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03/13/2010 - Reno, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Utah State tries to make it back-to- back Western Athletic Conference Tournament titles tonight as the squad clashes with the New Mexico State Aggies in the 27th-annual event at the Lawlor Events Center in Reno.
On Friday night the Utah State Aggies left no doubt that they deserved a spot in the championship game as they completely dominated Louisiana Tech by a final of 85-55. It was the third straight game in which USU had scored at least 81 points and represented the program's 17th straight victory overall since opening the conference schedule with back-to-back setbacks against NMSU and LaTech, coincidentally. Utah State began its quest for a second-straight crown with an 84-60 romp over eighth-seeded Boise State on Thursday afternoon.
As for the New Mexico State Aggies, the third seed in this year's tourney, they first took care of San Jose State two nights ago with ease in a 90-69 final and continued their spirited play with an 80-79 triumph over host team Nevada in a matchup that came down to the wire last night.
USU currently owns a 37-32 edge over NMSU after crushing the visiting Aggies at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan just last week by a score of 81-63. In the conference opener back on January 2nd, NMSU posted a low-scoring 55-52 win over Utah State at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces. The teams also have a history in past WAC title games, as New Mexico State handed Utah State a 72-70 decision for the championship back in 2007.
Trailing by one with just seconds to play, Jahmar Young took control for the Aggies and put them into the win column when he sank a jumper with five seconds remaining in regulation. One of four players to score in double figures for the Aggies, Young finished with 15 points, five assists and four rebounds as he shot a mere 4-of-15 from the floor. Troy Gillenwater logged a season-high 21 points and collected eight boards off the bench, Wendell McKines posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 boards and Jonathan Gibson accounted for 10 points as well. Even though the Aggies have several starters who can take control of a game and lead them to the win column this season, the player to watch tonight is Gillenwater because he's been able to bring a burst of energy off the bench since he has played in barely one-third of all the games for the program. He is averaging 14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game for a team that is putting up a whopping 78.9 ppg, but also allowing 78.3 ppg. Gibson (17.7 ppg) is the three-point specialist with his 102 conversions this season, but one can't sleep on Young (20.5 ppg) because he too has had huge success on the perimeter with his 71 treys in 2009-10.
USU allowed LaTech to take an early two-point lead in the opening moments of their meeting on Friday, but after that the Bulldogs were forced to play catch-up the rest of the way as they shot just 8-of-27 from the field in the first half and 34.5 percent for the game, compared to a staggering 58.8 percent by one of the top shooting teams in the nation. Jared Quayle posted 16 points on 4-of-6 behind the three-point line in limited minutes, while Brady Jardine came off the bench to tally 13 points. Pooh Williams accounted for 10 points before being sent to the bench in order to rest the starters once it became obvious that USU was moving on. Tai Wesley, who tallied eight points, six assists and five rebounds, remains the leading scorer (13.7 ppg) and rebounder (6.5 rpg) for the program and because of his close proximity to the glass at the offensive end of the floor he has been shooting 57.9 percent from the field this season. Quayle (12.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 140 assists) is shooting better from three-point range (.433) than he is the floor overall (.410), which is just one of the reasons why Utah State is one of the most accurate three-point shooting teams in the nation this season at 42.4 percent.
<< Spiders attempt to snare Musketeers in A-10 semifinals
Atlantic City, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The second-seeded and 24th-ranked Xavier
Musketeers do battle with the third-seeded Richmond Spiders in the semifinal
round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament today at Boardwalk Hall. The winner of
this game will
<< Pac-10 title up for grabs in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pac-10 Tournament title is up for grabs
this evening, as the top-seeded California Golden Bears face off against the
third-seeded Washington Huskies in the finals at the Staples Center.
California, whic
<< Rebels and Aztecs seek MWC crown in Sin City
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shooting for their third championship in the
last four years and the fourth overall, the UNLV Runnin' Rebels are into the
title game of the Mountain West Conference Tournament today and will face the
San Diego S
<< Boilermakers and Golden Gophers meet in Big Ten semifinals
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A chance to play in the Big Ten Conference
Tournament championship game will be on the line this afternoon when the
sixth-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers take on the second-seeded Purdue
Boilermakers in semif
Lumberjacks look to cut down Bearkats in Southland title game >>
Katy, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With an NCAA Tournament bid on the line, the top-
seeded Sam Houston State Bearkats will battle the second-seeded Stephen F.
Austin Lumberjacks in the Southland Conference Tournament championship game at
the Merrell
Maple Leafs host Oilers in matchup of last place clubs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A battle between the bottom two teams in the NHL is on tap
tonight in Toronto, pitting the Maple Leafs against the Edmonton Oilers at Air
Canada Centre.
Despite having won two straight and three of their last four, the Map
Rockets kick off homestand vs. Nets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The chances of the Houston Rockets making the playoffs seem
to fade by the day. Tonight they'll have to get past the woeful New Jersey
Nets at the Toyota Center in the opener of a four-game homestand and hope for
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Berkman sidelined 2-4 weeks after knee surgery >>
Kissimmee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Houston Astros first baseman Lance Berkman
underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Saturday morning.
The Astros said the procedure involved removing loose cartilage debris from
the knee. There w
Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.
As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.
The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.
Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).
But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.
Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.
Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2
New York Giants - 9 - 2
Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).
Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.
So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.
And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.
They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.
Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.
But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.
Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.
Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.
Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.
Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?
Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.
In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.
Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.
Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.
The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.
The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.
Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.
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