55 and counting: Memphis pulls away to beat UAB

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/26/2009 - Birmingham, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doneal Mack had 17 points, as fifth-ranked Memphis pulled away to defeat UAB, 71-60, and clinch its fourth consecutive Conference USA regular season title.

Antonio Anderson added 16 points, and Robert Dozier finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds for Memphis (25-3, 13-0 C-USA), which extended its conference win streak to 55 and its overall victory string to 19 -- the longest in the nation. The Tigers ended the game on a 15-5 run, though trailed multiple times in the second half.

Shawn Taggart ended with 13 points and 11 boards for Memphis, which won despite committed 19 turnovers.

Lawrence Kinnard had a game-high 25 points and added 11 rebounds for UAB (19-9, 9-4), which had won six in a row and nine of its last 10. Paul Delaney III scored 18 and Channing Toney provided 11 points in the Blazers' loss.

UAB's Robert Vaden, who came into the game averaging a team-leading 18.2 points, finished with zero points, going 0-for-17 from the field. That included an 0-for-12 clip from three-point range.

With 5:37 left, Dozier grabbed a rebound on the offensive end and went right back up with it, sinking the basket and drawing the foul. It was a key basket, as the free throw gave Memphis a two-possession lead at 54-50.

Kinnard answered at the other end with a three-pointer, and after the teams traded baskets, an Aaron Johnson layup drew UAB within 56-55 with 4 1/2 minutes on the clock.

But the Tigers pulled away from there, getting four consecutive free throws -- two each from Anderson and Taggart. After a UAB miss, Mack drained a contested three from the right corner for a 63-55 Memphis lead, and the Blazers called a timeout with 2:31 left.

Kinnard got a layup on the other end, but Anderson's three-pointer gave Memphis a 66-57 advantage. A bad pass into the backcourt on UAB's next possession gave the ball right back to Memphis. Anderson made a pair of free throws, and the Tigers held on from there.

The teams were tied at 28 after a back-and-forth first half, and the game remained close until Memphis gained some separation. Back-to-back buckets from Mack gave the Tigers a 42-34 lead a little more than four minutes into the second half.

But UAB came back with a nine-point burst, during which Kinnard had five points. His three-pointer with just under 13 minutes to go put the Blazers on top, 43-42, and the teams traded the lead several times as the game went to the stretch run.

Game Notes

UAB scored 26 points off turnovers, while turning the ball over only nine times itself...Tyreke Evans had eight points for Memphis.

Wwwattheraces NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Blues use late push to beat Stars
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - T.J. Oshie and Patrik Berglund tallied in the third period to snap a tie and send St. Louis past Dallas, 3-1, at American Airlines Center. Jay McClement registered the other goal for the Blues, who have

<< Rockets shut down LeBron, Cavs; Wallace breaks fibula
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yao Ming scored 28 points and pulled down eight rebounds, as LeBron James finished without an assist for the first time in his career and Cleveland lost Ben Wallace to a broken right fibula in a 93-74 defeat

<< Cavs' Wallace breaks right fibula
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cleveland forward Ben Wallace will be out for an extended period of time after breaking his right fibula in the second quarter of the club's 93-74 loss in Houston on Thursday. Wallace was stepped on by

<< Venus into semifinals in Acapulco
Acapulco, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded American Venus Williams had another difficult match at the $220,000 Mexican Open, but managed to beat Hungarian Agnes Szavay, 6-2, 5-7, 6-1, on Thursday to advance to the semifin

<< Ward, Rinne help Preds top Coyotes
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joel Ward had a goal and an assist while Pekka Rinne stopped 25 shots to help the Nashville Predators to a 4-1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes at Sommet Center. David Legwand, Jason Arnott and Steve Sull

Boras nixes Dodgers' offer to Manny >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scott Boras, Manny Ramirez's agent, rejected the Los Angeles Dodgers' latest offer to the slugger, reported to be a two-year deal worth $45 million. The Dodgers sent out a release Thursday saying

Mason, Torres lead Columbus in shutout of Oilers >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Mason recorded his eighth shutout of the season with 19 saves as Columbus edged Edmonton, 1-0, at Rexall Place. Raffi Torres notched the lone goal of the game for the Blue Jackets, who halted a

Sims, Harris help Michigan knock off No. 16 Purdue >>
Ann Arbor, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The duo of DeShawn Sims and Manny Harris carried the Wolverines with 56 combined points, as Michigan knocked off 16th- ranked Purdue, 87-78, in another unpredictable Big Ten clash. Sims shot a sizzlin

Ex-Bulls broadcaster Johnny "Red" Kerr dies >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls legendary broadcaster Johnny "Red" Kerr passed away Thursday. Kerr, who had been battling prostate cancer, was 76. "The entire Bulls organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Joh

Redskins sign CB Hall to huge deal >>
Ashburn, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins made a splash just after the clock struck midnight Friday for the start of the free agency signing period by reportedly coming to terms with cornerback DeAngelo Hall on a $55 m

NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super Bowl

NFL Super Bowl Betting

The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.

Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.

The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.