Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
01/25/2007 - Madison, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alando Tucker and Brian Butch scored 16 points each, and No. 2 Wisconsin cruised past the Michigan Wolverines, 71-58, at Kohl Center.
Kammron Taylor and Marcus Landry added eight points apiece for Wisconsin (20-1, 6-0 Big 10), which won its 16th straight game. The streak is the longest in the nation, and the 20-1 start ties the best start in school history for the Badgers. Wisconsin has won its first six Big 10 games for the first time since the 1913-1914 season.
Courtney Sims scored 16 points for Michigan (16-5, 4-2), which had won back- to-back games, and four of five entering the contest. Lester Abram scored 10 points for the Wolverines, who fell in a matchup between the top two teams in the Big 10.
Michigan scored the game's first nine points, but the Badgers answered with a 9-2 run, tying the game at 11-11 on a layup by Joe Krabbenhoft with 11:41 left in the first half. Wisconsin pulled ahead on the strength of a 9-0 run late in the first half, and led 33-26 at the intermission.
Wisconsin blew the Wolverines off the court in the second half, stretching its lead out to 24 points with just under eight minutes left. A Ron Coleman jumper pulled Michigan to within 39-30 just under three minutes into the second half, but Wisconsin went on a 24-9 stretch, capped by Tucker's jumper that put the Badgers up 63-39 with 7:58 left.
Wisconsin led 71-50 after a Tucker layup with 3:06 left, but Michigan closed the game with eight straight points to produce the final score.
Game Notes
Wisconsin shot 54 percent from the field, compared to a 45 percent performance by Michigan...19 Michigan turnovers led to 24 Wisconsin points...Each team had 30 rebounds in the contest.
<< Serena into final at Aussie Open
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American Serena Williams continued her
march toward a possible third Australian Open title, reaching the final with a
thrilling 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 win over 10th-seeded Czech Nicole Vaidisova.
Williams, who
<< Sooners stay perfect in conference play with win over ISU
Norman, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Courtney Paris scored 14 points and grabbed 13
rebounds to lead No. 6 Oklahoma to a 69-49 victory over Iowa State at Lloyd
Noble Center.
Chelsi Welch scored 13 points and Leah Rush added 12 points for
<< No. 11 Memphis takes down Tulsa
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joey Dorsey posted 13 points, 11 rebounds and
three blocked shots, as the 11th-ranked Memphis Tigers downed the Tulsa Golden
Hurricane, 72-59.
Robert Dozier posted 12 points and eight rebounds and Jeremy
<< No. 17 Arizona gets back on track over ASU
Tucson, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chase Budinger scored a game-high 21 points and
pulled down 10 rebounds, as 17th-ranked Arizona trounced Arizona State, 71-47,
at McKale Center.
Budinger was a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe and ad
Ellis' jumper lifts Warriors over Nets in Oakland >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Monta Ellis drained a long jump shot as time
expired, as Golden State picked up its first win since the big trade, edging
New Jersey 110-109 at ORACLE Arena.
Ellis ended with 20 points and six assists whi
Randolph leads Blazers over T-Wolves in OT >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zach Randolph scored 22 points and grabbed 15
rebounds as the Portland Trail Blazers edged the Minnesota Timberwolves,
101-98, in overtime.
Sergio Rodriguez scored 18 points, while Brandon Roy and Mart
Sharapova vs. Serena in Aussie Open final >>
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It'll be Russian Maria Sharapova
versus American Serena Williams for the title at the Australian Open after
both won semifinal matches Thursday.
Williams continued her march toward a possib
Federer downs Roddick to reach Australian Open final >>
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Roger Federer
advanced to the final of the Australian Open on Thursday after easily
defeating Andy Roddick in a blockbuster semifinal.
The top-seeded and current
Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
Is 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.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting