Phil Agius
Show Bio
Savor this Sunday, as it’s the last full slate of NFL action until September! In addition to Week 18 in the NFL, we have NBA, NHL, college basketball, and soccer on the menu. Let’s get straight to finding the best bets on another super Sunday of sports!
About Last Night
Chiefs put the pressure on Titans
The Kansas City Chiefs gave themselves a shot at the AFC No. 1 seed with a 28-24 win at Denver, but the Chiefs kneeling inside the 10-yard line at the end meant that the Broncos (+10) covered. Now KC needs Houston to beat Tennessee today or the Titans will get the bye week. In the NFC, Dallas can still be seeded 2nd, 3rd, or 4th after beating the Eagles (who will be 6th or 7th) 51-26 with Dak Prescott throwing 5 TD passes.
Heat eclipse the Suns
There were some noteworthy results in the NBA on Saturday, with the Miami Heat beating Western Conference pacesetters the Phoenix Suns 123-100 as +9 underdog. The Indiana Pacers beat the Utah Jazz 125-113 in another upset, while defending champion Milwaukee Bucks lost 114-106 to the Charlotte Hornets.
Duke blown away by Hurricanes
There was a huge slate of college basketball on Saturday and it saw some shocks, with No. 2 Duke losing 76-74 to Miami and No. 6 Kansas going down 75-67 to No. 25 Texas Tech.
Today’s Slate
NFL Week 18 tops the bill
The Titans vs Texans game will determine the AFC No. 1 seed, while the Colts need a win over the Jaguars to secure their playoff place. In the 6 late afternoon games, the AFC East title is on the line in Jets vs Bills and Patriots vs Dolphins, while the Saints vs Falcons and 49ers vs Rams games will determine the final NFC playoff team. Sunday Night Football brings a showdown between the Chargers and Raiders with the winning team making the playoffs. Check out our great NFL Week 18 betting guide, which acts as a hub to access all our parlays, picks, previews, and prop bets for today’s games.
Thompson set to return for Warriors against Cavs
There are 10 games on today’s NBA schedule, which includes Warriors vs Cavaliers at 8:30 pm ET on NBA TV. Klay Thompson is set to make his long-awaited return for the Warriors. You can check out our picks for all today’s NBA action.
Small slate in the NHL
There are just 2 games on today’s NBA schedule, with an early 2:00 pm ET contest between the Stars and Blues plus Red Wings vs Ducks at 8:00 pm ET.
And there’s more….
It’s a quieter day of college hoops today with Northwestern vs Ohio State (5:30 pm ET) catching the eye, while there’s an all-EPL game between Leeds and West Ham (9:00 am ET, ESPN+) among today’s English FA Cup soccer games. Check out our picks for today’s college basketball and soccer.
Best Bet of the Day
Golden State Warriors -8.5 vs Cleveland Cavaliers
8:30 pm ET, NBA TV
The Cavaliers have been the darling team of every NBA bettor this season. They are a mind-blowing 27-11-1 against the spread and have covered in 13 of their 18 road games. But that all has changed in the last couple of weeks as injuries have decimated their team. Over their last 6 games they have covered just once and in head-to-head meetings with the Warriors they are just 1-8 ATS and on a 10-game losing streak. The buzz around tonight’s game will be huge; Klay Thompson makes his long-awaited return for the Warriors after missing the past 2 years because of injuries. The Warriors should dominate this game from the get-go. They started the new year with big wins over Utah and Miami, and if they can beat those teams with ease there’s no reason why they can’t do the same tonight against a shorthanded Cleveland team. Take the Warriors to win big. Check out our full preview of Cavaliers vs Warriors
Must-watch
The Week 18 edition of our weekly NFL show Pickswise Playbook is available now with Chris Rose, Ross Tucker, and Jared Smith breaking down all this week’s games.
There’s also a great anecdote from Ross about his playing days and a player who was keen to reach a performance incentive on the final day of the season!
And don’t forget to look out for the latest episode of our great daily betting show Let’s Bet It later today. On today’s show Alex Glaze, Jared Smith, and guest Mark Zinno will go through today’s NFL slate, answer questions from the chat throughout the show, and give out their individual Plays of the Day.
Check out both shows on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/Pickswise
Must-read
Our human handicapper has raised the white flag in our Man vs Machine NFL picks battle against our computer handicapper but they both have Week 18 picks, so see which of them you want to tail today! We also have our top touchdown scorer picks, Jared Smith’s props article on players who are targeting performance incentives, plus the final picks in our Pickswise Pro Football Capper Contest.
New York-based readers can also check out our hub for the best promos, bonuses and special offers, and our New York Sunday betting guide on this special weekend!
Be sure to head over to the Analysis tab for even more great betting content as it arrives throughout the day and remember you can access all today’s NFL content in one place via our Week 18 NFL betting guide.
Stat of the Day
The road team has covered the spread in 10 of the last 14 meetings between the Chargers and Raiders.
Boost of the day
Dak Prescott managed 5 passing TDs on his own last night, and bettors who think Derek Carr and Justin Herbert will combine for 5 or more in the NFL regular-season finale between the Chargers and Raiders can take enhanced odds of +160 (from +140) with DraftKings Sportsbook.
Pickswise is the home of free sports picks, news, and best bets. Check out our expert NFL picks, NBA picks, NCAAF picks, college basketball picks, NHL picks and Soccer picks for the latest game picks.
