Indisns Hockey Betting News

<< Thunder make a stop in Houston
(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

<< Mavs host Nuggets in Big D
(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-

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

Lobos head to San Diego to take on 13th-ranked Aztecs >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Entering the week there were three teams tied atop the Mountain West Conference standings and two of those programs go up against each other tonight, as the 13th-ranked San Diego State Aztecs entertain the New M

Oklahoma State and Missouri battle in Big 12 brawl >>
Columbia, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Missouri Tigers continue their quest for a Big 12 regular season crown, as they welcome the Oklahoma State Cowboys to Columbia this evening, for a conference showdown at Mizzou Arena. Frank H

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.