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03/09/2010 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the fifth straight season the 12th- ranked Butler Bulldogs will take part in the Horizon League Tournament Championship Game when they host the Wright State Raiders this evening at the Hinkle Fieldhouse.
The Raiders finished the regular season with a respectable 12-6 mark in league play, and that was good enough for the team to earn the second seed in the tournament and a bye to the semifinals. In the semifinal round, the Raiders defeated the seventh-seeded Detroit Titans by a 69-50 margin.
As for the Bulldogs, they were outstanding this year, posting just the fourth- ever perfect season in the Horizon League by finishing with an 18-0 ledger. Butler is also an impressive 14-0 at home and since Brad Stevens took over for the Bulldogs, the team is 43-3 at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The team carried that momentum into its semifinal matchup with Milwaukee, posting a 68-59 win over the Panthers on Saturday. This might be the fifth straight Horizon League tournament title match for Butler, but the team has hoisted the trophy just once during this run.
One of those losses in the championship game for Butler came in 2007 against the Raiders by a five-point margin. Despite that loss, the Bulldogs still own a 22-15 edge over Wright State in the all-time series, and that includes two victories during the regular season.
The Raiders used their tenacious defensive play to grab a victory over Detroit in their semifinal matchup. Wright State held Detroit to just 50 points in the win and limited the Titans to a meager 39.1 percent shooting effort that included an equally poor 2-of-15 clip from long range. Wright State has used its stingy defensive play throughout the season to corral victories, as the team is limiting the opposition to just 60.6 ppg. At the other end of the floor the team has been paced by Vaughn Duggins and his 14.4 ppg. Todd Brown is the only other player netting double figures on the season, and comes into this game with 13.0 ppg. Duggins posted 12 points in the win over Detroit, while Brown added 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists. The team was led by Ronnie Thomas and Troy Tabler though, as Thomas scored a team-best 18 points, while Tabler posted 16 points.
All five starters for the Bulldogs scored in double figures in Butler's victory over Milwaukee in semifinal round action. Matt Howard led the way with 18 points for Butler, which shot a respectable 47.7 percent from the floor, and also connected on 22-of-32 shots from behind the arc. Ronald Nored added 13 points and eight rebounds, while Shelvin Mack and Willie Veasley tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively. Gordon Hayward helped out as well, posting a double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds. Hayward has been the main source of production throughout the season and comes into the title game averaging 15.6 ppg and 8.6 rpg. Mack is contributing 13.9 ppg on the season, while Howard is posting 12.2 ppg, to go along with 5.3 rpg. Veasley is helping out with 10.4 ppg, while Nored is pacing the team with 111 assists.
<< Surging Bucks host Allen, Celtics
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sweet-stroking veteran Ray Allen has already recorded his
20,000th career point and will add to that mark tonight, when the Boston
Celtics hit the road to Milwaukee for a showdown with the Bucks.
On Sunday, Allen hit a go-
<< Sixers, Pacers clash in Indy
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers finally got off the schneid with a
big win at Toronto this weekend, and hope that carries over into Tuesday's
road bout against the Indiana Pacers at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Philadelphia was able to snap
<< Streaking Magic hope to make Clippers disappear
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The acquisition of Vince Carter has paid off so far for
Eastern Conference power Orlando, which will shoot for its sixth straight win
tonight versus the Los Angeles Clippers in the second test of a three-game
homestand at Amw
<< Rockets take fading playoff push to Washington
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The chances of the Houston Rockets making the playoffs are
fading like a flattop. Tonight they'll have to get past the Washington Wizards
at the Verizon Center and hope for some help around the league.
Houston is 4 1/2 gam
Heat visit Bobcats in key Eastern Conference showdown >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwyane Wade is doing everything he can to keep the Miami
Heat in playoff contention. But, first he has to figure out a way to beat the
Charlotte Bobcats when the two teams collide Tuesday in the Tar Heel State.
The Bobcats
Bruins hope to bolster playoff chances vs. Maple Leafs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins will try to bolster their playoff hopes
when they visit the last-place Toronto Maple Leafs for tonight's clash between
Original Six clubs at Air Canada Centre.
The Bruins are currently holding onto the ei
2010 Big West Conference Tournament Preview >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 35th annual Big West Conference
Tournament will once again take place at the Anaheim Convention Center Arena
for a tenth straight season. The bottom four seeds of the eight-team field
will take part in fi
2010 Pac-10 Conference Tournament Preview >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nine team will converge on the Staples
Center in Los Angeles to compete for the Pac-10 Conference Tournament
championship beginning on Wednesday, March 10th.
The only member of the league that isn't compet
My fellow Americans, as tempting as it may be to don the coat and HD-ready tie in order to deliver this State of the Game address before the cameras, I know better. As Brad Paisley sings on his latest album, "I'm so much cooler online."
The ideas for this annual essay to kick off the MySportsbook.com college football betting preview flowed like frat-house beer, which is to say they were cheap and spilled all over the floor. The 2007 season will be better than 2007, if only because there will be more of it. A year ago, the NCAA Football Rules Committee made two rule changes in the interest of speeding up the game. These changes went over like Kobe burgers at a vegan banquet.
To its credit, the rules committee rectified its mistakes. This season the clock once again will start when a kickoff is received, rather than when it is kicked, and the clock will not start so quickly on a change of possession.
However, kickoffs have been moved back five yards, to the 30, which will force more returns. (Thus forcing the clock to run. Clever, huh?) Special teams might decide a lot of games, because coaching strategy will come straight out of another new Paisley lyric (almost), I'd like to check you for kicks.
Paisley sings with a twang, which is why he's appropriate for this college football season. The sun coming up over the 2007 college football betting lines season rises from the south. It's a Southern football world. As the Southeastern Conference begins its 75th year, the power shift is noticeable.
Eight-figure budgets, glamorous settings -- and that's just for the head coaches. The SEC has four coaches who have won national championships -- the greatest aggregation of coaching know-how since Eddie Robinson dined alone.
Steve Spurrier, Phil Fulmer, Nick Saban and Urban Meyer have given lie to the idea that a conference championship game is too daunting a hurdle on the road to No. 1. In six of the past 10 seasons, the national champions played and won a conference championship game -- three of the six (Tennessee, 1998; LSU, 2003; Florida, 2007) from the SEC.
There will be more of the same this season, if the preseason prognostications are correct. Six SEC teams are in the preseason coaches' poll, more than from any other conference. Only one conference has talent so deep that a team with 15 returning starters, including the best quarterback in the league, from an eight-win season is considered an afterthought. That may speak more to Kentucky's losing legacy than to the wisdom of the predictions, but there you have it. And seriously, keep an eye on Wildcats QB Andre' Woodson.
The reach of the South extends all the way to No. 1. Take a look at the team that is a consensus pick to win the national championship. The quarterback is from Shreveport. The best wide receiver is from Nashville. The top recruit is from New Orleans.
So what's the campus doing in Los Angeles? Hey, it is the University of Southern California.
USC lost two Pacific-10 Conference games a year ago, the first time that had happened in five seasons, and university officials withstood the urge to form blue-ribbon panels to unearth the cause of such a disaster. Instead, the Trojans gathered themselves and routed Michigan, 32-18, in the Rose Bowl.
USC's losses at Oregon State and at UCLA last year should have given pause to those who question the Pac-10's football prowess (such as, without naming names, L.M. from Baton Rouge). The league only got deeper this season; Dennis Erickson is taking over an Arizona State team that never quite got out of its own way under his predecessor, Dirk Koetter.
Erickson will resume his quest to become the first coach to win a national championship at two schools. Both he and Spurrier, now in his third season at South Carolina, returned to college football at schools with lower profiles than where they won their titles.
That isn't the case for the third coach looking for the national championship double. You may have missed this, but NASA reported the astronauts on the space shuttle last spring made contact with what can only be described as beings from another galaxy.
The leader of the aliens said, "We come in peace," followed by, "So how do you think Nick Saban will do at Alabama?"
The public is reacting to the new Crimson Tide coach as if he is the Barry Bonds of college football -- beloved at home for what his fans believe he is going to do, hated on the road for his intimidating attitude and for what his detractors believe he did (bend NCAA recruiting rules). I made this comparison from the dais at a charity dinner in Mobile, Ala., last month, and the chill that washed over me didn't come from the air conditioning.
Saban will attempt to prove that he can remake in Tuscaloosa what he built in Baton Rouge, much like another member of the national championship fraternity. Bobby Bowden is attempting to remake at Florida State what he built at, um, Florida State. Bowden rebuilt his offensive staff, bringing in four new coaches led by Saban's former offensive coordinator, Jimbo Fisher, to jump-start an offense that has been dead for a couple of years.
The Atlantic Coast Conference is expected to show new signs of life, too. That is said with no disrespect toward last season's champion, Wake Forest, which provided one of the best story lines of 2007. The Demon Deacons begin this season in their customary position, overshadowed by the Virginia Techs, Miamis and Florida States.
It's not that Wake will find it difficult to duplicate its success in 2007 as much as the feeling that success engendered. Surprising success is the narcotic of sport. It never feels quite so euphoric the next time. Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese has figured this out. He refers to 2007, when a league looked down upon by fans and foes alike took three undefeated teams into November, as "Cinderella."
The fairy tale may be over, but the Big East has four genuine Heisman Trophy candidates in Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm, West Virginia tailback Steve Slaton and quarterback Pat White, and Rutgers tailback Ray Rice. Rutgers, as did Wake Forest and, of course, Boise State, proved last season that the have-nots in college football occasionally have quite a lot.
The Broncos' rousing 43-42 overtime victory over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl has raised the profile of all schools in conferences that don't get automatic BCS bids. This season, TCU and Hawaii are the preseason favorites to burst through the BCS doors and earn an at-large bid. The Warriors return 14 starters from an 11-3 team, including quarterback Colt Brennan.
Brennan not only broke the single-season record with 58 touchdown passes in 2007, but he also led Division I-A in passing efficiency (186.0). The senior is expected to contend for the Heisman Trophy, and neither his success nor the rise of his team should come as any surprise in the 2007 season.
After all, Hawaii is the southernmost team in the country.
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Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.
Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.
Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.
Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.
All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.
A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.
2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award
Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1
Ron Brace (NE) 25/1
Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1
Darius Butler (NE) 40/1
Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1
Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1
Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1
Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1
Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1
Larry English (SD) 15/1
Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1
Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1
Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1
Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1
James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1
Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1
Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1
Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1
Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1
Roy Miller (TB) 20/1
Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1
Fili Moala (IND) 30/1
Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1
Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1
B J Raji (GB) 7/1
Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1
Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1
David Verkune (CLE) 20/1
Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 6/1
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