Sacramento still alive in the West

Basketball Betting Lines

02/28/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Sacramento Kings are having a disappointing season, as they have compiled a weak 24-32 record and sit in last place in the Pacific Division.

Even with their record, the Kings are just three games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth and final playoff sport in Western Conference. If the Kings do not qualify for the postseason, their string of eight straight years in the playoffs will come to an end.

The Kings return home after going 1-3 on a four-game road trip, as they welcome the Charlotte Bobcats on Tuesday to ARCO Arena. It is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season. Charlotte will host the Kings on March 14th at Charlotte Bobcats Arena. The teams have split four meetings. The Kings are 0-2 as the visitor against the Bobcats

On Monday, Samuel Dalembert posted 20 points and 17 rebounds, as the Philadelphia 76ers opened a six-game homestand with an 89-82 victory over the Kings at the Wachovia Center.

Kevin Martin scored 23 points in the loss to Philadelphia for the Kings, who have dropped six of their last eight games overall. Brad Miller had 21 points and 10 boards, while Ron Artest ended with 13 points for Sacramento, which is just 8-20 on the road this season.

Sacramento is 16-12 at home this season. The Kings, who have won six of their last seven contests at ARCO Arena, will visit the Lakers on Friday at the Staples Center and the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday at the Rose Garden.

Martin, who leads the Kings in scoring (20.8 ppg) has continued his impressive campaign. He is averaging 29.0 points and five rebounds in his last two outings. The 6-7 Martin has scored in double-digits in 52 of the 55 games he has played in this season.

The Kings will play split their final 26 games of the regular season evenly between ARCO Arena and the road.

Worldcupwagering Basketball Betting News

<< Iverson has not been the answer in Denver
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Even with Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson on their roster, the Denver Nuggets are battling just to qualify for the playoffs in the Western Conference. Denver is a disappointing 27-28 and trail the first pl

<< Henin, Hingis land in Doha quarters
Doha, Qatar (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former world No. 1s Justine Henin and Martina Hingis were among Wednesday's second-round winners at the $1.34 million Qatar Open. The top-seeded Henin, fresh off her title in Dubai, snuck past hard-servin

<< Buck-ing the trend
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Bucks finally put the brakes on a season-long losing streak and have a healthy dose of home games on the horizon. The Bucks were mired in a seven-game skid and the return of star guard Michael Redd w

<< Hawks fail to hang with the big boys
(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 ove

<< Breaking down a busy deadline day
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Keeping track of all the activity at the NHL's trade deadline is kind of like trying to follow a tennis match on fast forward. When the dust finally cleared, there were 25 trades on Tuesday and those deal

Federer rolls; Nadal barely reaches Dubai QFs >>
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Three-time champion Roger Federer was a straight-set second-round winner, while reigning titlist Rafael Nadal went the distance to advance on Day 3 at the $1.5 million Dubai Tennis Championshi

Nationwide Tour adds new event >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nationwide Tour has announced a new event for this season, adding the Children's Hospital Invitational to the schedule. The event will be played July 9-15 on the Scarlet Course of the Ohio State Unive

Sharks load up for playoffs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doug Wilson must quickly be moving up Joe Thornton's Christmas card list. Not only did San Jose's executive vice president and general manager rescue Thornton from hockey purgatory last season, also known as Boston, but W

Durant, Oden among Oscar Robertson Trophy finalists >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freshmen Kevin Durant of Texas and Greg Oden of Ohio State are among five finalists for the Oscar Robertson Trophy, presented annually to the nation's player of the year by the United States Basketb

Lions release Ross Verba >>
Allen Park, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions have released guard Ross Verba. Verba played just one season with Detroit. He started seven games and was inactive for eight with hamstring and groin injuries. The Iowa product s

Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

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 MySportsbook.com’s “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

Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.