NBA Feb 26

6 Game Win Streak!!

Lets make it 9!

Here be the picks:

Cleveland -5.5 vs Toronto --> Take the Cavs on the road to win by double digits

Portland vs Chicago -3.5 --> Take the Blazers with the points

Minnesota vs Oklahoma City -9.5 --> Take the Thunder at home to win by double digits

NBA Record 43-29

NBA - FEB 24

Alright, so everyone in the room who went 3-0 on their picks last night, raise your hand. Mmmhmm, thats what I thought. Yes, yes, dont want to toot my own horn, but I did pretty well for meself last night. Hopefully this trend of winners doesnt lose momentum anytime soon. Here are the picks:

LA Lakers vs Dallas -1 ---> Take the Mavs at home with the win

Memphis -1 vs Washington ---> Take the Grizz on the Road

Detroit vs LA Clippers -3.5 ---> Take the Clips

I like Dallas to win at home against the Lakers. Its a big game for both teams considering they are among the elite of the Western conference and both want to use this game as a gauge to determine where they stand in the grand scheme of things. Dallas has looked good of late, especially after the additions of former All-Stars in Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood. LA are coming off a last second win against the Grizzlies last night. In the end, I like the Mavs to win with the fresher legs, playing motivated basketball in front of a home crowd.

In the Memphis/Washington game, I like the Grizz to squeak by with a win on the road. The Grizzlies come off a crushing home loss against the Lakers and so they may be a little wary coming into tonights game. However, there are two factors in leading me to pick the Grizz over the Wiz. For one, the Grizzlies just have better overall talent on their roster. For another, the Wiz will be without one of their stars as former All-Star and recent addition to the team, Josh Howard, will be out for the remainder of the year with a torn ACL knee ligament. In the end, I expect the Grizz to come out sluggish in the 1st quarter/1st half, but they'll eventually work the kinks out to win the game on the road.

Lastly, I like the Clips to win at home against the Pistons. Simple reason for me in taking the Clips - Detroit's not a good road team (7-19). On the other hand, the Clippers play considerably well at home (16-12) and have some good matchups that they can exploit all night, namely Chris Kamen on the inside. So, expect the Clips to win by 6 -10 points, covering the 3.5 point spread easily.

NBA Record against the spread in 2009-10 --> 43-29

NBA - FEB 23

Coming back strong with an overall record of 40-29 with picks against the line, looking for some winner tonight. Here are the picks:

New Orleans vs Cleveland (-11.5) --> Take the Hornets to keep it within 10

Portland (-7.5) vs New Jersey --> Take the Blazers

LA Lakers (-5.5) vs Memphis --> Take the Grizz plus the points

I like NO to challenge the Cavs at home. Cleveland hasnt been gelling since the acquisition of Jamison and I think the team will continue to struggle as they try and find a role for the forward. New Orleans has been impressive of late and PG Nick Collision has been impressive since taking over duties from Chris Paul, who has been nursing some injuries.

I like New Jersey to play well at home against Portland, but I just think Portland has too much talent for the Nets to handle. Portland will be playing tomorrow night in Toronto so I think they buckle down and focus tonight so that they get at least a split in this 2-game time frame. Expect Portland to play well and win comfortably so that they can rest starters for tomorrow.

Finally, Im taking the Grizz to possibly win tonight against the Lakers. Memphis played LA tough at home last time out, winning by 2 points. With Kobe nursing some injuries and Memphis playing at home, I just think the Grizz keep this game close.

UFC 110 Picks

With UFC 110 just hours away, I figured I would put up some picks for the card before its too late.

• Heavyweight Bout: Mirko Filipović vs. Anthony Perosh

Perosh is a last minute replacement to the fight after CroCop's original opponent, Ben Rothwell, came down with an illness. Whether it was Perosh or Rothwell, the pick I would have made would be and is Crocop. Mirko has had his ups and downs in the UFC and at one point called his retirement. Now that he is returning to the fight game, one has to believe that this "victory lap" of sorts is done for the purpose of coming out and leaving the world of MMA on a positive note.

Mirko via TKO in round 2

• Light Heavyweight Bout: Keith Jardine vs. Ryan Bader

Bader at UFC 110 takes a step up in terms of competition fighting an always game Keith Jardine. Although Jardine seems to give guys trouble from time to time, I dont expect Bader to have too much trouble in this fight. Expect Bader to use his wrestling and get within a comfort zone in this fight, not allowing Jardine to throw effective leg strikes on the feet.

Bader via UD, maybe even a stoppage on the ground

• Lightweight Bout: Joe Stevenson vs. George Sotiropoulos

Probably the fight that has me the most intrigued coming up tonight is this one. Stevenson is looking to work himself up to the lightweight championship discussion and he fights Sotiropoulous who should be a good test for him, particularly on the ground. Both have good bases in grappling and have good boxing. For me, I think the key for the fight will not be inside the ring but rather outside. Stevenson is working with Greg Jackson, MMA guru to the who's who of the UFC, while Sotiropoulos fights in front of a home crowd. Ultimately, I like Sotiropoulous to win the fight in an upset of sorts (granted, Im picking this fight more on a gut instinct rather than rationale). I think this fight goes to the judges and Sotiropoulos does enough to win over the fans (and judges) in a close fight. Plus, Sotiropoulos is going at +190 on Bodog, good odds in my books.

Sotiropoulos via close, but unanimous decision

• Middleweight Bout: Wanderlei Silva vs. Michael Bisping

In the co-main event of the evening, we get a slimmer Wanderlei Silva (dropping down to his first fight at 185 pounds in the UFC), against Michael Bisping, trying to work his way back into title contention. For me, the key to the fight will be if Bisping can get Wanderlei to respect his power. The last time Bisping fought a "big" 185 pounder, he got clocked by Dan Henderson in a memorable knockout. We all know that Wanderlei, like Hendo, has dynamite in his hands and he has a good chin to boot. If Bisping cannot get Wand to respect his power, I see Wanderlei walking down Bisping all night, eventually getting caught with a punch and either being stopped out KO'ed.

However, an interesting sidenote to all Bisping fans, all is not lost. You have to remember that one of Bisping's sparring partners in Rampage Jackson, a fighter who has been in the ring with Wanderlei three times, and who in their last battle got the upper hand. Rampage more than likely showed Bisping some weak points in Wanderlei's armor and that could go a long way into helping The Count come away with a win.

Regardless, Wanderlei via TKO in the 1st or 2nd.

• Heavyweight Bout: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Cain Velasquez

Finally, in the other co-main event, we have the grizzled veteran in Minotauro Nogueira facing off with the young up and coming wrestler, Cain Velasquez. This is a really intriguing fight considering a win by either fighter propels them into the heavyweight title picture. Both are well rounded fighters, albeit Nogueira being a better submission fighter on the ground while Velasquez is better at wrestling, control, and ground and pound. Who do I like? Too close to call for me. What Im interested in seeing is where this fight goes. On the feet, I think technically Minotauro has the edge with his boxing. On the ground, although I think Cain's best chance at winning this fight is with his wrestling and utilizing ground and pound, you are asking for trouble by taking the fight to the ground considering that Minotauro is technically one of the best BJJ artists not just in the heavyweight division, but in the world. As a result, I think I have to take Minotauro via a submission in the 2nd or 3rd.

Minotauro via submission in the 2nd

NBA --> Feb 5th

Yup, back to making the daily 3 picks as well. Im riding a 6-game streak from way back when, so hopefully I'll be able to keep up the winning ways. Anyway, here be the picks!!!

Milwaukee Bucks vs New York Knicks (-2) --> take the Knicks by 3

Phoenix Suns (-2.5) vs Sacramento Kings --> take the Suns by 3

Houston Rockets vs Memphis Grizzlies (-5) --> take the Rockets plus the points

Reasons:

I like the Knicks to win at home against the Bucks. The Knicks are either really good, or they're really bad at home. I'm taking the former rather the latter in this case.

I like the Suns to win on the road by 3. This line sorta jumped out at me. Kings play a style that generally plays into the Suns hands - uptempo with a poor interior defense. I expect a big game from Amare in this game, someone who the Kings wont find an answer to all night.

Finally, I like the Rockets to play the Grizzlies tough on the road. Grizzlies are a really good team at home, but at the same time the Rockets seem to be a team that just gives everyone fits despite a lack of star level talent on their current roster. If anything, I think the Rockets keep this game close - at least closer than the 5 points being afforded by the spread.

NBA Pick Record 38-28

UFC 109

Yes yes, making a return to daily blogs on the world of sports. I'll have my NBA picks up later today, but until then, I guess I'll put up my picks for this weekends UFC event, UFC 109 - Alzheimer's.....I mean, Relentless (heh, yeah I didnt think it was that funny either...)

Just gonna focus on the main card, winners in bold:

• Light Heavyweight bout: Randy Couture vs. Mark Coleman
• Middleweight bout: Nate Marquardt vs. Chael Sonnen
• Welterweight bout: Mike Swick vs. Paulo Thiago
• Middleweight bout: Demian Maia vs. Dan Miller
• Welterweight bout: Matt Serra vs. Frank Trigg

In the Couture/Coleman fight, I really dont see this being too difficult a fight for Randy to handle. Coleman's only real shot at beating Randy is by getting this fight to the ground, something that Brock Lesnar could not do in his fight with The Natural. Ultimately, I think Randy grinds out a victory against Coleman via dirty boxing in the clinch. I would not be surprised if the fight is stopped in the 2nd or 3rd after Couture gets Coleman to the ground via the clinch.

In the Marquardt/Sonnen fight, I like Nate to win the fight either by decision or stoppage. As good as Chael is in his wrestling, Nate dwarfs him in every other part of the fight game. Not only that, but the advantage that Chael has in terms of his wrestling isnt all that much considering Nate's camp has him training against some of the best wrestlers in MMA period (Georges St. Pierre and Rashad Evans coming to mind). In the end, I just think Nate's overall MMA ability will help him find a way to victory against Sonnen who is still a relatively one-dimension fighter.

In the Swick/Thiago fight, its a difficult fight to judge. Swick is coming off a loss to Dan Hardy and is looking to rebound against one of the rising stars in the division in Thiago. Problem is Thiago is that outside of his flash-KO win over Josh Koscheck, he really hasnt fought notable names that people can use to gauge for this fight. He was impressive in his loss to Jon Fitch, but at the same time a loss is a loss. Ultimately however, I do thing Thiago comes away with a win against Swick. I see Thiago looking to close the distance in order to secure a takedown where in he can use his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to his advantage. Either a decision win or a submission for Thiago here imo.

In the Maia/Miller fight, you have to expect a good ground game clinic by both fighters here considering both hold a base in grappling. Granted, we may see the complete opposite in this fight with both fighters keeping the fight on the feet as their grappling may cancel each other out. At the end of the day however, I do see this fight ending up in the ground, and as good a grappler as Miller is, Maia is on a world class level. Only way I see Dan Miller winning is via control in top position for 3 rounds - a very difficult endeavor against any BJJ black belt, let alone Demian Maia. I have Maia via sub.

Finally in the Serra/Trigg fight, I like Serra to take it. I see Serra taking the center of the ring away from Trigg and loading up his hands all night. Problem for Trigg is that his strengths lie in grinding out wins on the ground and using his wrestling. A strategy like that against Matt Serra however is only asking for trouble considering Serra's expertise in BJJ. In the end, I expect Serra to win via a decision or possibly with a sub after rocking Trigg with a loaded hand and then taking his back while he tries to recover from the shot.

As for the undercard fights, I wont run down all of them, but I will give some random opinions on who may be good underdogs to pick:

I think Nover is a good even money bet against Rob Emerson. Emerson is coming off 2 losses and although Nover is returning to the ring after not being able to fight Sam Stout at UFN 19 after a fainting episode, I do expect Nover to take the fight to the ground where he holds a significant advantage over his opponent. In fact, Im a little shocked to see Emerson as the favorite going into the fight. In any event, Nover via sub.

As well, I think Brian Stann may be a very good underdog pick if youre really looking to lay money down on a big dog. Stann fights Paul Davis - a world champion grappler with great credentials in freestyle wrestling. However, he is still a little inexperienced in terms of his exposure to MMA plus he fights someone in Stann who can win the fight with one punch. Either this fight ends early because of Stann's power or it ends via a sub by Davis whenever he takes the fight to the ground.

So there be my picks. I'll try and post my thoughts on the event sometime next week. Til then, its THA signing off. PEACE!