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08/25/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
Country: Canada
FIBA Ranking: 19
Head Coach: Leo Rautins
Key Players: Joel Anthony, Andy Rautins
Overview: It's been sometime since Canada has made an impact on the world stage and since the departure of Steve Nash from the national program, it's been a team in transition.
Strengths: A team in the truest sense of the word, this squad is as cohesive a unit to be found in the entire tournament. The selfless play relates to the defensive end of the floor where the undersized squad has improved tremendously in its development to become a more recognizable basketball nation.
Weaknesses: Having no leader on and off the floor could raise problems when the times get tough, as who the Canadians turn to late in games remains to be seen. Though defense is high on its priorities, being undersized on the interior will be a challenge the Canucks will have to overcome.
Tournament Expectations: With the loss of Canadian veterans Carl English and Jesse Young to injury, this Canadian team will be as inexperienced as any sent to a major competition in recent memory. If pre-tournament tune ups suggest anything, this team is capable of being the second or third seed in its group at the very worst - only time will tell.
Country: France
FIBA Ranking: 15
Head Coach: Vincent Collet
Key Players: Nicolas Batum, Boris Diaw
Overview: For the past decade, the basketball world has awaited the arrival of the French on the world stage as their potential seemed to be second to none. If one were to collect all the NBA players who hail from France and put them on a team, les 'Bleus' would have one of the best squads on the planet. But with the likes of Tony Parker, Joakim Noah, Mikael Pietrus, Ronny Turiaf and Rodrigue Beaubois all out for this summer's tournament, the fortunes of France hangs in the balance.
Strengths: With so many of their top talent left off this edition, the French have looked to some of its youth for help from their domestic league. That youthful vitality has proved to be the Frances' biggest strength as their athleticism and length are amongst the top in the world.
Weaknesses: With most of their top guards unavailable to play, the French will be hard pressed to find a stable point guard to man the ship. The youth at the lead guard position isn't quite up to the task of running a team and it shows, especially in half court sets where France struggles to score.
Tournament Expectations: Based on potential, this is one of the very best teams in the tournament but this has been the case for les Bleus' for almost every tournament they've entered this decade. Much like Canada, it would come as no surprise if this team grabbed a spot to join the Round of 16 or if they missed the cut entirely.
Country: Lebanon
FIBA Ranking: 24
Head Coach: Tab Baldwin
Key Players: Fadi El Khatib
Overview: Having shocked the world at the 2006 World Championship in Japan by beating Venezuela and France, the Cedar Trees will be no surprise to any team now that their name is known. And with the help of head coach Tab Baldwin, this is one of the most underrated lower seeds in the tournament.
Strengths: This is a team that plays with a lot of passion and embraces the underdog role as well as any nation in the competition. The veteran leadership coach Baldwin relies on will be a steadying force for a Lebanese side that holds a number of fresh faces.
Weaknesses: Certainly not the deepest team, the Cedar Trees will rely heavily on star player Fadi El Khatib, who is coming off an injury and won't be firing on all cylinders. The back court will be in tough as guard play is certainly not the Lebanese forte.
Tournament Expectations: The expectations for this team aren't wavering on the ridiculous as it hopes to build on its 2006 success. A likely first round exit hinges on whether or not they can manage to upset a few more teams this time around.
Country: Lithuania
FIBA Ranking: 6
Head Coach: Kestutis Kemzura
Key Players: Linas Kleiza
Overview: After a disappointing showing at EuroBasket 2009, the Lithuanian contingent remains a work in progress as new head coach has basically stuck with the squad sent to Poland last year. There also remains some unrest in the organization of Lithuanian basketball as the directing staff has all but one member.
Strengths: Having so many of the veteran players unavailable, the Lithuanians will turn to their youth for this tournament. They own a plethora of fast- faced, fun to watch, three-point shooters, highlighted by newly-signed Toronto Raptor Linas Kleiza. Filling up the net should be Lithuanians forte as their young gunners all have a knack to score.
Weaknesses: With star Lithuanian point guard Sarunas Jasikevicius opting to sit out this tournament, there's a looming hole at the lead guard for the Lithuanians. A rash of injuries to a number of the big bodies has left the team depleted up front as overcoming injuries is the biggest obstacle they'll face in the group stage.
Tournament Expectations: The future looks bleak but with the European event destined for their home land in 2011, this tournament should give an indication where Lithuanian basketball is headed. In such a mediocre group, there should be no reason why the European squad can't claim a berth to the Round of 16 and possibly onto a quarter final matchup.
Country: New Zealand
FIBA Ranking: 13
Head Coach: Nenad Vucinic
Key Players: Kirk Penney
Overview: For the better part of the decade, the Kiwis were led by former coach Tab Baldwin to impressive victories, even claiming fourth place at the 2002 World Championship. Under Baldwin's long time assistant Nenad Vucinic, the Tall Blacks have finished with three successive top-10 finishes at world events and hope this collection of wily veterans can help school the new era of New Zealand basketball.
Strengths: Offense is definitely the strong suit of the Tall Blacks as given their high-post offense along with the deadly combination in the backcourt of Penney and Phil Jones, there will be no shortage of points for the Kiwi's. Having a variety of scoring options make them one of the highest octane offensive teams in the tournament. There is a good balance between youngsters and experienced veterans on this team as the older generation has assisted the development of the youth who look to be the future of Kiwi basketball.
Weaknesses: In one word - toughness. The Tall Blacks struggle on the defensive end as they can't stop perimeter penetration very well and protect the paint sparingly. The inability to defend will cost them a shot to be an elite team as their offense is already atop the best in the world.
Tournament Expectations: The potential is there for this team to make a deep run in the tournament as they have a solid balance of youth and experience that should bode well for them. Anything less than the Round of 16 would be a disappointment, where a shot of being in the Final Eight is a true reality.
Country: Spain
FIBA Ranking: 3
Head Coach: Sergio Scariolo
Key Players: Marc Gasol, Rudy Fernandez, Juan-Carlos Navarro
Overview: The defending champs return to the World Championship much like they left the last edition, without its star big man, Pau Gasol, and hungry for gold. Its silver medal performance at the 2008 Olympics only feeds the hunger more as the fastest growing basketball power house hopes to add to its list of accomplishments.
Strengths: One of the most balanced teams in the world, the Spaniards bolster one of the deepest teams as they have players at every position very capable of playing at a high level. The mixture of size, talent and athleticism has created a culture of winning basketball and this rendition appears to be no different.
Weaknesses: There are very few holes in the Spanish armor but if there was one weak link it would have to be the lack of perimeter defense. In Fernandez, Navarro and Ricky Rubio, the Spaniards have a collection of talented guards, none of which being the most physical player or the most adept to staying in front of his man. They'll rely heavily on the help defense of the bigs to negate the shaky defense the guards are likely to play.
Tournament Expectations: With such a complete team, there's no reason to believe this squad doesn't have a legitimate shot of taking gold once again.
<< FIBA World Basketball Championship Preview - Group C
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
Country: China
FIBA Ranking: 9
Head Coach: Bob Donewald
Key Players: Yi Jianlian, Wang Zhizhi, Sun Yue
Overview: China will be without the services of superstar Yao Ming as he
continues to battl
<< FIBA World Basketball Championship Preview - Group B
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
Country: Brazil
FIBA Ranking: 14
Head Coach: Ruben Magnano
Key Players: Leandro Barbosa, Anderson Varejao, Tiago Splitter
Overview: Under the guidance of new head coach Ruben Magnano, who had
pr
<< FIBA World Basketball Championship Preview - Group A
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
Country: Angola
FIBA Ranking: 12
Head Coach: Luis Magalhaes
Key Players: Joaquim 'Kikas' Gomes, Olimpio Cipriano
Overview: For years, the Angolan team has been associated as the African
nation C
<< Hara will take charge of Japan on interim basis
Tokyo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hiromi Hara, the technical director of the
Japanese Football Association, will take charge of the national team for a
pair of upcoming friendlies as he continues to search for a new manager.
Japan adv
CFL Previews - August 27-28 - Week Nine >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
CALGARY STAMPEDERS (6-1) at BRITISH COLUMBIA LIONS (1-6)
DATE & TIME: Friday, August 27, 10:30 p.m. (et).
GAME NOTES: A couple of teams heading in opposite directions in the CFL's
Western Division
NL West: Padres running away with division >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Only a monumental collapse or some gypsy curse over the
next few weeks can derail the San Diego Padres in their quest for a third
division title since 2005.
The Padres won the NL West five years ago and share
Travers is wide-open Mid-Summer Derby >>
Saratoga Springs, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Saturday's $1 million Travers Stakes
has attracted an evenly matched field of 11 three-year-olds. Saratoga's Mid-
Summer Derby will be conducted over the main track at 1 1/4-miles.
Local winner A
Jaguars ink RB Kolby Smith >>
Jacksonville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Jacksonville Jaguars signed running
back Kolby Smith, the club announced on Wednesday.
Smith, 25, joins the Jaguars following a brief stint with Denver. The 5-
foot-11, 219-pounder was signe
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
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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