Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
03/09/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The acquisition of Vince Carter has paid off so far for Eastern Conference power Orlando, which will shoot for its sixth straight win tonight versus the Los Angeles Clippers in the second test of a three-game homestand at Amway Arena.
Carter scored a team-high 25 points in Sunday's hard-fought 96-94 win over the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in the opener of the residency, while double-double machine Dwight Howard muscled his way to 15 points and 16 rebounds for the Southeast Division-leading Magic, who are second in the conference standings and 18-5 in their previous 23 games. Howard leads the league with 50 double-doubles this season.
"This was just a battle. It was much more a battle than a basketball game," Orlando head coach Stan Van Gundy said. "It was extremely physical, both teams fought extremely hard the entire way."
Jameer Nelson finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in a winning effort. Meanwhile, Carter needs 15 points to pass Eddie Johnson (19,202) for 45th place on the all-time scoring list.
The Magic will close out the residency on Thursday versus Chicago and are 25-6 as the host this season. They have won four straight in central Florida.
Los Angeles will continue a five-game road trip this evening and opened the trek on a sour note, dropping a 107-85 decision against the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. Drew Gooden led the team with 20 points and 12 boards, while Chris Kaman recorded 12 points and 13 rebounds for LA, which has lost three straight overall and six in a row as the guest.
Rasual Butler and Baron Davis each had 11 points in the lopsided setback.
"I think we shot our bullets early," Gooden said. "Ran out of ammunition in the second half. I think our legs caught up with us. It's tough to play here. The crowd got into it."
The Clippers, who have lost 10 of their last 11 road games since January 25, will also visit the Heat, Bobcats and Spurs on the road swing and are 7-24 away from home this season.
In injury news for the Clips, guard Eric Gordon is questionable against the Magic with a sore right leg. Gordon is second on the team with 17.2 ppg.
Orlando defeated Los Angeles, 97-86, back on December 8 this season at Staples Center and has won six straight in the series. The Clippers are winless in their last three trips to Amway Arena.
<< 2010 Conference USA Tournament Preview
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the first time in five years, someone
other than Memphis is the top seed in the Conference USA Tournament, as the
Texas-El Paso Miners won the regular-season title with a 15-1 finish. Winners
of 14 straig
<< Blazers' Przybilla undergoes surgery
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portland Trail Blazers center Joel Przybilla
underwent surgery late Monday to repair a ruptured right patella tendon.
It was the second such procedure for Przybilla, who first suffered the injury
on Decemb
<< 2010 Big 12 Conference Tournament Preview
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Another year and another championship for
Kansas, which captured its sixth straight Big 12 regular-season crown with a
15-1 finish. The No.1 ranked Jayhawks are the top-seed for the sixth time in
the 14-year
<< Orioles renew contracts of Jones, Wieters
Sarasota, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles have renewed the
contracts of young stars Adam Jones, Matt Wieters, Brad Bergesen and Nolan
Reimold, while also agreeing to 2010 contracts with 22 other players.
Jones is en
Surging Bucks host Allen, Celtics >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sweet-stroking veteran Ray Allen has already recorded his
20,000th career point and will add to that mark tonight, when the Boston
Celtics hit the road to Milwaukee for a showdown with the Bucks.
On Sunday, Allen hit a go-
North Texas takes on Troy in Sun Belt title tilt >>
Hot Springs, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Troy Trojans and the second-
seeded North Texas Mean Green have advanced to the championship game of the
2010 Sun Belt Conference Tournament, and they will compete for an automatic
bid to the "B
Bulldogs battle Raiders for Horizon League crown >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the fifth straight season the 12th-
ranked Butler Bulldogs will take part in the Horizon League Tournament
Championship Game when they host the Wright State Raiders this evening at the
Hinkle Fieldhouse.
IUPUI and Oakland collide for Summit League title >>
Sioux Falls, SD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The IUPUI Jaguars and the Oakland Golden
Grizzlies will battle tonight in the championship game of the Summit League
Tournament. The prize for the winner is an automatic bid to the NCAA
Tournament.
IUPUI,
Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.
Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.
That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.
Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.
After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.
The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).
To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.
NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV
New England Patriots 8/1
Dallas Cowboys 9/1
New York Giants 10/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1
Indianapolis Colts 12/1
San Diego Chargers 12/1
Baltimore Ravens 14/1
Tennessee Titans 16/1
Carolina Panthers 18/1
Philadelphia Eagles 18/1
New Orleans Saints 20/1
Atlanta Falcons 25/1
Denver Broncos 25/1
Green Bay Packers 25/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1
Minnesota Vikings 25/1
New York Jets 25/1
Arizona Cardinals 30/1
Chicago BearS 30/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1
Buffalo Bills 35/1
Houston TexaNS 35/1
Miami Dolphins 35/1
Washington Redskins 35/1
Seattle SeahawkS 50/1
Cleveland Browns 55/1
Cincinnati Bengals 60/1
San Francisco 49ers 60/1
Oakland Raiders 75/1
St. Louis Rams 75/1
Detroit Lions 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs 100/1
Odds as of: 2/2/09
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
Get free Sports Betting lines RSS feeds from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting