Handicapper Ben Burns

I'm playing on SJ (8* ANNIHILATOR). The price has come down a bit from its opener but it easily could have gone the other way. With three wins in their last four, the Sharks are starting to play up to their potential. Make no mistake. This is an elite team. They're rested and playing with revenge from an earlier loss at NJ. The Devils, on the other hand, lost in shootout last night. They're 0-4 when playing the second of b2b games. The Sharks are 63-37 their last 100 against sub-500 teams. Expect them to get some payback. 

I'm playing on PHOENIX. Off b2b losses and with a bigger game against Toronto on deck tomorrow, I don't believe that the Clippers should be laying this many points on the road. Not even against the Suns. The Clippers are 4-8 ATS the last 12 times that they were listed as road favorites in the -6.5 to -12 range. Going back further finds them at a money-burning 19-34 ATS in that role. Grab the generous points. 

I'm playing on CAL STATE FULLERTON (10* MASTERPIECE). In my opinion, the gap between these teams isn't nearly as big as the pointspread suggests. The Titans brought back most of their depth and four starters from a team which made the NCAA Tournament last season. While the Titans' admittedly record isn't very good, they've had a number of close losses, a couple coming in OT. Only one of their losses by more than 10 points. While the Gaels have won a few in a row, they'd previously lost four straight. Grab the points. 

I'm playing on CHICAGO (10* BEST BET). The Bulls got embarrassed by Boston on Saturday and they're going to be looking to bounce back with a much better effort. I believe that they're catching the Kings at the right time. Sacramento lost by double-digits at Indiana Saturday and will now be playing its third road game in the past four days. The Bulls have been dealing with injuries all year but they're slowly getting heathier. Prior to the Boston debacle, the Bulls' previous two home games resulted in an outright win against OKC and a 1-point loss against San Antonio. Expect their best effort to lead to at least another cover here. 

I'm playing on Minnesota/Seattle to finish UNDER the total (10* TOTAL OF MONTH). With all due respect to the offenses, this O/U line is generously high. While its true that Seattle has been involved in some high-scoring games of late, the opposite is true of Minnesota. The Vikings have seen back-to-back games (and four of their last five) fall below the total. Those games were against the likes of Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady, yet both finished with 41 or fewer combined points. The Vikes have seen seven of their past 10 December games stay below the total. The've also seen the UNDER go 10-5 the last 15 times that they were listed as underdogs. As for the recent high-scoring Seattle games, the Hawks haven't faced a defense as good as this one for awhile. Minnesota has allowed only six runs of 15 or more yards in 2018. That was tied for the fewest in the NFL, enetering this week's play. The Viking defense has also held opponents to a third-down conversion rate of 29.9%, the best mark in the NFL entering the weekend. These teams last met in 2016. The score was 3-0 at halftime and finished with a final of 10-9. Look for this one to also prove lower-scoring than many will be expecting.