Andrew Wilsher

The Clippers feel like the classic “trap” spot on today’s board. Los Angeles has rattled off six straight wins, and that kind of momentum naturally pulls the betting public in. You can already see it coming — every handicapper and tout is lining up to back the Clippers, especially with Chicago’s reputation for being wildly inconsistent. The Bulls have flashed real upside at times this season, but they’ve also sprinkled in some ugly performances that make them hard to trust.

That’s exactly why this number is dangerous. When one side looks too obvious, the oddsmakers often lean into it — hanging a spread that feels generous just to invite a flood of bets. The Clippers’ current winning streak makes them the “safe” play, but in reality it’s the bait. Chicago’s volatility actually plays into this type of situation: they’re fully capable of showing up with energy, knocking down shots, and turning the game into a fist fight that gives them a path to victory. The Clippers also are not exactly a trustworthy road side either, they are 8-14 SU in away tilts. Chicago surprisingly, 13-9 SU in the United Center. The line speaks into this more than recent streaks. This is the kind of matchup where the sharp approach is to fade the crowd. Don’t overthink the narrative — if it looks like free money, it usually isn’t. Lay the points with the Bulls and take the uncomfortable side.

Clippers vs Bulls prediction: Bulls -3.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -4.

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The San Antonio Spurs will be playing the second leg of a back-to-back situation when they visit the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. In the second legs of Miami’s 7 back-to-backs this season, the games have produced 224 points or fewer on 4 occasions. Another one finished with 225. Another relatively low-scoring game could be in the cards. The under is 8-1 in the Spurs’ last 9 overall and 6-0 in their last 6 on the road. It is also 11-2 in the Rockets’ last 13 games. Additionally, the under is 6-2 in the last 8 head-to-head meetings. I will roll with those trends for my Spurs vs Rockets prediction, which is Under 224.5.

Houston plays at the fourth-slowest pace in the NBA (101.1 possessions per game). San Antonio is in the bottom half of the association in that department. Moreover, Spurs guard Devin Vassell (15.0 ppg) has missed the last 11 games and is doubtful for Tuesday. Houston is without Tari Eason (12.0 ppg). A total of 231 points were scored when the Spurs and Rockets squared off on November 7 in San Antonio, but it should be noted that Houston shot 13-of-27 from 3-point range and the 2 teams combined to go 42-of-46 from the free-throw line. Those are numbers that are unlikely to be replicated. I’m rolling with the under.

Spurs vs Rockets prediction: Under 224.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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Toronto looks to turn things around and sweep the regular season series against the Golden State Warriors as the two teams clash for the 2nd and final time this regular season. Just 1 win in 4 game has put the 4th seed in jeopardy for the Raptors, as the 76ers, Magic and Cavaliers are closing in on them. A win at Chase Center would do wonders for the confidence of this team, they’ve actually done solid in recent meetings against the spread, covering 4 times in 5 played. This includes the first meeting of the season which saw Toronto win in a 141-127 shootout.

The Warriors received the worst possible news ahead of this game with Jimmy Butler tearing his ACL in last night’s win over the Heat. The 37-year old will miss the remainder of the season, the hopes of making a deep playoff run are over without him in my opinion. This is one of the older rosters in the NBA with no real substitute for Jimmy, we could see them starting to struggle as soon as Tuesday against the Raptors as they enter scramble mode without their 2nd best player. Draymond Green is also questionable for this game, the emotional leader of the Warriors is doubtful with an ankle problem.

Even though the Raptors have not impressed, they do have the rest advantage here and are playing a shocked Warriors team that just lost their best all-around player and defender. If there was ever a time for them to pull off the upset at Chase Center, it’s Tuesday night. I’m going for an outright win for the road underdogs here.

Toronto Raptors vs Golden State Warriors Predictions: Raptors ML (+125) available at time of publishing. Playable to +115.

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On paper, Seton Hall shouldn’t be getting this many points. But that is the point. Seton Hall’s scoring defense sits sixth in the nation, up against a SJU offense that averages 86 points per game. Hall is also second in the land in the opponent field goals made per game (20.4). Naturally, the market’s inclination here is that the Johnnies are about to hit a wall. So why are they favored by so much? The answer is the oddsmakers don’t trust the Pirates here, plain and simple.

Seton Hall’s offense can be shaky under pressure, they sit 280th in field goal percentage (43.4%) and they are among the worst in three point shooting. That’s dangerous against St. John’s, because the Johnnies thrive on turning misses into pace — and pace into points. Even when they aren’t shooting well, their effort creates extra possessions, which is how spreads get covered when a team like Seton Hall has no Plan B outside of relying on their defense to keep them in games exclusively. And here is another key factor – strength of schedule. Seton Hall has played the 287th-ranked non-conference strength of schedule. The Red Storm played the 40th in that category. In other words, Hall has been conflating their points by stacking wins like pancakes against cupcakes. SJU meanwhile has played premium competition – huge difference maker here. St. John’s plays a more aggressive brand — they hit first, and they keep hitting. Over 40 minutes, that wears on teams that don’t have reliable shot-makers or consistent ball security. This line isn’t asking St. John’s to survive. On the contrary, it’s asking them to do what they’re designed to do: run and separate. Seton Hall may hang briefly — but St. John’s will pull away.

Seton Hall vs St. John’s prediction: St. John’s -9.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -10.

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This is a long swim back for a wager, but there are several moving parts in play that make the Wolverines the equitable side in this contest. Let’s start with the elephant in the room. The Hoosiers won their first ever national championship in football, last night. How does that affect a college basketball game? Well, it’s very simple. Bloomington came unglued last night and was filled with bedlam thanks to the what has become the greatest turnaround in sports history. The spectre of that event creates a lot of distraction and it will even trickle down to the IU basketball team undoubtedly here too. One couldn’t think of a worser scenario for the Hoosiers to not be focused. This is one of those days that you wish a D2 school was on the schedule like it was still December. The problem is the task here is to square off with the best team in the country.

Indiana with this many points looks like the right side, because of sentimentality more than anything else. The market is still tied into what Coach Cignetti and his boys did last night in Miami, overlooking the fact that the line is telling that the Wolverines are primed to put the celebration to an end. However, the market is parlaying last night’s feel-good moment onto the prospect of the basketball Hoosiers knocking off the top side in basketball in their own barn all in the span of 24 hours. That is ESPN-level hyperbole at its finest. Nevertheless, Michigan basketball has already dominated elite competition all season long, that’s why they are ranked where they are, and they will be sitting in Ann Arbor dialed in for this match. The price says the best of the Wolverines will be on display. Lay the lumber in this one.

Indiana vs Michigan prediction: Michigan -15.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to the number.

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The LSU Tigers will travel to Gainesville on Tuesday night for a SEC matchup against the Florida Gators. LSU played well to the begin the season, starting an impressive 12-1 but have struggled to begin conference play. They have lost four out of their last five games and are just 1-4 in league play. LSU is headed in the wrong direction while Florida is playing their best basketball of the season. The Gators are coming off a massive road win against undefeated Vanderbilt. They are the better team here and I expect them to cover the spread.

Florida is currently laying double digits, and the Gators to cover this number is my best bet on this game for a variety of reasons. For starters, the Gators are 4-1 in SEC play and have the top rated in offense in the the country at BartTorvik since January 1. In fact, Florida is ranked 1st in adjusted offensive efficiency and 32nd in adjusted defensive efficiency since January 1, while LSU is ranked 106th and 114th in that span. Florida has not been a good shooting team, but it should be able to dominate inside thanks to an elite frontcourt and rebounding edge. Take Florida to cover at home.

LSU vs Florida prediction: Florida -14.5 available at time of publishing. Playable to -15.

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The Minnesota Wild will be in Montreal on Tuesday night to take on the Canadiens. The Wild will be playing this game on the second half of a back-to-back. The Canadiens have a young dynamic group with a lot of scoring talent. As a team, they are fifth in the league in scoring, averaging 3.39 goals per game. Their defensive play and goaltending tend to hold them back from being a great team, but on most nights they can out-score their mistakes. They will be going up against a Wild team that should be a little sluggish from their game in Toronto on Monday.

The injury bug has struck the Wild lineup as of late as Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy remain out of the lineup. Without these two, their lineup is no where near as deep as it usually is, and they will be outmatched by the depth of the Canadiens. Home ice advantage at the Bell Centre is a real thing as that building is always rocking. I will be siding with the home team Canadiens in this one.

Wild vs. Canadiens prediction: Canadiens ML (-140) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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The Boston Bruins will be taking their 6-game winning streak on the road to Dallas to take on the Stars on Tuesday night. The Stars have been heading in the opposite direction as of late as they are riding a three-game losing streak and they are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games. Despite the recent struggles, the Stars are still one of the more well-rounded teams in the NHL. They are ranked 10th in the NHL — averaging 3.27 goals per game — and 6th in the league, averaging 2.78 goals against per game. They also have one of the best goaltenders in the league in net in Jake Oettinger, which certainly helps matters.

Going up against a streaking Bruins team will be no easy task, but the Bruins are a much better home team than they are on the road. In fact, 5 of the 6 wins during their current streak came on home ice. Pair this with the Stars having a 12-7-3 record on home ice, and I like the Stars chances. I think the Stars will start to turn things around, give me the home team in this one.

Bruins vs. Stars prediction: Stars 3-way (-170) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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The New Jersey Devils make their second stop on a four-game road trip against the Edmonton Oilers, and it’s their second day in as many nights in the province of Alberta. New Jersey picked up a 2-1 victory in overtime, as Simon Nemec made a winner of Jacob Markstrom on Monday. The Devils are 3-5-0 in 8 games this season when playing on no rest, and 2 of those victories came against the Minnesota Wild. The Devils are 3-1-0 in the past 4 games, and they’re 7-4-0 in the past 11 games as an underdog on the puck line, too. However, the back-to-back situation is concerning.

For the Oilers, they’ve won consecutive games by an 11-0 margin, with both Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram posting back-to-back victories against the Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues. Edmonton is 5-1-2 in the past 8 games, and it has allowed one or no goals in 4 of the past 5 games since Jan. 12. The Devils won their most recent visit to Edmonton on Nov. 4, 2024, winning 3-0, and they’re 2-5-0 in the past 7 meetings against the Oilers. Still, the back-to-back is a tough spot for the Devils, and the fact Edmonton comes in with a lengthy shutout streak is back news for New Jersey, too.

Devils vs Oilers prediction: Oilers ML (-160) at time of publishing. Playable to -170.

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