Odds On Most Any Matchup: 5dimesSkyBetBetFairBetUS

And So It Goes....

Overall: 7-1-0 (0.875)
Basis Function: Daubechies4

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Wednesday, April 1, 2009

April 1st, 2009 Picks

A fine 2-0-0 day yesterday and I think I get to punch ESPN in the arm since it’s still March 31st here in the Mountain West. My first pick of the day was the under in the Portugal/South Africa match. Bruno Alves scored on a header off one of the first half dozen corner kicks Portugal earned in the 4th minute. The score was 1-0 going into the half and Lucas Twala scored an own goal for Portugal off another corner kick for Portugal to make it 2-0 in the 58th minute. The South African defense held for the rest of the match and never really threatened to score to leave the match with two goals total.

My second pick of the day was Montreal at home. The Canadiens scored in the first 30 seconds of the game and tallied two more goals in the second period to make it 3-0. Chicago scored first in the third period but the Canadiens answered back to make the final score Montreal 4, Chicago 1. So on to the new picks for the new round.

1) Spain @ Turkey – Turkey win or draw
2) Buffalo Sabres @ Atlanta Thrashers – Atlanta
3) Detroit Pistons @ New Jersey Nets – Detroit
4) Trinidad & Tobago @ United States – 3 goals or more
5) McDonald’s High School All-American Game: West vs. East – East
6) Phoenix Coyotes @ Colorado Avalanche – Colorado
7) Houston Rockets @ Phoenix Suns – Phoenix

Alright, looks like there’s still a monthly prize, the chance for a million, top 7 streaks get 10 grand at least, some T-shirt prizes and the chance to win some big money on random games. Good luck everybody!

Analysis
1) The current European odds have a victory for Spain at 45% and a win or draw for Turkey at 55%. Spain has already amassed 15 points in group play, with second place Bosnia-Herzegovina only collecting 9 points. Turkey is just behind the Bosnians with 8 points and really need a win or a draw to stay competitive with a chance to qualify for the World Cup. It is a home game for Turkey. Spain defeated Turkey 1-0 in Barcelona and defeated Belgium 2-1 in Brussels behind an 88' minute goal by David Villa after being down 0-1 early on. Spain will rest some of their players to ensure fresh legs and with their talent should not see a drop in quality. Fernando Torres should start in a 4-5-1 formation.
Confidence: W1 streak or less

2) Buffalo is a -125 favorite and Atlanta is a +105 underdog. Buffalo is 4-5-1 in their last 10 games and Atlanta is 7-3-0. Buffalo is 1-4-0 on the road recently, losing their last road game, and Atlanta is 4-1-0 at home winning their last two. Ryan Miller is a better goalie than Johan Hedberg but Atlanta is tough at home and their offense is one of the best in the NHL.
Confidence: W3 streak or less

4) Both Trinidad & Tobago and United States have played 10 matches in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying play. United States’ matches have had an average of 3.2 goals scored and Trinidad’s matches have had an average of 2.6 goals scored. 5 of 10 of United States’ matches have gone over and 6 of 10 of Trinidad’s matches have gone over. Both previous matches between Trinidad & Tobago and United States have had 3 goals scored.
Confidence: W1 streak or less

7) Phoenix is 6-4 in their last 10 games and are currently on a 3 game slide, all on the road. Houston is 7-3 in their last 10 games and currently on a 1 game winning streak, a home game. Phoenix has won their last 5 home games and Houston lost their last road game, but won the 4 road games before that. Both teams have defeated good competition, but Houston had a tendency to win in incredibly close games while Phoenix won more comfortably. Phoenix is a 1 to 1.5 point favorite in Vegas.
Confidence: W2 streak or less