No. 5 Xavier escapes in OT to win A-10 title

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/08/2010 - Upper Marlboro, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amber Harris scored a game-high 23 points to lead the fifth-ranked Xavier Musketeers over the Temple Owls, 57-55, in overtime of the Atlantic Ten Conference Tournament final.

Special Jennings chipped in 12, while Ta'Shia Phillips added nine and 21 rebounds for Xavier (27-3), which has won 18 in a row (all against conference opponents) heading into the NCAA Tournament as the league's automatic bid.

Shaqwedia Wallace scored 18 points and Kristen McCarthy racked up 17 for the Owls (24-8), who fell for their first time in five games and will likely receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tourney. Jasmine Stone led the squad in rebounds with 17.

Xavier started the game on a 14-0 run, but Temple clawed back to tie the game at 53 with 1:23 to go in the contest. McCarthy missed a shot as time expired in the second half to send the game into overtime. In the extra period, Jennings drained a triple with 3:30 left to give Xavier the lead at 56-55.

Wwwebankinter NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Nuggets' Martin to receive therapy for ailing knee
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin will have Platelet Rich Plasma therapy on his left knee, the team announced on Monday. Martin sat out Denver's past two games, wins against Portland on Sunday and Indian

<< Bruins' Savard has Grade 2 concussion
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Bruins forward Marc Savard has a Grade 2 concussion, general manager Peter Chiarelli announced Monday. There is no timetable for Savard's return. He will be monitored by the Bruins medical staff and tea

<< Alouettes sign QB Pickett, linemen
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Alouettes have signed quarterback Cody Pickett to a two-year contract with an option, the team announced Monday. Additionally, the Alouettes signed defensive end Gavin Walls an

<< Boston signs 13
Fort Myers, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox agreed to terms with 13 players on one-year contracts for the 2010 season on Monday. No further terms were disclosed. Agreeing to terms were pitchers Daniel Bard, Michael Bowden, Cla

<< Seattle University's Garcia to declare for NBA Draft
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle University power forward Charles Garcia announced Monday he plans to declare for the 2010 NBA Draft at the end of the season. The 6-foot-10 junior averaged a team-best 18.7 points and 8.3 rebound

Cavs F Antawn Jamison leaves game >>
CLEVELAND (AP) -Cavaliers forward Antawn Jamison has left Cleveland's game against San Antonio in the third quarter with stiffness behind his left knee.The Cavaliers provided a vague update on Jamison, who was recently acquired in a trade with Washi

Bucs acquire WR Brown from Eagles for pick >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Buccaneers acquired wide receiver Reggie Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday for a sixth-round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. After the Eagles selected him in the second round o

UConn gets record 71st straight win >>
Hartford, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-ranked Connecticut won its NCAA-record 71st consecutive game Monday, a 59-44 victory over No.6 Notre Dame in the semifinals of the Big East Tournament. It is the longest winning streak in NCA

Lions trade for CB Houston; Falcons add sixth-rounder >>
Flowery Branch, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Falcons traded cornerback Chris Houston to the Detroit Lions for a sixth-round pick in the 2010 draft on Monday. The teams also agreed to swap fifth-round picks in the upcoming draft. H

Grizzlies recall Thabeet after short stint in D-League >>
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Memphis Grizzlies recalled center Hasheem Thabeet from the Dakota Wizards of the NBA Development League on Monday. Thabeet, who was drafted second overall in 2009, became the highest-ever draft pick to be

Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

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.