NBA Playoff Picks

Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: Fenway Park gets a Yankees/Red Sox series, the Cavaliers travel to Detroit, and the Rangers try to bounce the Capitals.

NBA playoff betting picks…

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Tipping off on the hardwood  . . .

LeBron James and the Cavaliers hold a 2-0 lead in their first-round series with the Pistons heading into Game 3 in Detroit on Friday night. James poured in 29 points and added 13 rebounds in Game 2 on Tuesday as Cleveland held on for a 94-82 victory. Richard Hamilton led the way with 17 points for the Pistons, who outscored the Cavs 32-17 in the fourth quarter. The Cavs are 4.5-point favorites.

The other Eastern Conference matchup on tap for Friday has Orlando at Philadelphia, with that set tied at a game apiece. The Magic grabbed their first win of the series on Wednesday night, getting 24 points from Courtney Lee in a 96-87 decision. Dwight Howard fouled out with 11 points. Andre Miller led the Sixers with 30 points in the loss, while Andre Iguodala pitched in with 21 points.

Finally, the lone Western game on the Friday schedule has Portland at Houston, with the Trail Blazers coming off a series-tying 107-103 win on Tuesday night. Brandon Roy poured in 42 points in the win for Portland, while LaMarcus Aldridge picked up 27 points and 12 boards. Aaron Brooks had a game-high 23 points for the Rockets, who are listed as 5.5-point favorites for Friday’s meeting.

Meeting up on the diamond . . .

The Yankees will head to Fenway Park on Friday for baseball’s marquee weekend series against the Red Sox. New York will start righthander Joba Chamberlain in Friday’s opener; Chamberlain is still 0-0 after two outings, with a 5.07 ERA. Boston will counter with Jon Lester, with the lefthander coming off seven shutout innings against Baltimore. Lester is 1-2 with a 5.50 ERA this year.

Elsewhere on the American League schedule for Friday: Texas at Baltimore, Minnesota at Cleveland, Detroit at Kansas City, Toronto at the White Sox, Seattle at the Angels, and Tampa Bay at Oakland. The Rays will go with lefthander Scott Kazmir in that contest; Kazmir is 2-1 but has posted a 5.40 ERA in three outings.

Over in the National League on Friday it’s Philadelphia at Florida, Atlanta at Cincinnati, Milwaukee at Houston, the Cubs at St. Louis, the Dodgers at Colorado, San Francisco at Arizona, Pittsburgh at San Diego, and Washington at the Mets. The Nationals will go with Scott Olsen (0-2, 9.00 ERA) in that NL East matchup, and he’ll contend with New York ace Johan Santana (2-1, 0.46 ERA).

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

The Rangers will try to finish off a first-round upset on Friday night when they take on the Capitals in Game 5 of their best-of-seven series. New York took a commanding 3-1 series lead on Wednesday night with a 2-1 win at Madison Square Garden. Paul Mara and Chris Drury provided the goals for the Rangers in that contest, while Henrik Lundqvist made 38 saves. Alexander Ovechkin had the lone Washington tally, and netminder Simeon Varlamov stopped 19 of 21 shots.