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03/11/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwight Howard and the surging Orlando Magic shoot for their seventh straight win tonight in the conclusion of a three-game homestand versus the Chicago Bulls at Amway Arena.
Orlando is riding a six-game winning streak and improved to 2-0 on the residency with Tuesday's 113-87 drubbing of the Los Angeles Clippers behind 22 points and 15 rebounds from Howard, who posted his league-leading 51st double-double of the season. Howard had an NBA-best 69 double-doubles in 2007-08, and finished second in that category last season with 63.
"With the playoffs coming up, we just want to make sure we get ourselves prepared for what's ahead by challenging ourselves every night to get better," said Howard.
Jameer Nelson totaled 17 points with eight assists, Rashard Lewis chipped in 15 points and Vince Carter netted 13 for the Southeast Division-leading Magic, who have won five in a row at home and are 26-6 in central Florida in 2009-10.
The Magic are creeping up the Eastern Conference standings, and sit five games behind top-seeded Cleveland in the No. 2 spot.
Chicago has dropped five in a row and completed a winless four-game homestand with Tuesday's 132-108 decision to the Utah Jazz at the United Center.
Derrick Rose, who is averaging 26.6 points, 6.1 assists and 2.9 rebounds in his last six contests, led the Bulls with 25 points and 13 assists. Brad Miller had 20 points, while Luol Deng and Ronald Murray totaled 14 points apiece for Chicago, which is a game off the sixth postseason spot in the Eastern Conference. Toronto, Charlotte and Miami are all even for sixth, while the Bulls are on the outside looking in at the ninth spot.
"We played well enough offensively, but we can't control the paint right now," said Bulls head coach Vinny Del Negro.
The Bulls will open a four-game road trip Thursday against Orlando, Miami, Memphis and Dallas, and are 12-19 away from the Windy City this season. Back on January 15, Chicago owned a road record of 4-15 and have gone 8-4 as the visitor since. Deng (calf) will miss Thursday's game, while Miller is probable with a thumb injury. Miller is posting 16.5 ppg in his last four outings.
The 2009-10 series between Orlando and Chicago is tied at a game apiece, but the Magic have won 10 of 13 and 11 of the last 15 meetings. The Bulls have lost four straight and five of their last six at Orlando.
<< Red Wings, Wild meet for key battle in Motown
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of teams fighting for a playoff berth in the Western
Conference get together tonight at Detroit's Joe Louis Arena, where the
hometown Red Wings take on the Minnesota Wild in a key late-season showdown.
The reigning
<< Surging Flyers host Bruins in Winter Classic rematch
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers will try to continue their surge in
the right direction when they host the Boston Bruins tonight at Wachovia
Center.
The Flyers are 7-1-1 in their last nine games and have greatly improved their
pl
<< Blues visit Islanders at Nassau Coliseum
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues will try to get back on track tonight
when they visit the New York Islanders for an interconference clash at Nassau
Coliseum.
The Blues pushed their winning streak to a season-high five games by posting
<< Hawks hope to snap funk in DC
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Hawks hope to avoid a third straight loss when
they wrap up a three-game road trip Thursday night against the Southeast
Division-rival Washington Wizards at the Verizon Center.
Atlanta is winless so far
Sharks continue homestand with battle against Predators >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Having rallied in the third period in each of its last two
victories, the San Jose Sharks wrap their season series with the Nashville
Predators this evening at HP Pavilion.
Even though it is getting later in the season, th
Panthers try to keep rolling in visit to Avalanche >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Panthers will try to win four straight games
for the first time this season when they visit the Colorado Avalanche tonight
at the Pepsi Center.
The Panthers come into this game six points back of a playoff spot
Nats release Guardado, Estes >>
Viera, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals on Thursday released
veteran left-handed pitchers Eddie Guardado and Shawn Estes.
The 39-year-old Guardado, who agreed to a minor league contract with the
Nationals on December
Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen dies >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pro football Hall of Famer Merlin Olsen
died early Thursday morning in California after a battle with cancer.
He was 69 years old.
Olsen was a two-time All-American at Utah State, playing both the
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
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