bit shorter? This line only implies about an 18.2% chance that the A’s win the West. Now, some might say that is too high, especially with the Astros only at about 70.6%.

If Jesus Luzardo and AJ Puk make a leap and guys like Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas stay healthy, the A’s have the chance to match up and maybe even surpass the Astros on the pitching side. Those are a lot of “ifs”. The Astros are still going to have the best offense in this division bar none.

The Angels are something of a wild card with Rendon in the mix and that Mike Trout guy, but the pitching just isn’t up to par with the Angels. They won’t contend for the AL West crown and neither will the Rangers, who have neither the offense nor the bullpen.

The way I see it, you have three choices. Take the Astros at the minus price. Take the A’s at the plus price with a lot of pitching questions. Stay away altogether. To me, the third option is the best, but if pressed into taking something, it would be the Astros to repeat as champs. That offense is simply too good.

2020 AL West Division Betting Odds & Prediction

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Cleveland Guardians vs Chicago White Sox Betting Pick & Prediction 5/9/24

Houston Astros vs New York Yankees Betting Pick & Prediction 5/9/24

San Francisco Giants vs Colorado Rockies Betting Pick & Prediction 5/9/24

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The New York Yankees overcame a few things on Saturday night that might portend well for them the rest of the way in this American League Championship Series.

For one thing, they registered an easy win over an opponent that had won 75% of their home games (regular season plus playoffs).

And for another, they were able to get an opposite field homer from Giancarlo Stanton - only his second extra-base hit in 37 post-season plate appearances.

But will we see some regression to the mean in terms of the Astros' ability to handle teams at Minute Maid Park, where the Yankees had lost all three games in the regular season?

We'll see. Game 2 starts at 8:05 PM ET on FOX Network. And at <a href="http://betanysports.eu/btb50/"><strong>BetAnySports</strong></a>, where you can place wagers on this contest in real time with Live Betting Ultra, the Astros are a favorite with Cy Young candidate Justin Verlander, as he opposes James Paxton. We give you these numbers with reduced juice, where you'll see a five-cent line:

Houston Astros (Verlander) -155
New York Yankees (Paxton) +150

Over 7.5 Runs -110
Under 7.5 Runs +100

Astros -1.5 Runs +135
Yankees +1.5 Runs -145

I guess this is kind of hard to say about a pitcher who was won a Cy Young, is making $31 million, had an 18-5 record and a WHIP ratio under 1.00 this season, but maybe Astros manager AJ Hinch may have thought a little more about lifting Zack Greinke after he was hit hard in the fifth inning. Yes, fortunately for him, those balls turned into outs, but it was clear that even though he was himself in the respect that he didn't walk anyone, Greinke was not dominating many hitters out there. He proceeded to give up homers to Stanton and Gleyber Torres in the next inning.

The Yankees are difficult in a series like this because there are NO easy outs in the lineup, and the bullpen is proficient enough that you don't need many effective innings out of the starter. They were blessed with a great outing out of Masahiro Tanaka in Game 1, as he gave up up one hit over six shutout innings, which by the way dropped his post-season ERA to 1.32 (hold onto that for future reference).

And now James Paxton has a great luxury in that he might be able to throw hard for a shorter period of time than usual, because the Yankee bullpen did not get taxed all that much.

By the way, if you're looking for Houston to exploit some lefty-righty matchups, don't hold your breath. The roster they have presented for this series doesn't have one lefty on it. Not a one.

But we're not going to make believe they don't have a method to their madness - not a team as analytics-intensive as the Astros are. They obviously believe they have enough right-handed arms who can get left-handed hitters out. And by the way, for what it's worth, New York only got 1-for-8 out of the left side of the plate (Brett Gardner and Didi Gregorius). And Aaron Boone moved them down in the lineup for Game 1.

Paxton, the big lefty, held batters to a .177 average and 14 extra-base hits in eleven starts encompassing August and September, and he gave up just two homers in his last eight regular season outings. However, the Twins touched him up for three runs, including two homers, before he was removed in the fifth inning of Game 1 in the ALDS. Houston's Carlos Correa is .409 lifetime with a 1.004 OPS against him.

Verlander solidified his Hall of Fame credentials with a 21-6 record, his lowest WHIP ratio ever (0.803) and his second straight year with more than a dozen strikeouts per nine innings. It would appear the only thing between him and a second Cy Young is teammate Gerrit Cole. He was brilliant in Game 1 against Tampa Bay in Game 1 of the ALDS, allowing one hit in seven innings. But he was knocked out of the box in the fourth inning of Game 4, yielding four runs and ten base runners.

In two starts against the Yankees this season, Verlander has allowed six runs (with two homers) in 13 innings. DJ LeMahieu and Didi Gregorius would seem to be the most hazardous guys for him (combined .324 average), but between them, big power guys like Edwin Encarnacion, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Gleyber Torres and Giancarlo Stanton are 11-for-100 against him (that's a nifty .110) with four homers.

Verlander has staying power. In the seventh innings of games, for example, he's held teams to a .159 average and .185 on-base (it's .120 and .146, respectively, in the inning before) and from the sixth inning on he has 61 strikeouts and five walks.

I'd lean "under" here, but I just can't help but think the Astros are coming in at a very reasonable price. So we'll look that way too.

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MLB Playoff Betting -- ALCS: Astros Seek Clutch Outing From Verlander vs. Yanks