Buckeyes set sights on Gophers in Big Ten brawl
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/14/2012 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The sixth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will try bounce back from their poorest outing of the season as they head to Williams Arena to take on Tubby Smith's Minnesota Golden Gophers in a Big Ten Conference matchup.
This is the only scheduled contest between Ohio State and Minnesota this season. The Buckeyes lead the all-time series 80-49 and they currently hold a four-game winning streak over the Golden Gophers.
Thad Matta's team lost sole possession of first place in the Big Ten's standings on Saturday as it fell 58-48 to the Michigan State Spartans, who the Buckeyes are now tied with atop the conference. Ohio State submitted season-lows in points (48), field goal percentage (26.4), and three-point percentage (13.3) in the losing effort. The defeat snapped a six-game winning streak. The Buckeyes have not lost consecutive games yet this season. Ohio State cannot afford to lose tonight as it still has to play three ranked opponents in addition to Illinois, which knocked off OSU earlier this season.
All-American Jared Sullinger leads the charge for Ohio State with averages of 17.4 ppg and 9.3 rpg. The star sophomore recorded a double-double with 17 points and 16 rebounds versus Michigan State. Sullinger has now recorded 11 double-doubles this season. William Buford and Deshaun Thomas are both quality players for the Buckeyes as they each have scoring averages near 15 ppg. Aaron Craft leads the Buckeyes in both assists (4.6) and steals (2.2).
Tubby Smith has seen an improvement in his team's play as it comes in with a 17-8 overall record. The Golden Gophers lost 68-61 to the nationally ranked Wisconsin Badgers in overtime their last time out, which dropped their league record to 5-7. Despite the loss, Minnesota shot 41.8 percent from the field against the Badgers' stifling defense. Wisconsin shot only 35.8 percent from the floor in the same contest. Minnesota is four games out of first place in the Big Ten standings coming into today's bout. The Golden Gophers have outscored their opponents by an average of 5.4 ppg this season, which ranks in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten.
Since losing its leading scorer Trevor Mbakwe for the season after just seven games, Minnesota has relied on its depth to power past opponents. 10 different players are playing more than 10 minutes per game. Rodney Williams is pacing the team with 10.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Julian Welch is second on the team in scoring with 10.1 ppg. In their recent loss to Wisconsin, Andre Hollins came up big off the bench with 20 points as he knocked down 5-of-6 from beyond the arc.
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College Football Betting Tips From a Pro
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back
With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.
"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."
Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .
Get all your baseball betting lines, MLB lines and MLB team props at the My Sportbook.
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