Bettor's best friend: Today's helpful tips
Wednesday, October 7
Patriot games
For
the fifth time in as many weeks, the New England Patriots will be
playing an unbeaten team when they visit the Denver Broncos. New
England played Buffalo in its opener, lost to the New York Jets in Week
Two, beat 2-0 Atlanta in Week 3 and knocked off 3-0 Baltimore in Week
Four. The Patriots are giving three points to the Broncos (4-0).
Dub mix
Two
things to keep in mind for Game Four of the WNBA Finals. Indiana has
won five straight home games (2-3 ATS), but its last home loss was to
Phoenix on Sept. 2. The Mercury also had the league's best home record
at 11-6 during the season (11-6 ATS) and are 1-2 in the postseason (2-1
ATS).
The Fever are giving two points with a total of 178.
Sam I am - playing?
Oklahoma's
Heisman-winning QB Sam Bradford is optomistic about his return from a
shoulder injury suffered in Week 1 of the season. Bradford told
reporters he could suit up when the Sooners face the Baylor Bears this
weekend.
"I guess I'm clear. Obviously, I guess it really just
has to go through the week without any excess soreness after the
throwing. That's the big deal," said Bradford, who has been doing light
throwing the past two weeks.
"I have to be able to make it
through a week without taking any steps back. As long as that happens,
then the doctors are fine," Bradford said.
Oklahoma is a
25.5-point home favorite Saturday. News of Bradford's return would
likely drive this spread into the 30-point range.
Price is right
The
Montreal Canadiens gave goaltender Carey Price the night off Tuesday so
that he could be in top form against the Vancouver Canucks Wednesday.
Price, a native of British Columbia, will have a homecoming of sorts
against the Canucks. He has never started against Vancouver and has
played just eight minutes versus his home-town club in his career,
coming off the bench in the third period of a 4-2 Canucks win in which
Price turned away the only shot he faced.
Price is off to a
strong start this season, posting a 2-0 record and 1.89 GAA. Montreal
is priced as a +160 road underdog while the total is set at 5.5 goals.
Extra rest
The
New York Yankees had the option to choose when their American League
Division Series started and chose a Wednesday start. That decision has
two benefits. The first is that it gives Minnesota no rest before the
start of the best-of-five series. The second benefit is that the series
has three potential days off - Thursday, Saturday and Tuesday - which
means the Yankees could need just three starters and use Joba
Chamberlain out of the bullpen. The Yankees are 10-13 to win the AL
pennant and 3-2 to win the World Series.
Notable quotable
"I
guess that people want Bobby (Bowden) to step down gracefully, and I
want what's best for Florida State University. I'm just really saddened
by where we are. I'm hurting as much as all the Seminole Nation. It's
bad."
-- Former FSU wide receiver Ron Sellers, talking about
the problems with the football team at his alma mater. The Seminoles
are 2-3 for the first time since 1976, Bowden's first season at the
school.
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