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03/29/2009 - Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Glen Davis took an elbow to the head in the third quarter that resulted in 10 stitches on his forehead, but the second- year forward returned to score 15 of his 19 points in the final stanza to ignite Boston to a 103-84 win over Oklahoma City.
The defending champs are now a half-game ahead of idle Orlando for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, but are still five games behind Cleveland for the top seed with seven to play.
Davis also grabbed 10 rebounds, while Paul Pierce posted a game-high 27 points for Boston, which was without forward Kevin Garnett (knee) for the second straight game.
Eddie House scored 16 points off the bench, while fellow reserve Mikki Moore chipped in 12 and 11 boards in the Celtics' sixth win in seven games.
Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant paced the Thunder with 23 and 21 points, respectively. Jeff Green donated 15 and nine rebounds for Oklahoma City, which was outscored 32-16 in the fourth quarter in its fifth loss in six games.
Holding a 71-68 lead with a quarter to play, Pierce scored seven quick points early in the fourth, as his three-pointer produced an 80-72 cushion three minutes in.
Davis then took over, connecting on a pair of buckets around a House trey to spark a 10-2 flurry. Jumpers on consecutive possessions from "Big Baby" Davis had the margin at 96-80 with less than three minutes left, and Boston cruised from there.
The Thunder scored nine straight late in the first quarter and held a 25-20 lead after one before the Celtics tied things at 45-all at the intermission.
Durant's two free throws polished off nine straight points for the visitors for a 60-52 lead midway through the third, but eight quick points from House -- including two makes from behind the arc -- gave Boston a 66-65 lead with 2 1/2 minutes left in the frame.
Game Notes
Garnett is also doubtful for Wednesday's tilt with Charlotte...The Celtics have won five straight games over the Seattle/Oklahoma City franchise...Ray Allen ended with 14 points, while Rajon Rondo handed out a game-high 12 assists to go with six points for Boston, which won the battle on the glass, 48-36.
<< Granger leads Pacers past lowly Wizards
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danny Granger scored a team-high 31
points, and the Indiana Pacers defeated the lowly Washington Wizards, 124-115,
at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Brandon Rush continued his hot play with a career-high t
<< Seth Curry to transfer to Duke
Lynchburg, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seeking a higher level of competition, guard
Seth Curry, the younger brother of Davidson star Stephen Curry, called Liberty
basketball coach Ritchie McKay and indicated his intentions to transfer to
Duke Un
<< Fourth-quarter surge helps Pistons down Sixers
Auburn Hills, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Will Bynum scored nine of his 12 points in
the fourth quarter to spark the Pistons to a 101-97 victory over the
Philadelphia 76ers in a game with Eastern Conference playoff implications.
With th
<< Dickerson wins playoff for first title
Broussard, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former U.S. Amateur champion Bubba Dickerson
birdied the first playoff hole Sunday to beat Brian Vranesh and win the
Chitimacha Louisiana Open.
Dickerson, the 2001 Amateur champion, carded a one-under
Canucks blank Blackhawks to tighten West playoff race >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel Sedin registered two goals and an
assist, and Roberto Luongo made 26 saves to notch his seventh shutout of the
season, as the Vancouver Canucks stymied the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-0, at
United
Hornets gain ground on Southwest Division-leading Spurs >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David West went 11-for-11 from the free
throw line as part of a 23-point effort, and the New Orleans Hornets made up
some ground in the Southwest Division with a 90-86 victory over the San
Antonio
Ryan, Ducks keep Avalanche in freefall >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bobby Ryan scored twice in Anaheim's 4-1 win
over the Colorado Avalanche at Honda Center.
Corey Perry and Drew Miller also tallied for the Ducks, who have won six of
their last seven games. Jonas Hiller t
Wild fend off Oilers in battle of playoff-hopefuls >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marian Gaborik scored the game-winning goal
and dished out an assist, as the Minnesota Wild edged the Edmonton Oilers,
3-2, in a battle between two playoff-hopeful teams at Rexall Place.
Andrew Brunett
(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.
The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.
Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.
The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
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