02/27/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Central Division rivals clash at Conseco Fieldhouse
Saturday as Indiana plays host to a streaking Chicago Bulls team, aiming to
sweep the season series with the Pacers for the first time in 13 years.
Chicago has already topped Indiana three times this season and a win tonight
would give the club its first season sweep in the series since 1996-97.
The Bulls won for the sixth time in seven games on Friday when Luol Deng
scored seven points in overtime, and Derrick Rose scored 33 overall, leading
Chicago to a 115-111 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in the Windy
City.
Deng, playing with a balky left knee, finished with 23 points and seven
boards, while Rose went 15-of-25 from the field for the Bulls, who snapped a
five- game losing streak to the Blazers. Kirk Hinrich provided 17 points,
while Hakim Warrick had 15 in the win.
"Turnovers were one of the reasons [Portland] was in the game," Rose said. "I
have to stay focused and make sure I take care of the ball."
The Pacers, meanwhile, have been struggling recently and fell to Milwaukee in
their most recent outing, a 112-110 setback on Thursday. The Bucks' John
Salmons had 20 points in that one.
Danny Granger tallied a game-high 21 points for Indiana, which has lost three
straight and seven of eight. T.J. Ford had 17 points, while Troy Murphy
provided 16 points on 4-of-7 shooting from three-point range.
"We had our chances," Murphy said. "I'm hoping to get some wins...I'm hoping
to win some games here sooner or later. It's getting to that point."
Earl Watson added 15 points, eight boards and five assists in a losing cause.
Martin leads Rockets into Salt Lake City to face Jazz >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Martin hopes to build on his best performance as a
Houston Rocket when he leads his teammates into Salt Lake City to face one of
the Western Conference's best teams, the Utah Jazz.
Martin finished with 33 points last
Panthers seek turnaround in regular-season finale against Redbirds >>
Cedar Falls, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The regular season comes to a close tonight
for the Illinois State Redbirds and the 25th-ranked Northern Iowa Panthers, as
the two meet in a Missouri Valley Conference clash at the McLeod Center in
Cedar Falls
Villanova visits Syracuse in Big East showdown >>
Syracuse, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The two top teams in the Big East Conference
duke it out at the Carrier Dome tonight, as the seventh-ranked Villanova
Wildcats come calling on the fourth-ranked Syracuse Orange.
Villanova, which had at one poi
Panthers come to Big Apple to battle Red Storm >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Big East Conference foes square off at New
York's famed Madison Square Garden this afternoon, as the 12th-ranked
Pittsburgh Panthers come calling on the St. John's Red Storm.
Pitt had a four-game win streak sn
Dons seek second win over Zags this season >>
Spokane, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With their 10th consecutive West Coast
Conference regular season title in the bag, the 18th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs
try to keep the momentum going as they play host to the San Francisco Dons
tonight at the McCarth
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
MySportsbook is considered one of the finest football sportsbooks according to several surveys performed by independent industry analysts considering such factors as payout accuracy and timeliness, overall quality of website, and bettor satisfaction.
MySportsbook is a large company with strong financial backing. Considered the best sportsbook for betting football online You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your nfl football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.