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Lakers take Game 1 after stifling Durant, ThunderBasketball Betting Lines04/18/2010 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant had 21 points and Pau Gasol chipped in 19 with a game-high 13 rebounds, as the Lakers kicked off their quest to repeat as NBA champions with a wire-to-wire 87-79 victory in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarterfinal series with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Andrew Bynum, who missed the final 13 games of the regular season with a strained right Achilles' tendon, was back in the starting lineup and gave Los Angeles a big boost with 13 points, 12 boards and four blocks. Derek Fisher added 11 points and sank a big three-pointer late in the fourth with Oklahoma City threatening to make it a one-possession game. Ron Artest provided Los Angeles a strong defensive presence in guarding Kevin Durant, who became the youngest scoring champion in NBA history this season with 30.1 points per game. Durant accounted for 24 points, but shot 7-for-24 from the floor and got to the line for 9-of-11 free throws. Durant's noted ability to draw fouls was a much ballyhooed topic leading up to the series' first game and even led to a fine for Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who essentially suggested Durant was receiving preferential treatment from referees. Russell Westbrook helped pick up the scoring slack with 23 points and eight assists. Jeff Green, who averaged 15.1 points during the regular season, had 10 on 4-of-12 shooting. Sunday marked Oklahoma City's return to the playoffs for the first time since the then-Seattle SuperSonics won the Northwest Division back in the 2004-05 campaign. The Thunder shot 40.3 percent from the floor overall, including a 2-of-16 showing from three-point range. LA was only slightly better at 41 percent.
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Heyward's ninth-inning hit lifts Braves over Rockies >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rookie Jason Heyward hit a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth inning, as the Atlanta Braves edged the Colorado Rockies, 4-3, in the rubber match of a three-game set at Turner Field. Heyward fin
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Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though. Arizona 20-1 To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook betting needs.
How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later. While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better. For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory. 1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season. 2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped. How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number. Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules. Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically. How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games). Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition. Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets. To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
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