Bulls and Celtics clash in the Windy City
Basketball Betting Lines
02/16/2012 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Central Division-leading Chicago Bulls resume a six-
game homestand tonight aiming for a measure of revenge over the Boston Celtics.
The Celtics snapped a five-game winning streak by the Bulls in Beantown,
95-91, this past Sunday behind Rajon Rondo's ninth career triple- double with
32 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds.
Of course Chicago was without reigning NBA MVP Derrick Rose in that one. The
All-Star, who has missed three straight games with an ailing lower back, had
an MRI earlier this week that revealed no structural damage but the feeling is
that the Bulls will be very cautious with Rose and he is expected to sit again
tonight.
"[It's] getting better," Rose said when talking about his back. "I shouldn't
have any problems in the long run. I'm going to take my time and be smart."
Chicago improved to 6-2 without Rose, who has also missed some time with a toe
injury, with a 121-115 win over Sacramento on Tuesday night.
Luol Deng had 23 points and 11 assists in that one as the Bulls survived
after nearly blowing a 19-point lead. Joakim Noah added 22 points and 11
rebounds as Chicago bounced back from its loss to Boston to win for the sixth
time in their last seven games and improve to a gaudy 10-1 at the United
Center.
"It feels good to win. It's always great to win, but we have to be critical
and understand that we need to play better," said Noah.
The Celtics, who are opening up a five-game road trip tonight, were not able
to build on their win over the Bulls, losing to Detroit, 98-88, in Beantown on
Wednesday.
Rondo scored a career-high 35 points and added six assists and five rebounds
in that one for the Celtics, who were playing without Kevin Garnett (hip
flexor) and lost for the third time in four games. Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and
JaJuan Johnson scored 10 points apiece for Boston.
"A disappointing loss to a team I thought we should have beat," Pierce said.
"The defense just let us down tonight. We just consistently couldn't get
stops."
Garnett's status for tonight is up in the air as Boston tries to improve on
its 4-5 road record and attempts to halt a three-game regular season skid in
the Windy City.
<< Pacers aim to continue dominance over Nets
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The suddenly struggling Indiana Pacers will attempt to
right the ship Thursday when they shoot for a 10th consecutive win over the
New Jersey Nets.
Early in the season the Pacers, who are kicking off a three-game homestand
<< Clippers invade Rip City to take on Blazers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Clippers invade
Rip City on Thursday to take on a Portland Trail Blazers team that expects to
be without All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge for a second consecutive night.
The Clips returne
<< Bulldogs and Broncos battle in WCC affair
Santa Clara, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Desperate to put an end to a 13-game slide,
the Santa Clara Broncos have the unenviable task of entertaining 24th-ranked
Gonzaga in West Coast Conference action at the Leavey Center tonight.
Santa Clara, wh
<< Local rivals duke it out in Durham
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NC State Wolfpack will try to pick up a
crucial victory tonight as they make the short trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium
to battle the fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils in an Atlantic Coast Conference
battle.
Duke
<< 20th-ranked Seminoles play host to Hokies
Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 20th-ranked Florida State Seminoles
will try to stay in the race for the Atlantic Coast Conference's top spot as
they welcome the Virginia Tech Hokies to the Donald Tucker Center for a league
battle.
T
Mighty Rangers host free-falling Blackhawks >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Rangers seem to be on cruise control in the
race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but the last few weeks have
been anything but a smooth ride for the struggling Chicago Blackhawks.
Chicago will try
Pirates beat Jones in arbitration; avoid hearing with McGehee >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates won their salary
arbitration case with first baseman Garrett Jones and avoided a hearing with
newly-acquired third baseman Casey McGehee.
Jones will earn a salary of $2.25 milli
Blues aim to bounce back against visiting Isles >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues will try to rebound from just their
third regulation loss of 2012 when they host the New York Islanders tonight at
Scottrade Center.
St. Louis has gone 13-3-2 since the start of January and one of the f
Leino, Sabres visit Flyers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The struggling Philadelphia Flyers hope the return of Ilya
Bryzgalov can help them avoid their sixth loss in seven games, as they get set
to host the Buffalo Sabres in tonight's clash at Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers are
Sliding Wild welcome Jets to St. Paul >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The last time the Wild and Jets squared off, Minnesota was
at the top of the NHL standings. Things have certainly changed since.
Minnesota hopes to avoid a sixth straight defeat and falling further back in
the playoff race
MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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