The Daily Sweat: Will the Padres or Phillies take a 2-1 NLCS lead?
Game 3 of the National League Championship Series is a toss-up.
Both the San Diego Padres and Philadelphia Phillies are -110 to win straight up Friday evening at BetMGM. The series is tied 1-1 after the Padres evened the series in Game 2 at home on Wednesday. Now the series heads to Philadelphia and Joe Musgrove takes the mound for the Padres while Ranger Suarez is on the hill for the Phillies.
Musgrove has been very good in his 13 postseason innings so far. He was so good in the Wild Card Series against the New York Mets that the Mets had him checked for foreign substances. Musgrove gave up just one hit over seven innings and struck out five while allowing a walk. Against the Dodgers in the NLDS, Musgrove threw six innings and gave up six hits and three walks but only allowed two runs and struck out eight.
Suarez had control issues in his only start of the postseason so far. He made it just 3.1 innings against the Atlanta Braves and allowed just one run. But he gave up three hits and walked five. Those five walks were the most walks he’s had in a game all season long.
If you’re looking to bet the game on the run line, the Padres are giving the Phillies 1.5 runs at +155 odds. If you want to take the Phillies at +1.5 runs, you can get them at -190.
The total is at 7.5 runs and we’re inclined to take the under if we’re making a bet on this game. Suarez should be better than he was earlier in the postseason with a game and some postseason jitters under his belt and Musgrove should continue his good form.
Two college football games
If you’re not looking to watch baseball on Friday night there are two college football games to watch and bet on.
Tulsa heads to Temple as 13-point favorites. The total is 52.5. Both teams are 2-4, though Tulsa appears to significantly be the better team. The Golden Hurricane score 33 points per game while Temple is scoring just 15 points per game. Tulsa has also played Ole Miss and Cincinnati and lost by a combined 18 points, though its last game was a 32-point loss to Navy.
Temple was also blown out in its last game. The Owls lost 70-13 to UCF after losing 24-3 to Navy.
The other game could be much more competitive. Western Kentucky is a 1.5-point favorite at home against UAB in a game that could go a long way to figuring out the Conference USA title race. Both teams have four wins overall and are 2-1 in conference play.
UAB enters on a two-game win streak after losing 28-24 to Rice on Oct. 1, while Western Kentucky beat Middle Tennessee State in Week 6 after losses to Troy and UTSA. The total is only 59 despite the offenses averaging a combined 75 points per game. That’s because UAB allows just 17 points per game and WKU allows just under 23.
PGA Tour CJ Cup
The CJ Cup features 28 of the top 30 players in the Official World Golf Rankings, and Rory McIlroy held up his status as the favorite in the first round. McIlroy shot a 5-under 66 and is currently tied for third and a shot off the lead. He’s +333 to win after the first round while phenom Tom Kim is at +1000 and the No. 2 favorite. McIlroy and Kim are paired together for the first two rounds. Kim also shot a 66 on Thursday.
Brooklyn looks to avoid 0-2 start
The Nets host the Toronto Raptors on Friday after losing their first regular-season game with all three of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons on the floor. Brooklyn is a 2.5-point favorite over the Raptors and the total is 225.5. The Raptors are a team well-equipped to deal with Brooklyn’s size on the wings and hold Durant and Irving in check. We like Toronto getting points, especially if it gets up to three.
Elsewhere in the NBA, the Denver Nuggets are 5.5-point underdogs at the Golden State Warriors. Denver lost to Utah to open the season as Jamal Murray works his way back from his ACL tear. We’re not worried about the Nuggets if they start the season 0-2. They should be much better as the season goes on as long as they stay healthy.
Who cashed bets on Thursday?
Cardinals and over bettors were very happy with Arizona’s 42-34 win over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday night. The Cardinals got two pick-sixes in the second quarter to basically seal the game.
Astros bettors were also thrilled as Houston went up 2-0 in their ALCS against the Yankees with a 3-2 win.
