Thunder return home to face Hornets

Basketball Betting Lines

03/10/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the Oklahoma City Thunder seem to be well on their way towards ending a playoff drought, the New Orleans Hornets enter tonight's showdown between these teams in danger of missing out of the postseason fray.

The injury-plagued Hornets head to the Ford Center, their one-time temporary home when displaced by Hurricane Katrina a few years back, in 11th place in the competitive Western Conference and five games behind Portland for the eighth and final playoff seed. A recent four-game losing streak has hurt the club's postseason chances, although New Orleans was able to end that slide with Monday's 135-131 triumph over visiting Golden State.

David West and Marcus Thornton each scored 28 points to pace the Hornets, while Darren Collison dished out a career-best 20 assists to go along with 16 points. The rookie's assist total tied Phoenix's Steve Nash for the most by an individual in the NBA this season.

West added 13 rebounds on the night, while Emeka Okafor also notched a double- double with 22 points and 11 boards. The Hornets outrebounded the Warriors by a 44-23 margin for the game in addition to shooting just under 59 percent from the field.

Peja Stojakovic scored 16 points for New Orleans before exiting in the third quarter with a strained groin. The veteran forward's status for tonight's matchup is uncertain.

In a tight game down the stretch, Golden State held a 123-121 lead with three minutes left before the Hornets ran off nine consecutive points. Thornton ended the rally with three layups as New Orleans took a seven-point advantage with 1:23 to play.

Golden State closed within one on back-to-back three-pointers from Stephen Curry, the second coming with 30.7 seconds remaining, but Collison sank a floater on the ensuing possession as the Hornets held on.

"We just wanted to execute down the stretch," Collison said. "We haven't been doing that down the stretch the last parts of the games we've been losing. It was important we get a good look at it."

While the Hornets have been struggling as of late, the Thunder have posted a sensational 14-3 record since January 29 to move into sixth place in the West standings, just a half-game back of fifth-seeded Phoenix. Oklahoma City has been especially tough at home during that span, having won seven of eight tilts at the Ford Center.

One of the Thunder's victories during its current strong stretch came against the Hornets in New Orleans back on February 3. That snapped a 10-game losing streak for Oklahoma City in this series, though, and the Hornets have prevailed in their last four matchups as the visitor versus the Thunder/Sonics franchise.

Oklahoma City returns home after completing a three-game road trip with Sunday's 108-102 verdict over Sacramento, with Kevin Durant amassing 27 points and eight rebounds to lead the way.

Russell Westbrook added 21 points and eight boards in the victory, the Thunder's fifth in its last six games, with rookie James Harden contributing 14 points off the bench.

Oklahoma City, which is 19-11 at the Ford Center this season, began its recent swing with a loss at Denver on March 3 before bouncing back with Friday's 104-87 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

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Best Horse Betting Online

(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.