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Spurs and Rockets meet in Texas tussle

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02/26/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of Southwest Division rivals collide Friday night in Houston, where the Rockets play host to the San Antonio Spurs at the Toyota Center.

The Rockets are caught in a funk and have lost three straight and six of their last seven games. In a 110-92 loss versus the Orlando Magic on Wednesday in the opener of a short homestand, Aaron Brooks finished with 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds for the Rockets, who are four games behind Portland for the final postseason spot in the Western Conference.

Houston newcomer Kevin Martin tallied 19 points, while Shane Battier had 14 points and nine rebounds in defeat. Chase Budinger chipped in 13 points and a career-high six assists off the bench for Houston,

"We came back in the third quarter and played with more aggression and confidence," Rockets head coach Rick Adelman said. "But the first half we missed a lot of shots and got our heads down. We played a good team."

Houston is winless in its last four home games and is 13-15 as the host this season. Rockets forward Trevor Ariza (hip) is questionable for Friday.

San Antonio is back on the road tonight and is coming off Wednesday's 95-87 victory over Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in which Manu Ginobili poured in 26 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter. The Spurs were able to slow down Durant, whose incredible streak of 29 straight games with at least 25 points came to an end.

"Sometimes you make your shots, sometimes you don't," Ginobili said. "Today, I was smarter to attack the seams better. Then I got confidence and started making a couple shots."

Tim Duncan had 19 points, 15 rebounds and six assists, while George Hill added 16 points and five boards, as San Antonio returned to the Alamo City after going 4-4 on an eight-game Rodeo Road Trip. The Spurs, who are seventh in the West standings, have lost two straight on the road and are 12-13 as the guest.

San Antonio and Houston have split two of the first four matchups of the season. The Spurs are 20-9 in the past 29 meetings between the teams and have won six of the last nine at the Rockets.

Houston will visit the Spurs on March 31. The last San Antonio sweep of the series came in the 2005-06 season, when the Spurs went 4-0.


<< Butler goes after perfect Horizon League ledger
Valparaiso, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Owners of a 17-game winning streak, the 15th-ranked Butler Bulldogs will attempt to complete a perfect Horizon League campaign in tonight's regular-season finale against the Valparaiso Crusaders. Butler hasn

<< NFL conducts coin flips to determine draft order
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Football League set the order for the first round of the 2010 draft with three tiebreaking coin flips. The Jacksonville Jaguars won a flip with the Denver Broncos for the 10th pick in April's d

<< Stanford and Song-Hee Kim in front at HSBC
Singapore (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Angela Stanford and Song-Hee Kim are knotted atop the leaderboard after Friday's second round of the HSBC Women's Champions tournament. Stanford, a first-round co-leader, shot a one-under 71 on Friday, while Kim

<< Nuggets beat Warriors, win first game without Karl behind bench
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chauncey Billups had 37 points and nine assists to lead Denver to a 127-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. Carmelo Anthony added 27 points, while J.R. Smith scored 25 for the Nuggets, who won their f

<< Gonzaga clinches share of WCC title
Spokane, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steven Gray scored 26 points -- 19 in the first half -- and the 18th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs clinched a share of their 10th consecutive regular season conference title with a 88-51 drubbing of Santa Clara. G

Nuggets hope to solve recent woes vs. Pistons >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Pistons hope to continue their recent dominance of the Denver Nuggets when the two clubs clash tonight at the Pepsi Center. Detroit defeated Denver, 101-99, back on December 10 and has won seven straight and 16

Suns, Clippers clash in the desert >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Suns aim for their seventh consecutive victory over the Pacific Division-rival Los Angeles Clippers tonight from US Airways Center. Phoenix is 2-0 so far in the 2009-10 season series and has won 17 of the prev

Howard, Magic invade Big Easy to face Hornets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Orlando's Dwight Howard hopes to follow up on a game for the ages when he leads his first place Magic into the Big Easy to take on the New Orleans Hornets. Howard recorded his NBA-leading 46th double-double of the season w

Surging Jazz shoot for 8th straight road win in Sacramento >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The surging Utah Jazz will shoot for an eighth straight road win when they take on the flailing Sacramento Kings on Friday. The Jazz bounced back from a 105-100 home loss to Atlanta on Monday by besting Charlotte in Salt L

Sixers finish road trip against Kobe, Lakers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant returns to the floor at Staples Center for the first in three weeks on Friday when the Los Angeles Lakers host the Philadelphia 76ers. After missing five contests and the All-Star Game with a sprained left ankl

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

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Problem with Bears?

Chicago, IL - New Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and star linebacker Brian Urlacher shot down reports of a rift, saying they're simply not true.

"There's nothing between us," Cutler said Thursday, when he reported to training camp. "I just want to put that to rest. There never has been anything between us."

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Urlacher added: "I never said what I was quoted as saying and that's it. I have a lot of respect for Jay. I think Jay knows that."
Former Bears receiver Bobby Wade caused a stir when he told Minneapolis radio station KFAN-AM that Urlacher used a profanity while questioning Cutler's manhood during a conversation in Las Vegas last weekend. Wade, who now plays for the Vikings, said Urlacher used a profane version of the word "wimp" during the interview that had to be edited out.
go radio station WSCR-AM also reported that Urlacher had to be restrained from confronting Cutler during organized team activities.
"I wouldn't go face-to-face with Brian, anyway," Cutler said. "No, that's never happened. I've hung out with Brian away from the facility numerous times and we've always gotten along."
Urlacher, noting he was limited by a groin injury, denied the reports in an interview with the Chicago Tribune and did it again when he reported to camp.
"I didn't practice this summer, so I don't know how I would fight the guy if I didn't practice," Urlacher said. "We have no problems. I'm excited about football starting. I'm excited to have him as our quarterback."
Why would Wade say that?
"I don't know," Urlacher said. "Maybe he's jealous because we have a good quarterback now."
Cutler said the first he heard of any friction was when he got a call from Urlacher to clear the air. Urlacher, however, said he had already taken several calls from teammates wondering if the reports were true when Cutler phoned.
"He called me and I said, What's up (expletive), what are you doing?'" a grinning Urlacher said, uttering the same word he allegedly used with Wade. "It's so dumb to me that this even got to this point, but it did and then here we are."
better place after going 9-7 and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. They have a franchise quarterback for the first time in decades after acquiring Cutler in an offseason trade with Denver. But there are questions about his attitude following a fallout with Broncos management and new coach Josh McDaniels.
His critics include former Bears coach Mike Ditka and former Indianapolis and Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy, one of Smith's mentors. Smith, however, said Cutler has been a model teammate so far while denying any animosity with Urlacher.
"There's no issue with Jay and Brian, except Brian and Jay are both excited about being teammates for our club this year," coach Lovie Smith said. "No more than that. We can't spend a whole lot of time on something that isn't true. I have talked to the players. Whenever something comes out, you have to address it, but it's a non-issue."
In some ways, Cutler is getting a second chance in Chicago, an opportunity to repair his reputation.
Smith said another quarterback - Michael Vick - deserves one, although he doesn't see it happening with the Bears, who lack an experienced backup. The former Atlanta Falcons star, who served a 23-month sentence for running a dogfighting ring, said Thursday he is getting close to signing with a pro football team.
"A second chance, like everyone in society who has paid their debt to society," Smith said. "He deserves a second chance. As far as we're concerned, we like this team that we have right now."
Particularly the new quarterback.
"Me and Brian have been on a good relationship since I've been here, and I expect it to continue that way," Cutler said.

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