11/23/2008 - Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - LeBron James finished with 24 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 110-96 win over the Atlanta Hawks.
Mo Williams added 23 points, five boards and four assists for the Cavaliers, who rebounded from a loss Wednesday to Detroit that snapped an eight-game win streak.
Delonte West ended with 19 points, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 17 in the win.
"We are trying to become a complete team," said West. "We are trying to be more than just a one man show. We need contributions from everybody, we can't wait for LeBron to go on a run and try feed off of him. Guys are trying to take the initiative. Guys are doing it this year, going out there and playing basketball and trying to have a balanced attack this year."
Maurice Evans had 21 points off the bench to pace Atlanta, whose two-game win streak was snapped. Acie Law, also off the bench, finished with 20 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Hawks.
"We just couldn't make any shots," said Atlanta's Joe Johnson, who was limited to four points on 1-of-8 shooting. "I just thought our ball movement wasn't great and that results into a lot of poor shots and a lot of bad shots."
The Cavaliers started the contest with 11 straight points, with West beginning the run with a three-pointer and ending it with a jumper almost four minutes into the first quarter.
After the teams traded baskets, James connected on a triple and Ben Wallace followed with a short shot to boost Cleveland's lead to 22-9 with 3:34 remaining, and the Cavs led 28-12 going into the second.
Cleveland's lead continued to grow, as Ilgauskas and Mo Williams had consecutive buckets for a 40-15 advantage with 5:33 left before the half. Atlanta rebounded a bit, and trailed 50-31 at the break after a Marvin Williams basket in the waning seconds.
Cleveland emerged from the back-and-forth third quarter with an 80-57 lead, and didn't let the Hawks get within single digits the rest of the way.
Game Notes
Marvin Williams had 11 points for Atlanta, while Al Horford finished with 12 points and nine boards...Cleveland shot 50.6 percent from the field, including a 21-of-23 effort from the free throw line...Atlanta shot just 44.4 percent from the floor overall, but the figure included a 7-for-13 mark (53.8 percent) from three-point range.
<< Bad break for Dodgers' Billingsley
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Young Dodgers ace Chad Billingsley
suffered a broken left fibula Friday after slipping on a patch of ice outside
of his home in Reading, Pennsylvania.
The 24-year-old sustained a spiral fractu
<< Sharks dominate Caps
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryane Clowe scored twice, Rob Blake recorded
four assists and Brian Boucher was once again solid in net with 19 saves as
the San Jose Sharks dominated Washington, 7-2.
Patrick Marleau, Devin Setoguchi,
<< Avs top Kings in shootout
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marek Svatos scored the game-winner in the
shootout of Colorado's 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings.
Peter Budaj picked up the win after recording 27 saves for the Avalanche,
who had won three
<< Late push carries Red Wings over Flames
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jiri Hudler notched the game-winning goal late
in the third period and assisted on another score as Detroit put away Calgary,
5-2, with a late surge at the Saddledome.
Pavel Datsyuk also had a goal and an
JMU finishes regular season at No. 1 >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - James Madison closed out the regular
season Saturday with a 58-27 Colonial Athletic Association victory on the road
over Towson and stayed on top of The Sportsbook Betting Lines FCS top-25 poll.
The Dukes (1
Celtics meet Raptors in Toronto >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The defending NBA champion Boston Celtics head north of the
border to take on Atlantic Division rival Toronto in a Sunday afternoon affair
at Air Canada Centre.
Kevin Garnett made 8-of-12 field goals en route to scoring 17
Streaking Lakers host Kings >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The red-hot Los Angeles Lakers continue a five-game
homestand Sunday when they welcome the Sacramento Kings to Staples Center.
Kobe Bryant scored 29 points to pace the Lakers to their 10th win in 11 games
this season, a 10
Nuggets welcome Bulls to Pepsi Center >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bulls continue a difficult seven-game road
swing Sunday when they arrive in the Rocky Mountains to face the Denver
Nuggets.
The Bulls got their first win of the trek on Friday in Oakland when Larry
Hughes burn
NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?
Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite. Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight. With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites. As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).
Midwest
#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler
The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April. Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT. After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games. Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season. As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers. Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS). Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field. With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.
#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV
As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year. If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season. As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well. This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons. Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late. There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games. It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.
East
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown
“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season. Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU. They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games. With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field. Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense. Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc. The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range. Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.
#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC
The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country. Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times. Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter. UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen. UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS. An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games. This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS. USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types. An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough. USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS. They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12. When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.
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