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03/09/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nine team will converge on the Staples Center in Los Angeles to compete for the Pac-10 Conference Tournament championship beginning on Wednesday, March 10th.
The only member of the league that isn't competing for an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament is USC, which is ineligible for this event because of self-imposed sanctions. Last season, the Trojans won the Pac-10 Tournament title, so it is certainly disappointing for fans of that program that USC won't have a chance defend the title. California enters as the top seed, but in a conference with greater parity than almost any other in the nation, it is hard to consider the Golden Bears a runaway favorite. They figure to be pushed by second-seeded Arizona State and third-seeded Washington. Fourth-seeded Arizona and fifth-seeded UCLA are both young teams, but there is enough talent in place to score an upset. Sixth-seeded Oregon State is one of four teams still in search of a Pac-10 Tournament title, and the team is slowly getting better. Seventh-seeded Stanford was a disappointment over the last couple of months, and the Cardinal need to get on track in a hurry. As for eighth-seeded Oregon and ninth-seeded Washington State, neither are considered a legitimate threat to capture the crown.
The Oregon Ducks and Washington State Cougars will meet on Wednesday in the tournament's only opening-round affair, and the winner will earn the right to fact top-seeded California in the quarterfinals. WSU has never won this tournament and owns an unimpressive 5-10 record all-time in the event. The Ducks have two Pac-10 tourney titles to their credit, the most recent of which was earned in 2007. The player to watch for Washington State is sophomore Klay Thompson, as he ranks third in the conference in scoring with 19.6 ppg. Reggie Moore adds 12.6 ppg, and he is just a freshman. Tajuan Porter is the leading scorer for Oregon, but it is highly unlikely that his 11.9 ppg and erratic shooting will scare the Cougars. Malcolm Armstead leads the Ducks and ranks third in the league with 4.43 apg. On Saturday, March 6th, Oregon beat Washington State by a 74-66 final to close out the regular season.
The first of four quarterfinal-round matchups pits the fourth-seeded Arizona Wildcats against the fifth-seeded UCLA Bruins, and these two teams rank first and second, respectively, in regard to Pac-10 Tournament championships. Arizona has captured the crown four times, most recently in 2002, and the club is 17-8 all-time in this event. As for UCLA, it has three titles to its credit, including two in the last four years. Arizona is last in the conference in scoring defense (71.9 ppg), but the club is third in scoring offense (72.0 ppg). Freshman Derrick Williams leads the Wildcats with 15.7 ppg and 7.0 rpg, while Nic Wise, a senior, provides 14.4 ppg and 3.4 apg. UCLA is also led by a freshman, as Michael Roll is scoring 13.5 ppg on the strength of his 42 percent shooting from three-point range. The Bruins rank last in the 10-team league in scoring margin, last in free-throw percentage and last in three-point percentage defense, so the fact that they have been able to overcome the shortcomings and win enough games to earn a five seed is impressive. Arizona won both meetings with UCLA during the regular season.
As mentioned, top-seeded California will battle either Washington State or Oregon in the quarterfinals, and the Golden Bears hope that they can claim their first Pac-10 Tournament championship. Cal is the top free-throw shooting team in the league and leads the conference in field goal percentage as well. The Golden Bears are scoring 77.4 ppg while allowing 67.7 ppg to foes, and they own the second-best scoring margin in the Pac-10. There is a wealth of talent in the starting lineup, and four Cal players rank in the top-20 in the league in scoring. Jerome Randle is fourth with 18.7 ppg, and fellow guard Patrick Christopher is seventh with 16.0 ppg. Theo Robertson brings 13.8 ppg to the mix, and Jamal Boykin contributes 11.7 ppg and 6.7 rpg. All four players are seniors, providing Cal with plenty of experience.
The third-seeded Washington Huskies and sixth-seeded Oregon State Beavers will square off on Thursday, and while OSU has never won this tournament, the Huskies finished on top in 2005 and have split their 20 games in this event. Washington possesses two of the Pac-10's top five scorers, as Quincy Pondexter sits second with 20.2 ppg and Isaiah Thomas checks in with 17.2 ppg, good for fifth place. Pondexter is third in the league with 7.8 rpg, and the fact that he is shooting 54.3 percent from the floor despite constant attention from defenders is impressive. The Huskies lead the league in scoring offense (80.5 ppg) and scoring margin (+10.0 ppg), and they are also tops in rebounding margin (+4.6 rpg). As for Oregon State, it ranks ninth in the league in scoring offense (60.0 ppg) and ninth in scoring margin (-1.2 ppg). The Beavers shoot just 28.5 percent from three-point range, but the fact that they lead the Pac-10 in steals has certainly helped their cause. Calvin Haynes leads OSU with 12.7 ppg. Washington beat Oregon State by 12 points in the regular-season finale, and by six points earlier in the campaign.
The final quarterfinal pairing features the second-seeded Arizona State Sun Devils and the seventh-seeded Stanford Cardinal. Stanford's lone title was earned in 2004, and the team is 11-11 in this tournament. As for the Sun Devils, they own a 5-11 mark in this event and have never earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. ASU is paced by Ty Abbott (12.0 ppg) and Rihards Kuksiks (11.7 ppg), and Eric Boateng, who leads the conference in field goal percentage (.653), is sixth in rebounding (7.0 rpg). The Sun Devils are second in the league in scoring defense (58.1 ppg) and are the best three- point shooting team (.371). Stanford always has a chance to win regardless of the opposition because of the presence of Landry Fields, the top scorer in the conference at 22.2 ppg. Fields is also second in rebounding with 8.7 rpg, and with Jeremy Green (16.9 ppg) in the fold, the Cardinal may possess the top duo in the Pac-10. Unfortunately, Stanford ranks last in the league in field goal percentage defense. The Sun Devils beat the Cardinal in both head-to-head meetings during the regular season.
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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.
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