In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

Additional Model Predictions ⬇️

NHL Model Predictions- Click Here

There were no model predictions yesterday, January 1, 2023.

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

Chicago Bulls @ Philadelphia 76ers

Model Predicts- 76ers ML, OVER 224 , 76ers -11

The Chicago Bulls will begin 2024 with a two-game road trip, with the first stop coming in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Tuesday night to take on the 76ers.

Chicago enters Tuesday’s battle with a sub-par 15-19 record, but has started to turn things around lately after winning six of its last ten contests. Meanwhile, Philadelphia has found loads of success, posting a 22-10 record through the first 32 games of regular season.

Chicago got the best of Philadelphia when the teams met last Saturday, but our model forecasts a different outcome tonight. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Chicago Bulls

• 5-2 in last seven games

  • +3.6 Net Rating in that time (9th in NBA)

  • Significant wins over 76ers and Lakers

• Perfect 2-0 against Philadelphia this season

  • +17 point differential in two games

  • Defense carrying load- 104.9 Defensive Rating

• Injuries- Zach Lavine, Nikola Vucevic, and Torrey Craig all OUT

Philadelphia 76ers

• Found lots of success in December

  • Went 10-4 across 14 games

  • +13.5 Net Rating last month- 1st in NBA by more than 2.0 points

• Recent loss to Bulls was due to injuries and scheduling

  • No Joel Embiid. Was 4th game played in six days

• Injuries- De’Anthony Melton is OUT

What’s the Play?

The Bulls appear to have the 76ers’ number this season, but we agree with our model that Philadelphia is in a spot to blow out Chicago tonight.

As just mentioned, the 76ers have come up short against Chicago while not at full-strength and on the back end of a bust stretch of games. Fatigue and the health of star players like Joel Embiid have made this matchup seem much closer than it really is, but with most of Philly’s players back in the fold we should see that trend reverse course.

Chicago is still without LaVine and Vucevic, two of its top scoring options, which will likely lead to some trouble when it comes to matching Philadelphia’s offensive production. It’s a big spread, but we’ll take the 76ers here.

The Play: 76ers -11 (-110)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Philadelphia 76ers- 22-10 overall this season, 12-4 as the home team

• New Orleans Pelicans- 19-14 overall this season, 7-3 in last ten games

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Chicago Bulls- Over is 18-16 this season, 9-5 as the away team

• Philadelphia 76ers- Over is 21-11 this season, 11-5 as the home team

Spread Trends ➕➖

• Philadelphia 76ers- 22-10 against the spread (ATS) this season, 11-3 ATS as a home favorite

• Orlando Magic- 22-10 ATS this season, 13-7 ATS as an underdog

💪 Leonard puts together strong performance against Heat. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George led the Clippers to a 121-104 victory against a short-handed Miami Heat team, marking the Clippers' third consecutive win. Leonard returned from injury, contributing 24 points, while George added 23, and Norman Powell chipped in 22 off the bench. Leonard achieved a career milestone of 13,000 points, with six rebounds and five assists before resting for the game's final minutes.

🦖 Siakam leads new-look Raptors to win over Cavaliers. Pascal Siakam's 36 points propelled the Raptors to a narrow 124-121 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers, despite nearly losing a 19-point lead. RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, making their Raptors debut after a trade, contributed significantly in the win, combining for 33 points. Cleveland, led by Caris LeVert and Donovan Mitchell, couldn't capitalize on Siakam's alleged traveling violation on the final play, missing crucial shots and falling short in the close contest.

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- What school has the most College Football Playoff wins?

Question #2- Four running backs have won the NFL MVP award since 2000, Marshall Faulk, Shaun Alexander, LaDainian Tomlinson, and what other player?

Question #3- Who was the third overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft?

Anyone know what has happened on January 2nd throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On January 2nd…

1972- The Dallas Cowboys defeat the San Francisco 49ers 14-3 to win the NFC Championship game. Calvin Hill gave the Cowboys the lead in the second quarter with a one-yard touchdown, a lead Dallas would never give up. the Cowboys then went on to defeat the Miami Dolphins in the Super Bowl.

1986- Mike Bossy scores his 499th and 500th career goals in a 7-5 Islanders win over the Bruins. Bossy’s two goal were scored in the final 2:22 of regulation, giving the Isles the lead. He became the 11th player in NHL history to reach 500 career goals, and ended his career with 573.

1987- The Indiana Pacers defeat the Los Angeles Clippers 116-106. The win gave Pacers head coach Jack Ramsay his 800th career win, becoming only the second coach to reach the milestone. Ramsay would finish his career with 864 wins, ranking him 15th on the all-time list.

1. Alabama

2. Adrian Peterson

3. O.J. Mayo