It’s a pretty solid Saturday schedule in college basketball, and there are some noteworthy NBA and NHL matchups, too. Covers checks in on the action and line movement for a handful of games, with insights from Derek Wilkinson, supervisor at The SuperBook at Westgate in Las Vegas. **video
College Basketball
No. 2 Duke Blue Devils at No. 3 Virginia Cavaliers – Open: -2; Move: -2.5; Move: -2; Move: -2.5; Move: -2
Virginia is not only among the best teams in the country on the court, but also against the oddsmakers, with a 16-5 ATS record that rates third nationally. The Cavaliers (20-1 SU) are coming off a week’s rest following a 56-46 home win over Miami, though in a rarity, they failed to cash as 18.5-point favorites.
Duke has also been solid both SU and ATS, at 20-2 and 14-8 respectively. The Blue Devils have won six in a row SU and three in a row ATS, including an 80-55 bashing of Boston College as hefty 24-point faves on Tuesday.
“We’ve taken most of the sharp action on Virginia, but did see at least one guy we respect bet on Duke,” Wilkinson said of early activity for this 6 p.m. ET tipoff. “We haven’t seen any action on the total yet, but the market has gone slightly higher.”
The SuperBook opened the total at 135 early Friday night and went to 135.5 shortly thereafter.
No. 13 Villanova Wildcats at No. 9 Marquette Golden Eagles – Open: -1.5; Move: None
Villanova is on a nice mid-winter heater, winning its last 11 games SU while going 8-3 ATS. On Wednesday at Creighton, the Wildcats (19-4 SU, 15-8 ATS) got stretched to overtime as 10.5-point favorites, but came out with a 66-59 victory.
Marquette saw its 8-0 SU/7-1 ATS surge come to an end on its home court Tuesday night. The Golden Eagles (19-4 SU, 15-8 ATS) went off as 6.5-point favorites against St. John’s, but lost outright 70-69.
“Almost nothing on this game so far, but some other books in the market are trending toward Under for the total,” Wilkinson said, noting The SuperBook opened the total at 144 for this 2:30 p.m. ET clash.
NBA
Oklahoma City Thunder at Houston Rockets – Open: -1.5; Move: -2
Scoring machine James Harden carried Houston to the top of the Southwest Division standings over the past two months. The Rockets (32-22 SU, 25-28-1 ATS) are coming off a successful road swing, winning three out of four SU. On Wednesday night, Houston rolled past Sacramento 127-101 laying 4 points.
Russell Westbrook has helped Oklahoma City go 9-1 SU and 8-2 ATS over its last 10 games. The Thunder (35-19 SU, 31-23 ATS) dumped Memphis 117-95 giving 13 points at home Thursday.
“We haven’t taken much action yet, but the market is heading the Rockets way,” Wilkinson said of a game that still has all day to be bet into, with an 8:30 p.m. ET start.
San Antonio Spurs at Utah Jazz – Open: -6; Move: -6.5
Utah is seven games above .500, yet sits fourth in the highly competitive Northwest Division. The Jazz (31-24 SU, 27-26-2 ATS) are coming off a 116-88 thumping of bottom-feeder Phoenix as 14.5-point favorites Wednesday.
San Antonio followed a five-game win streak by losing three in a row on the highway, and has dumped six in a row ATS. The Spurs (32-25 SU, 31-25-1 ATS) fell at Portland 127-118 getting 6 points on Thursday.
“We took a little action on the Jazz. The half-point move was mainly due to the market shifting, though,” Wilkinson said of early wagering for a 5 p.m. ET contest.
NHL
Pittsburgh Penguins at Tampa Bay Lightning – Open: -172; Move: -180
Tampa Bay is lapping the NHL field with 82 points, as the next-closest team – Calgary – is eight points behind, and no other team in the Eastern Conference has reached 70. However, the Lightning (39-11-3-1) dropped four of their last eight, including a 3-2 shootout loss to Vegas as a -150 favorite Tuesday.
Pittsburgh posted a 4-2 home win over Tampa on Jan. 30 and followed with a home win over Ottawa, but has since lost three in a row. On Thursday night at Florida, the Penguins (28-19-5-2) still got away with a point in a 3-2 overtime setback as slim -108 faves.
Wilkinson said The SuperBook waited until this morning to post the moneyline for this 7:05 p.m. ET puck drop, because Penguins standout Evgeni Malkin remains out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. That helped Tampa Bay open as a hefty -172 chalk, and the Lightning quickly moved to -180.
Patrick Everson is a Las Vegas-based senior writer for Covers. Follow him on Twitter: @Covers_Vegas.
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