Big Ten showdown pits Badgers against Gophers

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/09/2012 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A couple of teams jockeying for position in the ultra-competitive Big Ten Conference meet in Minneapolis tonight, as another chapter of the legendary "Border War" is added when the Minnesota Golden Gophers play host to the 21st-ranked Wisconsin Badgers.

At present, Minnesota owns a 100-89 advantage in the all-time series, and the Gophers are 67-30 against the Badgers in Minneapolis. The last meeting between the two took place in Madison on December 28, 2010, and Wisconsin snapped a three-game losing streak against Minnesota by claiming a 68-60 victory.

Wisconsin is an impressive 18-6 on the season, and the team has won seven of its 11 conference bouts thus far. The Badgers recently had a six-game win streak snapped with a 58-52 loss at home to Ohio State last Saturday, dropping the team's home record to 11-4. UW has won its last three road games, and is 5-2 on enemy turf this season.

Minnesota is enjoying a successful campaign of its own, logging a 17-7 record, which includes a 12-2 ledger at home. Unfortunately, the Golden Gophers have gone just 5-6 in conference, although they've played better in recent weeks, winning two of their last three and five of their last seven. A 69-61 victory at Nebraska last Sunday was the team's most recent, and UM will play five of its remaining seven games of the regular season at home.

Wisconsin continues to play the kind of stifling defense only it can, as the Badgers are still the nation's top team in terms of points allowed (49.8 ppg). Foes are shooting just 36.5 percent from the field, which includes a dismal 26.2 percent showing from three-point range, and UW owns favorable margins in both rebounding (+3.2) and turnovers (+2.3) as well. Jordan Taylor (14.0 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.4 apg) is one of three players currently averaging double digits in the scoring column for coach Bo Ryan's club, which puts up 64.1 ppg on the strength of its 42.9 percent shooting from the floor, and 35.6 percent from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, while Taylor's scoring average rises to 16.1 ppg against conference opponents, the team's dips to 59.3 ppg while its average yield rises to 55.9 ppg. Ryan Evans scored 14 points to lead four players in double figures, but the Badgers shot just 40 percent from the floor in what turned out to be a six-point loss to Ohio State last weekend. Both teams struggled from long range, with UW going just 5-of-27 (.185) and OSU a paltry 1-of-7 (.143). The Buckeyes used a 13-3 edge in points from the foul line, as well as a 15-9 advantage in second-chance points to claim the victory.

The loss of star forward Trevor Mbakwe after only seven games should have spelled disaster for Minnesota, but coach Tubby Smith rallied his troops and the team has gone on to be a thorn in the side of many an opponent this year. At present, the Gophers have just a pair of 10 ppg scorers in Rodney Williams and Julian Welch, but the team as a whole is generating 69.2 ppg on 47.5 percent field goal efficiency and 36.0 percent from beyond the arc. The team's defensive effort holds the opposition to 63.3 ppg, with those foes shooting just 41.4 percent from the floor and 33.9 percent from three-point land. Since the start of Big Ten play, UM is netting nearly the same number of points as it permits (67.7 ppg to 67.4 ppg). Chip Armelin came off the bench to score 15 points to lead Minnesota to victory in its recent bout with Nebraska, while Welch was the only starter to reach double figures as he drained all three of his three-point tries en route to 10 points. As a team, the Gophers connected on 54.0 percent of their total shots, nailing 7-of-17 three-point attempts along the way, and they won the rebounding battle, 31-24, while holding the Cornhuskers to 43.8 percent field goal efficiency.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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