Bank On It: Butler's three at the buzzer lifts WVU over Cincy

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/12/2010 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - De'Sean Butler's closely-contested three- pointer off the glass as time expired advanced his seventh-ranked Mountaineers and ended Cincinnati's improbable march through the conference gauntlet, as West Virginia survived an upset-riddled quarterfinal round at the Big East Tournament, 54-51.

The game appeared destined for overtime after going through a wild chain of events in the final 6.4 seconds. First, Dion Dixon lost control of the basketball along the left sideline, and the ball eventually caromed off his knee and out of bounds. The Mountaineers (25-6) took advantage, with Butler catching the ball out near the top of the arc, rising and firing over Cincinnati freshman star Lance Stephenson for the game-winner.

Several Bearcats (18-15) fell to the floor at the horn. Stephenson had the best look at Butler's basket that downed his club despite his 19-point, seven- rebound stat line.

Kevin Jones scored 17, Butler added 15 and Devin Ebanks totaled 10 for the Mountaineers, who are the only top-four seed left at Madison Square Garden. They will face Notre Dame in the second semifinal, with Georgetown and Marquette taking the court first on Friday.

A struggle marked in equal parts solid defense and offensive ineptitude shifted over the final three-plus minutes. Trailing 47-42, Cincinnati turned to its season-long shaky perimeter shooting to get back into the game. First, Deonta Vaughn's trey cut the deficit to two then Darnell Wilks crashed the offensive glass for a game-tying putback with just under three minutes to play.

Jones drained a jumper then Stephenson made 1-of-2 from the foul line. Jones was in the right place at the right time moments later, finding a scoring chance off a loose-ball scrum for a 51-48 lead with 1:07 to play. Again, the Bearcats stepped out beyond their comfort zone, as Stephenson -- a 27-percent three-point shooter on the conference's worst, and the nation's 277th-best, long-distance shooting team, -- buried a right-wing trey for a 51-51 stalemate with 42.1 seconds remaining.

An Ebanks missed opportunity resulted in a dead ball with just 6.4 seconds left. After a Cincinnati timeout, Dixon lost control of a left-handed dribble for a turnover. West Virginia then found Butler out top, he worked his way to the top of the arc, and connected on a difficult shot over Stephenson's outstretched arms.

After holding a 26-23 lead at the half, the Mountaineers first stretched their lead to seven at 30-23 then to eight at 33-25 on a free throw by Cam Thoroughman. The margin grew to nine at 45-36 on a Jones layup with just under seven minutes to go, but the Bearcats refused to go away, scoring seven in a row moments later for a 47-45 deficit.

Game Notes

West Virginia won both meetings this season, including a 74-68 decision back on February 27th...Cincinnati, however, still leads the all-time series, 10-8...Vaughn totaled nine points for the Bearcats...Cincinnati made 5-of-14 threes, but shot just 33.3 percent from the floor...One night after dominating Louisville on the glass, both teams got their fair share of offensive boards with the Bearcats grabbing 14 and West Virginia 17.

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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.

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Brandon Roy Favorite to Win 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year

Portland TrailBlazer’s guard, Brandon Roy, is MySportsbook.com’s overwhelming favorite to win the NBA Rookie of the Year odds.

Despite missing 20 games due to an injury earlier this season, Roy has definitely put up the best numbers of his 1st year peers. In 32 games, Roy is averaging 15.3 PPG, 4.2 boards and 3.5 assists in over 33 minutes of play per game. While most rookies breakdown as the season progresses (see Morrison), Roy is only getting stronger as his playing time and scoring average has increased each month.

With 30 or so games left in the regular season, Roy isn’t a lock for the award by any means. Other rookies are putting together some pretty impressive campaigns and a few could give Roy a run for the award with increased playing time. Heading the list is first pick, Andrea Bargnani of the Toronto Raptors. Even though he has started only two games all season, Bargnani is averaging 10.3 PPPG while shooting 35% from deep.

Randy Foye of the Minnesota Timberwolves could be set to give Roy the best competition NBA Rookie of the Year betting lines. With the benching of Mike James, Foye looks like he could be the starter in the T-Wolves backcourt for the rest of the season. So far, Foye has averaged 9 PPG and 2.4 assists in just under 21 minutes per game. With his new role of starter, Foye’s numbers will definitely increase. In his first game as the new starting guard this past Sunday, Foye had 10 points; five rebounds and 8 assists. More importantly, he logged 34 minutes of playing time; his third highest run of the season.

Adam Morrison, of the Charlotte Bobcats, was the favorite early on in the season after averaging 15+ PPG through the first month of the season. Ever since his torrid start, Morrison’s point production has declined each month. This really isn’t surprising, considering at 6’8” he only weighs 205 lbs. Obviously he will need to hit the weights big time during the off-season in order to keep from breaking down in the future.

Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to bet on the NBA. With the regular season about to hit the homestretch, it is important to point out that MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.