Hawks fail to hang with the big boys

Basketball Betting Lines

02/28/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The only saving grace for the Hawks' recent string of games was that they came into them well rested after the All-Star break. Otherwise, it could have been a lot worse.

Atlanta recently wrapped a string of five games over seven days against teams all in the top five of their respective conference, including the top three clubs out of the West.

Not surprising, the club finished the stretch just 1-4.

The trek begin after the break in Chicago, the fifth overall team in the East as of Wednesday, with a 106-81 defeat. All-Star Joe Johnson apparently left his offense in Las Vegas, as he netted just nine points on 2-of-12 from the floor.

Johnson would rebound though over the next four contests and averaged 29.5 points per game the rest of the way, including 30 points one day after the Chicago game in a 103-96 loss to the Spurs last Wednesday.

Atlanta grabbed its lone win in the tough span on Friday against Houston, currently fifth overall in the West, as Johnson netted 31 points with seven assists.

That win came one day after the league's trade deadline that saw the Hawks acquire guard Anthony Johnson from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.

Johnson played for Atlanta from 1998-2000 and again during the 2000-01 campaign, and has averaged 3.6 points with 1.8 assists in 112 games for the franchise.

"We're happy to be able to bring Anthony Johnson back to Atlanta," said Hawks general manager Billy Knight in a release announcing the deal. "He provides us with another veteran presence, and brings a great deal of regular season and postseason experience to our club."

Johnson made his debut on Sunday against the West's second overall team and Pacific Division leaders, the Phoenix Suns. The acquisition of Johnson immediately paid off as he netted 17 points and tied a career high with three three-pointers.

However, the Suns emerged as 115-106 winners.

As bad as things had been for the Hawks, they were yet to face the hardest challenge of their stretch, a road game against the NBA-leading Dallas Mavericks. The Hawks were unable to threaten and Dallas cruised to a 110-87 victory.

The brutal stretch effectively put an end to any playoff hopes for Atlanta. The club is now tied with Charlotte for last place in the Southeast standings and are a distant 5 1/2 games out of a playoff spot.

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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