Your Hoops and Horses Selections for Feb. 6-7

Welcome to ABR’s Hoops and horses column, where winners play!
Horse racing is Joe Kristufek’s means to an end, and he loves the sport like no other, but as a Chicago Bulls season-ticket holder for seven years and a feared participant in fantasy hoops, he also has his finger on the pulse of the NBA.
From growing up with the Flintstones of Michigan State, running March Madness pools out of his hidden manila envelope in high school, to attending conference tournaments, Sweet 16s and Final Fours ... college basketball runs in Derek Cooley’s blood.
Let’s sprint out on the fast break, spring the horses from the gate and pad our bankrolls!
Pro Hoops – by Joe Kristufek
PIGSKINS RECAP
Super Bowl Sunday: 3-3
Pigskins and Ponies Final Season Total: 32-40-2 (.444)
Friday, Feb. 7
Brooklyn Nets (-7) v. New York Knicks
Following a five-game losing streak, the Nets have won two straight against quality opponents, downing the Los Angeles Clippers and home and trouncing the Toronto Raptors on the road. Team health is improving and they seem to be playing with a lot more bounce in their step. With a road trip looming, they’ll want to put on a good show against their in-state rival Knicks. If Carmelo Anthony doesn’t go for 40, the Nets should cover the number.
CONTAINING CARMELO IS KEY

WikiMedia Commons
Orlando Magic (-3) v. Los Angeles Lakers
The Magic enter this match-up against the hapless Lakers on a 10-game losing streak, but this will be their first game without fired head coach Jacque Vaughn. Their roster is simply more talented than that of the Lakers, and chances are they’ll play with an edge tonight.
Utah Jazz (+5) at Phoenix Suns
The scrappy Jazz play hard on most nights and they’re deceivingly good on the road. With Derrick Favors in the middle, they match up well with the run-and-gun Suns and will look to control the tempo. Off three consecutive losses, including a demoralizing one last night at Portland, the Suns may be tired and therefore ripe for the picking.
College Hoops – by Derek Cooley
Saturday is always the best day for college hoops, with marquee match-ups morning, noon and night. Weekly, I’ll provide a brief synopsis of what I see - as well as a final score “prediction” - which you can use as a guide to tackling the money line, spread and/or the over/under total.
Saturday, Feb. 7
#1 Kentucky @ Florida (9 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Kentucky is still bearing the weight, and the target, of being undefeated this late in the season. Give Florida 10 games against the Wildcats in Gainesville, I maybe give them one … maybe. However, Calipari’s Blue and White crew love these primetime showcases, just ask a host of other teams. Kentucky will get out early with their firepower, and cruise with their depth. Just pick any one of the Wildcats as a difference maker, because it can be anyone in any given game.
Kentucky - 78
Florida - 60 
KENTUCKY'S DEVIN BOOKER AND TYLER ULIS

WikiMedia Commons
#9 Louisville @ #3 Virginia (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Virginia is at the tail end of a three-game, ACC gauntlet, which featured Duke and North Carolina. The Cavs bounced back tremendously with a huge victory in Chapel Hill after their first loss of the season when hosting Duke. However, Rick Pitino and his Cardinals are lurking … quiet winners of four in a row (three on the road) since they, themselves fell to the Dukies. I think Louisville may be catching Virginia at just the right time, given the Cavs current stretch of games, to steal one in Charlottesville.
Louisville - 64
Virginia - 63 
#10 Notre Dame @ #4 Duke (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
Notre Dame is a pesky team, and they’ve been pesky enough to knock off Duke once already this season - not even two weeks ago. But Coach K … yeah, he’s not going to lose to the Fighting Irish again this season. You give that team another shot at you, at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and you are asking for trouble. Jahlil Okafor will dominate the boards, get the calls and have his way down low at home. Duke takes this one in stride.
Duke - 80
Notre Dame - 69 
Upset Watch:  #8 Kansas @ Oklahoma State (2 pm ET, ESPN)
Ponies – by Joe Kristufek
Last week was a mixed bag. Hard Not to Like won the Endeavour Stakes but was rightfully disqualified for drifting out badly into the path of a rival in the stretch. My Johnny Be Good enjoyed a perfect, pressing trip in the Sam F. Davis, but tired and finished a distant third. Shuffled back along the rail, Irish Jasper came on too late in the Suncoast and crossed the line fourth.
Last Week: 3-0-1-1 ($2 WPS * $18 wagered * $12.20 returned)
Season Total: 61-19-9-5 ($2 WPS * $366 wagered * $419.60 returned = $6.88 ROI)
Saturday, Feb. 7
Gulfstream Park – Hallandale, Fla.
Race 13 - Donn Handicap (G1)
#4 Lea (morning-line odds, 9-5)
Perfect since joining the Bill Mott brigade 13 months ago, this former turfer has made a Cigar-like transition to dirt. For the second consecutive year, he’s used a win in the Hal’s Hope Stakes as a springboard to the Donn, and he appears on edge for a repeat in this high stakes game as well.
LEA WINNING 2014 DONN

Photo by Eclipse Sportswire
Santa Anita Park – Arcadia, Calif
Race 5 - Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3)
#5 Firing Line (morning-line odds, 7-5)
Unlike many in our industry, I’m not falling all over myself with praise for Dortmund. Sure, he’s a nice horse who can be any kind, but the road to Churchill Downs has just begun. I’m not going to pull any punches. This race came up WEAK. In the Los Alamitos Futurity, Firing Line got caught up in one. Despite the fast fractions, he stayed on gamely, only to lose a head bob to Dortmund. With Gary Stevens now employed and the potential for softer splits, the tables could easily be turned.
Race 8 - San Antonio Stakes (G2)
#5 Shared Belief (morning-line odds, 7-5)
California Chrome may have taken home the Eclipse Award hardware as Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male, but a legit argument can be made that Shared Belief was the most brilliant horse in the crop. If not for a nightmarish trip in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, he might still be perfect. He won the seven-furlong Malibu Stakes in preparation for this, and the added distance of today’s race suits him even better. This is a statement race for the horse and the connections. 
CO-OWNER JIM ROME CELEBRATES WITH SHARED BELIEF AFTER MALIBU WIN

BENOIT photo

Watch the Donn Handicap, #TheRematch and the best racing action from Santa Anita Park and Gulfstream Park on The Jockey Club Tour on FOX Sports 1 with live coverage beginning Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ET