The last couple days of the NBA playoffs have brought plenty of excitement as the San Antonio Spurs prevailed in the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder, 111-103, in Game 7 on Saturday. Victor Wembanyama delivered in routine fashion with 22 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block. Julian Champagnie and Stephon Castle contributed as well with 20 and 16 points, respectively.
On the other side, guard Shai Gilgeous Alexander outscored Wembanyama with 35 points while converting on nine of 11 attempts at the free throw line. Nonetheless, Gilgeous Alexander's firepower was insufficient in masking the struggles of centers Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein, who combined for a meager 11 points and 4-9 shooting from the field.
With no matchups today, the NBA gives way to a nine-game MLB slate featuring tight divisional contests from Marlins-Nationals to Dodgers-Diamondbacks.
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First Pick: Dodgers Moneyline
Rundown: The Los Angeles Dodgers (38-21) aim to continue their outstanding baseball against a familiar foe in the Arizona Diamondbacks (31-27) at Chase Field.
The Dodgers enter Monday riding off an astounding 9-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies during the rubber matchup of a three-game series. Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto had another commanding start on the mound, striking out 10 batters while only giving up two walks. His excellent outing was complemented by relievers Will Klein, Edgardo Henriquez and Johnathan Hernández, who allowed just one hit and a single earned run as a trio.
At the dish, Ryan Ward erupted for his first-ever major league homer in the fourth inning after getting the call back to the bigs when Teoscar Hernández landed on the 10-day injured list due to a hamstring issue. Alex Freeland and Max Muncy went yard as well. Most notably, Muncy launched a homer to right center in the seventh inning, extending L.A.'s already gargantuan lead to 8-0. Moreover, Freddie Freeman and Alex Call brought two more runs to the table during the fifth, sixth and eighth frames.
As for Arizona, they will look to bounce back from a three-game sweep by the Seattle Mariners. Yesterday, the Diamondbacks' first run did not come until the sixth when a wild pitch by reliever Luis Castillo allowed the speedy Corbin Carroll to reach home from third base. The squad scored for the final time in the eighth off a sacrifice fly by Ketel Marte that drove in catcher Gabriel Moreno. Despite allowing eight hits, right-hander Merrill Kelly limited the damage to two earned runs in 5.1 innings of work. Ultimately, his efforts proved to be in vain when outfielder Victor Robles walked it off in the 10th with an RBI single that brought in Randy Arozarena.
Given the Dodgers' amazing depth along with a blazing hot streak of five-consecutive series wins, bettors can expect them to sustain their dominant ways.