Split my two sports betting picks on Saturday. We started the day with an NFL winner on the underdog Washington Redskins and ended our betting day with an NBA loss on the Houston Rockets. Very disappointed in the Rockets, who followed a home loss to New Orleans by losing on their home floor again and getting outshot 51% to 39% in the process. Below are the two sports betting picks from Saturday, including the analysis I posted in the Members area and included in emails to my clients.
4:30 pm ET
NFL
#106 WASHINGTON +7.5
$200 (Normal Bet)
BOTTOM LINE: Throw the stats & records out the window in these NFL divisional games. Washington actually outgained the Eagles by 132 yards in Philly back on 09/21, but a 102-yard kickoff return TD was the difference in a 37-34 Eagles win. We saw these Redskins go into Dallas on a Monday night several weeks ago and beat the Cowboys, further proving my point that records and stats are meaningless in division rivalry games. The Eagles need a win to stay alive for a division title and/or playoff berth, so they may be a little tight for this one. On the flip side, the 3-11 Redskins have been eliminated from playoff contention for weeks, so they can play loose here. This is just way too many points to be laying on the road in a division rivalry game such as this one. I don’t make a habit of betting on bad teams, but I see some value on this home dog. The Redskins would love nothing more than to play spoiler at home today and have a hand in knocking these Eagles out of the playoff hunt. I’ll take more than a TD with this divisional home dog and bet on WASHINGTON.
8:05 pm ET
NBA
#508 HOUSTON -5
$200 (Normal Bet)
BOTTOM LINE: The Hawks are coming off a huge 29-point blowout win over Lebron James & Cleveland. They did so without their leading scorer, Jeff Teague. Teams have a habit of stepping up when playing that first game without their star teammate. They also have a habit of coming down hard following that huge win. That’s where Atlanta finds itself tonight and they’ll be facing a highly motivated Rockets team that will be looking to bounce back from a 9-point home loss to New Orleans on Thursday. Atlanta shot an amazing 64.5% from the field against the Cavs. What goes up must come down & motivated Houston awaits. This game sets up well for the Rockets at home and I’m expecting them to win by 9. Lay the points with HOUSTON.
