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Josh Smith helps Hawks maintain dominance over TimberwolvesBasketball Betting Lines02/24/2010 - Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Smith poured in a season-high 27 points and 10 rebounds, and the Atlanta Hawks continued their recent dominance over the Minnesota Timberwolves with a 98-92 win at Philips Arena. Smith went an efficient 9-of-13 from the field and 9-of-11 from the free throw line for the Hawks, who returned from a 2-2 road trip to win for the 10th time in 12 home games. Atlanta has now beaten the Timberwolves eight straight times since 2006. Joe Johnson added 21 points, while Al Horford had 11 with 13 rebounds for Atlanta in the victory. Kevin Love had 19 points and 12 rebounds to pace Minnesota, which was coming off a win in Miami but lost for the seventh time in eight games. Ryan Hollins contributed with 18 points, while Damien Wilkins had 15 in defeat. Minnesota trailed by 12 entering the fourth quarter but scored the first 10 points of the period to close to within 78-76 on Wilkins' three-point play. Atlanta was able to respond before the Timberwolves surged in front, and, as the visitors began to struggle from the field, the Hawks grabbed a 90-82 lead on Smith's 18-footer with just over three minutes to play. "I just felt like my team needed energy, so I was able to try to spread it out in many different ways," Smith said. "We knew that (Minnesota) wasn't going to stop playing when they got it to the two-point deficit. We were able to get our starters back in, and we were able to build the lead back up and kind of play together and limit them to one shot." Minnesota went nearly eight minutes without a field goal during that stretch and never came closer than five points the rest of the way. "We couldn't find a way to score," said Timberwolves head coach Kurt Rambis. "We were getting good looks. Early on in the fourth quarter we weren't doing a good job moving the basketball. That always plagues us; that's always going to run us into problems." Johnson and Smith each scored six points in the first quarter for Atlanta, which held a 23-21 advantage after the opening 12 minutes. The Hawks used a 10-4 burst to begin the second, expanding their lead to 33-25 on a pair of Zaza Pachulia free throws. The margin reached as high as 10 before the hosts took a 50-42 cushion into the locker room. Mike Bibby drilled consecutive wide-open three-pointers in the early portion of the third quarter to put Atlanta ahead by 12, 58-46, and a 7-0 burst later by the Hawks had them ahead 77-61 after a Maurice Evans three-point play with two minutes remaining. The score was 78-66 heading to the fourth. Game Notes Minnesota has not posted a win in Atlanta since November 20, 2002, losing the last seven as the guest in this series...The T'Wolves are now 2-13 in their last 15 road games and 5-25 overall, while the Hawks are 22-6 at home this season...Bibby scored 12 points for Atlanta, which received 10 points from Evans...Ryan Gomes had 11 points for the Timberwolves, while Al Jefferson and Corey Brewer each had 10 in defeat.
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Betting FootballNFL Football Betting OnlineIs there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL? I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said. There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans. Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal. For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though. A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup. The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games. Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff. So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action. Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns. “I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said. Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season. “Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said. It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties. Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples. The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left. “The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits. “These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.” Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough. The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday. “Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.” Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach? “It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.” Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines. |
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