Good morning, Pickswise Nation. We hope you got through a day without NBA action as well as you could, and the good news is the playoffs are back tonight. We also have NHL and MLB action plus the Kentucky Oaks on another fantastic Friday of sports. Let’s get straight to making your next bet better!
About Last Night
Ohtani impresses for Angels, Mets stage incredible comeback
The MLB stars did their best to put on a show while the NBA took a day off. Shohei Ohtani struck out 11 Red Sox batters and added 2 hits of his own in an 8-0 Angels win at Fenway Park, while the Mets staged a comeback for the ages in Philadelphia — rallying from 7-1 down in the 9th inning to win 8-7 against the Phillies. The Pickswise cappers were ahead again, going 6-4 on ML/RL bets a day after their spectacular 14-3 performance on Wednesday.
Another bounce-back night in the NHL
This year’s NHL teams aren’t keen to let their opponents get a clear lead and, as happened on Wednesday, 3 of Thursday’s 4 Game 2s ended with the series level at 1-1 after wins by the Rangers, Panthers and Stars. The Avalanche were the only team to go 2-0 up, but even they need overtime to beat the Predators 2-1. The Pickswise team went 2-1 on Best Bets with the Rangers ML and Panthers 3-way ML coming through.
Today’s Slate
Heat is on for the home teams
It’s crunch time in tonight’s NBA series with both home teams trailing 2-0. The 76ers host the Heat at 7:00 pm ET, with the Suns visiting the Mavericks at 9:30 pm ET. Both games are on ESPN. Read today’s NBA game previews.
Big day of baseball
We have a full slate of 15 MLB games today, starting with Dodgers vs Cubs at 2:20 pm ET. Read today’s MLB game previews.
Four-game slate in the NHL
The pressure is on the Bruins in tonight’s first NHL playoff game, as they trail the Hurricanes 2-0 (7:00 pm ET, TNT). The playoff action continues through the Oilers vs Kings game on TBS at 10:00 pm ET. Read today’s NHL game previews.
It’s Kentucky Oaks day
It’s a big weekend in the horse racing calendar, with the Kentucky Derby tomorrow and the Kentucky Oaks today, and you can get the lowdown on today’s runners and our best bet for the Oaks here.
Best Bet of the Day
Miami Heat -3 vs Philadelphia 76ers
7:00 pm ET, ESPN
The first 2 games of this series were never really in doubt for the Heat and they head to Philadelphia looking to potentially even sweep the shorthanded 76ers. Philadelphia lost the first 2 games by double-digit margins, and although it is now playing at home there isn’t much they can hope for without Joel Embiid. The 76ers are 0-13 all time when trailing 2-0 in a best-of-7 series. Take the road team to cover. Read our full game preview for Heat vs 76ers.
Must-watch
Don’t forget to check out our daily show Let’s Bet It! on our YouTube channel at every day at 10:00 am ET. youtube.com/c/Pickswise
Lauren Jbara and Jared Smith are your hosts today and they will be joined by Brian Scalabrine, former NBA champion and Pickswise NBA analyst, to discuss the NBA playoffs. The team will also go over today’s slates in the MLB and NHL playoffs before revealing their Plays of the Day.
You can also access the show through Spotify and Apple Podcasts (search for Let’s Bet It Presented By Pickswise).
Must-read
Our same game parlay for tonight’s Heat vs 76ers and Suns vs Mavericks games are ready to read, along with Friday’s NBA mega parlay (+1140 odds) and first basket best bets. We also have today’s best NHL player prop plays and you can also get ahead for this weekend’s English Premier League soccer games with our Saturday EPL soccer parlay, which includes a shock loss for one of the title contenders.
Football fans may also want to have an early look at our best bets for this week’s USFL games and there’s a ton of great information and picks for this weekend’s Kentucky Derby meeting in our horse racing section.
Read all of our great sports analysis as it arrives throughout the day on the Analysis tab.
Stat of the Day
The Heat have covered the spread in 5 of their last 7 games against Philadelphia and are 11-3-1 ATS in their last 15 on the road overall.
Boost of the Day
Tampa Bay Lightning to win & Steven Stamkos to score 1+ goals
Boosted to +370 odds at FanDuel Sportsbook
FanDuel Sportsbook has enhanced the odds of Steven Stamkos scoring a goal in a Tampa Bay Lightning win against the Maple Leafs from +270 to +370. That boost correlates nicely with one of our NHL prop plays, so you might want to check it out!
Pickswise is the home of free sports picks, news, and best bets. Check out our expert NBA picks, NHL picks, MLB picks and Soccer picks for the latest game picks.