Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Bulls try to get ahead of the Celtics, the Capitals try to finish off the Rangers, and the Twins continue to take on the Rays.

Arlen Specter switching parties good for gambling rights…

Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter is switching parties, going from a left-leaning Republican to the Democratic Party. Because Democrats have actually positioned themselves to the right of the Republican Party when it comes to personal responsibility and creating additional forms of revenue, this is good news for those who want to lift Prohibition II, the war on gambling rights.

Tipping off on the hardwood  . . .

Top sportsbooks are taking wagers on Geelong AFL, NBA playoff odds, NHL odds and MLB odds.   

There are two NBA playoff games in each of the conferences on the Tuesday night schedule, with the East featuring Chicago at Boston and Philadelphia at Orlando, and the West giving us Dallas at San Antonio and Houston at Portland.

The two East series are knotted up at two games apiece. In Boston the Celtics will be looking to bounce back from a 121-118 road overtime loss on Sunday, as Derrick Rose led the Bulls’ attack with 23 points and 11 boards. Oddsmakers like Boston in Game 5 on Tuesday, as they’re pegged as 7-point home favorites. The Sixers got back into their series on Sunday as well, edging the Magic 84-81 in Philadelphia. Andre Miller led a balanced Sixers offense with 17 points in the win.

In the West both series could end on Tuesday night, as Dallas and Houston both hold 3-1 edges in the sets. The Mavericks rolled past the Spurs 99-90 at home in Game 4 on the weekend, as Josh Howard poured in 28 points in the victory. Still, San Antonio is favored by 5.5 points in Game 5. The Rockets got 21 points and 12 rebounds from Yao Ming in their 89-88 home win over the Trail Blazers in Game 4 Sunday. Brandon Roy tossed in 31 points in a losing cause for Portland.

Sports headlines…

A day after signing the top undrafted free agent, California University of PA Vulcan QB Brian McCabe, the Pittsburgh Steelers have cut linebacker Larry Foote. McCabe will be the best player who was overlooked in the 2009 NFL draft says OffshoreInsiders.com  CEO Joe Duffy. The fact Duffy graduated from Cal PA is a mere coincidence.

Sports picks…

It surprised nobody that Stevie Vincent’s historic play on the Denver Nuggets was a historic blowout. Stevie knows what others do not.

Underdog Denver wins 121-63 as The Great One goes to 4-0 all time with pro basketball guarantees and all four covered by 22 or more points. You don’t know what Stevie knows as he sweeps thanks to the Hawks going under. He’s now 23-7 in pro basketball with all picks.

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Meeting up on the diamond . . .

The National Hockey League offers up a pair of Game 7’s on Tuesday night, with the Rangers and Washington and Carolina at New Jersey. The Capitals tied up their first-round series at three games apiece on Sunday, blowing past New York 5-3. Tom Poti had a goal and three assists in that win, and Simeon Varlamov made 29 saves. Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist allowed five goals on 20 shots.

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes forced a deciding game in their series with the Devils by blanking New Jersey 4-0 on Sunday. Cam Ward made 28 stops for the shutout in that contest, while Ray Whitney scored a goal and added three assists to pace Carolina‘s attack. Eric Staal had two markers for the Canes. Martin Brodeur took the loss in nets for the Devils, stopping just 33 of 37 Carolina shots.

Those looking at Kentucky Derby odds are wary about getting ahead of themselves, and basketball betting players should be concerned about the same thing on Tuesday night, when Houston can clinch their first-round series on the road when they take on Portland, the youngest team in the playoffs. The Trail Blazers are the sportsbook favorites at home, and they’ll have to work fast to put a missed chance behind them from Game 4.

Rockets vs Trailblazers odds – April 28, 9:30 PM ET

The Rockets shot 39.8% from the floor, but 9-of-16 from three-point land in an 89-88 win in Game 4 at home. Yao Ming led the way with 21 points and 12 boards while playing 44 minutes, and Luis Scola added 17 points and eight boards for the Rockets, who outrebounded the Trailblazers 43-41, and only committed nine turnovers. Ron Artest had a rough shooting night, going 5-of-20 for 12 points, but he handed out nine assists.

The Trail Blazers led by six points heading into the final quarter, they made all 17 of their free-throw attempts, and still couldn’t put the Rockets away. Brandon Roy had a game-high 31 points, including 13 of Portland’s 17 free throws, and they also had a slight chance when Houston’s Kyle Lowry missed a pair of free throws with 1.2 seconds left, but they couldn’t get another shot off. LaMarcus Aldridge added 19 points and 10 boards for the Trail Blazers, who will be a force in future playoffs, but they’ve made too many mistakes in this series to head to the next round.

Basketball betting odds have the Trail Blazers as a 5.5-point favorite at home, and they should be confident after losing both games in Houston by a combined four points. Back at home, the Trail Blazers should be more relaxed, and it’s imperative that they get out to a good start. For the Rockets, they’ve played their best when Yao gets out of the gate quickly, and he broke out in Game 4 after struggling with double teams in the previous two games. The pace should be picked up in Portland, where the Trail Blazers like to get out and run, so players who are into betting online should consider the over with a total of 182. Take the Trail Blazers to keep their season alive with a basketball betting win on Tuesday.

Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Lakers try to eliminate the Jazz, the Red Sox meet up with the Indians, and the Blackhawks have the Flames on the ropes.

Tipping off on the hardwood  . . .

The Lakers can put the Jazz out of their misery on Monday night when the two teams play Game 5 of their first-round series in Los Angeles. Kobe Bryant and company came back from a Game 3 loss to top the Jazz 108-94 on the road in Game 4 on Saturday. Bryant was good for 38 points in that win, while Pau Gasol had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Los Angeles is a 12.5-point favorite for Game 5.

The Nuggets and Heat are both up 2-1 in their first-round series heading into matchups on Monday night. Denver was edged 95-93 by New Orleans in Game 3 on Saturday, with Chris Paul pouring in 32 points. The Hornets are favored by 2.5 points at home in Game 4. Miami bounced Atlanta 107-78 at home in their contest on Saturday, and the oddsmakers have them favored by 4.5 for Monday.

NBA picks…

History is being made today by forensic sports handicapping founder Stevie Vincent. Superstar Stevie Vincent is so confident about tonight’s Denver/New Orleans contest that he is guaranteeing that it will win. If in the unlikely event Stevie misses an NBA Guaranteed Play for the first time ever, then he will give you all of tomorrows picks free of charge.

Stevie is 21-7 the last 28 pro basketball picks. Click now to purchase

Sports headlines…

No serious injuries are reported as a result of the Carl Edwards crash at Talladaga…Former heavyweight champion Greg Page is going home after four months of rehabilitation following a permanent brain injury in his fight with Dale Crowe…NY1 is reporting that former New Jersey Nets star Jayson Williams is suicidal following an incident at the NY hotel that culminated in being Tasered by New York police. 1010 Wins joined New York 1 in reporting this…The Kentucky Derby 2009 odds are out but Quality Road, a favorite, is out following several foot problems. Dunkirk and Pioneer of the Nile are the early favorites at 6-1. It must be the KFC jinx because this announcement comes on the day that Kentucky Fried Chicken, now known just as KFC was giving away free grilled chicken.

Meeting up on the diamond . . .

Tim Wakefield (2-1, 2.45 ERA) will try to pitch the Red Sox past the Indians in Cleveland on Monday night in one of six games on the American League schedule. The righthanded knuckleballer has won each of his past two starts, allowing just three earned runs on nine hits over 16 innings of work. Countering for Cleveland will be lefthander Cliff Lee, who is 1-3 with a 5.25 ERA this season.

Elsewhere on the AL slate for Monday: Texas at Baltimore, Tampa Bay at Minnesota, Toronto at Kansas City, Seattle at the White Sox, and New York at Detroit. The Yankees will send CC Sabathia (1-1, 4.81 ERA) to the mound against the Tigers Monday, and Detroit turns to Justin Verlander (0-2, 9.99 ERA).

There are eight games on the National League schedule for Monday, including Washington at Philadelphia, Florida at the Mets, St. Louis at Atlanta, Pittsburgh at Milwaukee, San Diego at Colorado, the Cubs at Arizona, and Los Angeles at San Francisco. As well, the Astros will be in Cincinnati to take on the Reds, with Houston ace righthander Roy Oswalt (0-2, 4.68 ERA) looking for his first victory.

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

The Blackhawks and Ducks can both advance to the second round of the NHL playoffs by picking up victories on Monday night. Chicago took a 3-2 lead in their best-of-seven set with the Flames on Saturday night by rolling to a 5-1 home victory. Brent Seabrook had a goal and two assists in that contest, while Nikolai Khabibulin stopped 19 of 20 Calgary shots. Dustin Boyd had the lone Calgary tally, and Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff was yanked after giving up four goals.

San Jose staved off elimination on Saturday night, getting past the Ducks 3-2 in overtime to cut their series deficit to 3-2. Patrick Marleau had the winner in extra time for the Sharks, while Joe Thornton picked up his first goal of the postseason. Evgeni Nabokov stopped 23 Anaheim shots. For the Ducks, Ryan Carter and Corey Perry had the goals, and Jonas Hiller stopped 45 of 48 shots.