Pick Management 
Jacob’s Above Average Plays keeps it rolling with two more plays tonight. He’s found one above-average NBA and one above-average NHL play to stuff your pockets!
Take St. Louis Blues -165 vs Edmonton Oilers (8:300pm EST, Wednesday 18December 2019)
The Blues have proven yet again to be an above-average team in the NHL, sitting at the top of the Central Division with 48 points. However, they haven’t been playing above-average hockey as their record would suggest. They have been pretty mundane on offense, scoring an average of three goals per game, which ranks them 16th in the NHL. Where they have been above average is on defense. Led by starting goalie, Jordan Binnington, the Blues have shut down teams offenses all year. Binnington is allowing just 2.44 goals per game. He ranks fifteenth in overall goalie rankings, but St. Louis has also played a tough schedule all year. They have won sixteen out of his 26 starts, with four games going to overtime. He has only allowed three power-play goals, which is just phenomenal. The Blues will need him at his best when taking on this Oilers team. St. Louis is taking on the above-average play of Edmonton’s starting center, Connor McDavid. Since coming into the league, it was said he would be the next Gretzky. While I don’t think he has lived up to that, he has been playing way above average for NHL centers. McDavid has already scored twenty goals this year and has thirty-nine assists to pair with them. He is their team leader and they play tough because of it. As of late though, the Oilers have floundered. Winning just one game in their last five and three of their last ten, the Oilers have been above average losers. They also have been dominated by the Blues in the past. The Oilers are just 2-5 straight up in their last seven games played against St. Louis. On the road, they are even worse – winning just four of their last sixteen games played verse the Blues. The Oilers picked the wrong time to be playing bad. The Blues are in great form and have won seven of their last ten games. They have been great versus the Western Conference, winning all five of their games played against that division. St. Louis has also been playing above average at home, going 11-4-3 this year. Take the Blues to continue dominating at home. (If Jake Allen is the starting goalie for St. Louis: This is a non-play)
Take Philadelphia Sixers -7.5 vs Miami Heat (7:10 pm EST, Wednesday 18 December 2019)
The Sixers haven’t just been above average at home, they have been a nightmare matchup for teams. So far this year: The Sixers have been perfect. They have won fourteen of fourteen games at home, and twenty of twenty-eight games overall. With the Sixers star-studded line-up, one would think that it is their offense that has been dominating teams – but really, it has been their defense. At home, Philadelphia allows just 98.93 points per game, holding teams under 50% shooting (43.72%). This isn’t good news for Miami, known as an above-average team at home, who has to hit the road to face Philly. Miami sits atop first place in their division, winning thirteen of their last eighteen games. They have almost been perfect at home, winning eleven of twelve games. Miami ranks 10th in the NBA in overall offense, and is above average in almost every stat. All of that changes when they face the Sixers – Philly has had their number. At home, Philly has won eight of the last nine games versus Miami, and six of the last seven overall. The last time these two teams faced off, Philly won by twenty-seven points. I have to say, I really don’t like the situation for Miami here. While Miami plays above average on two days rest, Philly has had three days off and are coming off a 109-89 loss to Brooklyn. I think the recent loss at Brooklyn plus the fact they are playing at home coming off rest is not good news for Miami. Lay the points with Philly.
