Sports Handicapper Scott Rickenbach's Picks & Predictions

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #68 Saturday 10* Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs Los Angeles Kings @ 7:05 ET - When do you lay -150 with a team? As you guys know, I do not do this frequently. But when I feel my team has a 75 percent chance of winning it certainly makes sense to lay a price in which you only have to win 60 percent of the time to break even. First off, the Flyers money line has dropped from as high as a -185 down to a -150. That is part of the value here. Yes, I know Philadelphia has in-state rival Pittsburgh on deck BUT that game is not until Tuesday. Also, after a big upset win over the Blues, the Flyers then were completely flat and got drilled by the Canadiens on Thursday night. That is noteworthy here as Philadelphia, when at home and off a loss, has won 5 straight games! This a perfect situation (5-0 L5) for Philly and the Kings have lost 20 of 27 road games this season. Also, goalie Brian Elliott will be back between the pipes for this one and he and the Flyers have revenge for a 5-3 loss at Los Angeles earlier this season. In that game Elliott was pulled after allowing 4 goals. He hasn't forgotten and it is payback time for him and for the Flyers. Also, Philly highly motivated after laying an egg against the Habs. Prior to that game the Flyers had scored 3 or more goals in 11 of 15 games. That is worthy of note here as the Kings often struggle to score goals. Before scoring late goals in a 4-3 loss at Florida Thursday, Los Angeles had been held to 2 or less goals in 9 of 12 games. I don't see the Flyers being denied and look for them to send the Kings to their 11th loss in their last 14 games. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Pacific Div Total of the Year - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #61 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Edmonton Oilers vs Arizona Coyotes @ 3:05 ET - The Oilers have two choices at goalie here. Mikko Koskinen has an .863 save percentage in his last 4 games. Mike Smith has an .862 save percentage in his 7 divisional games this season. The Coyotes have been dealing with injury issues at goalie. Darcy Keumper has been out so Anti Raanta had been getting the call but then he go hurt. Raanta might be back this afternoon but the last time he tried to come back from this injury he gave up 3 goals in 2 periods and then had to exit the game. That means it could be Adin Hill between the pipes for this one and he is Arizona's #3 goalie for a reason. In other words, look for plenty of goals here. I know the Coyotes like to play lower-scoring grinder type games but they are not the only team on the ice here of course and Edmonton will push the pace here. The Oilers have seen 9 of their past 11 games total 6 or more goals and we've got a total of just 5.5 posted on this game. Keep in mind, Edmonton has scored an average of 4.3 goals per game in their last 7 games. The Coyotes are off a low-scoring loss but previously had scored 3 or more goals in 6 of their last 8 games. Also, Arizona has allowed at least 3 goals in each of their last 5 games. You can see why I am expecting EACH team to get to at least 3 goals here and, of course, that means this one ends with 7 or more goals and we only need 6 to put us in the winners circle. 10* OVER the total in Edmonton

TV Annihilation - Rickenbach CBB Rotation #756 Saturday 8* UNLV Runnin' Rebels (-) vs New Mexico Lobos @ 6 ET - The Lobos are in trouble while the Rebels are surging under the new coaching regime. New Mexico is off an ugly loss at Colorado State. While the Lobos would certainly love to bounce back here, they simply don't have the personnel that they had coming into this season. Note that 3 key minutes guys are out. JJ Caldwell (suspension), Carlton Bragg (dismissed), and Vance Jackson (knee injury) won't be on the floor tonight. There is a chance Jackson could play but the odds are slim. Speaking of slim odds I just don't see the Lobos going to Vegas and knocking off UNLV with the way they have been playing. The Runnin' Rebels seem to be getting stronger and stronger as they adjust to the system under their new head coach. UNLV has won 6 of their past 7 games and all 6 wins have come by 9 or more points. Look for this one too as well. 8* UNLV

Total of the Week - Rickenbach CBB Rotation #649 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Georgetown Hoyas vs Marquette Golden Eagles @ 2 ET - The Hoyas are averaging 82.5 points per game at home this season. The Golden Eagles are averaging 77.2 points per game this season. Trouble here because they are on the road? Not so fast my friend as Marquette actually is hitting an incredible 41.1% of their three pointers when away from home this season! Georgetown is horrible at defending the arc and the Eagles love to run and gun. The Hoyas also love to run the floor and get quick points in transition and this is particularly true when they are at home. That said, I love the over in this match-up. The Golden Eagles are off a big win versus Xavier and the over is now 7-2 in their lat 9 games as Marquette continues to pile up big points in recent weeks! The Golden Eagles most recent road game was a rare exception (at Xavier) and they make up for that effort here as they take advantage of facing a weak defense. 10* OVER the total in Georgetown

SEC Game of the Year - Rickenbach CBB Rotation #689 Saturday 10* Top Play Missouri Tigers (+) @ Alabama Crimson Tide @ 3:30 ET - The Crimson Tide are off a huge win over in-state rival Auburn. That was a huge win for Alabama for more reasons than one. That victory for the Tide handed the rival Tigers their very first loss of the season. Knocking off a highly ranked team that is also a huge rival is going to leave Alabama flat for this battle and that is bad news for Crimson Tide fans. That's because Missouri comes into this one angry after a 27 point beatdown at Mississippi State in their most recent game. The Tigers were off a big win versus Florida and simply fell flat against the Bulldogs. They won't be flat here however as they lost by double digits at home to the Crimson Tide last season so it is payback time here. Also, lets talk about line value here. When Missouri played at Kentucky they were an 8.5 point dog. When Alabama played at Kentucky they were a 10 point dog! These games were played within a week of each other and the lines tell you the odds makers feel the Tigers are the better team! Yet here they are, with the betting markets falling in love with the Crimson Tide, getting a full +7 in this game as of early gameday morning. I'll gladly take the points here as Missouri is undervalued and Alabama is in a true flat spot here. Yes the Crimson Tide have been very hot ATS but they are facing a tough test here with the Tigers and I expect this game to ultimately be decided by only a bucket or two. 10* MISSOURI

Atlantic Division Total of the Year - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #553 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:35 ET - The Knicks will be in "run and gun" mode as they are at home and catching the Sixers in the 2nd night of a back to back situation. Philadelphia allowed just 89 points in their home win over the Bulls last night. However, Philly used a lot of defensive energy in holding Chicago to just 18 points in the 4th quarter and to 24 points or less in each of the other 3 quarters as well. Sometimes a team needs a "night off" from the defensive intensity even when they're playing. In other words, the 76ers still have another game to be played tonight but don't be surprised if it is a much more open-floor affair after last night's grinder game with the Bulls. The Sixers have allowed an average of 112 points per game in their last 5 road games. The Knicks have allowed an average of 124 points per game their last 8 games. 76ers Saturday games are 6-2 to the over this season. New York is off an embarrassing home loss to the Suns on Thursday and they are 4-2 to the over this season when off a home loss by a double digit margin. Plenty of points in this one! 10* OVER the total in New York

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #552 Saturday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Detroit Pistons @ 7:35 ET - The Hawks off big upset win at San Antonio last night. With Atlanta in a back to back and Detroit having been off each of the past two days, the Pistons are getting all the attention from the betting markets here. However, Detroit is also off a big upset win at Boston and that was preceded by a 3-15 ATS run for a slumping Pistons team. As for the Hawks, yesterday's win brings them to 6-3 ATS their last 9 games and they're also off back to back straight-up wins and could have Jeff Teague (acquired in trade with Wolves) available tonight as well. Atlanta is starting to build a little momentum and they have revenge against the Pistons thanks to a 25 point loss at Detroit two months ago. Prior to that the Hawks had covered 5 of their last 6 games against the Pistons. Look for them to resume that ATS dominance in this series tonight. 10* ATLANTA