Good morning, Pickswise Nation, and welcome to a fantastic Friday of sports. We have NBA, NHL and college basketball action to enjoy today, while the build-up to the Super Bowl continues. Let’s get straight to making your next bet better!
About Last Night
Magic conjure up a winning Best Bet
The Pickswise team went 3-1 ATS on Thursday’s NBA slate, including cashing our Best Bet of Magic +6 as they beat the Nuggets 115-104. JutPicks also found a winner with our NBA player prop pick. The Suns were shorthanded as they wait for Kevin Durant to arrive and lost 116-107 to the Hawks.
Lightning strike at home
The Tampa Bay Lightning made a statement with a 5-0 home win over NHL champions Colorado Avalanche on Thursday, while the Golden Knights recorded an excellent 5-1 road win at the Wild and the Devils beat the Kraken 3-1.
NCAAB parlay cashes at +612 odds
It was a good night for the Pickswise college basketball handicappers as we went 5-3 and cashed our parlay at +612, with Purdue -7.5, Rice +14 and Gonzaga -14 all getting the job done.
Today’s Slate
NBA doubleheader on ESPN
There’s a nice big 11-game slate in the NBA tonight, with Hornets vs Celtics on ESPN at 7:30 pm ET and and Cavaliers vs Pelicans at 10:00 pm ET on the same channel.
Kraken vs Rangers on NHL Network
We have a smaller 4-game slate on the ice today, with the Kraken vs Rangers game on NHL Network at 7:00 pm ET.
Quiet day on the college hardwood
It’s a case of the calm before the Saturday storm in college basketball, but Xavier plays Butler at 7:00 pm ET on FS1 and we have college basketball picks for the game.
Best Bet of the Day
NHL: Toronto Maple Leafs 3-way ML over Columbus Blue Jackets
7:00 pm ET, ESPN+
The Maple Leafs are 2nd in the Eastern Conference, behind only the Boston Bruins, while the Blue Jackets are simply trying not to be the worst team in the league. Injuries have continued to be an issue for Columbus, which has 10 fewer points than any other team in the conference. They will still be without Jakub Voracek and Zach Werenski, so there isn’t much light at the end of the tunnel. With Toronto’s top-10 goaltending and Columbus scoring the 4th-fewest goals per game, there’s little confidence in the Jackets even keeping this game close.
Must-watch
Be sure to check out our daily show Let’s Bet It on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/Pickswise at 10:00 am ET.
The Super Bowl edition of Pickswise Playbook, our NFL preview show presented by Superbook Sports, is also available, featuring former NFL star Tank Williams, so be sure to check that out too!
Stat of theDay
The Knicks have just 2 wins in their last 12 visits to play the Sixers at Wells Fargo Center.
Quote of the Day
“Let’s continue to go for that dream this weekend.”
Patrick Mahomes won the NFL MVP award last night but has his eyes on another prize on Sunday.