Mavs host Nuggets in Big D
Basketball Betting Lines
02/15/2012 - (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 uncharacteristically slow start to the season as he struggled with a sore knee and conditioning issues but the 7-foot All-Star has turned it on lately, averaging 25.7 points over his last six contests, including 22 on Monday when the Mavs disposed of the much-improved LA Clippers, 96-92.
Former Maverick Caron Butler returned to north Texas in that one and was welcomed by a standing ovation when he accepted his NBA championship ring, but the forward received a bigger hand from the American Airlines Center crowd when he missed a potential go-ahead three-pointer in the final seconds.
The errant try allowed the Mavericks to secure the win behind five double- digit scorers and a stifling defense in the fourth quarter. Shawn Marion followed Nowitzki by adding 16 points in Dallas' fourth straight win.
"We held it together and kept our poise. ...It was defense that got us over the hump," Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle said. "I'm real proud of our guys because this was a very tough game."
Dallas, which is 2-0 on a three-game homestand, is 11-5 overall on its home floor.
The Nuggets, who are opening up a three-game road trip tonight, have bounced back to win two straight after a season-long five-game skid. Arron Afflalo scored 20 points on 7-for-11 shooting on Tuesday, as Denver knocked off the Phoenix Suns, 109-92, at Pepsi Center.
Six Nuggets scored in double figures in that one, including Ty Lawson's 17 points, Chris Andersen's 16, Kenneth Faried's 13, Al Harrington's 12 and Rudy Fernandez's 11.
On the injury front for Denver, leading scorer Danilo Gallinari remains out with a chip fracture in his left ankle while center Timofey Mozgov will likely miss a seventh straight game tonight with a sprained left ankle. Nene, meanwhile, is listed as day-to-day with a left calf strain.
The Nuggets, who are 9-5 as the visitor this season, will also face Memphis and Oklahoma City on their trek.
Dallas snapped a four-game regular season skid to Denver with a 105-95 win in the Rockies back on Feb. 8, but the Nuggets routed the Mavs in Dallas, 115-93, back on Dec. 26.
(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
<< Back to basics: Bruins seek a return to form versus Habs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After watching his team get shut out for the second time in
three games, Claude Julien would like the Boston Bruins to get back to basics
tonight when they visit the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre.
Boston has lost t
(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
Magic welcome 76ers to Amway Center >>
(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
Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS
NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.
Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.
There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.
Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.
The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.
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