Celtics try to stop skid in home tilt with Pacers

Basketball Betting Lines

03/12/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics will be attempting to avoid a third straight loss when the Atlantic Division leaders host the road-challenged Indiana Pacers tonight at TD Garden.

Boston followed up a two-point setback at red-hot Milwaukee on Tuesday with a forgettable home loss to Memphis the following night. The 111-91 defeat to the Grizzlies matched a 108-88 loss to powerhouse Cleveland as the Celtics' most lopsided of the season.

Memphis rolled to a 27-12 lead after one quarter and quickly extended the margin to 20 points early in the second. The Grizzlies kept pouring it on and took a commanding 55-33 advantage into halftime.

"I think it speaks for itself," said Boston's Kevin Garnett of the loss. "They came in and just totally annihilated us, nothing to it. I thought we played hard in spurts, but (it) seemed like whatever they threw up it went in."

Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen each scored 17 points to lead the Celtics. Garnett managed only six points and shot 3-of-9 from the field on the night.

Boston, which last lost three in a row between January 28-31, still owns a comfortable eight-game lead over second-place Toronto in the Atlantic Division. The Celtics trail Southeast leader Orlando by 4 1/2 games for the No. 2 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. Atlanta is four games behind.

A matchup with the Pacers, who stand last in the Central Division and 14th in the East with a 21-43 record, may help the Celtics get back on track. Indiana has lost six straight and nine of its last 10 outings on the road and is a woeful 7-27 as the guest this season.

The Pacers have also dropped four straight and eight of its last games at TD Garden, including a 103-94 decision there back on December 22. In addition, Boston has prevailed in seven of the past nine overall meetings in this series.

Indiana does head to Beantown on a winning note, however, after besting Philadelphia by a 107-96 count on Tuesday. The Pacers won despite having leading scorer Danny Granger unavailable due to a one-game suspension for a fight with Phoenix's Channing Frye in Saturday's 113-105 loss to the Suns.

Granger, averaging 23.1 points and 5.7 rebounds for the season, will be back in the lineup for this evening's tilt.

Dahntay Jones and Brandon Rush both stepped up in Granger's absence, with the former tying a season best with 25 points and the latter compiling 24 points and nine rebounds. Troy Murphy chipped in 19 points for Indiana and center Roy Hibbert had a strong all-around game, finishing with 12 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists from the post.

"Roy did a good job tonight of distributing the ball," Rush said. "He gave the ball to the open person, which repeatedly ended up in buckets."

Wwwtreasuredome Basketball Betting News

<< Rangers and Thrashers both try to end slides in Atlanta
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of four-game losing streaks have made a possible road to the postseason a bit harder for the Rangers and Thrashers. Only one team will be able to reverse its misfortunes tonight. Atlanta will try to sweep the season

<< Playoff-bound Cavs make a stop in south Philly
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A large lead atop the Central Division and playoff berth already sewed up has allowed the Cleveland Cavaliers to give LeBron James some rest for the stretch run. The reigning NBA MVP is expected to return from his two-gam

<< Spurs, Wolves square off in Twin Cities
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Antonio Spurs will try to continue their mastery of the Minnesota Timberwolves when the two Western Conference inhabitants get together tonight at the Target Center. San Antonio has won 10 straight and 15 of the pa

<< Sabres try to run win streak to four games versus Wild
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres will aim for a fourth consecutive victory when they welcome the Minnesota Wild for an interconference clash at HSBC Arena. The Sabres' three-game winning streak is the club's longest since a season- bes

<< Desperate Grizzlies welcome Knicks to Memphis
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Memphis Grizzlies are still alive in the Western Conference playoff race, but time is running short. Tonight they'll begin a three-game homestand versus the New York Knicks at FedEx Forum with hopes of gaining ground in t

Bobcats continue push towards postseason, host Clippers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Charlotte Bobcats aim to maintain their recent winning ways and further solidify their postseason hopes in tonight's clash with a Los Angeles Clippers team that'll be seeking to end a five-game slide when it pays a visit

Sliding Ducks host Predators >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks aim for their first win in nearly a month tonight when they host a Nashville Predators club that is struggling to hold onto one of the last playoff spots in the Western Conference. The Ducks have dropped

Bucks, Jazz to square off in battle of surging clubs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the NBA's hottest teams clash in Brew City tonight as the Utah Jazz pay a visit to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Jazz won their fourth straight contest and improved to 2-0 on a four-game road trip Wednesday in Auburn Hil

Stars return home to face Williams and Kings >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Stars haven't done much to further their playoff chances since the Olympic break, but an upcoming six-game homestand for a team that has been strong this year as the host could do the trick. Dallas begins that residenc

Lakers visit Phoenix for key Pacific showdown >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The two top teams in the Pacific Division meet for the last time in the regular season tonight, when the second-place Phoenix Suns welcome the front-running Los Angeles Lakers to the U.S. Airways Center. The defending NBA

Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

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.

Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard

Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship

(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

One of the largest sportsbook sites on the Internet, MySportsbook.com currently lists the top two drivers in the point standings as the early favorites to win the Nextel Cup. Entering the Chase for the Cup with a slim five-point lead in the point standings, 2003 NASCAR champ Matt Kenseth has been made a slight favorite to win his second Cup at 7/2 betting odds. 2001 Cup Rookie of the Year Kevin Harvick has betting odds listed at 5/2 and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is listed at 6/1 to capture the Nextel Cup this year.

Hoping to follow in the footsteps of his legendary father who won six NASCAR titles, Dale Earnhardt Jr. stands at 8/1 to breakthrough with his first Cup victory. Staying with the family theme, MySportsbook.com lists 2005 Rookie of the Year Kyle Busch at 14/1 to succeed big brother Kurt’s 2004 NASCAR title. While Kasey Kahne was the final driver to qualify for the Chase with a third place finish last week, the oddsmakers give him a fighting chance at 10/1 mainly due to several mile-and-a-half tracks remaining on the schedule. Despite going winless on the NASCAR circuit this season, Jeff Burton enters the Chase at 5/1 to capture the Cup title. Meanwhile, rookie Denny Hamlin is 4/1 to win the championship, while veteran driver Mark Martin enters the Chase for the Cup as a 15/1 long shot to win his first NASCAR title in his 24th and final season.

MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.

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