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Rested Lakers, Suns begin West finals at Staples CenterBasketball Betting Lines05/17/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers must have thought they were getting paid by the hour in the second round of the NBA playoffs. The result was a pair of sweeps with the Suns besting their long-time nemesis, the San Antonio Spurs, and the defending NBA champion Lakers handing their annual shellacking to the Utah Jazz. The Pacific Division rivals are now on a collision course for conference supremacy as the West finals get underway at Staples Center tonight. Steve Nash could barely see from his right eye after being stitched up eight days ago, but the veteran point guard scored half of his 20 points in the fourth quarter as the Suns beat San Antonio, 107-101, to sweep their Western Conference semifinal set. "I think the great thing about us this year is we have the close out instinct," All-Star forward Amare Stoudemire said. "We treated Game 4 as if it was the first game of the series." Phoenix, which has never captured an NBA title, is in the conference finals for the first time since 2006, when the Suns lost to the Dallas Mavericks. Phoenix hasn't made it to the NBA Finals since 1993 when they fell in six games to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls. Meanwhile, Nash, a former two- time NBA MVP, has played in 112 career postseason games without reaching The Finals, the most in NBA history without the chance to play for a championship. Nash took an inadvertent elbow above his right eye from a driving Tim Duncan midway through the third quarter in Game 4 of that series but should be fine tonight after over a week of rest. The Lakers dispensed of the Jazz a day after the Suns advanced when Pau Gasol poured in 33 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, as Los Angeles continued its march in a quest to repeat as NBA champions with a 111-96 win over Utah. Kobe Bryant added 32 points for the top-seeded Lakers, who will be appearing in their third straight Western Conference final and are attempting to become the first repeat league champions since they won three in a row (2000-02) with teams fueled by Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal. Bryant scored at least 30 points in every contest against the Jazz but Gasol was the catalyst in Game 4, going 12-of-18 from the field. "We're improving as every game goes by," Gasol said. "That's something that is really satisfying. I'm looking forward to the next series." The sweep of the Jazz came after the Lakers were pushed to a tough six-game series win over Oklahoma City in the first round. On the injury front for the Lakers, Bryant got plenty of time to rest a balky ankle and arthritic finger but center Andrew Bynum continues to struggle with a small tear in the meniscus of his right knee. The big man claimed the injury was only getting worse after practice on Saturday but will play. "It's something where I'll have to continue getting treatment and pump the swelling out," Bynum said. Bynum's counterpart, Suns center Robin Lopez is expected to make his playoff debut tonight. The 7-footer hasn't played since March 26 due to a bulging disk in his back that pinched a nerve and caused a loss of strength in his right leg. LA won three of four games vs. Phoenix in the regular season and won the Pacific Division by three games over the Suns. "We're going to have to have a sustained effort from our bench to give us a little bit of support," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of the upcoming matchup. "The Suns are a run-and-gun team. They generate a lot of points and you have to run with them to stay in the game." In the postseason, the clubs have a long and storied history, meeting 11 times dating back to the 1969-70 season. The Lakers have won seven of those series but the Suns have rebounded to take four of the last five playoff sets between the two teams after dropping the first six. Phoenix has also taken the last two postseason matchups between the clubs, first round series in 2005-06 and '06-07. LA and Phoenix have met twice previously in the Western Conference finals with the Lakers winning both, in 1984 and 1989. "(The Suns) play extremely well and are playing with a lot of confidence," Gasol said. "It's going to be a tough series."
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Big 12 Conference betting odds Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State Work left to do: Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on. Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough. Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.
Football Betting LinesThe 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite. Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense. Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively. A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey. Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season. Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back. Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick. And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker. For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below. 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1 Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1 Donald Brown (IND) 5/1 Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1 Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1 Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1 Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1 Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1 Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1 Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1 Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1 Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1 Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1 Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1 Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1 Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1 Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1 LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1 Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2 Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1 Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1 Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1 Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1 Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1 Jason Smith (STL) 40/1 Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1 Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1 Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1 Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2 Pat White (MIA) 30/1 Field (Any Other Player) 9/1 To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs. For sports betting with credit cards site go to BettingExpress.com as well. |
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