Thunder make a stop in Houston
Basketball Betting Lines
02/15/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oklahoma City makes a quick trip down to south Texas on Wednesday to take on the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center.
The Thunder improved to an NBA-best 22-6 on Tuesday in OKC, topping Utah for the second time in four days, 111-85. Super sub James Harden scored 22 points and dished out five assists off the bench in that one to lead the Thunder.
Kevin Durant had 21 points and fellow All-Star Russell Westbrook added 16, while Serge Ibaka notched a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma City, which won its seventh straight at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
"We wanted to play a little harder," Durant told the Thunder's website. "I think that was what we did. We kind of focused on that, and guys are playing hard and playing together. That's the ingredients for us to get a win."
Oklahoma City shot 54.5 percent from the field, while holding Utah to just 35.6 percent.
"We're at our best when we're playing defense and making them take tough shots," said Thunder head coach Scott Brooks, who will coach the Western Conference All-Stars later this month.
The Thunder, who will return to the Sooner State to kick off a five-game homestand after tonight's contest, have also been solid on the road, compiling a 12-5 mark including another win over the Jazz last Friday.
Houston, which is opening up a six-game homestand tonight, just completed a six-game road trip with a 3-3 mark but dropped the final two games on the trek, including a 93-83 setback in Memphis on Tuesday.
Kyle Lowry led all scorers with 24 points in that one and Courtney Lee added 13 points for the Rockets.
"They played harder than we did tonight," Houston head coach Kevin McHale said. "It took us a long time to get engaged in the type of game it was, which was going to be a grind-it-out one, as you could see (from) the first quarter. You can't ease into a game like that."
The Rockets, who will also host Minnesota, Utah, Memphis, Philadelphia and Toronto on its residency, are a solid 10-3 in Space City this season.
OKC has won four straight and six of seven overall vs. Houston.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dirk Nowitzki has finally started to heat up and the Dallas Mavericks will try to ride their superstar to a fifth straight victory when they host the Denver Nuggets tonight in Big D. Nowitzki had an uncharacteristicall
<< Hawks continue road trip at Phoenix
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta will resume a five-game road trip tonight in the
desert when it takes on a Phoenix Suns team finishing up a tough three games
in three nights stretch.
The Hawks, who will also visit Portland, Chicago and New
<< Blazers take on Warriors without Aldridge
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Portland Trail Blazers will be without All-Star forward
LaMarcus Aldridge tonight when they square off with the surging Golden State
Warriors in Oakland.
Aldridge sprained his left ankle early in Portland's 124-
<< Wizards seek third straight road win against Clippers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Wizards will try to extend a rare road
winning streak when they face off with an LA Clippers team returning to SoCal
for the first time in nearly two weeks.
The Wizards have opened up a five-game t
<< New Yale football coach Reno finalizes staff
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - First-year Yale head football coach Tony Reno
announced on Wednesday his nine-man assistant coaching staff, which has a
combined 128 years of experience.
Only defensive coordinator Rick Flanders returns from
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Orlando Magic eye a third straight win this evening when they welcome the Philadelphia 76ers to Amway Center. Orlando has started to play its best basketball of the season, yet the last two games it hasn't had
Panthers give D Strachan one-year extension >>
Sunrise, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Panthers signed defenseman Tyson
Strachan to a one-year contract extension on Wednesday.
Strachan has one goal and two assists in eight games this season for the
Panthers.
The 27-year-o
Cavs resume lengthy homestand vs. reeling Pacers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Cavaliers will play their fourth game on a
lengthy nine-game homestand tonight, when they entertain the Central Division-
rival Indiana Pacers from Quicken Loans Arena.
Cleveland is in the midst of the longes
Wildcats and Hoosiers mix it up in Big Ten action >>
Bloomington, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Big Ten Conference rivals square off in
Bloomington this evening, as the Northwestern Wildcats have come calling on
the 18th-ranked Indiana Hoosiers.
Northwestern comes in sporting a 15-9 overall record, wh
Lions visit Gaels in pivotal WCC clash >>
Moraga, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 21st-ranked Saint Mary's-CA Gaels put their
perfect home record on the line for the final time this season, as they
entertain the Lions of Loyola Marymount in a West Coast Conference clash
tonight at McKeon Pav
Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends
We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS. Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned. For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go. As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190). Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet. For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction. On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later. Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick. Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com
New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors
Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls
Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times.
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons
Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season.
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers
In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS.
For even more betting trends for not just the NBA but for all of the major sports, log on to Sportsbook.com and click on “Trends”. With only two months left in the NBA betting season it is important to be as well informed as possible in order to maximize your profit. Also for all of you poker players, check out MySportsbook.com’s “WSOP Low Bid Auction”. You could be on your way to Vegas to play against the world’s best poker players for under a buck.
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FOOTBALL TRASH TALK
NFL Football Trash TalkTrash talk has a place in every competitive endeavor (except baseball; those stirrup-wearers are too busy chewing on their sunflower seeds and their supplements to worry about what their opponents are doing).
Fantasy sports is no exception. Any intelligent discussion of the subject would probably start with a thesis statement or a definition of terms. Thankfully, this wont be an intelligent discussion.
Let me just say that I am happy to take a place in this space alongside my talented colleagues, even our commissioner. (You should see how she bleats like a demented paper boy about league fees on our fantasy site).
Trash talking, I would argue, is primarily about amusing your friends, their sheeplike demeanors and sloping foreheads notwithstanding. The best place I have found for football trash talking is at www.SportsAlarm.com.
Beyond the entertainment factor, though, I would recognize that the sophomoric ritual has one advantage, when properly applied. It magnifies your fantasy triumphs and mitigates your fantasy failures by transforming the eventual point total into an afterthought. Winning makes it seem like your opponent really is a truss-owning, lapel-pin-wearing nitwit. And in defeat, trash talk can be the air bag to break the fall from your hyperbolic heights. The plug-necked yahoos on your team, you can say, will be sacking groceries by the end of the season.
The best trash talk, in my view, is layered and nuanced. And it doesnt focus only on your opponents team. It picks apart your opponent. The idea is to create a shock-and-awe-scale blizzard of nonsense, and the goal is to make your opponent drop his hands from his keyboard in exasperation.
What team does your opponent root for? Accuse a Giants fan of having a Joe Namath pillowcase. Wheres your opponent from? Give a look of concern no matter his reply, then say, I'll try to type slower for you next time. Is your opponent into politics? Label everyone a tax-and-spend corporate shill.
Cap all that with a liberal application of irrelevance. For instance, dont just conclude by saying your opponent is a twerp who drafts like my grandmother. Say that your opponent is a sweater-wearing, eyebrow-plucking twerp who drafts his team about as well as Zsa Zsa Gabor gave acceptance speeches at the Oscars. By the time your foe makes sense of that, his starting running back will have had puppies.
But what about you? Hmm? Recall a memorable slam? Have a tried-and-true technique? Know someone who seems impervious to insult? Take a moment and tells us about it. Put together some (fit-for-publication) thoughts. You wont be too busy returning phone messages from your friends, Im sure, to reply.
In addition to the trash talking, the Sports Alarm has a huge gallery of high resolution pictures of beautiful women and models in bikinis. The most popular models are: Lindsay Lohan, Carrie Underwood, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Paris Hilton.