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03/16/2008 - Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rafer Alston hit a pair of career highs with eight three-pointers and 31 points, and the Houston Rockets won their 22nd consecutive contest in convincing fashion with a 104-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at the Toyota Center.
Alston also had five assists and a pair of steals to propel the Rockets, whose current streak is the second-longest in NBA history. Only the 1971-72 Lakers' 33-game winning streak is better.
Bobby Jackson ended with 19 points, Shane Battier chipped in 14 and Luis Scola added 13 and 11 boards for Houston, which used an all-around effort to move into the top spot in the Western Conference. Tracy McGrady ended with 11 points, all in the second half.
Kobe Bryant scored a team-high 24 for the Lakers, who have dropped three of their last four games and sit one ahead of Phoenix for the top spot in the Pacific Division. Lamar Odom donated 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Ronny Turiaf rounded out the players in double-digits with a 13-point effort.
Lakers center Pau Gasol sat with a sprained left ankle sustained in Friday's loss at New Orleans. He left the arena on crutches, and will miss at least three games. Gasol has averaged 19 points and eight rebounds since coming to Los Angeles from Memphis last month.
The Rockets had a five-point lead heading to the fourth quarter, but the Lakers fought back. Bryant made it a two-point contest, 81-79, with just over seven and a half remaining, and Houston failed to gain any separation until the clock ticked down inside of five to play.
The Lakers started to falter at the other end, and Houston was tough on the boards, turning every rebound into a quick trip up the floor. Battier connected from long range, and after both sides traded jumpers, Jackson found himself wide open at the left wing and drained a three with 3:22 left, opening a 96-86 cushion.
Los Angeles couldn't pull any closer, and a delirious capacity crowd counted down to the final horn.
Houston rolled out to a 14-8 lead at the start, hitting its first four shots from beyond the arc. Alston canned three of the four, and following a Bryant layup, added a running jumper for 11 points in a little more than six minutes.
The Lakers made it 18-all a short time later, but Alston powered the Rockets into the second quarter with a 24-23 edge and the momentum.
A 15-6 push quickly followed, highlighted by an emphatic dunk from Mike Harris, and Jackson capped the rally with a pair from the stripe to make it 39-29 with 6:57 left in the half.
It was 59-44 at the break, with McGrady yet to crack the scoreboard for the Rockets.
The magic touch seemed to disappear in the third quarter, as the Rockets missed their first 12 shots, allowing the visitors to climb back in it. The Lakers went white-hot from there, and cut it to 59-56 behind a 12-0 run.
Alston's trey broke the spell for Houston, and he continued his three-point barrage as the game moved into the fourth quarter with the Rockets holding a 71-66 edge.
Game Notes
The Rockets ended 12-of-26 from long range, compared to 5-of-16 for the Lakers...Houston rookie forward Carl Landry missed his fifth straight game with a bruised knee...Houston is 1 1/2 games ahead of New Orleans in the Southwest Division...The Rockets have won 15 in a row as the host and are 26-9 at the Toyota Center this season...Houston won the season series, 2-1, and has emerged victorious in four of the last five and seven of the last 12 contests...The Rockets host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, then hit the road for visits to New Orleans, Golden State and Phoenix.
<< Corvo records hat trick, Hurricanes storm Senators
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Corvo registered the first hat trick of
his career, as the Carolina Hurricanes thumped the Ottawa Senators, 5-1, at
the RBC Center.
Scott Walker posted a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes, wh
<< La Liga: Barca held by Almeria
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona were held to a 2-2 draw against
promoted Almeria in Spanish La Liga action on Sunday. The draw means the
Spanish giants fail to make the most of leaders Real Madrid's 1-0 defeat away
to Depo
<< Woods wins it with birdie at the last
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods rolled in a 24-foot birdie putt on
the 72nd hole Sunday to beat Bart Bryant by a stroke and win the Arnold Palmer
Invitational.
The win was Woods' 64th on the PGA Tour, which tied him with Ben
<< UNC, Memphis, UCLA and Kansas top seeds for NCAA Tournament
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - North Carolina, Memphis, UCLA and Kansas
have been installed as the top seeds for the 2008 NCAA Tournament.
The Tar Heels (32-2), who will play out of the East region were selected as
the overall No. 1 see
WinStar Derby goes to Liberty Bull >>
Sunland Park, NM (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liberty Bull, ridden by Gerard Melancon,
overtook Screen to Screen down the stretch to win Sunday's $600,000 WinStar
Derby at Sunland Park.
The sixth running of Sunland Park's high-profile event had
Friberg fires 65 to win MasterCard Classic >>
Mexico City, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Louise Friberg fired a seven-under 65
Sunday to come from behind and win the MasterCard Classic by one shot.
Friberg, who won for the first time on the LPGA Tour, finished at six-under-
par 210. The
Johnson leads Hawks over lowly Knicks >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Johnson scored a game-high 28 points and
dished out 11 assists, as the Atlanta Hawks pulled away late to defeat the New
York Knicks, 109-98, at Madison Square Garden.
Marvin Williams had 25 points an
Mavericks burn by Heat >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 points in 25 minutes to
lead the Dallas Mavericks in a 98-73 rout of the Miami Heat.
Brandon Bass and Jason Terry both had 14 points for the Mavericks, who won
their fifth straight
Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.
Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.
Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.
Memphis vs. Ohio State
Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.
UCLA vs. Kansas
In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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