Blazers continue playoff push with win over Raptors
Basketball Betting Lines
03/14/2010 -
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nicolas Batum made 5-of-6 from three-point
land, en route to 22 points, leading Portland to a 109-98 win over Toronto.
LaMarcus Aldridge also provided 22 points to go with 12 rebounds and Brandon
Roy scored 20 for the Trail Blazers, who have won four straight and seven of
eight overall.
Andre Miller had another solid all-around game with 13 points, seven rebounds
and five assists for the victors.
Chris Bosh finished with 28 points and seven boards for the reeling Raptors,
who went winless on a four-game road trip and have lost five straight overall.
Hedo Turkoglu and Amir Johnson netted 14 and 13 points, respectively, in
defeat.
Down by as many as 11 in the early going of the fourth, the Raptors whittled
their deficit down to 93-91 on a Sonny Weems jumper midway through the frame.
Portland scored eight of the next 10 points to extend the margin to 101-93 on
two Batum free throws with 3:16 to play.
Two Bosh free throws made it a 101-95 game, but six straight Portland points,
capped by a Batum three-pointer, sealed the win for the hosts.
Roy made two late free throws in the first quarter to yield a 32-30 lead for
the Blazers, who scored the first seven points of the second frame.
Another 7-0 run capped by a Marcus Camby bucket later in the stanza made it a
49-35 game, and the Blazers cruised into the locker room with a 60-49 cushion.
Toronto won the third quarter by a slim margin and headed to the fourth
trailing 85-78.
Game Notes
The Blazers are currently the eighth seed in the Western Conference and hold a
comfortable five-game lead on Memphis...Toronto still holds the eighth and
final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference but leads Chicago by just one
game...Portland swept the home-and-home season series against Toronto for a
second straight season...Rudy Fernandez and Camby each scored 12 points for
Portland...DeMar DeRozan had 12 points, while Andrea Bargnani and Jose
Calderon each netted 11 for the Raptors. Calderon also handed out seven
assists...Portland made a season-high 12 three-pointers (12-of-20) in the
game.
<< Evans, Kings cruise past lowly Timberwolves
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyreke Evans came just shy of a triple
double, finishing with 29 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, and the
Sacramento Kings routed the Minnesota Timberwolves, 114-100, at ARCO Arena.
Donte
<< Ducks beat Sharks; Selanne inches closer to milestone
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Teemu Selanne posted a goal and one assist and
crept closer to becoming the NHL's all-time leading Finnish goal scorer, as
Anaheim topped San Jose, 4-2, at Honda Center.
Selanne posted his 599th career go
<< No. 2 Stanford wins Pac-10 title by downing UCLA
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tournament MVP Nnemkadi Ogwumike had 16
points and 10 rebounds as No. 2 Stanford downed 23rd-ranked UCLA, 70-46, in
the championship game of the Pac-10 conference.
Jayne Appel added 15 points and
<< Westbrook, Durant lead Thunder over Jazz
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russell Westbrook poured in 30 points and
dished out 11 assists, as the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the Utah Jazz,
119-111.
Kevin Durant added 35 points for the Thunder, who have won five in a row
<< North Carolina among NIT field
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Illinois, Arizona State, Virginia Tech and
Mississippi State were anointed as the top seeds for the 32-team 2010 National
Invitation Tournament.
The field was revealed Sunday night, approximately three ho
Ducks' Selanne, Getzlaf injured >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Anaheim Ducks forwards Teemu Selanne and Ryan
Getzlaf both suffered injuries on Sunday in a win against San Jose and will be
re-evaluated on Monday.
Selanne, who scored career goal No. 599 in the victory, suf
Report: Blackhawks D Campbell out for regular season after Ovie hit >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell
will reportedly miss the remainder of the regular season after suffering a
broken collarbone when Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin hit him from behind
in Sund
Sedin twins lead Canucks past Flames >>
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Twin brothers of Daniel and Henrik Sedin each
registered a goal and an assist, as the Canucks scored three times in the
opening period and turned back the Calgary Flames, 3-1, for their sixth win in
eight g
Oregon State part of CBI >>
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oregon State has been chosen to return to
defend its title in the 16-team College Basketball Invitational, which starts
Tuesday night.
Oregon State, with head coach Craig Robinson, the brother-in-la
Suns down free-falling Hornets >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amare Stoudemire scored 36 points, pulled down
12 rebounds and sank all 14 of his free throw attempts, as Phoenix ran past
the New Orleans Hornets, 120-106, at US Airways Center.
Jason Richardson had 20 p
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
New York Giants betting lines
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Dallas Cowboys betting lines
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
Oakland Raiders betting lines
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
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