We have three different Game 5’s on tap on Wednesday Night. Two involve split series where tonight represents the “pivotal” game that the media will emphasize. The nightcap in Houston sees the Rockets in a must-win situation down three games to one.
Let’s see how sharps have been betting the threesome. There’s been a time-change out of the original rotation order. We’ll take the matchups in the order they tip off.
DALLAS AT SAN ANTONIO: The Spurs opened at -7, despite having trouble establishing any sort of dominance in this series. Sharps hit the dog at the full seven. That dropped the number to 6.5. Some stores were testing six as we wrote this up as underdog money continued to come in. Oddsmakers have been fairly stubborn sticking with pre-series Power Ratings. It hasn’t cost them yet because the public tends to bet on pre-series favorites. Sharps who love underdogs continue to cash in at a very high rate. Sources tell us they couldn’t believe the Spurs opened at -7 given that their victories have been by only four and five points so far.
The opening total of 198.5 has dropped to 198 or 197.5, continuing the tendency we’re seeing from old school money as matchups hit their fifth game. Note that Game Four only made it to 182 as the pressure started to get to both team’s main shooters.
BROOKLYN AT TORONTO: Early evidence suggests a potential tug of war between Toronto -3 and Brooklyn +3.5. Sharps generally see this as a competitive series that could see each game go right down to the wire. That plus New York money is keeping any favorite interest from driving the line higher. Toronto isn’t a public team even if they’re a favorite. But, enough of the public steps in at -3 to create the tug-of-war.
No interest yet on the total. The opener of 191 was where the math guys had it. Interesting that old school money didn’t hit this Under early the way it had other games. The last game only reached 166, staying Under by 26 points.
PORTLAND AT HOUSTON: Houston opened at -5, and was bet up to -5.5 in the must-win situation. We’re hearing that some of that was position-taking from sharps anticipating public interest on the pre-series favorite in the must-have game. Sources tell us there is sharp interest on Portland that’s waiting to see if the number goes even higher. Sharps would pound Portland at +6, and would settle for +5.5 if that’s going to be the best they’ll see.
We do have early Under interest here. The opening Over/Under of 214.5 was bet down 213.5 based on a combination of the math guys (who made it 214) and the old school guys betting on principal. Can a fourth game in this series go to overtime? Will the game go Over without overtime?
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