 |
 Basketball Betting |
 |
||||
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Gophers put perfect record on line against LionsNCAA Basketball Betting Lines12/23/2008 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Off to their best start since the 1976-77 season, the undefeated Minnesota Golden Gophers put their brand new top-25 ranking on the line this evening, as they play host to the Southeastern Louisiana Lions, from Williams Arena in Minneapolis. In the top-25 for the first time since 2002, the 23rd-ranked Golden Gophers have certainly enjoyed some home-cooking this season, as nine of their 10 wins have come in the friendly confines of Williams Arena. The team will enjoy its stay at home for a couple more weeks, as the Gophers won't hit the road again until January 8th at Iowa. Tubby Smith's squad certainly showed that it belongs in the national polls, coming off a thrilling 70-64 victory over top-10 foe Louisville last weekend to move to 10-0 on the season. The Lions have enjoyed a successful start to the season as well, sporting a 6-4 overall mark. Jim Yarbrough's team enters this contest with a modest two- game winning streak, topping Millsaps College (85-56) and Jackson State (70-51) in the last week. This is just the second all-time meeting between these two teams. Minnesota edged out SE Louisiana in their 2006 matchup, 63-61. With a dominant performance from center Patrick Sullivan, the Lions cruised to victory over Jackson State this past weekend. Sullivan recorded a double- double with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while also blocking three shots. With the effort defensively, Sullivan became the school's all-time shot-blocker, with 134. Joining Sullivan offensively were Kevyn Green and Chris Cyprian, who tallied 18 and 13 points, respectively. Warrell Span aided Sullivan on the boards, with 10 caroms to go along with an eight-point effort. The Lions are a dangerous offensive team, averaging 80.7 ppg thus far, thanks to a steady .494 shooting. Green is a big reason for the shooting acumen, as he is hitting 50.7 percent from the floor, including a sizzling .486 from behind the arc (36- of-74). The result is a team-high 20.0 ppg. Span and Sullivan provide balance with 12.0 and 11.9 ppg, respectively. Both get the job done on the boards as well, with Sullivan pacing the team with 8.2 rpg, followed closely by Span (7.3 rpg). It was arguably the biggest win for Tubby Smith at Minnesota last weekend, as Gophers were able to top a strong Louisville program in Glendale, Arizona. Point guard Al Nolen was instrumental in the victory, as he notched 18 points, thanks to 13-of-17 from the free-throw line, including 6-of-6 down the stretch. The return of shooting guard Blake Hoffarber from injury was critical, as he hit four three-pointers and netted 15 points off the bench. Swingman Travis Busch was strong in relief as well, adding 13 points and six rebounds. The defense did the rest, as Minnesota limited the explosive Cardinals to just 37 percent shooting and a mere 64 points, 16 points below Louisville's season average. The Gophers are not an offensive juggernaut by any stretch, but the team does make the most of its trips down the floor, averaging 73.5 ppg, on a healthy .473 shooting. The defensive pressure is what fuels Minnesota, with opponents averaging a meager 61.2 ppg this year and being held under 40 percent shooting overall (.381). Lawrence Westbrook is the team's top offensive threat, averaging a modest 12.9 ppg. He is followed in double digits by Damian Johnson (10.7ppg). Hoffarber and Nolan are flirting with double figures at 9.9 and 9.2 ppg, respectively. Nolen has been superb as a distributor, averaging 6.0 apg, while turning the ball over a measly 17 times over the first 10 games.
<< Longhorns pull into Madison to take on Badgers
Madison, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ninth-ranked Texas Longhorns hope to avenge a loss in their most recent outing as they take on the Wisconsin Badgers in Madison this evening. Texas carried a six-game win streak into Saturday's clash with M
<< Interstate rivals meet in St. Louis, as Illinois battles Missouri
<< Bengals visit Sun Devils in Tuesday matinee
<< Golden Panthers seek upset of 12th-ranked Hoyas
<< Xavier hosts Butler in battle of 9-1 teams
Cowboys try to lasso Bruins >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Wyoming Cowboys are off to their best start since 1990-91 at 9-1, but they have to be considered underdogs in tonight's clash with the 13th-ranked UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion. Wyoming opened the seas
Woeful Warriors take on Heat in South Beach >>
LeBron and Cavs aim to remain perfect at home vs. Rockets >>
Nuggets wrap up home-and-home set in Portland >>
Streaking Devils aim to cool off red-hot Bruins >>
MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting. "They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over." Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.) According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26. As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines). Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday. Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind. *UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007 New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results. "We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games." While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season." About MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Master Card needs. |
|
