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Sunday’s Best Bets: NBA, 2023 NCAA Tournament & NHL (3/19)

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No matter your sport of choice, there’s always sports betting action to be had. We’ll have you covered each and every day with our daily best bets. Here are all of our best bets across each major sport in action today.

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Today’s Best Bets

Here are today’s best NBA bets.

NBA Best Bets

NBA Same Game Parlay Picks

Miami Heat vs. Detroit Pistons

The Miami Heat are four games above .500, while the Detroit Pistons have just 16 wins all year.

It’s been Jimmy Butler leading the charge for the Heat. He’s scored at least 24 points in four of his last five games and in seven of his last ten games. He’ll go up against the Pistons today, ranked 29th in points allowed this season. Butler has earned 26 points per game in March.

On the other hand, Jaden Ivey has scored just 15.4 points per game this season. In March, he scored 16.2 points per game, but that was because of one game where he added 26 points. Ivey has only hit 17 points or more in one of his last five games and in 35% of his last 20 games.

He’s not someone I want to rely on, not against the Miami Heat defense. However, I still think he’ll be able to pass for five or more assists to his teammates. Ivey has earned five or more assists in four of his last five and six of his last ten games. And he’s not just putting up five assists. He’s had multiple games in March with more than ten assists.

Parlay Odds: +528

  • Jason Radowitz

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First Basket Scorer

Denver Nuggets vs. Brooklyn Nets

The Nuggets have won the Northwest, but there are concerning issues. The team has dropped five of their last six and are in jeopardy of losing the top seed. Even Nikola Jokic is feeling the impact and is no longer the favorite to win the MVP.

The Nets are doing enough to hang onto a playoff spot but could end up in the play-in tournament. The team had a rough time immediately after the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving trades, but they've played better recently. The new addition, Mikal Bridges, has been great and has become the team’s leading scorer.

Denver’s recent trends have them highly favored to grab the first basket. They have a 70% first-basket rate compared to Brooklyn's 30% over the last ten games, and the Nuggets' 1.2 shots to the first FG is half the Nets. Jokic has three first baskets in his previous ten games.

First Basket Pick: Nikola Jokic (+420)

  • John Supowitz

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NBA Prop Bets

Clint Capela Over 11.5 Rebounds vs. San Antonio Spurs (+104)

As the Hawks sit in the middle of the play-in tournament.  As mentioned, most teams in the east are separated by very few games, so Atlanta could play well enough and get right into the playoffs or miss it entirely.

They take on the Spurs, who possess one of the worst-rated defenses in the league. They’ve had difficulty stopping big men on the board and are allowing the seventh-most rebounds to centers. I love the value of Capela getting his season average as the total.

  • John Supowitz

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NBA Bets

Toronto Raptors vs. Milwaukee Bucks

The Bucks have really come on strong in the last part of the season and have taken control of the top spot in the Eastern Conference. A relatively healthy lineup is the main driver behind this and they should be favorites at home against a Toronto team that is fighting to stay alive in the play-in hunt. However, this line is too long and there is reason to back the Raptors.

Milwaukee is a better version of the team they've been most of the season, but Toronto is too. The Raptors are healthier now than they've been for most of the year and after struggling mightily in a recent western road trip, they returned home to two very impressive showings in blowout wins over the Nuggets and the Thunder. The offense could continue to stay hot if Bucks' center Brook Lopez is expected back in the lineup but there's a chance he isn't 100%. That is a blow to Milwaukee's stout defense and something Toronto could use to their advantage.

The biggest reason I like this play is that the Bucks, even with racking up wins, haven't necessarily been blowing out the spread. They sit only 4-4-1 in the month of March and as impressive as they've looked, this number is just way too high for them to be hanging against a team who has something to fight for at this point of the season. Milwaukee likely wins this game, but it'll be closer than the number suggests.

Pick: 1.1u on Raptors +9.5 (-110)

  • Ryan Rodeman

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2023 March Madness Best Bets

Gonzaga vs. TCU

It is uncommon for Gonzaga not to be a No. 1 seed after being the No. 1 overall seed in each of the last two NCAA Tournaments. In addition, in the Mark Few era, the Bulldogs have been a No. 1 seed five times, more than they have been anything else.

Gonzaga’s “struggles” this year relative to their usual lofty preseason aspirations is largely because of struggles in the non-conference. The Bulldogs lost to Texas and Purdue by 18+ points each and Baylor by one point on a neutral court. If there is one thing Gonzaga has struggled with over the years, it is quick and athletic guards, which TCU has in droves. Losing Lampkin hurts TCU frontcourt depth, but the Horned Frogs used a blistering top-two Big 12 tempo to overcome the worst 3-point shooting percentage in league play (29.9%) and average 75.1 points per game.

TCU is a respectable 6-6 ATS as underdogs and covered six of 13 games against ranked opponents. Meanwhile, Gonzaga was awful in non-conference games, going just 4-10-1 ATS. That has not stopped 71% of early wagers from backing the Bulldogs, which has us comfortable on the other side as a contrarian play.

Pick: TCU +4.5 (-110)

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Check out our best NHL bets.

NHL Best Bets

NHL Game Picks

Boston Bruins (-178) vs. Buffalo Sabres (+146) | O/U 6.5 (-124/-102)

Boston has the No. 1 seed in the east wrapped up, but they're still on pace for that historic season with the most wins and points. They had a couple of shaky games but have rattled off two straight by outscoring their opponents 8-2.

Linus Ullmark got the start on Saturday against Minnesota, and so it'll be Jeremy Swayman. The Boston backup could easily be a starter on most teams and is eighth with 14.9 Goals Saved Above Expected (Min. 17 starts).

After years of mediocrity, it finally looked like Buffalo was ready to break through and make a playoff run, but we spoke too soon.

The team has plummeted at the wrong time by grabbing just five points in their last ten games and are six points out of a playoff spot.

The Sabres got by this season on their offense and, at one point, were the top-scoring team in the league, but that has faded recently. Recently they’re scoring just 2.80 goals per game, while the consistently bad goaltending has allowed 4.6 goals.

Even with Buffalo’s rest advantage at home, the Bruins are far better. The offense could contend, but the goaltending cannot stop the NHL’s second-best offense.

Pick: Bruins 60 min. ML (-125)

  • John Supowitz

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