Jazz, Grizzlies square off in Utah

Basketball Betting Lines

02/17/2009 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Utah Jazz get back to work tonight, resuming a five- game homestand with hopes of continuing their dominance over the Memphis Grizzlies at EnergySolutions Arena.

Utah has topped Memphis eight straight times and will be aiming for a four-game season sweep of the Grizzlies. The last time Memphis triumphed over the Jazz was a 132-130 overtime win in Salt lake City on January 24, 2007.

The banged-up Jazz opened their residency in impressive fashion before the All-Star break last Wednesday when Mehmet Okur scored 22 points, pulled down eight rebounds and hit the go-ahead three-pointer with 42.8 seconds left, boosting Utah to a 113-109 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

Deron Williams eclipsed the 30-point barrier for a fifth straight game, finishing with 31 points and 11 assists, as the Jazz won for the fourth time in five contests.

Utah, which is now a gaudy 21-6 in Salt Lake City, will finish its residency against Boston, New Orleans and Atlanta.

The team hopes to have injured forwards Andrei Kirilenko (ankle) and Carlos Boozer (knee) back soon. In fact, Kirilenko is questionable for tonight's contest but Boozer is scheduled to remain on the sidelines.

The Grizzlies, meanwhile, lost the opener of a three-game road swing in Philadelphia last Wednesday when Andre Miller scored 24 points and handed out nine assists as the 76ers gutted out a 91-87 win over Memphis.

Hakim Warrick matched a career high with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting and grabbed eight boards for Memphis, which had won four of its first five games to begin the month of February but kicked off a three-game road trip in familiar fashion as the club is just 3-19 on the road this season.

O.J. Mayo had 16 points and hit 4-of-10 from beyond the arc while Mike Conley contributed 13 points and seven rebounds. Marc Gasol had 11 points and nine boards in the loss.

The Grizzlies will finish the trip with a visit to Portland tomorrow.

Horswracing Basketball Betting News

<< Rockets welcome Nets to town
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Rockets get back to business Tuesday when they resume a six-game homestand by welcoming the New Jersey Nets to the Toyota Center. The Rockets opened the residency on February 11 when Yao Ming tallied ga

<< Slumping Pistons host Bucks in Central clash
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Central Division rivals kick off the second half of the NBA season Tuesday night, as the Detroit Pistons welcome the Milwaukee Bucks to The Palace of Auburn Hills. Detroit entered the All-Star break riding a three-game los

<< Suns open Gentry era at home vs. Clippers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The glitz and glamour of NBA All-Star Weekend has died down in the Valley of the Sun and a Phoenix team in transition will now get back to work by welcoming the Los Angeles Clippers to town. On the floor, Suns veteran

<< Big Ten showdown pits Spartans against Boilermakers
West Lafayette, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sixth-ranked Michigan State Spartans continue their quest for the Big Ten Conference regular-season title, and a win over the 19th-ranked Purdue Boilermakers on the road tonight would certainly help the

<< Clemson hosts Maryland in ACC action
Clemson, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Clemson Tigers have played inconsistent ball lately, and they will take on the Maryland Terrapins this evening in an ACC affair. Maryland has won its last two outings to even its ACC record at 5

Lakers host Hawks at Staples Center >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NBA's best team hits the hardwood for the first time since the All-Star break on Tuesday as the Los Angeles Lakers welcome the Atlanta Hawks to Staples Center. The NBA's mid-season classic had quite the Lakers

Hornets seeking good start in Oklahoma City >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pegged as an early favorite to win the Western Conference, the New Orleans Hornets will try to put together a solid second half of the season that begins with Tuesday's matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Ford Cente

Knicks get a visit from Southwest-leading Spurs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Southwest Division-leading San Antonio Spurs will continue their lengthy stretch of road games tonight, when they pay a visit to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. San Antonio has won seven in a row against

Surging Sens take five-game win streak to Colorado >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Owners of their longest winning streak of the season, the Ottawa Senators will try to wrap a five-game road trip perfect tonight in a battle with the Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center. After going just 4-6-2 in the mo

Canucks visit Flames for Northwest showdown >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vancouver Canucks begin a four-game road trip tonight, as they visit the first-place Calgary Flames for a Northwest Division battle at Pengrowth Saddledome. Vancouver won't leave Canada on this trek, as it will also vi

Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.


Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook

Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds.  The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.

Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.

Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).

Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.

World Series odds

Adam Dunn 15-1

Albert Pujols 5-1

Alex Rodriguez 12-1

Alfonso Soriano 15-1

Andruw Jones 25-1

Barry Bonds 50-1

Carlos Delgado 40-1

David Ortiz 8-1

Jermaine Dye 40-1

Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1

Lance Berkman 40-1

Manny Ramirez 20-1

Richie Sexson 40-1

Ryan Howard 6-1

Travis Hafner 20-1

Vladimir Guerrero 40-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.