Carter leads Magic over Boston
Basketball Betting Lines
02/07/2010 - Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vince Carter led a balanced attack with 20 points and Dwight Howard logged 16 points and 13 rebounds despite battling foul trouble, as Orlando rallied back from an 11-point halftime deficit to beat Boston, 96-89 at TD Garden.
Jameer Nelson added 15 points and Rashard Lewis 14 for the Magic, who previously notched a win in Boston back in November -- then edged the C's in Orlando on January 28 to help take the season series 3-1.
Rajon Rondo put forth a solid effort with 17 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for the Celtics, who had a three-game win streak broken.
Paul Pierce returned from a foot injury to post 13 points as did Kevin Garnett, who added nine rebounds. Ray Allen shot 4-of-13 from the floor to end with 14 points.
Trailing 51-40 at the break, the Magic turned the tide in the third quarter, outscoring Boston 36-11. After Rondo sank a three close to five minutes in for a nine-point lead, Carter sparked a 19-0 run for Orlando by hitting a three- ball and converting a conventional three-point play.
Carter added another long distance make during the stretch, which morphed into a 25-2 surge to close the quarter with the Magic up 76-62.
Orlando continued to use the three-point shot to pull away, as Mickael Pietrus and Matt Barnes each hit from beyond for an 82-65 difference just a minute in.
The Celtics began to scrape back with Glen Davis' three-point play making it a 12-point affair, 86-74, with under eight minutes left. But Pietrus again stroked a three and three straight free throws by Howard made it 92-79 nearing three minutes remaining. Boston made a late push, but couldn't overcome Orlando's hearty lead.
The C's held a slim 24-23 lead after 12 minutes of play, and used a 13-4 run to close the first half for a 51-40 advantage.
Game Notes
The Magic drained 11-of-22 from three-point range...Barnes scored 11 points for Orlando...Boston was 5-of-16 from beyond the arc...Davis was 4-of-13 shooting for nine points with seven boards for Boston.
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks made a trade on Sunday, acquiring defenseman Niclas Wallin and a fifth-round pick in the 2010 draft from the Carolina Hurricanes for a second-round pick in the 2010 draft. Wallin, a
<< Freeney active for Super Bowl
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney
is listed as active for the Super Bowl despite a right ankle injury.
Freeney hasn't practiced all week due to a third-degree sprain and torn
ligament in h
<< NFL Inactives (Sunday, February 7, 2010)
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The following is a list of inactive players
for Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS VS. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, 6:25 P.M. (ET)
Saints - 3rd QB Chase Daniel, TE Darnell Dinkins, RB Lynell Hamilton, T
<< Udinese tops Napoli with Di Natale's late heroics
Udine, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Antonio di Natale scored two goals in stoppage
time to complete a hat trick as Udinese beat Napoli, 3-1, on Sunday at the
Stadio Friuli.
Di Natale put Udinese in front after seven minutes when he followed
<< St Etienne eases relegation worries
Saint Etienne, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St Etienne moved seven points clear
of the bottom three on Sunday with a comfortable 3-0 win over Monaco at the
Geoffroy Guichard Stadium.
Blaise Matuidi had the home side in front after 14 m
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tuukka Rask posted 36 saves for his third shutout of the season and Boston broke a 10-game losing streak, one game short of the franchise record, with a 3-0 win over Montreal at the Bell Centre. Boston,
Florida State vacates wins >>
Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Florida State's athletic department
officially announced the vacating of wins relating to last year's academic
fraud violations, including 12 for football under former head coach Bobby
Bowden'
Jernigan helps Xavier down Richmond >>
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dee Dee Jernigan had 15 points to help
seventh-ranked Xavier down Richmond, 67-55, at the Cintas Center.
Amber Harris had 14 points, Special Hennings added 12 points while Tyeasha
Moss had 11 points and six
Chiefs G Waters named Walter Payton Man of the Year >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas City Chiefs guard Brian Waters was
named the 2009 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year in a ceremony prior to Super
Bowl XLIV.
Waters, a four-time Pro Bowl selection, is the fifth Chiefs player to w
Stricker hangs on to win at Riviera >>
Pacific Palisades, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After entering the final round with a
six-stroke lead, Steve Stricker managed a one-under 70 Sunday to win the
Northern Trust Open by two strokes.
Stricker, who had led by seven late in the t
2007 NFL Football Betting Preview
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.