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Spot bets are classic handicapping practices that have proven
profitable no matter what sport you're betting. Whether it's a team
looking past this week's opponent, one coming off a hard-fought victory,
or a rough patch of schedule, bettors can find value picking their
spots. Expert Ben Burns points out his favorites:
Lookahead spot
The
San Antonio Spurs can't help but lookahead to their upcoming "Rodeo
Road Trip" which takes the Spurs out of the AT&T Center for most of
the month of February. San Antonio will be on the highway for a
nine-game stretch that takes the Spurs all the way out East and then
back West in a span of 20 days. However, while the Rodeo Trip would fall
under our regular "Schedule Spot", San Antonio's inability to stay
focused before the trip is an absolute lookahead.
Over the past
three seasons, including 2015, the Spurs have suffered a slump just
before heading off on that extended away trek. In 2013, San Antonio went
a perfect 6-0 SU but only 2-3-1 ATS. Last season, they flopped to a 1-3
SU mark and failed to cover in each of those games. And this year, the
defending NBA champs are 3-2 SU and 0-4-1 ATS in their last five games,
with Orlando coming to town Wednesday. San Antonio has one more home
stand after that, hosting Miami Friday, before opening the Rodeo Trip in
Toronto Sunday.
Letdown spot
The
Wisconsin Badgers haven't had much time to catch their collective
breathes with the frantic pace of the Big Ten. The Badgers were on the
road for two tough games - at Michigan and Iowa - last week and return
home to face No. 25 Indiana Tuesday night. Wisconsin is just 3-5-1 ATS
since the beginning of conference play and that once gigantic home-court
edge in the Kohl Center is slipping, with a 1-3-1 ATS mark in their
last four in Madison.
The Badgers will finally get a chance to
relax - somewhat - against the Northwestern Wildcats this weekend.
Northwestern sits at the bottom of the Big Ten, going just 1-7 SU in
conference play so far. The Wildcats do, however, present some great
value on the road, where they are perfect 6-0 ATS heading into Tuesday's
tilt in Nebraska. Northwestern was blown away by Wisconsin 81-58 at
home on Jan. 4, so the Badgers could get caught putting their feet up
with a large spread likely looming in Saturday's game.
Schedule spot
The
Anaheim Ducks are hopping the country for a five-game road trip, which
opens in Nashville Thursday. The Ducks will be playing the first three
stops of this trip in four nights, taking on the Predators, Washington
Capitals (Friday), and Tampa Bay Lightning (Sunday) - three opponents
that love to push the pace and keep goaltenders busy.
Nashville
ranks third in shots on goal in the NHL (32 per game), while Washington
boast the league's third-best power play (23.5 percent), and Tampa Bay
nets a league-high 3.2 goals a game. That's a whole lot of offense to
handle in that short span. After that, the Ducks finish up at Florida
Tuesday and at Carolina Thursday -two teams on the other end of that
offensive scale.
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