Expect Grizzlies, Spurs to pile up the points

We're entering daily NBA and NHL season, and we'll use today's intro to offer up one play from both leagues.

Expect points in Memphis vs. San Antonio tonight

When looking to bet on an over in the NBA, we tend to weigh two contributing factors more than others: pace of play and where teams find their points. When looking at Grizzlies-Spurs, we have two teams inside the top half of the league in possessions per game. San Antonio plays at the fifth-highest pace while Memphis is 14th. That is but a check of the box but an important one for us.

To push an over into a play worth making, we'd like to ideally see opportunity for each team to score how it does best. What do we mean by this? For example, the Grizzlies score the fifth-most points in the paint per game; it's a huge part of their offensive identity. Opposite them is a San Antonio defense allowing the second-most points in the paint per game. To us, this suggests that Memphis is going to find its spots on the floor and score at the rim this evening.

Then we look into the Spurs a bit and notice that they are getting the sixth-most total points per game from three-pointers. The Memphis perimeter defense has seriously struggled on the road; the Grizzlies are allowing opponents to shoot 40.7% from beyond the arc when away, the second-highest mark in the NBA.

In summation, we have two teams who play fast and match up well with the opposing defense. That's enough for us to like the over here.

Betting: Over 233.5 points in Memphis-San Antonio

Goals are coming in Vancouver vs. Montreal

We stick with the expectation of scoring and load up on the over between the Canucks and Canadiens. Both teams are on the second night of back-to-backs. That should lead to a less defensive contest, which favors the shooters.

We'll also have a pair of backup goalies in net for both Vancouver and Montreal. The Canucks are allowing 33.2 shots per game and 4.0 goals per game, while the Canadiens are seeing 34.2 shots and 3.2 goals per game against them. Both marks stand in the upper half of the league, so expect goals early and often in this one.

Betting: Over 6.5 goals in Vancouver-Montreal

In the news ...

Josh Allen's injury timeline revealed — Bills quarterback Josh Allen injured his elbow during Buffalo's loss to the Jets on Sunday, but some good news has been shared around the severity of the injury. The official diagnosis is a sprained elbow, which isn't considered to be major. Allen may miss this weekend's game against the 7-1 Vikings but isn't expected to miss much time. The biggest impact here may actually be on the MVP race. Allen is third at +350 behind Patrick Mahomes (+200) and Jalen Hurts (+250) to bring home the award. An extended absence or an injury hindering his performance for the next few weeks would likely take him out of the running.

Latest CFP rankings have Tennessee out, Georgia taking control — The Tennessee-Georgia game held massive ramifications this past weekend, and they're beginning to take shape with Tennessee falling out of the College Football Playoff with the loss Saturday. The Volunteers fell from No. 1 to No. 5 and will need a few Georgia losses for a chance at the SEC Championship. Alternatively, all hope is not lost, as Ohio State and Michigan are No. 2 and No. 3 currently and will play each other on Nov. 26. Georgia is +100 to win the championship, followed by Ohio State (+200), Michigan (+800) and Tennessee (+1200). TCU is No. 4 in the CFP rankings and has odds at +6000 to win it all.

NHL injury news — Oilers forward Evander Kane suffered gruesome wrist injury Tuesday night after getting slashed by a skate, and the injury should keep him off the ice for the foreseeable future. Kane has 13 points in his first 14 games, so this could be a big loss for Edmonton if he misses an extended period of time. The injury forced him to get surgery, and these types of injuries have been known to keep players off the ice for months. In other news, Valeri Nichushkin of Colorado is out for at least a month following ankle surgery.

Today's Bark Bets is written by Griffin Carroll