Magic and Celtics renew rivalry in Beantown
Basketball Betting Lines
02/07/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The latest round of what is quickly becoming one of the
best rivalries in the Eastern Conference takes place at TD Garden this
afternoon as the Atlantic Division-leading Boston Celtics host the Southeast's
top squad, the Orlando Magic.
The Celtics avoided what could have been a rather embarrassing loss on Friday
when Ray Allen poured in 26 points and drilled a critical three-pointer
with two minutes left, as Boston extended lowly New Jersey's woes with a 96-87
win.
Rajon Rondo scored 17 points and dished out 11 assists for the Celtics, who
have beaten the Nets 12 straight times since the tail end of the 2006-07
season and improved to 2-0 on their current three-game homestand. Glen Davis
had 13 points, while Eddie House scored all 10 of his points in the fourth
quarter.
"I don't know what it was, I mean, we just didn't play well in the first
half," Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought it was a game that we
thought that we could just outscore them."
Boston toiled without leading scorer Paul Pierce for the second straight game
against New Jersey. The veteran forward, who has been out with a foot injury,
will be a game-time decision this afternoon.
The Magic, perhaps looking ahead to their matchup with the C's, did suffer an
embarrassing setback to the Southeast Division's worst team, Washington, in
their last encounter on Friday.
Caron Butler fueled a Wizards' comeback over Orlando, scoring 29 of his 31
points in the second half, including the game-winning jumper with a half-
second left in regulation, to push Washington to a surprising 92-91 decision
at Amway Arena.
Butler also grabbed nine rebounds for the Wizards, who trailed by as many as
21 in the contest before outscoring the Magic by 22 in the third quarter to
erase the deficit.
In a back-and-forth final frame, Orlando's Rashard Lewis nearly spoiled the
turnaround by hitting a go-ahead three-pointer with 4.6 seconds to play, but
Butler answered with a baseline 19-footer to send the Magic to just their
fifth home loss this season.
Dwight Howard logged 20 points and 18 rebounds, while Vince Carter chipped in
21 points in Orlando's first loss in five games.
"It is flat-out unacceptable," Carter said. "We did a great job of getting
ourselves back into the game. But unfortunately, when you have a slippage like
that, you're going to lose a buzzer-beater."
Lewis had 12 points and his desperation fadeaway following Butler's eventual
game-winner was well off the mark.
The Magic, who are the reigning Eastern Conference champs, bested the Celts,
who were the 2007-08 NBA champs, in Game 7 of the East semifinals last season
with a 101-82 blowout win in Beantown, but Boston was without star forward
Kevin Garnett.
This season, Orlando has gotten the best of the Celtics in two of the three
encounters between the two teams, including an 83-78 triumph at TD Garden in
November.
<< Raptors host reeling Kings
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Home cooking figures to be key this afternoon as the
Toronto Raptors shoot for their seventh consecutive win at Air Canada Centre
against a Sacramento Kings team aiming to avoid an 11th straight road loss.
The Raptors open
<< Buckeyes host Hawkeyes in Big Ten action
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will
attempt to complete the regular-season sweep of the Iowa Hawkeyes when the two
meet in Columbus today for a Big Ten Conference clash.
Iowa is in desperate need of a vic
<< Third-ranked Orange clash with Bearcats in Big East battle
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Off to their best start ever, the third-
ranked Syracuse Orange take their show on the road today to tangle with the
Cincinnati Bearcats in a Big East clash at Fifth Third Arena.
On Tuesday, the Orange squas
<< Lopez ends lengthy title drought
Johannesburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Feliciano Lopez of Spain beat
France's Stephane Robert in Sunday's final at the SA Tennis Open.
Lopez, the third seed, defeated Robert 7-5, 6-1 in just over an hour to win
his second career
<< Oudin puts United States in Fed Cup semis
Lievin, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Americans advanced to the Fed Cup
semifinals after teenager Melanie Oudin defeated Julie Coin in Sunday's first
reverse singles match.
Oudin posted a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 victory over Coin to give t
Ovechkin's red-hot Caps host Crosby and Pens >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The hottest team in the NHL will take on the defending
Stanley Cup champions today when Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals
welcome Sidney Crosby's Pittsburgh Penguins for an Eastern Conference showdown
at Verizon Cente
Canadiens invite struggling Bruins to Montreal >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins will try to avoid tying the longest
losing streak in franchise history when they visit the rival Montreal
Canadiens for today's Northeast Division clash at Bell Centre.
The Bruins have gone the last 10 ga
England draws Wales in EURO 2012 qualifying >>
Warsaw, Poland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - England will take on Wales in qualifying
after the two nations were placed in the same Euro 2012 group.
Switzerland, Bulgaria and Montenegro were also drawn in Group G alongside
England and Wales ah
Stricker six clear after three rounds at Riviera >>
Pacific Palisades, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Stricker polished off a five-
under 66 Sunday and stretched his lead to six strokes after three rounds of
the Northern Trust Open.
Stricker, who led by five entering the day, carded a p
Italy tops Ukraine in Fed Cup quarters >>
Kharkiv, Ukraine (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Francesca Schiavone rallied from a set
down to beat Kateryna Bondarenko of Ukraine and help defending champion Italy
secure a spot in the Fed Cup semifinals.
Schiavone defeated Kateryna Bondarenko 2
Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends
We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS. Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned. For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go. As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190). Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet. For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction. On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later. Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick. Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com
New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors
Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls
Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times.
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons
Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season.
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers
In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS.
For even more betting trends for not just the NBA but for all of the major sports, log on to Sportsbook.com and click on “Trends”. With only two months left in the NBA betting season it is important to be as well informed as possible in order to maximize your profit. Also for all of you poker players, check out MySportsbook.com’s “WSOP Low Bid Auction”. You could be on your way to Vegas to play against the world’s best poker players for under a buck.
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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.
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