The 2013 NBA playoffs are set to begin, and today at Bankroll Sports, we are going to be keeping a close eye on the series between the Miami Heat and the Milwaukee Bucks. These two should be going at it in a great set of battles, and we are going to have our NBA playoffs predictions and scores update on a nightly basis for this and all of the great series throughout the playoffs. Check back to this page often, as we will be updating our final scores and our series analysis so you can make the most informed NBA picks every step of the way in this series.

Milwaukee Bucks vs. Miami Heat NBA Playoff Schedule

Heat Win Series 4-0

Game 1: Milwaukee Bucks 87 – Miami Heat 110
Game 2: Milwaukee Bucks 86 – Miami Heat 98
Game 3: Miami Heat 104 – Milwaukee Bucks 91
Game 4: Miami Heat 88 – Milwaukee Bucks 77

Milwaukee Bucks vs. Miami Heat Series Odds at
5Dimes Sportsbook
Milwaukee Bucks +150000
Miami Heat -450000
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Bucks vs. Heat Series Update
Game 1: About all that the Bucks can say out Game 1 is that G Monta Ellis and G Brandon Jennings combined for 48 points, but the rest of the team only scored 39 points, and that obviously isn’t going to beat the Heat. F LeBron James had a ho hum 28 points, 10 boards, and eight assists, and he shot 9-of-11 from the floor in doing so. There was never a doubt as to which one of these teams was. Heat 110 – Bucks 87 (Heat Lead Series 1-0)

Game 2: The Bucks were once again stymied by the Heat in the second game of this series, but at least this game was a little bit closer than the first. Milwaukee at least played a good defensive game, but in the end, it wasn’t enough to get the job done. Miami once again just flexed its muscles, pulling away by outscoring the Bucks 30-21 in the fourth quarter. Heat 98 – Bucks 86 (Heat Lead Series 2-0)

Game 3: Milwaukee took a 30-21 lead in the first quarter against the Heat on Thursday, and there had to be a little bit of hope that perhaps this could still be a series. Unfortunately, the lead didn’t make it through the third quarter. G Ray Allen came off of the bench and scored 23 points, making up for the fact that G Dwyane Wade scored just four points and turned the ball over six times. Six Bucks scored in double figures, but once again, it just wasn’t nearly enough. Heat 104 – Bucks 91 (Heat Lead Series 3-0)

Game 4: The Heat were really never challenged in this series, and they really weren’t challenged in this game either. In spite of the fact that neither F Chris Bosh nor G Ray Allen played 30 minutes and that G Dwyane Wade didn’t actually play in the game, Miami raced out to a seven-point lead at the end of the first quarter and ultimately won by 11. The defense held the Bucks down to just 36 points in the second half. Milwaukee simply couldn’t overcome the combination of G Brandon Jenning and F Ersan Ilyasova shooting 4-of-20 from the field between them. Heat 88 – Bucks 77 (Heat Win Series 4-0)

2013 Bucks vs. Heat Series Preview

If you believe that this series is going to be anywhere near close, you have to have another thing coming. The Heat might take a little bit of time to back in the saddle, as they really haven’t been playing all that hard over the course of the last few weeks, but they are clearly the superior team in this game in this best of seven series.

The Bucks know that they would be lucky to get a game in this series, and they are probably just happy to be here in the playoffs. Milwaukee made the biggest move in the league at the NBA’s trade deadline, trading for G JJ Redick. Redick has only averaged 12.3 points per game since coming to the team, which has been a bit of a disappointment, but the truth of the matter is that team really didn’t have a place for all of these guards. Redick is basically the same size is both G Monta Ellis and G Brandon Jennings, and these three can’t successfully be on the court at the same time. There just aren’t all that many bigs that are going to be able to defend the rest of the bigs that the Heat are bringing to the table.

Meanwhile, Miami is clearly one of the most talented teams that we have seen, not just in the league, but in league history as well. The Heat went on a 27-game winning streak, the second longest in the history of the league, and the display was one of the most impressive things that we have ever seen in pro basketball. F LeBron James is going to win the MVP Award once again this year, and for good reason. He averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 boards, and 7.2 assists per game this season, and those averages probably would have been a heck of a lot better if not for the fact that he didn’t play a heck of a lot of minutes over the course of the last several weeks of the season. G Dwyane Wade would have been the most important player on virtually any other team in the league after averaging 21.2 points, 5.1 assists, and 5.0 boards per game. F Chris Bosh probably would have been as well with 16.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. What really makes this team different though, is its IQ and its three-point shooting ability. Miami is second in the league, knocking down 39.6 percent of its three point shots, and the play of G Mario Chalmers and G Ray Allen is clearly making all the difference for this team.

For as much as the basketball enthusiast would like to think that this series will get back to Miami after leaving after Games 1 and 2. It would be a shock to us if Milwaukee figured out how to get even a game in this series when push came to shove, but it would be surprising to us as well if it managed to keep a single game within single digits either.

Heat vs. Bucks Series Prediction: Miami Heat in 4

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SportBet Sportsbook‘s NCAA basketball betting odds were always considered to be tight here in the Midwest Bracket. Everyone figured that the top seeds in this region had themselves a heck of a lot of problems against some other great teams, but alas, this was the one bracket where the chalk really held up. We’re down to just two teams, and two powerhouses at that, and today, we’re going to take one last look at the Final Four odds for the Louisville Cardinals and the Duke Blue Devils.

#1 Louisville Cardinals (-180) – The time is clearly here for the Cardinals to flex their muscles. They are overwhelmingly considered the most talented team left in the dance, as they are the only No. 1 seed that lived to make it here to the Elite Eight. G Russ Smith has been playing out of this world, and the defense, save for a few stretches against Oregon on Friday, has been out of this world. The Cardinals though, haven’t played much in the way of great teams in the dance, knowing that the toughest game that it has faced to date came against the eighth seeded Colorado State Rams, a game that really wasn’t all that close. The rest of the way though, it is destined to be nothing but big boys and heavy hitters, and this is where the rubber is going to meet the road. Head Coach Rick Pitino knows that this could be the best shot that he has of getting back to the Final Four in the near future, as so many of the players on the court are going to be leaving the school via graduation or for the NBA at the end of the season.

#2 Duke Blue Devils (+170) – There is a certain swagger about the Blue Devils that we like right now. The ACC reps were disrespected by the Selection Committee this season and were made to be No. 2 seeds instead of the top seed that they probably deserved. Duke probably has had the toughest path to reach the Elite Eight of any of the teams that are still dancing at this point. Not only was a game against Creighton very difficult on paper, but the very next game against Michigan State proved to be a heck of a battle. Beating the Spartans was one thing. However, the Dookies blew the Spartans out of the water and were never really in any serious danger of losing the game. We love watching G Seth Curry step back and let the rock fly without hesitation, and the way that F Mason Plumlee throws his body around with wreckless abandon is a pleasure as well. These are the things that didn’t exist for last year’s Blue Devils, which were knocked out of the first round of the dance by the lowly little No. 15 Lehigh Mountain Hawks. Coach K and the gang are just one win away from the greatness that is the Final Four, and we have a tough time believing that they can’t beat any team in the nation that comes their way with the way that they are playing.

2013 Midwest Region Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 3/30/13):
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Louisville Cardinals (-3.5) -180
Duke Blue Devils (+3.5) +170

Over at SportBet Sportsbook, you’ll find all of the odds to win the South Region and all of the brackets in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. This is one of the most stacked brackets that we have ever seen in the dance, and we know that it is going to be a tough one to handicap, so join us for our South Bracket predictions for March Madness and the NCAA Tournament, complete with each team’s odds to make it to the Final Four.

#3 Florida Gators (-150) – Florida truly has played no one on the road to the Elite Eight, but that hasn’t stopped it from being the overwhelming favorite for this entire tournament to make it to the Final Four. Now, it’s just down to a matter of one game for the right to go to Atlanta, where the team would surely have a huge following if it were to get that far. The Gators have dominated on the glass, and they have had two very strong shooting games from long range out of three. There really have been no tremendous standout players, though that’s the way that Head Coach Billy Donovan plans it. This is a veteran squad, led by the likes of G Scottie Wilbekin and F Erik Murphy, though this is a solid eight-man rotation chock full of players that are going to be capable of doing massive damage. If Florida gets to the Final Four, it is going to be a tremendously dangerous team to watch out for.

#4 Michigan Wolverines (+140) – There is no team of those that are left standing here in the Elite Eight that dodged death better than the Wolverines. They were literally already written off against the top seed in the South, the Kansas Jayhawks, the Gators were already busy ironing their away jerseys for the game. Instead, UF only needs to continue wearing the home whites, as it now has a date with the fourth seeded Wolverines instead. Michigan has gotten tremendous contributions from its starters this entire tournament, and in that win against the Jayhawks, all five of the starters logged at least 10 points. C Mitch McGary is the man that has really had a coming out party here in the NCAA Tournament, as he has had back to back tremendous games to help bring the Big Blue Nation to its first Elite Eight since 1994. It would be fitting for this team to get to the Final Four, as this is a squad that has been drawing comparisons all season long to the Fab Five that brought this team to greatness in the early 1990s.

2013 South Region Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 3/31/13):
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Florida Gators (-2.5) -150
Michigan Wolverines (+2.5) +140

The Syracuse Orange and the Marquette Golden Eagles were the only two Big East teams that started off in the East Region, yet they are the only two that are still standing as well. These two are going to square off at the Verizon Center on Saturday with a trip to the Final Four on the line, and we’re going to take one last look at both of these clubs and which one has the upper hand on the Final Four odds. SportBet Sportsbook.

#3 Marquette Golden Eagles (+160) – Marquette is going to be wearing the home whites in this one, but it is most certainly a severe underdog at the hands of the Orange on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles have played three very solid defensive games here in the dance, but their offense has been all over the place. They’ve saved their better performances for their most recent games though, as their dominating win over Miami was truly the best game that they have played all season long. In this one, Marquette shot over 50 percent from the floor, including 50.0 percent from long range, and it left just nothing for the Canes to try to pick up when push came to shove on the the other side of the court. You can’t help but be a bit underwhelmed when you look at the numbers that Marquette is averaging this season. It is only good for 68.9 points per game, and it is allowing 62.8 points per game. The defense ranks 60th or worse in every major category, and the offense shoots the ball at just barely 30% from three-point range. That being said, this was a team that was channeling magic right at the outset of the year. It went 14-4 in the Big East, surprisingly won a share of the league title, and now has a shot to claim a second victory against Syracuse on the season, and this one would get it into the Final Four.

#4 Syracuse Orange (-170) – Who would’ve really thought that the Orange would be able to make it all the way here to the Sweet 16? This was a team that really struggled down the stretch of the season, losing games to teams like Louisville and Georgetown with terrible offensive showings. Many thought that the Orange would be bounced out of the Big East Tournament right away when taking on Pitt in what was their second game played at MSG. Instead, Syracuse just continues to get better. Its only loss in this stretch came against a very good Louisville outfit in what proved to be a very tiring game in the second half. Since then, it’s double digit victory after double digit victory and impressive showing after impressive showing. Even the six-point win over Cal in the Round of 32 was a solid looking game for the Orange. When they look in that 2-3 zone, they’re a tough team to score on, and if you take out the Big East Tournament Final, no one has scored more than 61 on this ‘D’ since… you guessed it… the loss at Marquette. And who says that the world doesn’t always cycle back around? Head Coach Jim Boeheim has a legitimate shot to get his team back to the Final Four once again, and if it were to happen, it really would turn out to be what looked like a statistical improbability just eight days ago.

2013 East Region Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 3/29/13):
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Marquette Golden Eagles (+3.5) +160
Syracuse Orange (-3.5) -170

SportBet Sportsbook is ready to go with the odds to win the West Bracket. There is just one game left for us to bet on in this bracket, and it is the clash pitting the Ohio State Buckeyes against the Wichita State Shockers. Does Cinderella’s slipper have a chance to stay on all the way to the through to the Final Four? Find out right here as we break down the West Region odds and the odds to make the Final Four this year.

#2 Ohio State Buckeyes (-210) – The Buckeyes haven’t always been at their best thus far in this tournament, but they are winning games, and that’s about all that anyone could really ask for. Ohio State’s defense, after allowing just seven teams to reach 70+ points this season, has allowed at least 70 in three straight games here in the NCAA Tournament. Granted, we know that the pace with which the Buckeyes have been asked to play has been a lot faster than what they are accustomed to, and the truth of the matter is that the team has done well to keep up. However, how much longer can a team like Ohio State that isn’t always the best offensively be asked to keep shooting threes at the rate with which it is knocking them down? Not only does the team have a pair of threes with less than five seconds left to play in games, but it also is knocking down exactly half of its triples for the postseason. That’s absolutely unreal. However, we see teams catch fire all the time from the outside here in the dance. Normally, we’re talking about teams like Wichita State getting on fire. When it’s the great teams that do it though, that’s the stuff that National Championships are made out of.

#9 Wichita State Shockers (+190) – The Shockers are here in the Elite Eight, and they are probably the least deserving team of the eight that are left standing. We hear you. It’s a shock to hear that (no pun intended). Wichita State did knock off arguably the best No. 8 team in the land in Pittsburgh right at the outset of the tournament, and any time you take out a No. 1 seed, you deserve a lot of credit. Just how good were the Zags, though? Beating an upstart No. 13 seed that already had to play three games to reach that point in the season was no great shakes as we saw it either. What we do admit though, is that this is a team that deserves a lot of respect. It has played three very different games against three very different teams, and this is going to add a fourth different type of team to that list. The Shockers have a real chance to do some more damage to the average bracket, as Ohio State was the team most commonly picked to advance out of the West. If Wichita State pulls this one off, we’ll have a heck of a lot more respect for the boys from the Missouri Valley.

2013 West Region Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 3/29/13):
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Ohio State Buckeyes (-4.5) -210
Wichita State Shockers (+4.5) +190

The NBA schedule just wrapped up its first half of the season, and here at Bankroll Sports, we are making our All-Star Game predictions for which man will beat the odds to win the MVP of the All-Star Game in Houston on Sunday night.

There really are only a handful of players that we think can legitimately win this award, and we would have no problem backing these four men that we are going to highlight against the field without hesitation. The man in the West that is going to be the most likely hero is the man that won the MVP award in the All-Star Game last year, Kevin Durant (Current All Star Game MVP Odds: 11 to 2 at Bovada Sportsbook). Durant never has fear putting the ball up, and he is one of the most respected shooters in the game. We’re inevitably going to see the Oklahoma City standout throw down some dunks and jack up tons of threes, and in the end, we expect to see him score somewhere in the neck of the woods of the 36 points that he had in last year’s game in Orlando to take the honor.

Next in line in the Western Conference is clearly going to be Kobe Bryant (Current Odds To Win All-Star Game MVP: 15 to 2 at Bovada Sportsbook). Kobe is the vet of this game, and he has made a tremendous habit out of being the man of the hour when push comes to shove. The argument could have been made last year for him to be the MVP of this game for the second straight season, as he scored 27 points and knocked down some huge shots. Bryant not only was the MVP in 2011, but he was the co-MVP in 2009 and the MVP in 2007. (For the record, Bryant won his first All-Star Game MVP award in 2002.) If you just keep following the “every other year” thing, Kobe could be in for a big time performance. If the Western Conference wins this game, it’s tough to see how either Durant or Bryant won’t ultimately win the MVP award.

List Of Past NBA All-Star Game MVPs (Since 2000)
2012 – Kevin Durant
2011 – Kobe Bryant
2010 – Dwyane Wade
2009 – Shaquille O’Neal/Kobe Bryant
2008 – LeBron James
2007 – Kobe Bryant
2006 – LeBron James
2005 – Allen Iverson
2004 – Shaquille O’Neal
2003 – Kevin Garnett
2002 – Kobe Bryant
2001 – Allen Iverson
2000 – Tim Duncan/Shaquille O’Neal

Shifting our attention to the Eastern Conference, it is clear again, that there should only be two teammates that have a chance at claiming glory. LeBron James (Up To Date All Star Game MVP Bettng Lines: 6 to 1 at Bovada Sportsbook) is the obvious choice. He scored 36 points in last year’s All-Star Game, and he would have been the MVP had he stepped up and knocked down the three-point shot at the end of the game instead of dishing it off and watching as a teammate failed at a last ditch effort instead. The bottom line with James right now is that he is on such remarkable fire, it’s not even funny. He has seven straight games with at least 30 points scored, and he is shooting the daylights out of the basketball. If the basket keeps looking like a beach ball could fit through it, we wouldn’t put it beyond James to put up 40, or even maybe 50 points in this one in spite of the fact that his teammates are inevitably going to have to score a ton of points as well.

With Head Coach Erik Spoelstra calling the shots though, we know that we have to give at least a little bit of play to Dwyane Wade (All-Star Game MVP Odds: 12 to 1 at Bovada Sportsbook). There are others such as the hometown hero, James Harden and Russell Westbrook that have a shot on the Western Conference team, but if Carmelo Anthony really is slowed by a hand injury or cannot play in the game, we just don’t know where the scoring is coming from on the Eastern Conference team. Last season in the All-Star Game, Wade almost quietly had a triple-double in defeat, putting up 24 points, 10 boards, and 10 assists. He has the ability to do it all, just like LeBron does. We really do believe that a split MVP would be about as good of a chance as Wade has against his teammate from South Beach, but we still think that there has to be better than a one in 12 chance that the man from Marquette walks away with the MVP trophy from this game in the Lone Star State.

Odds to Win 2013 All Star Game MVP @ Bovada Sportsbook (as of 2/14/13):
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Kevin Durant 11 to 2
LeBron James 6 to 1
Kobe Bryant 15 to 2
Blake Griffin 14 to 1
Carmelo Anthony 9 to 1
Dwyane Wade 12 to 1
Chris Paul 15 to 1
James Harden 9 to 1
Kyrie Irving 15 to 1
Dwight Howard 18 to 1
Russell Westbrook 18 to 1
Kevin Garnett 20 to 1
Tony Parker 20 to 1
Jrue Holiday 25 to 1
Brook Lopez 25 to 1
LaMarcus Aldridge 25 to 1
Chris Bosh 30 to 1
Paul George 35 to 1
Zach Randolph 35 to 1
David Lee 45 to 1
Luol Deng 45 to 1
Tyson Chandler 50 to 1
Joakim Noah 50 to 1
Tim Duncan 60 to 1

This year more than most, the odds to win the MVP award are going to be tight in the NBA. There are a number of candidates that could ultimately go on to win the award, and here at Bankroll Sports, we’re taking a look at some of the top contenders right now and where they currently stand in the chase for the most illustrious individual honor in the NBA.

The new favorite to win the MVP award this year is Kevin Durant (Current NBA MVP Odds: 1 to 1.40 at BetDSI Sportsbook). Durant is the league’s leading scorer at 29.6 points per game this year, a solid point ahead of the field. He is a fantastic shooter that is likely to win the NBA’s scoring title once again, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that he is going to win the MVP award. Durant has won the scoring title before, but he has never been the league’s MVP. However, with G Russell Westbrook hanging around as really his only helper on his own team, the writers might give Durant the benefit of the doubt this year now that G James Harden is gone.

It still goes without saying though, that LeBron James (Odds To Win 2012-13 NBA MVP Award: 1.20 to 1 at BetDSI Sportsbook) is capable of winning the MVP award this year. It’s not new news for LeBron to be a contender for the MVP, knowing that he has been the MVP three times already in his career. James is still the leader of the Miami Heat, and there isn’t a player in the league that is more dynamic than he is. King James is averaging 26.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 7.0 assists per game, and he is playing almost 39 minutes per game as well. If this were purely a statistical competition, James would be the winner of the MVP award just about every year. We think that LBJ clearly has the best price of all of the MVP contenders this year.

Aside from these two men, there really isn’t a lot to back in terms of MVP candidates this year. This is the first time in quite some time that we don’t think that Kobe Bryant is truly a contender for the award, though he is still listed at 30 to 1 to take the honor. Instead, the only other legit contender right now is the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (NBA MVP Lines: 10 to 1 at BetDSI Sportsbook). Melo is second in the league in scoring at 28.5 pooints per game, and he is really putting the Knicks on his back and carrying them to the Atlantic Division title in all likelihood. Every time that New York plays a big game, it seems like Anthony is the man right in the thick of it all. We would like to see Anthony put together some more double-doubles, knowing that he is only averaging 6.2 boards per game, but we know that he has done a great job as a clutch performer this year. If there were ever a season that Melo was going to win the MVP award, this would be the year for that to happen.

NBA MVP Odds @ Diamond Sportsbook (as of 2/3/13):
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Carmelo Anthony (New York Knicks) 10 to 1
Chris Paul (Los Angeles Clippers) 20 to 1
Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder) 1 to 1.40
Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) 30 to 1
LeBron James (Miami Heat) 1.20 to 1
Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) 50 to 1
Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs) 50 to 1