In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

Additional Model Predictions ⬇️

NCAAF Model Predictions- Click Here

NCAAB Model Predictions- Click Here

There were plenty of model predictions to go around yesterday across the NFL and NBA, with our model focusing in on two of those predictions in our Featured Matchups. Those predictions went 1-1 overall, and you can see how the rest of the model’s performed below.

Money Line Predictions: 1-0

Over/Under Predictions: 1-0

Spread Predictions: 0-1

Featured Matchup: 1-0

Money Line Predictions: 6-2

Over/Under Predictions: 4-4

Spread Predictions: 6-2

Featured Matchup: 0-1

Ten NBA games are scheduled to take place today. Our model’s predictions for all ten matchups can be found below.

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Denver Nuggets

Model Predicts- Thunder ML, UNDER 232, Thunder +3.5

The Oklahoma City Thunder will hit the road for a short one-game road trip on Friday, traveling to Denver, Colorado to take on the Nuggets.

Oklahoma City enters tonight’s matchup with a stellar 20-9 record, which includes picking up seven wins across the last ten games. Meanwhile, Denver is a tick better at 23-10 and enters tonight red hot after winning six straight games and nine of the last ten.

The Nuggets appear to be an unstoppable force at the moment, but our model projects the Thunder to make a stand as a road underdog tonight. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Oklahoma City Thunder

• One of more well-round teams in NBA

  • Rank 3rd in Net Rating (+7.8)

  • Net Rating has improved to +12.5 in last five games

• Defense has been key to recent success

  • Own 111.6 Defensive Rating in last five games

  • However, struggling to defend 3 point line- opponents shooting 41.1% from three in that time

• Injuries- Jaylin Williams (GTD)

Denver Nuggets

• 6-0 in last six games

  • +14.6 Net Rating. Winning by average of 15 points per game

  • Most recent win came last night against Memphis (37-point win)

• Win streak has been led by defense

  • Rank 3rd in Defensive Rating (109.6) in last six games

  • Opponents shooting 44.5% overall and 34.8% from three

• Injuries- Aaron Gordon (OUT), Vlatko Cancar (OUT)

What’s the Play?

Going against a team as hot as Denver is always a tough sell, but that is exactly what we are going to do tonight.

Like most teams, Denver doesn’t look like itself on the back end of a back-to-back. The most recent two back-to-back’s for the Nuggets were single-digit wins over injured Hornets and Bulls squads, while the one prior to those matchups was a six-point loss to a good Sacramento Kings squad. Oklahoma City is a much tougher matchup than all three of those teams even if the back-to-back wasn’t in play.

Meanwhile, OKC is 5-2 straight up when it has the rest advantage, which it has again this evening. We wouldn’t mind a sprinkle on the Thunder money line, but we’ll just take them with the points here.

The Play: Thunder +3.5 (-110)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Philadelphia 76ers- 21-9 overall this season, 9-5 as the away team

• Oklahoma City Thunder- 20-9 overall this season, 5-2 with the rest advantage

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• San Antonio Spurs- Over is 20-10 this season, 6-2 in last eight games

• Los Angeles Clippers- Under is 17-12-1 this season, 10-5-1 as the home team

Spread Trends ➕➖

• Philadelphia 76ers- 21-9 against the spread (ATS) this season, 6-2 ATS as a road favorite

• Oklahoma City Thunder- 20-8-1 ATS this season, 5-1-1 ATS as a road underdog

😬 Pistons nearly end historic losing streak. The Detroit Pistons tied the NBA record for the longest losing streak at 28 games, matching the Philadelphia 76ers' mark set between 2014-2016. Despite a resilient effort led by Cade Cunningham's 31 points, the Pistons fell to the Boston Celtics 128-122 in overtime, maintaining Boston's perfect home record at 15-0 this season. Pistons' coach Monty Williams praised the team's resilience, expressing a desire for sustained success beyond just ending the streak.

👀 Haliburton shows 20-20 vision in win over Bulls. Tyrese Haliburton's career-best 20 assists and 21 points powered the Indiana Pacers to a 120-104 win against the Chicago Bulls as they shot over 50% from the field. Despite doubts about playing due to a sore back, Haliburton joined an elite group of five players in NBA history by tallying 20 assists without a turnover, contributing to the Pacers' victory. Myles Turner's 24 points led Indiana, hitting 19 of 42 from beyond the arc, securing their second consecutive win.

There are nine NHL games scheduled to take place today. Our model’s predictions for all nine matchups can be found below.

Arizona Coyotes @ Anaheim Ducks

Model Predicts- Coyotes ML, UNDER 6.5, Ducks +1.5

The Arizona Coyotes will hit the road for just one game on Friday night, making the trip to Anaheim, California to take on the Ducks.

Arizona enters tonight’s battle with a soild 18-14-2 record, most recently recovering from a four-goal deficit to defeat the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Anaheim sits at just 13-21-0 and has lost seven of its last ten contests.

The Coyotes and Ducks combined for seven goals the last time we saw them square off, but our model is anticipating slightly less offense this time around. Let’s dive into why that is.

Arizona Coyotes

• Beat Avalanche 5-4 last time on ice

  • Down 4-0 before scoring five answered goals

  • However, Arizona’s xGF in 5-on-5 for the game sat at just 1.86

• Lack of pressure on net limits offensive output

  • Rank 30th in shots on goal per game, 20th in High-Danger scoring chances per 60 minutes (HDCF/60) in 5-on-5 situations

• Expected goalie- Connor Ingram

  • .924 Save % in 5-on-5. Ranks 9th in Goals Saved Above Expected (GSAx) with +9.0

Anaheim Ducks

• Offense has been non-existent this month

  • Tied for last place in GF/60 in 5-on-5 situations (1.78)

  • Rank in bottom six in HDCF/60 in 5-on-5

• Defense has seen improvement in last five games

  • 1.63 GF/60 in 5-on-5 situations during that time- 4th in NHL

  • Surrendering 2.40 goals per game

• Expected goalie-Lukas Dostal

  • .891 Save % in 5-on-5, ranks 62nd in GSAx (-3.4)

What’s the Play?

As previously mentioned, Arizona and Anaheim combined for seven goals in their last head-to-head matchup, but we agree with our model to back the under here.

Just like Arizona, Anaheim struggles when it comes to generating pressure on opposing goaltenders. The Ducks rank 27th in shots on goal per game and have slipped to the bottom six of the NHL in HDCF/60, and it will become even more difficult to find the back of the net with those weak numbers as Connor Ingram has proven to be one of the best goaltenders this season.

The first meeting of the season between the Coyotes and Ducks saw just three goals scored. We think we will see a total closer to that number tonight.

The Play: Under 6.5 (-120)

Money Line Trends 💰

• New York Rangers- 24-8-1 overall this season, 12-4-1 as the away team

• New York Islanders- 16-9-9 overall this season, 9-4-6 as the home team

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Toronto Maple Leafs- Over is 18-13-1 this season with average total of 7.06

• Dallas Stars- Over is 20-13 this season with average total of 6.58

Puck Line Trends ➕➖

• Philadelphia Flyers- Puck line is 24-10 this season

🤕 Werenski out multiple weeks after on-ice collision. Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski will likely be out for weeks due to a collision with Ondrej Palat during a game against the New Jersey Devils, as confirmed by head coach Pascal Vincent. Werenski, who leads the team in points this season and plays significant minutes, has a history of injuries, including a prior knee issue and a shoulder injury that limited his games last season. Drafted in 2015, Werenski has amassed 270 points in 450 games since joining the NHL at 19 years old.

🎩 Hurricanes win behind hat trick from Svechnikov. Andrei Svechnikov netted a hat trick while Jesper Fast contributed two goals, aiding the Carolina Hurricanes in a 5-3 victory against the Montreal Canadiens. Sebastian Aho's four assists and Brent Burns' three assists propelled the Hurricanes, with goalie Antti Raanta making 18 saves in his first NHL game since mid-December. Svechnikov, who had missed the start of the season due to a knee injury, notched his sixth goal and 13th assist in 21 games in the winning effort.

Today’s trivia requires you to dig into multiple pockets of your brain, testing your knowledge of recent events as well as those that happened decades ago.

See how many of the below questions you can get correct. Answers are provided at the end of the newsletter.

Question #1- Who was the first quarterback selected in the 2007 NFL Draft?

Question #2- Who is the only basketball player from the University of Vermont to play in an NBA game?

Question #3- Tua Tagovailoa, Brock Purdy, and what other player rank in the top-three in passing yards this season?

Anyone know what has happened on December 29th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On December 29th…

1984- NHL legend Wayne Gretzky nets his 32nd career hat trick. Gretzky also tallied three assists in the game, giving him 100 points for the season in just 35 games. He became the second-fastest player in NHL history to reach 100 points for one season, with the previous record set the year prior in 1983.

2007- New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady throws his 50th TD pass of the season. At the time the pass set an NFL record, and helped propel to the Patriots to a perfect 16-0 record in the regular season. Peyton Manning now owns the NFL record, throwing for 55 TD passes during the 2013 season.

2020- The Milwaukee Bucks set an NBA record for the most three-pointers made in a single game. The performance came in a dominant 144-97 win over the Miami Heat, one in which the Bucks drained 29 shots from behind the arc. That record still stands to this day.

1. JaMarcus Russell

2. Anthony Lamb

3. Jared Goff