Pick of the Night

Memphis Grizzlies -1.5 at Detroit Pistons

The Grizzlies are now 23 and 11 since their 1-8 start. As of now they would be the 7th seed in the West and a dangerous 7 seed at that. Taking down the likes of the Suns, Jazz, Trailblazers, Spurs, Thunder and Magic in recent weeks. The Pistons on the other hand have been very disappointing this season even with adding prolific scorer Ben Gordon. The Grizzlies are in the process proving to the rest of the league that they are no longer a slouch in this league. This is a game that they are supposed to win, rarely have the Grizzlies been in the position where they are supposed to win. Grizzlies minus only 1.5 points seems like a logical choice to me.

Grizzlies over Pistons - Scuttlebutt Record - (14-19)

Last pick, Tarheels -1 over Wolfpack, resulted in a Win with the Heels ending their losing streak with a 77-63 win.

Pick of the Night

North Carolina Tarheels -1 vs North Carolina State Wolfpack

North Carolina is in desperate need of a win as they have lost three in a row in the ACC and are in danger of not making the big dance if they keep playing they way they are. Roy Williams is going to get his guys as prepared as possible against rival NC State and get a much needed win. If UNC could limit turnovers by even 20% their season could be a lot different at this point. But turnovers seem to be part of the Heels identity this year and it doesn't seem like they are going to change. UNC wins a sloppy one tonight.

Heels over Pack - Scuttlebutt Record - (13-19)

Last pick, Mavericks -3 over 76ers, resulted in a loss with the Sixers winning 92-81.

Pick of the Night

Cleveland Cavaliers -3.5 vs L.A. Lakers

What a game on the slate tonight. Kobe vs Lebron square off as their puppets sit back at home to enjoy the show. Cleveland dominated the Christmas Day matchup so you know the Lake show will be looking to even the score tonight. The Lakers are healthy ish again and want to make a statement. Lebron, at this point in his career, seems more like a showman than a guy who will do anything to win a championship. Lebron may put on a show tonight but it will be the Lakers who will come out on top.

Lakers over Cavs - Scuttlebutt Record - (13-17)

Last pick, Mavericks -4.5 over Wizards, resulted in a Loss with the Mavericks not beating the spread winning by just one point, 94-93.

Pick of the Night

Dallas Mavericks -4.5 at Washington Wizards

I really need a victory here as I have lost 5 picks in a row. Looking through all the NBA action tonight this looked like the most sure thing to bet on since the question, "Is Big Mac on roids?" Dallas is one of the top 5 teams in the NBA right now and should have no trouble beating the wandless Wizards by 5 or more. The Wizards are having all kinds of troubles this season, on and off the court. Antawn Jamison is a great player stuck in an awful situation. As good as he and his number are this season, he can not single handedly stay with Dirk and the Mavs.

Mavericks over Wizards - Scuttlebutt Record - (13-16)

Last pick, Pacers +6.5 over Heat, resulted in a loss with the Heat blowing out the Indiana 113-83.

Pick of the Night

Indiana Pacers +6.5 at Miami Heat

I love Dwyane Wade and watching the heat play, that is when they play well. The Heat look like a top 5 team for stretches but then other stretches they turn into the Miami Wade as he is the only one playing well. Tonight the Pacers will want this one more and will play with some fire behind former Notre Dame star Troy Murphy. With 6.5 points the Pacers take this one down in Miami.

Pacers over Heat - Scuttlebutt Record - (13-15)

Last pick, Cardinals +7 over Saints, resulted in a Loss with the Saints trouncing the Cardinals 45-14.

Pick of the Night

(24)Butler Bulldogs vs Wright State Raiders Pick em game

There is no spread in this game which now somewhat scares me. Butler is number 24 in the country yet they are not favored by anything. This must mean Wright State is semi descent. I love the way Butler plays great team basketball with some exciting and unique players. I have been pretty bad at picking the college games but ill give it another shot. Butler wins a close won like they should.

Butler over Wright State - Scuttlebutt Record - (12-11)
Last night's pick, Texas +4 over Alabama, resulted in a loss as Alabama won the game 37-21. I am not counting this against me for a loss as McCoy was knocked out of the game a couple minutes in. As creator of this blog I am perfectly happy and capable of making this call.

Pick of the Night

Alabama Crimson Tide -4 vs Texas Longhorns - National Championship

Tonight is the final night of college football. It has been a long season with little change at the top as Florida, Texas, and Alabama rotated the top three spots all year long. In the final week of the season, Texas struggled against a weaker Nebraska team and avoided defeat with a last second field goal. Alabama on the other hand manhandled the defending champion Florida Gators. Coming into this game Alabama looks like a clear favorite after each teams previous performances. Alabama has the great defense, played in the supposively better conference, and has the Heisman winner in their backfield (Mark Ingram). Texas on the other hand has the winningest quarterback in College Football History (Colt McCoy) and a high powered passing attack. For the third straight BCS bowl I am going with the underdog.

Texas over Alabama - Scuttlebutt Record - (12-11)
Last pick, Memphis +8 over Syracuse, resulted in a Loss with the Orange winning 74-57.

Pick of the Night

Memphis Tigers +8 at Syracuse Orange

The Memphis Tigers are flying under the radar with all three of their losses coming by less than 8 points including a two point loss to top ranked Kansas. Syracuse is playing above everyone's expectations except for maybe Jim Boeheim. At number 7 in the nation Syracuse finally got hit with a L against Big East rival Pitt. It doesn't get much easier for them as they play an out of conference power in Memphis. Memphis has lost 3 games including one to Umass (better than people nation wide know) but all by a slim margin. With 8 points I am choosing Memphis to win a closely fought game.

Memphis over Syracuse - Scuttlebutt Record - (12-10)

Last pick, Iowa +5.5 over Georgia Tech, resulted in a Win with Iowa controlling the game 24-14.

Pick of the Night

Iowa +5.5 vs Georgia Tech - Orange Bowl

The Orange Bowl has by far been the least hyped game of all the BCS bowls this season. The Iowa Hawkeyes play in a boring Big Ten while the Yellow Jackets play in what could be the weakest BCS conference in the ACC. Iowa scraped through there schedule with no game coming easy. Whether it was Northern Iowa or Michigan, Iowa never looked too impressive in their victories. Never the less they tied with Ohio State as co big ten champs and find themselves taking on the ACC champs in the Orange Bowl. Georgia Tech is a bit more exciting to watch with a great defense and the offensive mind of Paul Johnson, former Navy head coach, running a faster and stronger version of his old teams offense. Iowa has grinded out victories all year and I expect things to stay the same. This will be a low scoring game (although yesterday I said TCU Boise State would be high scoring HA) that will come down to each teams defense. Shutting down the run will be the key in Iowa's victory. Scratch that, keeping Tech's running game in check will be the key as they wont be able to completely stop it.

Hawkeyes over Yellow Jackets - (11-10)
Last pick, Boise State +7.5 over TCU, resulted in a Win with Boise not needing the points winning the game outright 17-10.

Pick of the Night

TCU -7.5 vs Boise State

Monday night's Fiesta bowl features the two non BCS conference schools in TCU and Boise State. This match up seems to be made for two reasons. 1... only one of these teams will finish undefeated instead of possibly both if they were playing in two different bowls. This lowers the amount of undefeated teams with an argument for being number one in the nation. 2... the two teams that can possibly flip the BCS system on its head by completely wrecking a team like Florida, Texas, or Alabama, don't get an opportunity to do so and prove that a playoff is needed. But before I go off on the BCS I am here today just to pick the winner.

These two high octane offenses should make for the most exciting and entertaining BCS bowl game of the season. Everyone appears to be high on TCU this season and has them running circles around Kellen Moore and Boise State. in the words of Lee Corso, "Not so fast, my friend". Boise State somehow continues to get little respect even as they win year after year after year. Gonzaga in NCAA basketball after a couple surprising seasons legitimatized themselves and is now a main stay in the top 25. Boise for some reason has had a similar story and rise to prominence as the Zags but still gets knocked down a peg going into every season. I think Boise has a chip on their shoulder and truly believe that they could beat both Texas and Alabama. The only chance they have to get some believers is to dominate TCU tonight and that is what they will do.

Boise Broncos over Horned Frogs - Scuttlebutt Record - (10-10)

Last pick, Thunder +10 over Lakers, resulted in a Win with the Lakers only winning by three 111-108.

Pick of the Night

Oklahoma City Thunder +10 at Los Angeles Lakers

Kevin Durant will share the stage with Kobe in the bright lights of LA tonight. The Lakers look even better than they were one year ago when they won the Championship. The Thunder are the leagues most improved team with a record hovering around .500 apposed to the 3 or 4 wins they had at this point last season. I predict the young future stars of the Thunder will put up a good fight tonight in a loss but keep it close. For this selection I am going with the Thunder to lose by less than ten and win with the spread.

Thunder over Lakers - Scuttlebutt record - (9-10)
Last Night's Pick, Redskins +3 over Giants, resulted in a Loss with the Giants dominating the Redskins 45-12.

Pick of the Night

Giants -3 at Redskins


No one should bet on this game.  It is a complete toss up.  The Giants look good one week and put up points every way possible, and the next they score less than ten and look like a Rams or Buccaneers team.  The Redskins have made a second half surge in terms of quality of play even though the wins have not shown up like they had hoped.  Ever since Zorn was stripped of his play calling duties, the Redskins have been a respectable team and have gone down to the wire to the best of teams including the Saints.  With such an unpredictable game to try to predict I am going with the Skins at home to take care of the Giants getting 3 points.

Skins over Gmen - Scuttlebutt Record - (9-9)
Last pick, Colts -3 over Jaguars, resulted in a Win with the Colts winning a close one 35-31

Pick of the Night

Indianapolis Colts -3 at Jacksonville Jaguars


The Colts and the Jaguars give us our best match up of the year on Thursday Night Football.  The only question for me in who to choose is how much the Colts starters are going to play, mainly just Peyton.  Caldwell seems to avoid the press and has given little indication of who will play.  He did say he is going to play whoever is healthy.  Peyton is healthy therefore I am going with the Colts.  The Colts offense has been great on the road this season scoring 27 points or more in all but one of their away games.  This coupled with the questionable status of the Jaguars best, maybe only, down field threat in Mike Sims-Walker gives the Colts a good chance of covering the spread tonight.

Colts over Jaguars - Scuttlebutt Record - (8-9)
Last pick, Thunder +2 over Mavericks, resulted in a loss with Dallas pulling away late in a 100-86 victory

Pick of the Night

Dallas Mavericks -2 at Oklahoma City Thunder

One of the brightest young stars in the league, Kevin Durant, gets the opportunity to showcase himself on national TV tonight.  The Mavericks are coming to town and the trio of Jeff Green, Russel Westbrook, and Kevin Durantula will prove they are all rising stars and a rising team.  The Thunder are playing great basketball and have a very tough test in the Mavericks tonight.  Dallas isn't getting too many points but I have confidence in the home crowd and team.  Thunder will reign supreme tonight.

Thunder over Mavericks - Scuttlebutt - (8-8)
Last pick, Lakers -10 over Bulls, resulted in a loss with the Lakers only winning by 9, 96-87.

Pick of the Night

Los Angeles Lakers -10 at Chicago Bulls

Phil Jackson helped build both of these teams dynasties but it is the Lakers that are enjoying success in the league lately. The defending champion Lakers could be the best team in the NBA right now and face off against the very underachieving Bulls. The Bulls look closer to a lottery pick than a playoff spot and have little chance of winning this game. As much as I love my Bulls, I got to go with Kobe and his Lakers even with the Bulls getting 10 points.

Lakers over Bulls - Scuttlebutt Record - (8-7)
Last pick, Uconn -1 over Kentucky, resulted in a loss with the Wildcats winning 64-61

Pick of the Night

(12)Connecticut Huskies -1 vs (4)Kentucky Wildcats

Tonight, right after Modern Family of course, The Uconn Huskies host the undefeated SEC power Kentucky Wildcats. Everyone knows about the famed Freshman at this point, John Wall, but Uconn's guards are going to be the key to this game. Jerome Dyson and Kemba Walker could be the top back court in the nation and they will prove it tonight. John Wall will do his best to keep his cats undefeated but in the end it will be the depth and guard play of Uconn that will knock off the number 4 team in the nation tonight. I have a feeling we will see these two teams play again in March.

Huskies over Cats - Scuttlebutt Record - (8-6)

Last night's pick, Kings +8.5 over Hornets, resulted in a Win with the Kings losing the game by only two points, 96-94.

Pick of the Night

Sacramento Kings +8.5 at New Orleans Hornets

The Kings are by far the surprise team of the season so far. First year man Tyreke Evans is playing like a vet for a team missing its lone star Kevin Martin. Brandon Jennings has to watch his back as Evans looks to be climbing over it to lead the rookie of the year race. The Hornets on the other hand have struggled all year. Firing their head coach early on and losing Chris Paul have not helped. Paul is back from injury but the Hornets still don't look like the same team from two seasons ago. The Kings win this one even without the spread. Getting 8.5 I have a lot of confidence in picking Sacramento tonight.

Kings over Hornets - Scuttlebutt Record - (7-6)
Last night's pick, Knicks +3.5 over Trailblazers, resulted in a Win with the Knicks rolling to a 93-84 win.

Pick of the Night

Portland Trailblazers -3.5 at New York Knicks

The Trailblazers are starting the first game of the rest of their new season. That is the season without Oden. Oden's kneecap is not cooperating with the team and will keep him out likely for the rest of this season. Just as Oden was starting to learn to play without fouling and showing aggression offensively, he gets a bad break and will now be a cheerleader from here on out. Portland will be trying new rotations in tonights game as they try to find what will work or not work from here on out. The Knicks are on what some might call a hot streak. Well for Knicks standards of temperature measurement they are hot. Knicks win this game even without the spread.

Knicks over Trailblazers - Scuttlebutt Record - (6-6)
Last Friday's pick, Bulls +13 over Cavaliers, resulted in a Loss with the Cavaliers covering the spread winning the game 101-87

Pick of the Night

Chicago Bulls +13 at Cleveland Cavaliers

The Chicago Bulls are always the up and coming team that never seems to deliver year in and year out. They play well towards the end of the year, look good in the playoffs, but never seem to take the next step. Just like every year, these "young" Bulls are supposed to go places. Tonights game will show us where the Bulls are and if in fact they have a chance to go anywhere. A quarter of the way into the season teams will start looking to move players. The Bulls are rumored to be shopping Tyrus Thomas so this might be one of the last chances we have to see him in a Chicago uniform. With all that said, the Bulls are a scrappy team that never gives up and at the least keeps games relatively close. With 13 points I am going with Noah and his "baby" bulls tonight in Cleveland. Sorry Lebron.

Chicago over Cleveland - Scuttlebutt Record - (6-5)
Last Night's Pick, Oregon St. +9.5 over Oregon, resulted in a win with the Beavers beating the spread losing the game 37-33.

Pick of the Night

Oregon St. Beavers +9.5 at Oregon Ducks

The Pac Ten championship is up for grabs along with a BCS birth in the Rose Bowl in tonights game featuring the Beavers and the Ducks. The "Civil War" is one of the countries best rivalries and seems to always provide us with some great entertainment. Both teams are in the top 25 and in rivalries most times both teams play up for the game. I don't see either team building or holding any big leads. With the Beavers getting 9.5 I am going with them. This is a game they could easily win or lose but I don't see either team winning by more than a touchdown. Even if Oregon does have the dangerous Masoli lining up under center.

Oregon St. over Oregon - Scuttlebutt Record - (5-5)
Last pick, Warriors +14 over Nuggets, resulted in a loss with the Nuggets covering the spread with a 135-107 win.