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
02/10/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After getting their six-game road trip off to a poor start, the Miami Heat will dust themselves off for tonight's showdown against the lowly Washington Wizards at the Verizon Center.
The Heat had won three straight and 11 of 13 games before suffering a 102-89 loss at Orlando on Wednesday. Magic All-Star Dwight Howard single-handedly took care of the Heat by racking up 25 points and 24 rebounds, while Dwyane Wade led Miami with a team-high 33 points on 15-of-24 shooting.
"They set the tone of this game right from the get-go," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "We were able to get to a little bit more of an aggressiveness and attack in a little bit more of a disposition in the second quarter, but they were able to sustain it longer and more consistently than we were able to."
LeBron James finished with 17 points, 10 assists and six boards for the Heat, who are 7-5 away from South Beach this season and are in the midst of playing 11 straight games against Eastern Conference foes. The Heat are 14-4 against the East this season and will also visit the Hawks, Bucks, Pacers and Cavs on the current road swing. Miami will play its 11th straight conference game versus Orlando at home on Feb. 19.
Heat guard Mario Chalmers did not play against the Magic because of a sprained left hand and is listed as questionable for Friday. In other team news, Wade has scored 20 or more points in a season-high six straight games and posted the 5,000th field goal of his career in Cleveland on Tuesday for the Heat, who are trying to match the best 27-game start in team history. The previous 20-7 records occurred in both 1996-97 and 2004-05.
Chris Bosh had 12 points and nine boards against the Magic, and was recently named as a reserve for the Eastern Conference All-Star team.
The Wizards will wrap up a three-game homestand this evening before embarking on a five-game road trip and suffered their fifth loss in six tries with Wednesday's 107-93 setback to the New York Knicks.
John Wall netted a game-high 29 points and Trevor Booker added 17 for the Wizards, who shot 45.8 percent and got eight points and nine rebounds from JaVale McGee. Maurice Evans had nine points and Nick Young only scored seven in defeat.
"This game boiled down to containment," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "We couldn't contain the basketball basically all night long."
Washington is only 4-16 against Eastern Conference opponents this season and a lowly 5-21 overall. Wall is averaging 22.3 points and 6.0 assists in his last four games for a Washington team that could be without Rashard Lewis for a third straight game. Lewis is bothered by a sore right knee and is just four points shy of reaching the 15,000-point mark in his career. He will eventually join Paul Pierce and Jason Kidd as the only players in NBA history who have scored at least 15,000 points, grabbed 5,000 rebounds and hit 1,500 three- pointers in their careers.
Tonight's game is the first of three meetings between the Wizards and Heat. The two teams will meet on April 21 in Miami and again on April 26 in Washington. The Heat won last season's series, 4-0, and have won five straight and 11 of the past 12 matchups between the teams. Miami has won six in a row at the Verizon Center, where the Wizards are 4-11 this season.
Young averaged 27.0 ppg in three games versus the Heat last season, while James had averages of 30.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists in four matchups with Washington in 2010-11. Wade averaged 30.0 ppg in four games against the Wizards a year ago.
<< Thunder conclude road trip in Utah
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oklahoma City will attempt to wrap up a five-game road trip
on a winning note tonight when Kevin Durant and Company visit Salt Lake City
to take on the Utah Jazz.
The Western Conference-leading Thunder dropped to 2-2 o
<< First meets worst when Bulls visit Bobcats
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two streaks will be on the line this evening at Time Warner
Cable Arena, as the Chicago Bulls go after their fifth straight win, while the
Charlotte Bobcats attempt to avoid matching the longest losing streak in
franchise his
<< Harvard battles Penn in pivotal Ivy League tussle
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 25th-ranked Harvard Crimson will try
to maintain their spot atop the Ivy League standings, as they head to
Philadelphia to take on the Penn Quakers tonight at The Palestra.
Harvard is enjoying the best
<< Hantuchova advances, Zvonareva retires in Pattaya City
Pattaya City, Thailand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Daniela
Hantuchova was among the quarterfinal winners Friday at the Pattaya Open,
while two-time winner Vera Zvonareva was forced to retire from her match
because
Nets and Pistons finish home-and-home set >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-year center Greg Monroe is starting to heat up for a
Detroit Pistons team riding a season-high three-game winning streak and is
aiming for his fourth straight double-double tonight versus the New Jersey
Nets in the bac
Red Wings shoot for 19th straight home win vs. Ducks >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Forgive the Red Wings if they are looking past the Ducks
and towards this weekend when they could have a chance at matching the longest
home winning streak in NHL history.
After all, wins over Anaheim at Joe Louis Arena ar
Pacers battle Grizzlies on Beale Street >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The much-improved Indiana Pacers hope to salvage the back-
end of a brief two-game road trip tonight when they square off with the
Memphis Grizzlies on Beale Street.
Indiana is coming off a 97-98 loss in Atlant
Mavs visit Love, Timberwolves >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Timberwolves will have Kevin Love back in the
lineup tonight versus the Dallas Mavericks at Target Center after serving a
two-game suspension for stomping on Houston's Luis Scola during the third
quarter of Satu
Sportsbook betting odds favor Europe in Ryder Cup
September 19, – Despite holding a decided edge in the all-time series, with 24 wins, 2 ties and 10 losses, Team USA is the underdog again heading into the Ryder Cup in Kidare, Ireland this weekend, according to MySportsbook.com. The Europeans have captured four of the past five editions, including their largest victory ever, an 18 ½ to 9 ½ thumping in Michigan in 2004. Current Ryder Cup betting odds favor the Europeans to continue their winning ways; they are a 4-5 bet to take the title, compared to 6-5 for the Americans.
Despite being knocked out in the first round of World Match play by Shaun Micheel, Tiger Woods is predicted to lead the US charge and be their highest point scorer for the week, with odds listed at 9-4 that he outpoints all other American players, including Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco to name a few. Team USA has four relatively unknown players on the roster but all four are 2007 tournament winners and have posted some of season’s best performances, each earning over $1.5 million on the PGA TOUR. They include Zach Johnson, Vaughan Taylor, JJ Henry and Brett Wetterich.
The experienced European squad includes the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke, who’s emotions will be tested after the passing of his wife to a battle with cancer. Donald and Garcia are in particularly good form and each is a 5-1 bet to lead the European squad in the points race. Donald has proven he can go head to head with Woods at a major event after a run for the $1.2 million purse at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s Ryder Cup credentials prove he’s ready for battle too.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your golf sportsbook needs.
Ryder Cup Odds| Europe Tie USA |
4-5 10-1 6-5 |
| Tiger Woods Jim Furyk Phil Mickelson Chris DiMarco David Toms Stewart Cink Chad Campbell Scott Verplank Zach Johnson Vaughan Taylor JJ Henry Brett Wetterich |
9-4 4-1 5-1 7-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 25-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 |
| Sergio Garcia Luke Donald Padraig Harrington Colin Montgomerie Darren Clarke David Howell Lee Westwood Paul Casey Henrik Stenson Jose Maria Olazabal Paul McGinley Robert Karlsson |
5-1 5-1 6-1 13-2 8-1 9-1 9-1 11-1 12-1 12-1 20-1 25-1 |
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.
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