Jesse Schule – Sports Handicapper

This is an 8* play on the New Orleans Pelicans.

They say that the playoffs are a whole different monster than regular season basketball, and no team personifies that better than New Orleans. The Pelicans were one of the league's worst defensive teams during the regular season, but they've completely shut down the Blazers in the first two games in Portland. Coming back home, I expect them to be all fired up for Game 3. Down 0-2, the news goes from bad to worse for Portland as starting center Jusuf Nurkic left Game 2 with an injury and did not return. The Pelicans are on a roll, covering the spread in seven straight overall, and four of their last five against Portland. The Trail Blazers are 7-22-2 ATS in their last 31 Conference Quarterfinals games.

Take NO.

GL,

Jesse Schule

Jesse Schule

The Warriors head to San Antonio in complete command of this series, and they will be a favorite to win Game 3. The Spurs aren't good enough to compete with the Warriors in this series, but they are sure as hell good enough to steal a game at home. Their Game 2 loss at Golden State was their 10th straight loss on the road, but they have won 11 in a row at home. In fact the Spurs won 33 games on their home court during the regular season, one of those wins coming versus Golden State. The Spurs won that game by a score of 89-75, and they lead 49-41 at halftime. They have covered the spread in nine of their last 10 home games, and they lead the NBA in opponent's scoring average. I expect the home team to come out playing with plenty of emotion here in Game 3, especially in the first half. The Spurs led by a score of 53-47 at the half in Game 2, but went on to lose by 15 points. These two teams have failed to reach the total in eight of the last 11 meetings in San Antonio.

Take Under.

GL,

Jesse Schule

Jesse Schule

This is an 8* play on the Toronto Blue Jays +1.5.

The Blue Jays are in second place in the AL East, 3.5 games ahead of the Yankees. They are a big underdog in Game 1 in the Bronx today, and I'll take Toronto plus the runs.

C.C. Sabathia will toe the slab for the Bronx Bombers, and the 37 year old is coming off the DL after missing time with hip soreness. He's allowed five runs on nine hits over nine innings, not factoring in a decision in a pair of losses in two starts. One of those was against the Blues Jays, and he allowed a pair of runs on five hits and two walks in five innings in a 5-3 loss.

The Jays hand the ball to Aaron Sanchez, who doesn't mind pitching in day games. The 25 year old is 13-5 with a 2.89 ERA in 32 starts in day games over the last three seasons. He's also 1-1 with a 2.59 ERA in nine appearances versus the Yankees during that span.

Giancarlo Stanton is just 2-for-35 (0.86) in New York.

Take TOR.

GL,

Jesse Schule

This is an 8* play on the Arizona D'Backs.

The Giants won in extra innings last night, but I like Arizona in the series finale Thursday night.

Zack Greinke will toe the slab for the home team, and he has incredible numbers at Chase Field since joining the team. Greinke (1-1, 5.29 ERA) allowed four runs on five hits, striking out seven over 6 1/3 innings in a win at LA his last time out. He's 20-6 with a 3.39 ERA in his last 33 starts in Arizona.

The Giants hand the ball to Ty Blach, who hasn't missed many bats lately. The 27 year old has allowed 11 runs on 21 hits over 15 1/3 innings in his last three starts, and the Giants lost all three of those games. He was 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in four appearances against the D'Backs last season.

Paul Goldschmidt was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles last night, and he's 2-for-4 with a home run lifetime versus Blach.

Take ARI.

GL,

Jesse Schule