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02/22/2012 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sixth-ranked Michigan State Spartans will try to remain in sole possession of the Big Ten Conference's top spot as they head to Williams Arena for a league bout with the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
This will be the second meeting this season and 109th encounter in history between Michigan State and the Golden Gophers. The all-time series is tied up 54-54 after the Spartans' 68-52 victory on Jan. 25th of last month in the initial matchup of the season. Michigan State shot 54.2 percent from the field against Minnesota in the first contest, while the Golden Gophers managed to make only 38.3 percent of their field goals.
Tom Izzo's squad picked up its fifth straight victory on Sunday as it downed the Purdue Boilermakers 76-62 on the road to stay a game up on Ohio State and Michigan in the league standings. Michigan State's triumph was helped by a tremendous defensive effort, as Purdue was held to an ice-cold 33.8 percent shooting from the floor. The win improved the Spartans' record to 22-5 overall. Michigan State was very impressive on the glass against Minnesota, as it held a 44-32 edge in the rebounding battle in the contest. The Spartans have outscored their opponents by an average of 14.6 ppg this season.
Draymond Green has been the driving force of the Spartans' success this season. The senior forward averages a double-double with 15.4 points and 10.5 rebounds per contest. Green had 20 points, 10 boards, and seven assists as the Spartans trounced Purdue on Sunday. Austin Thornton added 17 points versus the Boilermakers, while Branden Dawson recorded a double-double of his own with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Keith Appling is typically the team's second leading scorer, as he averaging 12.0 points and a team-high 3.8 assists per outing.
The Golden Gophers are on a three-game losing slide after their 64-53 loss to the Northwestern Wildcats on Saturday. In their loss to the Wildcats, the Golden Gophers held a 41-20 advantage in the rebounding battle, but could not keep up as Northwestern drained 10 three-pointers to gain an edge. Minnesota is outscoring its opponents by an average of 4.2 ppg this season. The loss dropped Tubby Smith's team to 17-10 overall and 5-9 in Big Ten play.
Rodney Williams leads the balanced attack for Minnesota with team highs of 11.0 points and 5.4 boards per game. Julian Welch contributes 10.5 ppg. Williams was held to just nine points by the Wildcats, while Welch poured in a team-high 21 points and handed out five assists. Joe Coleman netted 12 points in the losing effort. Austin Hollins, Ralph Sampson III, and Andre Hollins will need to improve their play to help the Golden Gophers turn it around.
<< Mountaineers pay visit to 20th-ranked Fighting Irish
South Bend, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matching their longest win streak in Big
East Conference play ever, the 20th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish try to
extend their run of good fortune tonight as they host the West Virginia
Mountaineers at the J
<< Boise State heads to Sin City to challenge 21st-ranked UNLV
Las Vegas, LV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Losers of two straight and three of the last
four outings, the UNLV Runnin' Rebels find themselves now ranked 21st in the
country as they await the arrival of the Boise State Broncos for a Mountain
West Conferen
<< Aggies seek upset of fourth-ranked Jayhawks
College Station, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In one of the more lopsided series in
the Big 12 Conference, the fourth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks will try to continue
their dominance over the Texas A&M Aggies when the two square off tonight at
Reed Are
<< Williams signs new deal with Union
Chester, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Union announced on Wednesday
that the club has signed defender Sheanon Williams to a new contract.
The 21-year-old joined the club from Harrisburg City Islanders in August 2010
and has gone
Rutgers faces tough task in Big East bout with No. 10 Marquette >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will try to stop
the bleeding as they head to the Bradley Center for Big East Conference action
with the 10th-ranked Marquette Golden Eagles.
Marquette and Rutgers have met six tim
Big East brawl pits Bulls against Orange >>
Syracuse, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The South Florida Bulls will take their four-
game winning streak into the Carrier Dome tonight as they square off with the
second-ranked Syracuse Orange in a Big East Conference battle.
The Bulls and Syracuse
Owls and Explorers meet in clash of Philly rivals >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 22nd-ranked Temple Owls will try to
continue their winning streak as they head across town to take on the La Salle
Explorers at Tom Gola Arena in Atlantic 10 Conference action.
The Owls have almost dou
Azarenka pulls out of Dubai >>
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 star
Victoria Azarenka decided to pull out of the $2 million Dubai Duty Free
Championships, citing a left ankle injury.
The Belarusian Azarenka suffered the injury during a
After 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.
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Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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