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Los Angeles Over (192) for 3 Units Lakers/Spurs 9:00: The Lakers have been a high scoring team virtually all season and this should be a tough task for the Spurs to keep them from getting above 96 here. The Lakers, which got virtually nothing from Odom and Fisher in Game 3, are 16-5 O/U after losing, including both games in the playoffs. The Lakers are also 20-15 O/U w/ revenge. This series, which has gone "under" in the last 5 at the AT&T Center, is overdue to go "over" here. The Lakers, which have given up nearly 101 ppg during the playoffs, have shown their vulnerability on the road; at the same time, they've shown they can light up the scoreboard and should be much more productive on the offensive end tonight. This series has kept a 12 point range from 187 (Sunday) to 199 this season. We project more fouls late in this game with a much tighter score. And lots of opportunites at the foul line without the clock running gets us excited when we have the "over". "Over" the call. Los Angeles (+4) for 2 Units Lakers/Spurs 9:00: The Lakers have played well on the road all season (30-15 ATS), are "money" as dogs (15-7) ATS, and a super 27-9 SU w/ revenge. We'll look for Odom, Fisher and Vujacic to give more offensive production tonight to help relieve the scoring burden from Bryant and Gasol. On the other hand, we see spotty action on the offensive end from Oberto, Finley, Bowen and Udoka, with Thomas in the dog house and Horry off the mark, in their help with Ginobili, Duncan, and Parker. The Lakers have played well on Tuesdays (10-3 ATS) and very capable of giving the Spurs a run for the money here. Lakers the call.

Houston Under (9) [Chacon/Looper] for 2 Units Houston/St.Louis 8:15: This series has been low scoring this season (1-5 O/U) and should be low scoring at Busch Stadium tonight; after all, these teams sport a 4-10 O/U mark at St. Louis. St. Louis, which sports a 1-7 O/U mark when the 'total' is set at 9 to 9', puts Braden Looper on the hill. He's done a good job as a starter this season and controls a 4-2 mark with a 2.89 ERA in 6 starts vs Houston. His counterpart, Chacon, had a rough go of it early in the season but may have gotten on track with a strong outing vs the Cubs in his last start; moreover, Chacon controls a solid 3.34 ERA in 5 starts vs St. Louis. We'll look for Chacon to go deep into this game to limit action by the struggling Houston bullpen. Houston is 6-15 O/U after a loss, 9-18 O/U on the road, and 13-22 O/U in night baseball. We'll stay "under" here.

Houston (-129) [Oswalt over Kendrick] for 2 Units Philadelphia/Houston 8:05: Good value with Roy Oswalt, who's coming off a sluggish outing.  Oswalt, who had a mild hip strain that led to a rough outing in his last start, feels fine today. Oswalt sports a 6-1 team mark with a 2.90 ERA vs Philadelphia. And he should get good run support; after all, the Astros are driving in a healthy 5.3 rpg at home this season. Tonight, we'll look for Houston to get the best of Kyle Kendrick who has been shaky on the road (5.68 ERA) where he has struggled with control. Houston is 10-2 in their last 12 home games and sport an impressive 14-5 record this month. Philadelphia is still inconsistent off wins (11-14) and just 6-13 in their last 19 at this ballpark. Houston the call.

*Best Bet* Detroit (+4') for 3 Units Detroit/Boston 8:30: Detroit, knowing it is one of the few teams to beat Boston on its home floor during the regular season (87-85 on 12/19/07), should come out with more fire lit under their rears here; after all, Detroit is 13-5 ATS off a road loss this season, winning by an average margin of nearly 10 ppg. And the dog in this series has delivered in 10 of the last 14 meetings; the road team has cashed the winning ticket in 7 of the last 9. Slow paced games on the road have been Detroit's strength, going 7-1 ATS when the 'total' is set between 170 to 179'. The Pistons showed flashes of strength Monday, but Billups looked bad. We're going to look for Billups to pick up his game and help lead the Pistons to a cover here. Detroit Over (172) for 1 Unit Detroit/Boston 8:30: This series has gone 2-11 O/U in its last 11 meetings, including 0-6 O/U at Boston. The combined score in this series at Boston this season has not exceeded 172 in three game games; however, it has maintained a tight range from 167. And late in Game 1, we did see Boston successfully run isolation plays for Pierce and Garnett. Moreover, Rondo blew by Billups on a few occasions. On the other hand, Detroit had some open looks in Game 1 they couldn't convert on. We'll look for a more polished offense tonight, with more driving to the basket to create foul opportunities; I like plenty of free throw attempts with the "over" on our side.

San Antonio Under (196) for 2 Units Spurs/Lakers 9:05: This series has gone "under" in 7 of the last 10 matchups and should be more of a grind it out game tonight. The Lakers' offense is clicking and hard to stop with all the options available, especially on their home floor where they've averaged a consistent 111 ppg. But Los Angeles is 1-4 O/U after three or more 'overs', and 15-22 O/U after allowing 105+. The Spurs, on the other hand, are 6-16 O/U after three straight 'unders' and 18-28 O/U on the road. This series has kept a tight range between 199 and 191 in four games this season; tonight, with the defensive intensity heightened, we'll look for a game in the lower end of the continuum. "Under" the call. Los Angeles (-7') for 2 Units Spurs/Lakers 9:05: This will be a difficult challenge for the Spurs considering that they have a short turnover from an emotional Game 7 victory, and had to deal with flight problems from New Orleans. Sure, they're the incumbent champs and a veteran group that just overcame an 0-2 deficit to advance, but this may be too much of an uphill battle. The Lakers are 9-2 ATS off an upset win and 7-2 ATS with extended rest. Los Angeles is playing extremely well and should deliver here.

Like the "under".

*Best Bet* Tampa Bay Under (8') [Sonnanstine/Eveland] for 3 Units Tampa Bay/Oakland 3:35: Both of these starters are in good form: Sonnanstine is 5-0 with a 2.98 ERA over his last 6 starts; Eveland sports a solid 2.41 ERA over his last 3 starts and has been solid at home (2-0 0.92 ERA) despite little run support. As a matter of fact, the A's are driving in 2 runs or less over their last 8 games, and bat just .232 vs righties over their last 10 games. Oakland is 6-14 O/U when the 'total' is in this range, and 5-11 O/U in daytime baseball. TB, on the other hand, is batting a meager .209 on the road vs lefties; as a result, they're 3-10 O/U vs lefty starters; the Rays are also 3-9 O/U during the day. This series has gone 'under' in 7 of the last 9 at Oakland and we'll stay "under" here.

Detroit (+4') for 2 Units Detroit/Boston 8:30: In this game, the rhythm (Boston), rest (Detroit) dichotomy makes a difficult choice; for example, the Celtics one day off from closing out a seven game series, while the Pistons had a six day layoff. There are several variables to consider, but I find these to carry the most weight: Boston is off an emotional high winning Game 7 by the slimmest of margins; in that game, Pierce carried them with little production from Ray Allen, who can't find his range. And in crunch time, the Celtics look almost confused in their offensive sets without a player, including Garnett, who can take it strong to the rim or dish it to an open man; surely Rondo has failed thus far in the playoffs as the point man. On the other hand, the well rested Pistons, who haven't done well on extended rest this season (0-6 ATS / 1-5 SU), gives us concern with their mindset going into this game; moreover, the fact that they've failed to cover in 11 of the last 12 NBA Conference Finals also raises eyebrows. But I do like how they shook off their road shakiness late in the Orlando series and closed. Furthermore, the Pistons are 7-0 ATS on the road in this relatively low 'total' range. And Prince has the arm length to defensively be bothersome to Pierce, while any of the starting 5 for Detroit can fill the net on the opposite end of the floor while Boston struggles to find offensive rhythm with Garnett and Pierce as the only guys who have shown consistency lately. Now that Billups is back in the fray, we'll look for Pistons lineup, which has played together for years, to deliver here. Detroit Over (174) for 2 Units

Sorry guys. Got the wrong forum.

Detroit (+4') for 2 Units Detroit/Boston 8:30: In this game, the rhythm (Boston), rest (Detroit) dichotomy makes a difficult choice; for example, the Celtics one day off from closing out a seven game series, while the Pistons had a six day layoff. There are several variables to consider, but I find these to carry the most weight: Boston is off an emotional high winning Game 7 by the slimmest of margins; in that game, Pierce carried them with little production from Ray Allen, who can't find his range. And in crunch time, the Celtics look almost confused in their offensive sets without a player, including Garnett, who can take it strong to the rim or dish it to an open man; surely Rondo has failed thus far in the playoffs as the point man. On the other hand, the well rested Pistons, who haven't done well on extended rest this season (0-6 ATS / 1-5 SU), gives us concern with their mindset going into this game; moreover, the fact that they've failed to cover in 11 of the last 12 NBA Conference Finals also raises eyebrows. But I do like how they shook off their road shakiness late in the Orlando series and closed. Furthermore, the Pistons are 7-0 ATS on the road in this relatively low 'total' range. And Prince has the arm length to defensively be bothersome to Pierce, while any of the starting 5 for Detroit can fill the net on the opposite end of the floor while Boston struggles to find offensive rhythm with Garnett and Pierce as the only guys who have shown consistency lately. Now that Billups is back in the fray, we'll look for Pistons lineup, which has played together for years, to deliver here. Detroit Over (174) for 2 Units

*Best Bet* Baltimore Under (9) [Cabrera/Mussina] for 3 UnitsBaltimore/NYY 7:05: Both of these pitchers' are in good form: Cabrera has been rock steady and controls a 2.03 ERA in 31 innings of road work; Mussina controls a 2.76 over his last five starts - all wins. And Cabrera and Mussina have combined to go 3-13-1 O/U this season, including 0-5-1 O/U in their last three, respectively. NY is getting good work out of their bullpen this season but their run production is why they're in last place in their division. NY has driven in 2 runs or less in 5 of their last 6 games. Alex Rodriguez returns tonight, but can't expect him to be at his best not having faced big league pitching for awhile. And Baltimore surely isn't ripping the cover off the ball on the road (3.7 rpg on a .235 BA). Baltimore is 8-19 O/U in their last 27 road tilts and 14-36 O/U on the road vs an AL team with a batting average .265 or less over the last two seasons. NY, on the other hand, is 9-22 O/U vs righties, and 5-18 O/U following a loss. "Under" it is.

San Antonio (+4') for 3 Units Spurs/Hornets 8:05: We realize that NBA Second Round home teams have completely dominated; however, now the pressure mounts with Game 7 and that unusual situation for the Hornets plus the additional 2' points gives us value with San Antonio. The Hornets have been completely dominant all season off road losses of 10+ points - winning by an average margin of close to 10 ppg. But that resilient button can be pushed only so often before it wears out, and we're looking for that scenario to unfold tonight against a smart and experienced Spurs team. We'll look for the incumbent champs to show that experience does pay dividends this time of year, especially with extended rest in which San Antonio stands 20-9 ATS in their last 29 on 3+ days rest. And with the Spurs at a terrific 17-6 ATS when tied in a playoff series, we'll grab the points. Spurs Over (183) for 2 Units Spurs/Hornets 8:05: This series has maintained a tight six point range in its last three meetings in New Orleans from 180 to 186. And we realize the magnitude of importance for defense that both Popovich and Scott preach. However, our concern is the closeness we project this game tonight; moreover, we believe that the tight game will be accompanied by driving to the basket fouls, which will add points without time ticking off the clock. And New Orleans has had little trouble scoring on this floor throughout the playoffs; tonight, we'll look for San Antonio to match that scoring as this one goes - "over".

Houston (+115) [Moehler over Lilly] for 2 Units Chicago/Houston 7:05: Houston is coming off an extended road trip in which they fared quite well by capturing 7 of 10 games. During that trip, Berkman and Pence continued their hot hitting to lead Houston's lineup; tonight, I'll look for Houston's hot hitting to carry over at home where they drive in 5.6 rpg on a .285 BA, and 4.9 rpg on a .280 BA vs lefties. I'll also look for Houston to get the best of Ted Lilly who is running hot after a sluggish start; however, he hasn't been thoroughly tested on the road - where he's struggled this season (5.63 ERA). As a result, look for Brian Moehler, who's making his 3rd start of the season, to get the needed run support. The Cubs, off another big winning home stay (10-2), drives in just 4.3 rpg on a .246 BA on the road, where they lost 7 of their last 10. Houston the call.

New York Mets Under (8) [Santana/Rasner] for 2 Units Mets/Yankees 7:05: We realize this series has gone 'over' in 4 of the last 6 at Yankee Stadium; however, the Yankees are not driving in runs this season. And vs lefties, the Yankees have driven in just 3.2 rpg o a .242 BA. They'll have big trouble driving in runs vs Johan Santana who sports a 2.27 ERA in 35 interleague starts and sports a stellar 1.17 ERA in three starts at Yankee Stadium. On the other hand, the Mets have driven in just over 3 rpg over their last four games. The Yankee's Darrell Rasner, who's called up again, should toss another solid home outing here, while the surging Yankees' bullpen has his back. NY is 3-18 O/U following a loss and 5-12 O/U at home. "Under" the call. ChiSox Under (8') [Floyd/Sanchez) for 2 Units ChiSox/Giants 10:15: The White Sox averaged just 4 rpg vs the NL last year and should struggle producing runs tonight. They'll face home strong Jonathon Sanchez (2.79 ERA in 29 IP @ home). And Sanchez sports a 1.93 ERA in 12 career relief appearances in interleague play. On the other hand, we'll look for Gavin Floyd to bounce back after coming off a rough outing. SF hasn't demonstrated big bats in this pitchers' ball park and controls a 9-14 O/U mark in night baseball. The White Sox are 3-12 O/U in their last 15 road tilts and should be part of a lower scoring outing here.

Cleveland (-2') for 2 Units Boston/Cleveland 8:00: The Celtics' playoff road woes (0-5 SU/ATS) should continue here; after all, they've given no indication of poise or clutch play as a playoff traveler; moreover, their offense looks extremely shaky down late in games with sloppy passes and brick laying quick shots. At times, Rondo gets hot, but shows his inexperience by subsequently launches quick forced shots that pisses off Rivers. And Cassell can't score or defend in this series. We'll look for Cleveland, which is 7-1 ATA as a playoff favorite, to continue to play well on their home floor. The Cavaliers won't have one of the best perimeter shooters - Gibson - but Devin Brown and Damon Jones should pick up the slack, or Pavlovic is capable of getting more minutes. With the second round home domination, we'll stay on the home team. Boston Under (179) for 2 Units Boston/Cleveland 8:00: This 'total' propped up a bit because of the season history of these teams in Cleveland; however, the last game here combined for just 165 points. And the offensive struggles should continue as both of these defensive minded teams should continue to lock down. Cleveland is 7-18 O/U vs good defensive teams (those allowing less than 91 ppg) under Brown, including 3-7 O/U this year. We'll look for another slow paced grind it out game. Utah (-4) for 1 Unit

Cleveland Under (176) for 2 Units Cleveland/Boston 8:00: Boston's defense has done a pretty good job on neutralizing James on this floor, and no one else on Cleveland has stood out offensively, especially in crunch time, on the road. On the other hand, the Cavaliers' defense does play hard consistently, and has not let any Boston player take control of a game in this series. This season, this series at Boston has produced low scoring outputs of 150, 179, 148, and 162. The "179", back on February 27th, is a concern, of course, but with defense intensified in the playoffs, especially with these two defensive minded teams, "under" would be the logical call. Under Mike Brown, Cleveland is 24-41 O/U after allowing 85 or less, including 5-12 O/U this season in that role; moreover, they're 6-18 O/U vs good defensive teams (those allowing 91 or less) in the second half of the season, including 2-7 O/U this season. Boston, on the other hand, is 6-15 O/U vs Central Division foes, and 0-4 O/U after a loss by 10+. Five of the last eight in this series have gone 'under' and value is still with the "under" here. Los Angeles (-8') for 1 UnitJazz/Lakers 10:30: The Lakers continue to play well and nearly knocked the Jazz off Sunday despite Bryant's back problems. Look for Los Angeles to continue the hot trend in the second round, and exact revenge on their home floor. And this looks to be a vulnerable spot for Utah; after all, if we look back to Round 1 of Game 5 for Utah in which they were coming off a big home win over Houston, they subsequently got hammered at Houston 95-69. Moreover, the Jazz are a mere 6-13 ATS on two days rest while the Lakers are 8-3 ATS in the same role. Los Angeles is 7-1 ATS in their last 8 as chalk and should deliver here.

*Best Bet* San Diego Under (8) [Peavy/Lilly] for 3 Units Padres/Cubs 8:05: The big bats of the Cubs should be neutralized with Jake Peavy tonight. Peavy, who sports a solid 2.47 ERA, controls a 2.10 ERA in five career starts vs Chicago. I'll look for him to go deep into this game with little help from an improving Padres' bullpen. On the other hand, the Cubs' Ted Lilly has been solid lately after a rough start; Lilly sports a 2.42 ERA over his last four starts. And the major's lowest scoring offense should have continued trouble against Lilly, who allowed just 2 ER in his last 23 1/3 innings of starting work vs the Padres. And the Cubs' bullpen has been getting it done lately (1.26 ERA last 10). With this series at 2-7 O/U in its last 9 meetings, I'll stay "under" here with two hot pitchers on the hill.

*Best Bet* San Antonio Under (186') for 3 Units Spurs/Hornets 9:30: This series at New Orleans has maintained a tight range of 182 to 186 in its last 4 meetings since the start of this season. And we like the defensive adjustments Popovich made with putting his best stopper - Bowen on Stojakovic while letting Parker run with Paul; the rationale is he'd rather lock down key weapons and let their superstar attempt to beat them on his own. And also starting Ginobili gives the Spurs a bit more versatility on both ends of the floor. As for New Orleans, HC Scott is spending much time on defensive adjustments; consequently, we should see less offensive productivity by SA on this floor; after all, the Spurs have had trouble scoring here recently, and the Hornets are 12-28 O/U w/ revenge. Moreover, New Orleans is 3-8 O/U at home in this 'total' range, while the Spurs have gone "under" in 4 of the last 6 in this 'total' range on the road. Orlando (+6) for 2 Units Orlando/Detroit 7:05: We don't anticipate that Billups (hamstring) will see much action, perhaps none at all; after all, they'll need him healthy for the next series or, if it calls for it, the next game of this series. Therefore, we'll look for Orlando to establish urgency and be competitive here. Orlando is a sweet 11-3 ATS / 10-4 SU revenging a home loss. The Magic need to get in their offense quicker to negate the Pistons lock down half court defense, which has rendered Howard near useless on the scoring end. The Pistons can get lazy at times when they get bored and this should be a prime spot for that with the Pistons in control of the series. Orlando the call.

Chicago Cubs -1.5 (+115) [Marquis over Estes] for 2 Units Padres/Cubs 8:05: We'll spot a few runs to SD with a hot hitting Cubs team that's playing very well at Wrigley. Chicago, which is averaging 7.1 rpg at home and against lefties, should get the best of former Cubs hurler Shawn Estes, who's working his way back from elbow reconstruction. Estes, who hasn't started a MLB game in more than two years, looked shaky in his relief appearance vs Atlanta last Thursday. We do realize that SD has gotten the best of this series, but as a traveler, the offensively challenged Padres are driving in just 3.2 rpg on a .237 BA, and show little strength in the bullpen (5.37 ERA). We'll look for Jason Marquis to settle in here. Marquis controls a 3.38 ERA in his last 5 starts vs SD, including allowing just 2 ER over his last 13 IP. And the Chicago bullpen (1.80 ERA last 10) should continue to get it done against the light hitting Padres.

NY Yankees (-108) [Pettitte over Garza] for 2 Units NYY/TB 7:10: The Rays are having a bang up season but vulnerable here; after all, they've lost 4 of 6 this season to NY, including their last four. And the Yankees are 13-4 with Pettitte vs TB; moreover, Pettitte is 8-1 with a3.30 ERA @ TB. The Rays are currently batting just .204 in their last 10 vs lefties, and drive in a meager 3.5 rpg at home vs lefties. On the other hand, the NYY have hit well against righties recently (.310 last 10). We'll look for NY to get the best of Matt Garza who didn't look good in limited action at home (6 ER in 7 /23 IP), nor has he fared well against New York (6.75 ERA in 2 appearances). NY has been strong on Mondays (24-14 last 38) and should get it done here off a day of rest. St. Louis (-105) [Wainwright over Bush] for 1 Unit Cardinals/Brewers 8:05: We'll look for St. Louis to break out of their batting slump against a weak spot in the Brewers' rotation. Dave Bush, who's 9-26 vs division opponents, controls a 1-4 mark with a 6.98 ERA in five starts vs St. Louis. And the Brewers' lineup, which has driven in just 3.1 rpg on a .225 BA over their last 7 games, shouldn't give him enough run support; after all, they'll take on Adam Wainwright who controls a 2.58 ERA on the road and 2.36 ERA in 4 starts vs Milwaukee. Wainwright, who faced Milwaukee twice already this season, has given up just 1 run over his last 13 1/3 IP. And now that struggling closer - Isringhausen is benched, maybe the Cardinals can close some games out. The Cardinals are 11-4 off a loss and 4-0 on the road in this price range. St. Louis the call.