Friday Betting Recaps
Underdogs were barking in the NBA and NHL playoffs on Friday.
The Heat actually won as a favorite as it eliminated the Knicks in a 96-92 victory, but failed to cover after closing as a 6.5-point home favorite. The Lakers did cover as they eliminated the Warriors, but dogs went 2-0 in the NHL with the Panthers and Golden Knights pulling outright upsets.
Let’s get to all the specific details with our daily recaps and also update the side and total records in each sport.
NBA: Lakers (-3.5 home faves) beat Warriors 122-101 to win their Western Conference semifinal series 4-2 (game went Over betting total of 218 points). Earlier, Heat (-6.5 home fave) beat Knicks 96-92 to win their Eastern Conference semifinal series 4-2, but didn’t cover the spread (stayed Under 204.5). The "zig-zag" (aka "loser of the last") split 1-1 ATS with the cover by the Lakers and the non-cover by the Heat after they each lost their previous games.
More NBA: Faves lead 18-5 SU and 16-7 ATS in this round with 1 pick-’em. Home teams lead 17-7 SU and 15-9 ATS. Overs lead 13-9-2. Overall in the playoffs, faves lead 46-20 SU and 39-26-1 ATS (60%) with 1 PK. Home teams lead 43-24 SU and 39-27-1 ATS (59.1%). Overs’ slim lead dipped to 34-31-2. The zig-zag is 11-9 ATS in this round and 30-24-1 ATS (55.6%) overall.
NHL: Golden Knights (+115 home dog) upset Oilers 4-3 to take 3-2 series lead (pushed betting total of 7 goals). Earlier, Panthers (+158 road dogs) upset Maple Leafs 3-2 to win their series 4-2 (stayed Under 5.5). The "zig-zag" (aka "loser of last") swept 2-0 as Golden Knights and Panthers lost their previous games.
More NHL: Dogs went 2-0 Friday and are tied again at 10-10 this round. Home teams lead 11-9 after 1-1 split. Overs dipped to 10-9-1 with the 0-1-1 night. Overall in the playoffs, dogs improved to 36-32 with 2 pick-’ems. Road teams lead 40-30. Overs still lead 36-33-1. The zig-zag is 11-5 in this round and 35-23 overall.
MLB: Faves went 8-7 Friday with biggest upsets by the A’s (+146 vs. Rangers), Cubs (+141 at Twins) and Blue Jays (+135 vs. Braves). Road teams went 8-7. Overs led 8-6-1 with the push in PIT-BAL (9). On the season, faves lead 333-240 with 7 PKs. Home teams lead 298-280 with 2 neutral-site games. Overs lead 280-276-24 (50.4%) with 1 no-action.
