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03/18/2010 - Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-seeded Robert Morris Colonials will have a tough task this afternoon in the South Region, as they take on the second-seeded Villanova Wildcats in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
The Colonials will be making their second straight appearance in the Big Dance and the seventh overall in school history, which is the most by any team in Northeast Conference history. However, in the past NCAA Tournaments for Robert Morris the team is just 1-7. This season the Colonials tallied 23 overall victories and claimed their second straight NEC Tournament title.
The Wildcats will be making their sixth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, which is one off the school mark of seven straight showings set from 1980 to 1986. This will be the 31st overall showing in the tournament for Villanova, which is 48-30 all-time. Last season the Wildcats made a tremendous run in the Big Dance, advancing to the Final Four before falling to eventual champ North Carolina, 83-69. Villanova enters this contest with a 24-7 ledger, but the team dropped five of its last seven matchups.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools on the hardwood, and the winner of this contest will move on to the second round to battle either Richmond or Saint Mary's.
The success this season for Robert Morris can be attributed to the team's play at the defensive end of the floor, as the Colonials are limiting opponents to just 65.7 ppg. Teams are shooting 40.9 percent against the Colonials this season, but the team has done a solid job defending against the three-point shot, as opponents are connecting on just 32.3 percent from long range. Unfortunately at the other end of the floor, the team has faltered a bit. In fact, Robert Morris possesses just one player averaging double figures, and that is Karon Abraham, who comes into this game netting 13.4 ppg. Abraham is a dangerous weapon from behind the arc, and has connected on a sensational 44.2 percent of his three-point attempts (80-of-181). Rob Robinson is contributing 9.9 ppg and a team-high 5.5 rpg, but the scoring pool dries up after that, with the team producing just 68.5 ppg on the season.
The Wildcats have been one of the most dangerous scoring teams in the country from the start this year, and they possess a sensational guard tandem in Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher. Reynolds is one of the best guards in the country, and is a proven leader on the floor, coming into this matchup leading the Wildcats with 18.5 ppg. Reynolds, who is shooting 39.9 percent from behind the arc, has also dished out 103 assists on the season. As for Fisher, he is very similar to Reynolds in the aspect of being a quick guard that can score a multiple of ways. Fisher, who is averaging 13.7 ppg on the year, has also distributed a team-best 125 assists on the year, while committing just 65 turnovers. Taking care of business down low has been Antonio Pena, who is chipping in 10.9 ppg, to go along with a team-high 7.4 rpg for Villanova, which as a whole is producing a healthy 82.5 ppg, behind a respectable 46.5 percent shooting effort.
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New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The East Region of the 2010 NCAA Tournament
features a first-round matchup between the eighth-seeded Texas Longhorns and
the ninth-seeded Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
Awaiting the winner of this tilt is a sec
<< Spiders and Gaels meet in South Region's first round
Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - First-round action in the South Region will
take place this afternoon at the Dunkin' Donuts Center when the seventh-seeded
Richmond Spiders take on the 10th-seeded Saint Mary's Gaels.
The Gaels are participa
<< Midwest Regional affair pits Panthers against Rebels
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ninth-seeded Northern Iowa Panthers
mix it up with the eighth-seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels in the first round of the
NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional tonight at the Ford Center. The winner of
this game w
<< Upset-minded Racers open tournament play against Commodores
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The first team in Division I to reach 30 wins
this season, the Murray State Racers now have their sights set on number 31 as
they take on the Vanderbilt Commodores in the first round of the 72nd annual
NCAA Tourn
Vols set sights on Aztecs in first-round action >>
Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In search of their first-ever NCAA
Tournament win, the 11th-seeded San Diego State Aztecs take aim at the sixth-
seeded Tennessee Volunteers in the first round at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
The survivor of this
West Regional action features Bulldogs against Miners >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Appearing in the NCAA Tournament for the
fourth consecutive year, the Butler Bulldogs kick off first-round action of
the 72nd annual event this afternoon against the Miners of Texas-El Paso at HP
Pavilion in San
Back injury forces Singh to withdraw >>
Palm Harbor, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vijay Singh withdrew from the Transitions
Championship before Thursday's first round because of a back injury.
Singh was set to tee off with defending champion Retief Goosen and reigning
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Slumping Sharks try to bounce back against Canucks >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the San Jose Sharks are coming off their most
lopsided defeat of the season, the Vancouver Canucks are dealing with the loss
of one of their biggest weapons.
San Jose will try to halt a three-game slide this evening
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards
Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.
Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.
Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.
Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.
All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.
A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.
2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award
Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1
Ron Brace (NE) 25/1
Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1
Darius Butler (NE) 40/1
Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1
Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1
Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1
Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1
Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1
Larry English (SD) 15/1
Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1
Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1
Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1
Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1
James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1
Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1
Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1
Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1
Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1
Roy Miller (TB) 20/1
Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1
Fili Moala (IND) 30/1
Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1
Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1
B J Raji (GB) 7/1
Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1
Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1
David Verkune (CLE) 20/1
Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 6/1
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
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