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Jazz, Lakers kick off Western semis at Staples CenterBasketball Betting Lines05/02/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's rare that an NBA team breathes a sigh of relief when they move on in the postseason to face a club that, on paper, should be a tougher matchup. The defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, however, are likely thrilled to have the upstart Oklahoma City Thunder in the rear view mirror as they get ready to battle the playoff-tested Utah Jazz in the Western Conference semifinals. The young and talented Thunder gave LA fits in the opening round but Pau Gasol's putback off a Kobe Bryant miss with half a second remaining in Game 6, lifted the Lakers into the second round with a 95-94 win in Oklahoma City. The Lakers had blown a seven-point lead with 4 1/2 minutes left, but then came back from a three-point deficit to take the series. "There's still a ways to go for this team to really rally together, to have the one-minded effort that I like to call it," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "I thought we got out of sync in the second half. Fortunately we won this game. It's something I will really talk to them about." The Thunder had already won twice on their home court and nearly a third time against the defending champs, but Gasol, with his dominant inside play, pushed the Lakers into round two against Utah. "I had a good look, but it just didn't go down for me," Bryant said. "Pau just kept playing. He's done that numerous times. Obviously, it saved the game for us." The Jazz, meanwhile, finished off Northwest Division rival Denver in six games Friday night despite being without two starters, Mehmet Okur and Andrei Kirilenko, for the majority of the set. Foul trouble and injuries played a significant role in the series-clinching victory for Utah, a game in which rookie Wesley Matthews stepped up and scored 23 points for the Jazz. "I'm terribly excited about the way these guys played, the effort they put in to win a ball game," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "We started off this series and were in tough position because we lost two guys (Okur and Kirilenko) who couldn't play. But the guys came in and played in their place and I thought did a terrific job." Utah point guard Deron Williams, who was the star of the series, bruised his left elbow in the closing seconds of the clincher when he went down after a collision with Denver forward Chris Andersen. The All-Star is expected to be able to go against the Lakers when the series starts in LA on Sunday. "I'll be alright," Williams said. Kirilenko, who missed 15 of the Jazz's final 17 regular season games and the entire Denver series with a host of calf injuries, has been rehabbing and is getting closer but was listed as doubtful for Game 1. "I'm feeling better and better," Kirilenko told the Salt Lake City News. "[My] endurance is getting better. I can survive way more time on the floor without getting my calf tired, so I feel like it's going in the right direction, better and better." Okur, meanwhile, is done for the entire postseason after suffering a ruptured left Achilles' in Game 1 vs. the Nuggets. For the Lakers, oft-injured center Andrew Bynum is questionable for Game 1 after an MRI exam Saturday revealed a small tear in the anterior horn of the lateral meniscus. Bynum, who averaged 12.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks during LA's first-round win over Oklahoma City, aggravated the injury with a hyperextension of the knee during Game 6 and experienced a similar setback last June, but played through it. The Lakers beat the Jazz in three of the four meetings during this regular season. It will be the third straight year the teams will meet in the playoffs. The Lakers beat Utah in five games in the first round last year and in 2008, LA prevailed in six games in the conference semifinals. "Obviously, we've had a lot of trouble with the Lakers, everybody knows that," Sloan said. "They're big and long and we're not very big and long when it's all said and done. But you come and play and do the best you can." The Jazz will trying to avoid becoming the 14th team in NBA history to be eliminated by the same team in three consecutive playoffs. To do that, Utah will have to find a way to win at Staples Center. The Jazz have dropped 14 consecutive games to the Lakers in Hollywood, including all six in the 2008 and 2009 playoffs. "We're a much better team than what we were," Utah forward Paul Millsap said. "We look forward to it being different this time, a different outcome." Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Tuesday in Los Angeles.
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The first Game 7 of this year's NBA playoffs is on tap this afternoon in Dixie, as the Atlanta Hawks host the Milwaukee Bucks in the decisive battle of this Eastern Conference quarterfinals series. Jamal Crawford scored 2
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Football Betting Sportsbook Accepts Credit CardsMichael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football. As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL. The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago. Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996). But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side. Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show. Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East: Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1 Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2 New York Giants - 9 - 2 Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1). Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship. So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume. And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top. They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy. Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday. But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division. Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS. Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS. Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162. Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense? Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS. In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS. Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division. Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do. The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20. The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550. Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.
FOOTBALL BETTINGAfter all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer. Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise. Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games. So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver. In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team. For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC. The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’. The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback. To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs. |
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