No.3 Orange take on Mountaineers at Carrier Dome

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/28/2012 - Syracuse, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Syracuse Orange return home to defend their top spot in the conference standings, as they welcome in the West Virginia Mountaineers for a Big East showdown at the Carrier Dome.

Jim Boeheim's Orange suffered their first loss of the season last weekend at Notre Dame, but were able to quickly gain some distance from the setback with a solid 60-53 win at Cincinnati this week. With the victory, Boeheim passed Adolph Rupp for fourth place on the all-time wins list with 877. The win also pushed Syracuse to 8-1 in league play, a full two games up in the conference standings.

Bob Huggins is certainly not stranger to winning games either, with 706 career victories. Huggins was unable to add to his win total earlier this week, as West Virginia saw a three-game win streak come to a close with a humbling 78-62 loss to St. Johns. The loss dropped the Mountaineers to 5-3 in- conference and just 1-4 on the road.

This is the 50th meeting between these two teams, with Syracuse holding a 33-16 edge all-time, thanks to wins in 12 of the last 13 meetings. WVU's last win came in 2008 in the first-ever meeting between Boeheim and Huggins.

West Virginia struggled with St. John's zone defense, shooting a miserable .354 from the floor, including a mere 5-of-22 showing from behind the arc. Standout forward Kevin Jones continued his torrid pace however, posting his sixth straight game with 20 points or more, recording his 14th double-double of the season with 26 points and 14 rebounds. Darryl Bryant tacked on 16 points as well, but the pair got little offensive support elsewhere. A potent one-two punch this season, Jones and Bryant give the team a balanced attack. Jones has been unstoppable in the low post, leading the conference in both scoring (20.9 ppg) and rebounding (11.6 rpg). Bryant fills it up from the perimeter to the tune of 17.4 ppg (sixth in the Big East). Forward Deniz Kilicli (10.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg) provides the team with a third option. Jones and Kilicli are both shooting over 50 percent from the floor this year, helping the team convert a steady 46 percent overall, leading to a healthy 75.0 ppg.

The Orange have lost their inside presence with center Fab Melo missing time due to academics. However, that didn't prevent the team from getting back in the win column this week against the Bearcats. Forward Kris Joseph led the way in the win with 17 points. Guards Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche tacked on 13 and 11 points, respectively. Jardine doled out six assists and had no turnovers in 30 minutes of action. The Orange were able to hold Cincinnati to a mere .344 shooting effort in the game. Syracuse is averaging an impressive 78.0 ppg this season to lead the Big East, despite lacking a prolific scoring threat. Joseph paces the team in that department with 13.7 ppg. Dion Waiters is a valuable asset off the bench with 12.5 ppg, while Triche (9.9 ppg), Jardine (8.5 ppg) and C.J. Fair (8.4 ppg) provide scoring depth. Melo isn't much of a scorer (7.2 ppg), but his defensive presence in the paint is his greatest strength. The 7-0 sophomore is averaging a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game, while he ranks second in the Big East in blocked shots (60).

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Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL BETTING

NCAA Football Betting

Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)

"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."

Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins

There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.

Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins

Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.

USC Trojans - 10.5 wins

A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.

Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy

Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.

"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."

Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1

The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.

Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1

If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.

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