Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
03/10/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Memphis Tigers completed their third straight perfect Conference USA campaign and are the No.1 seed in the league tourney for the fourth consecutive year. Memphis has won 58 straight C-USA games, including the postseason, and has won this event in each of the past three years.
The Tulsa Golden Hurricane will be the second-seed following their 12-4 finish, while the UAB Blazers claimed the third spot at 11-5. The Houston Cougars and Texas-El Paso Miners both ended 10-6 with the conference, but the Miners won the crucial tie-breaker scenario and were awarded the higher seed and a first-round bye.
Three teams finished tied for sixth at 7-9 and after the tie-breaker rules were over with, UCF claimed the sixth spot, while Marshall and Tulane earn the seventh and eighth seeds, respectively. The East Carolina Pirates landed the ninth-seed at 5-11 and Rice won the tie-breaker with Southern Miss and was given the 10th seed. SMU placed last at 3-13 and picked up the 12th and final seed.
The 10th-seeded Rice Owls and seventh-seeded Marshall Thundering Herd kick off the tourney when they meet in the first round on Wednesday. Marshall won three of its final four games of the regular season, including a 76-62 besting of Rice, to move up the standings. The Herd though, has won just once in three prior appearances in this event. On the flip side, Rice posted four conference wins this season and while that may not seem like a lot, it is better than its 0-16 showing last season. The Owls are 2-3 all-time in this tourney.
First-round action continues with 11th-seeded South Miss taking on sixth- seeded UCF. After going 9-7 and earning the fifth seed last season, the Golden Eagles dropped off big time and finished just 4-12. Southern Miss has won its first round game in the C-USA Tournament three straight times and is 8-11 all- time in this event. As for UCF, it had earned a first round bye in each of the past two tournaments, but losses in seven of its final nine games ruined those chances this season. The Knights are paced by Jermaine Taylor, who leads C-USA in scoring and ranks third nationally with an average of 26.6 ppg.
The ninth-seeded East Carolina Pirates and eighth-seeded Tulane Green Wave mix it up in the third game on Wednesday. The Pirates finished 5-12 for the second year in a row and they enter the postseason riding a five-game slide. ECU has had no success in this tourney, dropping all five of its prior outings. Tulane is 6-13 all-time in this event, but it has never advanced to the championship game.
The opening round concludes with the 12th-seeded Mustangs and the fifth-seeded Cougars doing battle. SMU was swept by Houston during the regular season and has dropped the last seven meetings between the two programs. The Mustangs are just 1-3 in this tourney and will try to become the first 12th seed to win a game in the event since Southern Miss in 2003. On the flip side, the Cougars have gone 6-11 in the C-USA Championship and made it as far as the finals in 2007.
The second-seeded Hurricane will await the winner of the Rice/Marshall matchup in the quarterfinals on Thursday. Tulsa posted victories in each of its final five outings, as it reached the 20-mark for the third year in a row. As a seventh seed last season, the Hurricane won three straight games to reach the finals, where it eventually lost to Memphis.
The second quarterfinal game pits the third-seeded UAB Blazers against the victor of the Southern Miss/UCF duel. UAB, the last team to defeat Memphis three years ago, went 21-10 during the regular season, as it achieved a 20-win campaign for the sixth time in seven seasons. The Blazers are 12-13 all-time in this tourney, advancing as far as the finals in 2003 and 2006.
The top-seeded Memphis Tigers make their much anticipated debut against the survivor of the East Carolina/Tulane matchup on Thursday. The Tigers bring the nation's longest winning streak to the postseason at 22 games, and they also have the luxury of hosting the tourney. Memphis, which is 16-1 at home this season, has taken the last three titles in this event and it has won 12 of its last 13 games in the tourney. The Tigers are a healthy 28-3 overall and that has them in the hunt for a No.1 seed in the Big Dance.
The quarterfinal round will come to a finish when the fourth-seeded Texas-El Paso Miners square off against the winner of the SMU/Houston contest. The Miners earned an opening round bye for the first time in this event, and are just one win shy of a 20-win campaign for the first time since 2005-06. Texas- El Paso is led by Stefon Jackson, C-USA's all-time leading scorer with 2,261 career points.
<< 2009 Big 12 Conference Tournament Preview
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Big 12 had seven teams finish the
regular season with 20 or more wins, tying it for the most of any conference,
and that should make for another exciting tournament.
Kansas, the defending national cham
<< Top-seeded Cavs open trip against Clippers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Eastern Conference's top team faces one of the West's
worst when the Cleveland Cavaliers take on the lowly Los Angeles Clippers at
Staples Center tonight.
The Cavs, who are kicking off a three-game west coast road
<< Suns, Mavs square off in the desert
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's a little early to talk about must win games but the
reeling Phoenix Suns desperately need to get back in the win column tonight
when they host the Dallas Mavericks in the opener of a three-game homestand.
The S
<< Thunder try to crown Kings in Cali
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oklahoma City Thunder hope to follow up one of their
most impressive performances of the year tonight when they kick off a three-
game road trip against the lowly Sacramento Kings at ARCO Arena.
Nenad Krstic scor
With Carbonneau gone, Gainey leads Habs against Oilers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens may be coming off one of their
better showings in recent memory, but that still couldn't save the fate of the
team's head coach.
Bob Gainey takes over for the fired Guy Carbonneau behind the bench wh
Red Wings hope to bounce back in home tilt against Coyotes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will be attempting to put a humbling
home loss behind them when the Phoenix Coyotes take on the defending Stanley
Cup champions tonight at Joe Louis Arena.
Detroit had a two-game win streak come to an
Division-leading Devils, Flames tangle in New Jersey >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of first-place teams will battle tonight in the
Garden State, as the New Jersey Devils welcome the Calgary Flames to
Prudential Center.
The Devils are the top team in the Atlantic Division and with 87 points are
al
Sabres shoot for victory over Flyers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres will try to help their playoff chances
by avoiding a second straight loss when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers for
tonight's clash at the Wachovia Center.
The Sabres have lost four of their last six g
NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
Get free Sports Betting lines RSS feeds from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?
Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite. Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight. With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites. As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).
Midwest
#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler
The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April. Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT. After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games. Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season. As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers. Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS). Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field. With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.
#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV
As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year. If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season. As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well. This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons. Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late. There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games. It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.
East
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown
“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season. Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU. They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games. With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field. Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense. Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc. The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range. Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.
#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC
The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country. Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times. Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter. UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen. UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS. An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games. This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS. USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types. An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough. USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS. They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12. When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at this sportsbook “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
About MySportsbook.com MySportsbook.com is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, MySportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, MySportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting