Racers and Redhawks duke it out in OVC action
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/15/2012 - Cape Giradeau, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 16th-ranked Murray State Racers head to the Show Me Center for a rematch with the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks in what could be another Ohio Valley Conference thriller.
The Racers and Redhawks already met once this season, as their first contest resulted in a Murray State 81-73 victory after a hard-fought battle. SEMO had an 11-point lead in the first encounter on Feb. 2nd before the Racers rallied to pick up the victory. Murray State has a 49-17 lead in the all-time series.
Head coach Steve Prohm's squad accomplished one of its goals over the weekend as it secured a share of the OVC regular season title with a decisive 82-63 win over the Austin Peay Governors. A win tonight would give it the outright crown. Murray State is in its 10th week of being ranked in the national polls in what has been a remarkable season. Murray State had the distinction of being the last undefeated team among the 338 Division I programs. Prohm's 23-0 start to his career was the third best in NCAA history for a first-year coach. The Racers have dominated their opposition along the way, as it has outscored rivals by 13.4 points per game so far.
Canaan has been the leader for Murray State all season. The junior guard is ranked second in the league and 20th in the nation in scoring with 19.6 ppg and is also third in the OVC in assists with 3.8 per game. Donte Poole and Ivan Aska have been steadily contributing to Murray State's success. Poole has been slumping as of late, as he has shot 30 percent or worse from the field in his last four games. Aska is grabbing a team-best 5.8 boards per game. Jewuan Long stretches the defense with his 48.8 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Head coach Dickey Nutt would love nothing more than to knock off the Racers in SEMO's regular season home finale. The Redhawks won their second game in a row on Saturday as they downed SIU Edwardsville 85-72 to improve to 9-4 in league action. SEMO proved in its first matchup with Murray State it is going to be no cakewalk. The Redhawks are even more dangerous as of late, as they have shot above 53 percent from the field and better than 40 percent from beyond the arc in each of their last two games. SEMO is averaging 72.0 ppg on the offensive end this season, which is the third highest average in the OVC.
SEMO is led by the trio of Tyler Stone, Marland Smith, and Leon Powell. Stone is pacing the squad with averages of 15.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. The sophomore forward was excellent his last time out as he finished with 20 points and nine rebounds. Smith is second on the squad in scoring with 12.8 ppg and Leon Powell contributes 11.2 points and 7.0 boards per contest. Marcus Brister does a great job distributing for the Redhawks, as he ranks second in the conference with 4.1 apg.
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Super Bowl 2009 Betting
Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositionsUnderdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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