Oh, those sneaky Colts! It would appear, if last night's game is any indication, that Coach Caldwell is taking this whole undefeated season thing seriously. As I thought he would, he did limit the exposure of Freeney and Mathis on the defensive side of the ball, which in turn exposed his defense, but he allowed Peyton and the rest of the offense to pick up the slack by keeping them on the field for the duration. It's not that it's a big deal to me since I wasn't invested in the game, but as always, this is food for thought as we move forward to the end of the regular season. If you heard Peyton's on field post game comments, you get the feeling that, as I said yesterday, running the table all the way through the Super Bowl is not as important as winning the Big Game itself to the Colt players, but is that just coach/player speak? We'll find out as we go now, but it certainly seems as though Coach Caldwell isn't going to have his team "lay one down".
THE NBA
SU WINNERS (1-2 last night, 23-10 so far this week)
RAPTORS, HAWKS, CELTICS, CAVS, GRIZZLIES, WOLVES, HORNETS, KNICKS, Pistons, CAVS and WARRIORS
TOTALS (1-2 last night, 15-19 so far this week)
OVERS - Jazz/HAWKS (206 1/2), 76ers/CELTICS (197), Bucks/CAVS (193), Pacers/GRIZZLIES (209), Clippers/KNICKS (201 1/2) and Wizards/WARRIORS (221)
UNDERS - Nets/RAPTORS (205), Kings/WOLVES (210 1/2), Nuggets/HORNETS (202 1/2), Pistons/THUNDER (187) and Rockets/MAVS (197)
BUTTA (no plays last night, 3-1 so far this week)
1. HAWKS (-5 1/2) over Jazz - The Jazz got their road trip off to a nice start by thumping the Nets. That's the Nets though. As a rule, Utah has a long history of struggling on the road, and the Hawks just have too many weapons.
ALL THE REST (1-2 last week, 12-22 so far this week)
BUTTA, NO BREAD
1. MAVS (-5) over Rockets - The Mavs just have too many options on offense for the Rocks to deal with, but it all boils down to Dallas' continued propensity to go through long stretches of offensive impotence in each game that keeps me off this one.
2. WARRIORS (-2) over Wizards - It's been a few real lackluster performances in a row by the Warriors, and that's a big concern. The Wiz, however, have been through game after game after game of totally gut wrenching losses. I think Washington is probably the better team in this game, but are they getting used to losing now? That's what my numbers say.
CHILLIN'
1. 76ers (+11 1/2) at CELTICS - The Answer is "doubtful" for tonight, but I don't think that makes a huge difference with such a big number. Elton Brand has a history of giving K.G. trouble, Samuel Dalembaert has become a force inside for Philly and Marreese Speights may also be available. I just don't see the C's running away and hiding in this one.
2. CAVS (-9 1/2) over Bucks - Cleveland's depth will be the Bucks undoing here.
3. GRIZZLIES (-5) over Pacers - This is the only game tonight where I'll be going against my numbers. With Rudy Gay now upgraded to "probable" for this game, the Griz have too much for a shorthanded Pacer squad.
4. HORNETS (pk) over Nuggets - No Chauncey Billups is a big deal. I still don't like anything I'm seeing out of the Stingers, but CP3 should be able to roam freely for them without Billups to worry about.
5. Pistons (+4 1/2) at THUNDER - Don't look at me. This is what the numbers say.
YUCK!!!
1. Nets (+9) at RAPTORS - When the numbers favor the Nets, that's an automatic move to the "YUCK!!!" category.
2. WOLVES (+2) vs. Kings - Minnesota is showing signs of coming to life, and the Kings are nothing but trouble on the road. We'll see how the Wolves respond though, to not having Ryan Gomes tonight.
3. KNICKS (-2) over Clippers - Really??? To fill out an 82-game schedule, you're bound to have matchups like this once in awhile.
One week to go till the big day! Is everyone ready? I hope so. I'll be going to consult with Santa for the last time a little later, and that will get me clear. Have a fantastic Friday, be careful out there and I'll see you all again tomorrow.
, PA
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