Bryant leads West to easy All-Star game win
Basketball Betting Lines
02/19/2007 -
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant scored 31 points, dished out six
assists and had six steals to lead the West to an easy 153-132 win over the
East in the 56th annual All-Star Game at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Bryant was named the MVP of the contest for leading a West team that
registered an All-Star game record 52 assists and fell just two points short
of its own All-Star game record for points -- 155 set in 2003.
Amare Stoudemire added 29 points and nine rebounds for the West, who snapped
a two-game skid in the event. Carmelo Anthony chipped in with 20 points and
nine boards, while Shawn Marion finished with 18 points and eight rebounds.
"We wanted to come out and play pretty well," said Bryant. "We lost the last
two games and wanted to get back in the win column. We had a blast. If you had
a shot you took it, otherwise you penetrated and dished it."
LeBron James -- who was the MVP in last year's game -- netted 28 points, six
rebounds and six assists for the East. Dwight Howard was a force inside in
his All-Star debut with 20 points and a game-high 12 boards, while Joe Johnson
had 12 points.
The opening quarter featured some sloppy play early but the West heated up
quickly. Anthony's fade away jumper from the right corner gave them a 10-point
advantage, 35-25, with just over a minute to go in the stanza.
Less than 30 seconds later, Vince Carter provided a spark for the East and
electrified the crowd with a slam off a beautiful spin move but the West still
managed to keep a 39-31 advantage after the opening 12 minutes.
Carter continued to provide a show for the fans early in the second quarter,
taking a Chauncey Billups feed off the glass and depositing another slam.
But, it was the West establishing control in the frame. Dirk Nowitzki's three,
with 9:44 remaining before the half, made it a 51-35 game.
The West continued to dominate the next few minutes. A 7-0 run, featuring
back-to-back layups by Nowitzki and Marion and a McGrady triple, gave the West
its first 20-point cushion, 59-39, with a little over seven minutes to go in
the second
The teams then traded baskets for the rest of the half and the West took a
79-59 edge into the locker room. Bryant led the West with 17 points on 8-of-14
shooting, while James paced the East with 16 points and shot 6-of-10 from the
floor.
The West continued to run away early in the third quarter. Ray Allen's three,
with 4:08 left in the frame, gave the West a commanding 108-76 advantage.
Nowitzki then capped the scoring in the frame with a jumper to make it 119-88
heading into the final frame.
The East failed to make any kind of serious run in the fourth quarter. A
Dwyane Wade jumper cut the deficit to 25, 129-104, with 7:53 left in the game
but Bryant stemmed any momentum by draining a three 17 seconds later.
The Lakers' star then got loose for a reverse dunk on the baseline and Marion
followed that with another reverse jam to extend the West's advantage to
136-106 with 6:51 on the clock.
The West coasted to the finish line from there. Bryant capped his MVP
performance with a spinning slam with 30 seconds left.
Game Notes
This was the first All-Star game held outside an NBA franchise city...Bryant
captured his second All-Star MVP award. His first was in his hometown of
Philadelphia during the 2002 game...Wade's follow shot in the lane with
16.6 seconds remaining rallied the East past the West, 122-120, at Houston's
Toyota Center in last year's game...The East still holds a commanding 35-21
advantage in the all-time series...New Jersey guard Jason Kidd was originally
named as a reserve to the East squad, however but was sidelined with a back
injury and did not play in the contest. Meanwhile, the Western Conference was
without ailing center Yao Ming and guards Steve Nash of the Suns and Denver's
Allen Iverson...Las Vegas legend Wayne Newton entertained the crowd before the
game while the city's nine time entertainer of the year Andy Gans sang the
National Anthem...Six-time Grammy winner Toni Braxton and Christina Aguilera
headlined the halftime show.
<< Kings top Ducks in shootout
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lubomir Visnovsky scored in the sixth round of
the shootout, to lift the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-3 victory over the Anaheim
Ducks at the Honda Center.
Visnovsky added a goal and an assist in regulation and
<< Sun Devils stun USC
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Pendergraph scored 14 points and grabbed 15
rebounds, and the longest losing streak in Division I basketball came to an
end, as Arizona State recorded its first Pac-10 win of the season, 68-58, over
22nd-ra
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exciting final at the SAP Open on Sunday to successfully defend his title in
San Jose.
In their first-ever meeting, Murray battled back to down the big-se
<< Blues skate past Wild
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Backes' pair of scores lifted the Blues
to a 5-3 win over the Wild at Scottrade Center.
Jamal Mayers, Jay McClement, and Keith Tkachuk also lit the lamp for St.
Louis, which has won three in a
<< No. 10 ASU tops UCLA
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Briann January had a career-high 22 points
with nine assists and six steals, and the 10th-ranked Arizona State Sun Devils
downed UCLA 80-69.
Emily Westerberg and Danielle Orsillo added 12 points apiece
Morrison stars as Canucks edge Avs >>
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brendan Morrison scored two goals and picked
up an assist to lead the Vancouver Canucks to a 5-4 victory over the Colorado
Avalanche at General Motors Place.
Matt Cooke added a goal and two assists for
Mets ink Sandy Alomar Jr. to minor league deal >>
Port St. Lucie, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets have signed catcher
Sandy Alomar Jr. to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring
training.
The 40-year-old Alomar played in 27 games last season with the Los An
Powerful Penguins put streak on the line against Isles >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins look to continue their best run
since the franchise's glory days when the NHL's hottest team visits the New
York Islanders this afternoon in a President's Day matinee from Nassau
Coliseu
Predators try to end recent woes against struggling Coyotes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nashville Predators will try to regain possession of
first place in the Central Division as they continue a homestand this evening
with a matchup against the slumping Phoenix Coyotes.
Nashville lost its grasp on
Flyers, Bruins look to continue good play of late >>
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weeks will get together this evening at the Wachovia Center, where the Boston
Bruins resume a long road trip with a showdown against the Philadelphia
Flyers.
MySportsbook.com: NBA Championship Odds
With the playoffs about two months away, the top two teams in the Western Conference are the clear cut leaders to win the NBA Championship. The Dallas Mavericks have the best record in the NBA (44-9) and have been absolutely scorching since the second week of the season. What makes the Mavs’ record more impressive is the fact that they dropped their first four games of the season. Currently they have won 17 out of their last 18 and are MySportsbook.com’s favorite (2-1) to win it all. Right behind the Mavs are the Pacific leading Phoenix Suns (39-13). Last season, the Suns lost in the Conference Finals to non-other then the Mavericks four games to two. Of course the Suns were without center Amare Stoudemire who has is averaging 19.9 PPG and 9.5 RPG since coming back from his knee injury. Unlike the Mavs, the Suns have struggled a bit lately having lost their last three and four out of their last seven. Of course the main reason for their three straight loses is due to the absence of two time MVP Steve Nash, who is out with a shoulder injury. Heads-up, the Mavs have beaten the Suns in both of their meetings this season.
In the Eastern Conference, the Pistons (32-19) are the favorites to win it all at 6-1. The addition of Chris Webber seems to have been a good move for the Pistons. Since coming over from the 76ers, Webber has averaged 13.1 PPG and 7.3 RPG and the Pistons are 11-4. Even though the defending champion Heat are currently on the playoff making cusp, they are the Eastern Conference team that is getting the most action to win it all (9-1). The fact that Shaquille O’Neal is back in the starting lineup after missing 39 games probably has something to do with this. No doubt, Shaq makes a difference when in the lineup as their winning six out of their last seven would indicate.
Just because it is the All-Star break doesn’t mean that you can’t bet on NBA hoops this weekend. Be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com to bet on who you think will cut down the nets this July. Also, be sure to check out all of the lines and props for All-Star weekend. With the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry, there are plenty of ways to cash in on the NBA this weekend.
MySportsbook.com’s NBA Championship odds:
Atlanta Hawks 1000-1
Boston Celtics 5000-1
Charlotte Bobcats 5000-1
Chicago Bulls 20-1
Cleveland Cavaliers 20-1
Dallas Mavericks 2-1
Denver Nuggets 25-1
Detroit Pistons 6-1
Golden State Warriors 250-1
Houston Rockets 12-1
Indiana Pacers 60-1
Los Angeles Clippers 45-1
Memphis Grizzlies 5000-1
Miami Heat 9-1
Milwaukee Bucks 1000-1
Minnesota T-Wolves 200-1
New Jersey Nets 50-1
New Orleans Hornets 150-1
New York Knicks 150-1
Orlando Magic 75-1
Philadelphia 76ers 1000-1
Phoenix Suns 5-2
Portland TrailBlazers 1000-1
Sacramento Kings 250-1
San Antonio Spurs 9-1
Seattle Sonics 5000-1
Toronto Raptors 35-1
Utah Jazz 20-1
Washington Wizards 25-1
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NCAA Football Betting : USC's reward: Top spot in Top 25
NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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