Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Red Wings take on the Predators, while the Raptors host the Knicks, and the Pistons look for a win against the Cavaliers.

Tipping off on the hardwood . . .

There are 11 games on the NBA hardwood on Friday night, including Detroit at Cleveland. The Pistons and Cavaliers haven’t met since November 25, when LeBron James and company pulled out a 98-88 road win. James led the way with 34 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists for the Cavaliers in that contest, while Mo Williams had 14 points to go along with eight assists. Rodney Stuckey had 25 points in the loss for the Pistons, while Charlie Villanueva had 19 points.

Also on the NBA’s schedule for Friday: the Lakers at Charlotte, Milwaukee at Washington, Boston at Philadelphia, Golden State at Atlanta, Orlando at New Jersey, Sacramento at Dallas, Indiana at Denver, New Orleans at San Antonio, Oklahoma City at the Clippers, and New York at Toronto. The Raptors hope that star forward Chris Bosh (ankle injury) can get back on the floor for Friday night; Toronto has lost four straight games to sit at 31-28 SU and 28-31 ATS this year.

Mid-major tournament games populate the college basketball schedule for Friday, along with one major-conference game between St. John’s and DePaul at Allstate Arena. The Red Storm (15-14 SU, 12-14 ATS) have lost three straight games, falling 85-66 to Syracuse in their last outing on Tuesday. The Blue Demons (8-21 SU, 14-9-2 ATS) have lost 11 games in a row to sit in the basement of the Big East standings. DePaul lost 63-59 to South Florida in their last contest, and they also fell 67-47 when they played St. John’s on January 17.

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

As well, there are five games on the National Hockey League schedule for Friday, with Philadelphia at Buffalo, Vancouver at Chicago, New Jersey at Calgary, Minnesota at Edmonton, and Nashville at Detroit. The Red Wings last hosted the Predators back on January 29, with Detroit pulling out the 4-2 home win. Jason Williams, Nicklas Lidstrom, Drew Miller, and Henrik Zetterberg all scored for the Wings in that contest, while Jimmy Howard stopped 46 of 48 Nashville shots. Francis Bouillon and Shea Weber had the Preds goals in the loss.

Before NFL odds and the baseball playoffs totally take over our sportsbooks, there’s unfinished business to settle in golf. The Tour Championship marks the Final stop on the FedEx Cup playoff circuit and Tiger Woods has a stranglehold on the title. Can he finish the job? Let’s examine some key names to consider this week when you make your sports picks.

Tiger Woods (+125)

BOOM: After winning the BMW Championship by eight shots two weeks ago, Tiger has huge momentum entering the Tour Championship. He won this event in 2007 at the same venue, East Lake. He also has six wins this season and leads the Tour in scoring average. He’s a monster.

BUST: East Lake’s thick rough makes accurate driving paramount this week and that’s one skill that’s eluded Tiger at times this week. Missing fairways is just about the only thing that can go wrong for him.

Padraig Harrington (+1415)

BOOM: Paddy is finally heating up. He started the year horrifically – it took him 16 tournaments to crack a top 10 — but he hasn’t looked back since he finally broke that barrier, posting four more top-10s after the first one. His great scrambling ability should help him escape trouble at East Lake.

BUST: As much as Harrington is “back,” he still doesn’t have a win this season. Like Oklahoma State in NCAA football betting, Harrington hits an invisible wall at crunch time; he’s had bad mental lapses on Sunday several times during his hot streak.

Steve Stricker (+1615)

BOOM: He’s been good enough this year that we have to include him in any contender discussion. The No. 2 player in the world has three wins and 10 top-10s in 2009. His accuracy and putting should keep him competitive this week.

BUST: He doesn’t have an overly impressive track record at the Tour Championship, finishing 24^th and 17^th the last two years.

Mike Weir (+5250)

BOOM: The deep sleeper of the group, Weir placed sixth at last year’s Tour Championship. He’s a reasonably accurate hitter off the tee and his bunker play is superb. He’s flirted with success this season, posting two top-three finishes.

BUST: For whatever reason, he hasn’t threatened to win often this year. He’s been horrible on weekends. Why would that change this week?

Betting services recommend: Tiger Woods +125. When he’s hot, you have to bet on him.

NFL picks.

The Toronto Blue Jays and the New York Yankees will both be trying to pick up a win on Wednesday when they battle at Yankee Stadium.

The Blue Jays will pin their hopes on the pitching of lefthander Brian Tallet in this game. Tallet has a 7-8 record and a 5.36 ERA this season.

It’ll be Chad Gaudin toeing the rubber for the Yankees in this contest. Righthander Gaudin is 4-10 with a 4.91 ERA so far this season.

Oddsmakers currently have the Yankees listed as 184-moneyline favorites versus the Blue Jays, while the game’s total is sitting at 10½.

Travis Snider went 2-for-5 with two dingers and three runs batted in, as the Blue Jays dropped the Yankees 10-4 on Tuesday night.

Toronto cashed as -130 road favorites, while the teams played OVER the 8.5-run total posted by oddsmakers.

Edwin Encarnacion was 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs for the Blue Jays, as Roy Halladay gave up two runs over six innings to earn the win for Toronto.

Brett Gardner went 2-for-4 with two RBIs for New York, while Sergio Mitre was roughed up for seven runs over five innings to take the defeat for the Yankees.

Team records:
Toronto: 66-79 SU
New York: 93-53 SU

Toronto most recently:
When playing on Wednesday are 4-6
Before playing Tampa Bay are 2-8
After playing NY Yankees are 3-7
After a win are 2-8

New York most recently:
When playing on Wednesday are 6-4
Before playing Seattle are 8-2
After playing Toronto are 8-2
After a loss are 8-2

A few trends to consider:
Toronto is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
Toronto is 5-11 SU in their last 16 games when playing NY Yankees
Toronto is 4-10 SU in its last 14 games on the road
NY Yankees are 9-3 SU in their last 12 games at home
NY Yankees are 14-5 SU in their last 19 games
NY Yankees are 11-5 SU in their last 16 games when playing Toronto

Next up:
Toronto at Tampa Bay, Friday, September 18
NY Yankees at Seattle, Friday, September 18

JUNKMAN SPORTS
DAILY COMP FOR 7-27-09

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

COMP FOR MONDAY

COLORADO -150

GOOD LUCK

JUNK

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

The first- and last-place teams in the West — Phoenix and Sacramento — resumed following the WNBA All-Star break with games in the East. The Mercury kept winning — 94-88 at New York — while the Monarchs continue losing — 87-73 at Washington.

Diana Taurasi came back from a two-game suspension to score 34 points and haul 13 rebounds for Phoenix. 

New York led 24-14 after one, then 47-42 at the half. Phoenix won the second half 52-41. In seven of Phoenix’s last eight wins, they scored more points in the second half than in the first.

Phoenix coach Corey Gaines said preseason that he encouraged opposing teams to try to keep up with the Mercury because he believed they would wear opponents out at the end. 

In their last 10 games, Phoenix is 8-2 straight up and against the spread with 9-1 over/under.

In those eight wins, the Mercury won the second half seven times. In the fourth quarter, Phoenix won five, lost two, tied one — in one of the games where Phoenix lost the fourth quarter, they ran away in the overtime period. 

Conversely, bettors looking for an edge needn’t look further than “second half goes against the Monarchs”. A five-point underdog in Washington, Sacramento got within seven points several times in the second half, and was once within five — 74-69 with 3:46 remaining — but center Chasity Melvin scored four straight points for the Mystics. The Mystics won the third quarter 20-18 and the fourth 22-19. 

All-Star Nicole Powell was limited to 11 points with 1-of-5 three-point shooting. Crystal Langhorne led Washington with 19 points and 8 rebounds.

The Monarchs are 3-7 straight up in their last 10 games. In those seven losses, Sacramento has lost the second half all seven times. By quarters, the Monarchs have won a third or fourth quarter 3 times out of 14.

In their three wins from the last 10, the Monarchs won the second half each time. By quarters, winning five out of six. Since John Whisenant resumed his seat as head coach, the Monarchs are 1-5, where they have scored 20+ points in three of 12 second-half segments — against Phoenix, they lost two by identical 26-21 scores; against New York, Sacramento won the fourth quarter 24-16, and that was the only game Whisenant has won since his return.

JUNKMAN SPORTS
DAILY COMP FOR 7-25-09

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

COMP WINS AGAIN RIGHT HERE

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

COMP FOR SATURDAY

BRAVES +120

GOOD LUCK

JUNK

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

Sports Betting Services

In the growing world of online gambling, seeking top quality sports betting services leads the gambler to the website that offers it all, www.gamblingiq.com. This quality website features the most popular information for all aspects of online gambling. One of the most used areas is the individual sports forums, with thousands of postings on different gambling subjects. Other sports betting services include basic information and links to online casinos, sports books, poker, and fantasy websites.

Details for using handicapping tools and links are covered completely, as are current scores, lines, and match-ups. Sports betting services at www.gamblingiq.com include tips at the forum sites for football, basketball, baseball, hockey, and soccer. There are searchable databases for scores, trends, injuries, and players, plus game previews, recaps, and team reports.

Schedules, statistics, and standings are compiled in one easy to navigate website. Whether you are a beginner seeking advice and learning knowledge, or the seasoned gambling pro ready to offer advice and teach, www.gamblingiq.com puts it all together, at the great sports meeting place online. It also is willing to act as a mediator if you encounter gambling problems at online gambling websites in their dispute center.

Sports betting services are more than mere links to other websites. This website stands out from the others in the complexity of the information that is offered, and the simplicity of the website for viewer use. It claims to be a one stop information center for gambling, and it is just that. There is no need to go anywhere else, because all the information is at your fingertips. The most important part of each area are the sports betting forums, where the reader can pick up valuable tips and strategies to make their online gambling experience more fun and profitable.

Read the latest gambling headlines, and keep up to date with the daily sports betting preview column on the home page at www.gamblingiq.com. Raise your own gambling IQ with regular visits to this all inclusive website. There are links to their choices of favorite, trusted gaming websites, recommendations, general information, and insights into games like poker. golf, and casino play. Nothing is left to chance, and you will have an amazing amount of statistical information available.

Additional sports betting services include subscription service to gambling and betting feeds that you can direct to your own computer as they are updated. One stop for all perfectly describes the content of this website, www.gamblingiq.com. Check it out today, browse the topics, register, and add this sports betting services website to your favorites list.

JUNKMAN SPORTS
DAILY COMP FOR 7-24-09

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

COMP WINS AGAIN RIGHT HERE

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

COMP FOR FRIDAY

YANKEES -187

GOOD LUCK

JUNK

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

JUNKMAN SPORTS
DAILY COMP FOR 7-21-09

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

AND DO NOT MISS ANYMORE WNBA WINNERS FROM THE FRISCO KID
WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

COMP FOR TUESDAY

TAKE  MILW -138

GOOD LUCK

JUNK

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

JUNKMAN SPORTS
DAILY COMP FOR 7-20-09

DON NOT FORGET GET 3 COMPS DAILY AT

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

ALSO SIGN UP FOR AUGUST MLB RIGHT NOW GET THE REST OF JULY FREE DETAILS AT THE WEBSITE

WWW.JUNKMANSPORTS.COM

COMP FOR MONDAY

TAKE THE NATS -122

GOOD LUCK

JUNK

Junkman Sports – The Best Sports Handicapping Information on the Planet!