 |
 Basketball Betting |
 |
||||
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Bears and Bearkats collide in South Regional actionNCAA Basketball Betting Lines03/18/2010 - New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Playing in their second NCAA Tournament in the last three seasons, the Baylor Bears will tangle with the Sam Houston State Bearkats in first round action of the South Region at New Orleans Arena this afternoon. The Bearkats set a school record this season for wins, grabbing 25 victories, surpassing the team's previous high of 23 set back in 2003 and 2008. The Bearkats claimed the regular-season and the tournament title in the Southland Conference, earning them just their second trip to the NCAA Tournament. The only other appearance for Sam Houston State in this event came in 2003 and the team was promptly dismissed by Florida in the first round, 85-55. As for the Bears, this will be their sixth appearance in the Big Dance, and the second in the last three seasons. However, Baylor is just 3-7 all-time in this tournament. This season the Bears racked up an impressive 25-7 ledger and finished 11-5 in Big 12 action, The team's reward was the third seed in the South Region, which is the highest seed in Baylor's history. In regard to the all-time series between the two schools on the hardwood, the Bears currently hold a 6-3 edge over Sam Houston State. The winner of this contest will move into the second round where they will face either Notre Dame or Old Dominion. Since the start of the season the Bearkats have been a dangerous squad offensively and come into this tournament averaging 79.9 ppg. Sam Houston State is shooting a respectable 46.8 percent from the floor on the season, and from behind the arc the team has been just as solid, connecting on 37.8 percent of its attempts from long range. Gilberto Clavell provides balance in the frontcourt, as the big man is netting 16.9 ppg, to go along with a team- high 6.3 rpg. Corey Allmond is contributing 15.9 ppg and is the team's top threat from behind the arc, connecting on 94-of-250 attempts from long range (37.6 percent). Running the show on the floor has been Ashton Mitchell, who has distributed 162 assists, to go along with 12.7 ppg. Mitchell however, is more than just a passer, as the guard comes into this tournament posting an impressive 47.0 percent shooting effort from the floor. With the likes of Kansas and Kansas State in their conference, the Bears often went overlooked this season, but they remain a very dangerous team. Baylor is known for its play offensively, but the team has been tenacious at the defensive end of the court as well, and heads into this game limiting opponents to just 65.9 ppg on a 38.4 percent shooting effort. The Bears have also done a terrific on the glass, outrebounding opponents by an average of 6.7 rpg. While the defensive effort is important, the true success of this team does lie at the offensive end of the court, as the team is producing 77.6 ppg. LaceDarius Dunn is currently pacing the team with 19.4 ppg, and is a terrifying threat from behind the arc, where he is connecting on 42.5 percent (105-of-247) of his three-point attempts. Tweety Carter has run the show on the floor, netting 15.7 ppg, to go along with a team-high 171 assists, while Ekpe Udoh has dominated the paint, averaging 13.9 ppg and 9.8 rpg.
<< Second-seeded Villanova takes on Robert Morris in first-round action
Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-seeded Robert Morris Colonials will have a tough task this afternoon in the South Region, as they take on the second-seeded Villanova Wildcats in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Dunkin' D
<< Washington and Marquette meet in first round of 2010 NCAA Tournament
<< Wake Forest and Texas do battle in 2010 NCAA Tournament
<< Spiders and Gaels meet in South Region's first round
<< Midwest Regional affair pits Panthers against Rebels
Vols set sights on Aztecs in first-round action >>
Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In search of their first-ever NCAA Tournament win, the 11th-seeded San Diego State Aztecs take aim at the sixth- seeded Tennessee Volunteers in the first round at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. The survivor of this
West Regional action features Bulldogs against Miners >>
Back injury forces Singh to withdraw >>
Slumping Sharks try to bounce back against Canucks >>
Battered Blackhawks pay a visit to Kings >>
Horse Betting(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.
MySportsbook.com Releases World Series Championship Lines To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Mastercard needs.. |
|
