NBA Update

Going into last night's matchup between the Nets and Heat there was some trash talk between the two teams. Reggie Evans shared his opinions on LeBron James. James did his talking on the court as he lead the Heat to a 29 point victory. In three games this year, the Heat have outscored the Nets by 72 points. The game was close until the 3rd Quarter, where the Heat blasted Brooklyn. The fans at the Barclays Center went home disappointed. Miami has the best record in the Eastern Conference while Brooklyn is sitting at the fourth spot. San Antonio is on top in the Western Conference. The Lakers are still four games back for the 8th spot. The Grizzlies are six games back of the Spurs, and just recently made a huge trade. They sent Rudy Gay to the Raptors as part of a 3-team deal that includes them, the Pistons, and Raptors. 

The All Star teams have just been announced. Brook Lopez will take Rajon Rondo's spot for the Eastern Conference. Rondo tore his ACL and is out for the remainder of the season. There were some very notable snubs. Stephen Curry did not make the team, but his teammate David Lee is on the Western Conference roster. Marc Gasol is another player that did not make the team. It sure has been an eventful week in the NBA. 

Birds of War

The Championship Round of the Playoffs will start today at 3:00 when the 49ers will take the field at the Georgia Dome against Matt Ryan and the Falcons.

San Francisco 49ers [-4] vs Atlanta Falcons [+4]

The 49ers are coming off a great win last week against the Packers and a sensational performance by Colin Kaepernick. The Falcons have been flying a little under the radar after their thriller last week. I think they might fell a little disrespected. San Francisco is on the road and playing with a young QB and are still favored by four points. The Falcons O-line will have a very tough challenge to stop the 49ers pass rush. This will be a very good game to watch, but I think that Matty Ice and the Falcons will get it done at home. 

Baltimore Ravens [+7.5] vs New England Patriots [-7.5]

The Patriots are favored big in this matchup. Tom Brady and his Pats are playing at a tremendously high level right now. Joe Flacco and the Ravens are coming off a very emotional win against the Broncos last week. Flacco had an outstanding game. It was highlighted by a 70-yard bomb he threw down the field for a TD with 30 seconds left on the clock. This is a rematch of the Week 3 game between the two, where the Ravens won 31-30. This game could possibly be Ray Lewis' last. The Patriots secondary might have a tough time trying to keep up with the speed and athleticism of the Ravens WR. I think that the Ravens will cover the spread handily. This game will come down to the wire, but I think that Ray Lewis will have one more game after this and the Ravens will pull the upset. I have been on the Ravens bandwagon for a while. I have picked them to go to the Super Bowl on numerous occasions, but this is their year to win the AFC. 

Battle of the Bulldogs

All college basketball fans will be watching tonight when Gonzaga and Butler go at it at Hinkle Fieldhouse. This game showcases two top 15 teams and two of the best coaches in college basketball in Mark Few [Gonzaga] and Brad Stevens [Butler]. #13 Butler is playing host to #8 Gonzaga. College Gameday was at the Hinkle Fieldhouse earlier this morning. Butler has played a pretty tough out-of-conference schedule beating Indiana, Marquette, and UNC. Gonzaga is one of the many one-loss teams in the country. Their only blemish came against Illinois. Illinois has beaten both of these two teams. This will be a very exciting game, but I think Gonzaga will pull it out. The key for them will be there big man Kelly Olynyk. He has been averaging about 18 points per game. I don't know if Butler will have an answer for him. I will be tweeting throughout the whole game, so follow me on Twitter @MM8sports. 

Two Down, Two to Go

We football fans are very spoiled. We were lucky enough to get the chance to see two very good games  last night. The Ravens and Broncos game from yesterday is an instant classic. That game went into Double-OT. The Ravens clinched their spot in the AFC Championship game with some late-game heroics. In the NFC, Colin Kaepernick played very well for the 49ers. After an early interception returned for a TD, Kaepernick was almost unstoppable. Hopefully, today will be just as exciting as Saturday was.

Seattle Seahawks [+3] vs Atlanta Falcons [-3]

Seattle comes into this game as the hottest team in the NFL. However, I still have some worries about them on the road. This is the biggest game of Matt Ryan's career. The Atlanta QB is 0-3 when it comes Playoff time. All 3 of the teams the Falcons have lost to in the Postseason have gone on to play in the Super Bowl. I have been tossing and turning over this game all week, but I have to go with Russell Wilson and the Seahawks. 

Houston Texans [+9.5] vs New England Patriots [-9.5] 

Everyone know what happened to the Texans just about a month ago when they played this Patriots team. Houston came in talking about how that game was the biggest game in the franchise history. In the end, the Patriots whopped them 42-14. This Texans team is trying to forget that game. The key matchup will be between the Texans secondary and the Pats WR. This game will be much closer than last time, and I expect the Texans to cover the spread. However, I think that Tom Brady and New England will come out on top. 

Countdown for Saturday

Today the Broncos will go at it with the Ravens in Denver to kick off the Divisional Round of the Playoffs. This should be a great game in what could be Ray Lewis's last game. This is just the first game in a weekend full of great matchups.

Baltimore Ravens [+9.5] vs Denver Broncos [-9.5]
This is a rematch of the Week 15 thrashing the Broncos gave Baltimore. The Broncos are playing outstanding and have won 11 straight. The matchup most people are excited to see is between Ed Reed and Peyton Manning. These are two of the best players ever at their position. I believe that Baltimore will cover the spread, but I think the Broncos will come out on top.

Green Bay Packers [+3] vs San Francisco 49ers [-3]
This is another rematch that is taking place this weekend. These two teams met in the 1st week of the season. The 49ers managed to squeeze out a victory against Rodgers and the Packers. However, this is a whole new 49er team. Colin Kaepernick is starting at QB for San Francisco. This will be a back and forth game, but I think the Packers will win and move on. 

High Tide

Last night Alabama made history by whopping Notre Dame 42-14 in Miami to win the BCS National Championship. Alabama has won 3 titles in the last 4 years. Nick Saban won his 4th National Championship. Eddie Lacey won Offensive MVP. He forced Notre Dame players to miss tackles and put up two touchdowns. AJ McCarron had a terrific game for the Crimson Tide. He threw for 4 TDs and 264 yards. Don't even get Brent Musberger started on his girlfriend. Alabama's Offensive-line was absolutely amazing. They did not let McCarron get touched. I am pretty sure the only player that touched him was Center Barrett Jones, after the two got into a little argument. Don't worry, the two made up afterwards. Notre Dame, on the other hand, did not do anything very well. They had a lot of missed tackles and definitely did not live up to the hype. There was just no spark to this ND team. It felt like they were still relaxing on the beach. It did not look like Brian Kelly prepared his team enough. The coaching edge easily went to Alabama. Most people were expecting a better game, but unfortunately for ND that did not happen. It was a tough game, but ND has a great recruiting class coming in and has a lot to look forward to. 'Bama also has another dominant recruiting class. I expect that these two teams will have great seasons next year. Both teams have lots of young talent. It was definitely a great season of college football, but let's move it onto basketball and hockey now! 

Battle by the Beach

Everybody knows what they will be watching on TV tonight. Notre Dame and Alabama will go at it for the BCS National Championship. Notre Dame is 12-0 and is ranked #1 in the country. Although ND's #1 ranking, Bama still is the 9.5 point favorite. Alabama is looking to become the 1st team in history to repeat as National Champions. The last team to try was the 2005 USC team. The Crimson Tide have won two out of the last three National Championships. A win tonight would definitely put Saban in the group of the best college coaches ever. This would be his 4th National Championship, and his 3rd at Alabama. They have to get by Notre Dame's tough defense, though. The Irish's defense has been very good all year, lead by Heisman finalist Manti Te'o. The tough matchup for ND is Amari Cooper going up against ND's secondary. I really am looking forward to seeing the Tide's Offensive Line going up against the Irish's front seven. I think that this game will come down to turnovers. Alabama is one of the best teams in the country on capitalizing off turnovers. If they can force the young Freshman Everett Golson into making bad decisions and turning the ball over, Alabama will win this game. I really don't know how exciting this game will really be, but I have been wrong before. I will be tweeting like crazy tonight, so make sure you start following me on Twitter @MM8sports.

My Pick:

Alabama 33 Notre Dame 17

I think Bama will cover the spread and win handily. It has been a great year for ND and Brian Kelly, but tonight is Bama's night. I am not an Alabama fan, but Roll Tide!

Wild Card Weekend

It is that time of the year again. It is Playoff time in the NFL. This Wild Card Weekend showcases some very interesting matchups. It will all start today at 4:00 when the struggling Texans will take on the Bengals in Houston. 

Saturday Games

3. Houston Texans -4 vs 6. Cincinnati +4

Houston has been really slumping lately. The Bengals are coming in hot winning their last 3 games. AJ Green has had an outstanding year for Cincy. This game is a rematch of last year's game between the two on Wild Card Weekend. Houston won that game with backup QB TJ Yates. Houston is favored by four points. I would take Cincy in this game. Their defense is playing really well and they have plenty of targets for Andy Dalton. 

3. Green Bay Packers -7.5 vs 6. Minnesota Vikings +7.5

This game is a rematch of last week's thriller, where the Vikings won to clinch a spot in the Playoffs. The key in this game will be Christian Ponder. Ponder had the best game in his career last week against this Packers defense. However, Green Bay was missing a couple key defensive players. Charles Woodson will be back for this game. I think that he is the X-Factor in the game. He is one of the best tackling CBs in the game. That should limit Adrian Peterson's yards. I like the Packers wining in this game, but I think the Vikings will cover the spread and make it close. 

Sunday Games

4. Baltimore Ravens -7 vs 5. Indianapolis Colts +7

One thing that is for sure in this game is that there will be plenty of emotion. This is most likely Ray Lewis's last home game ever. On the Colts side, this will be Chuck Pagano's second week back coaching after being treated for Leukemia. Andrew Luck will be playing in his first ever Postseason game tomorrow. I think that he will have a tough game against this defense. The Ravens D isn't anything what it used to be, but I think if they can get pressure on Luck they will win the game. This will be a great game, but I think that the Ravens will win it. I do think that they will cover the spread with a couple of late scores to seal the deal.

4. Washington Redskins +3 vs 5. Seattle Seahawks -3

These are two of the hottest teams in the game. Both have rookie QBs that have been on fire as of late. Both teams also boast a stellar running attack. Marshawn Lynch will be a big factor for the Seahawks. However, I think this game will come down to defense, and Seattle has the better defense. The Seahawks have arguably the best Secondary in the game. They will make it difficult for Robert Griffin III and the Redskins. I think that the Seahawks will win and cover the spread. 

The Big Boys

The first BCS bowl game of the year is today when Stanford will take on Montee Ball and Wisconsin. All the BCS Bowls are very interesting and have a big storyline to them. I will give you my analysis on each of these big games. 

Rose Bowl

6. Stanford vs Wisconsin 

Stanford is coming in red hot and looks great. If it wasn't for a questionable call against Notre Dame, the Cardinal might be in the National championship discussion. They are still one of the top 2-loss teams in the country. Wisconsin, on the other hand, struggled early in the year, but really picked it up towards the end of the season. They finished it off with a win against Nebraska in the Big 10 Championship game where they put up 70 points. However, the Badgers suffered a huge loss. Head coach Bret Bielema went to Arkansas to fill the head coach vacancy. Barry Alvarez will be the interim head coach for Wisconsin. This will be a very close game, but I really think Stanford's physicality will give them the edge. 

Stanford 27 Wisconsin 24

Orange Bowl

15. Northern Illinois vs 12. Florida State

This is your David vs Goliath matchup. Everybody has talked about how NIU should not be playing in this game, but star QB Jordan lynch and company will be looking to prove those people wrong. FSU has a very strong defensive line. I think it might be tough for Lynch to get going against the Seminoles' defense. However, I think this game will be closer than expected.

Florida State 24 Northern Illinois 23

Sugar Bowl

21. Louisville vs 3. Florida

Although Louisville's rank, they still are playing in a BCS Bowl. The Cardinals won the Big East championship. I don't know how happy Florida is to be in this bowl game, but I think it won't effect their play much. I think the Gators are just too powerful and I expect them to win big. 

Florida 40 Louisville 17

Fiesta Bowl

4. Oregon vs 5. Kansas State

This is my favorite BCS game of the year. It will be a thrill to see the Oregon offense and the KSU offense. this will be Collin klein's last game as a Wildcat. This is Bill Snyder's first BCS Bowl game in a while. The legendary coach is looking for a win. Neither defense is particularly strong. Oregon might have to slow it down a little bit later in the game to give their defense a break. This game will come down to the wire. 

Oregon 37 Kansas State 34