Ahem...I am not proud of last night's performance. I have not checked the anals, but if I am not mistaken I have not done well on Fridays. It doesn't help when a Princeton team with only 3 wins all season blows out Yale or when Sacramento blows a 12 point fourth quarter lead and then loses by double digits or when the Pistons decide they can beat the Sixers without even playing that hard. That should have been a 30 point massacre without Iverson. That is why the Pistons are sometimes a difficult team to bet on. Often they are heavy favorites, even on the road. But they are so good that sometimes they take the night off a little bit. I always say there are no excuses right after I give a list of excuses. So, no excuses. This is the early bird special for all my people out West where I'll soon be. The college games will have started before many of you even wake up. All of the lines have not yet been released so I will be updating throughout the day. Some games you have to get early before the line adjusts too much. There are 11 NBA games today (10 for me). Here's the deal:

ORLANDO(-3) over boston; I am so sick of Boston
miami(-3.5) over NEW JERSEY
CLEVELAND(-7.5) over philly; provided Iverson doesn't play-proceed with caution if he does
INDIANA(+8) over detroit
atlanta(+8.5) over WASHINGTON
seattle(+10.5) over DALLAS
memphis(-2.5) over MILWAUKEE
minnesota(+3) over GOLDEN STATE
PHOENIX(-9) over chi town
DENVER(-10,5) over portland

8-6-1 on Bonus Picks this year. After starting the season on a torid pace I have experienced a severe regression with a record of 3-6-1 in my last ten outings. I think I might reel off 10 in a row to bring my win percentage back up to 75. So in typical cliche coachspeak, "Let's take it one game at a time."

Today's Bonus Pick: notre dame(+6) over LOUISVILLE
ND has lost 7 conference games by a total of 23 points. Louisville needs a W bad. I expect a very competitive game maybe even an upset for those with the gall to take the Fighting Irish on the money line.

***HOME TEAMS IN CAPS*** Happy Betting

Also check yesterday's blog post for my Super Bowl picks. I was 2-0 picking the NFC and AFC championship games.

(Picks are completely updated as of 2pm est)