03/20/2008 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -Tony Parker scored 23 points and dished out six assists to lead the slumping San Antonio Spurs in a much-needed 102-80 victory over the Chicago Bulls at the United Center.
Tim Duncan poured in 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Spurs, who snapped a season-high four game losing streak and sit 1 1/2 games behind New Orleans for the top spot in the Southwest Division and the Western Conference. Ime Udoka chipped in 13 points and Michael Finley 10.
Luol Deng tallied 18 points and seven boards for the Bulls, who have let five of their last seven duels slip away and rest two games behind the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Drew Gordon totaled 16 points and Ben Gordon 12 and eight boards. Larry Hughes and Andres Nocioni each gave 10 points in defeat.
Chicago guard Chris Duhon (flu-like symptoms) did not play in Thursday's game, and neither did Kirk Hinrich (sprained ankle).
A Nocioni coast-to-coast layup put the Bulls up 23-22 after 12 minutes of basketball.
However, the Spurs outscored the Bulls 14-3 to close out the half and took a 55-36 lead into their locker room. Parker scored the last six points and had eight on the run altogether.
San Antonio never looked back after the break.
"I think we played well on the defensive end of the court," San Antonio head coach Gregg Popovich said. "That fueled most of what we did tonight. We got good offense from the good team defense we played."
A free throw from Parker and a three-pointer from Bowen opened a 25-point San Antonio lead, 68-43, with 7:39 left in the third quarter.
The Spurs' lead hovered around the mid-20s for the remainder of the stanza, and San Antonio held an 86-64 cushion heading into the final frame.
The teams traded baskets for much of the fourth, and five points from Stoudamire put the Spurs up 100-73.
Chicago couldn't close within 22 points of San Antonio in the fourth.
"They're such a steady team," Hughes said. "They had lost four in a row but they basically play the same game. They basically imposed their will on us tonight."
Game Notes
The Bulls shot 2-of-11 from three-point land and 22-of-23 from the free throw line. The Spurs shot 7-of-22 from downtown and 19-of-23 from the stripe...The Spurs dropped four in a row for the first time since November 28 - December 3 of the 2003 campaign. The Spurs haven't lost five straight since losing their last six games of the 1996-97 season...San Antonio is 18-17 as the visitor this season...San Antonio has won 12 of the last 14 meetings and owns a 43-25 record in the all-time series.
<< Staal, Samsonov team up to push Hurricanes over Panthers
Sunrise, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eric Staal squirted the shootout winner
through the pads of Florida goaltender Tomas Vokoun, giving the Carolina
Hurricanes a 2-1 victory over the previously streaking Panthers at
BankAtl
<< Penguins down Lightning, keep pace in Eastern Conference standings
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Evgeni Malkin posted a goal and an assist,
as the Pittsburgh Penguins doubled up the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-2, at Mellon
Arena.
Jarkko Ruutu, Jordan Staal and Petr Sykora also scored for the Penguins, w
<< Senators rally to edge road-weary Blues
Ottawa, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Spezza's second period goal gave Ottawa a
lead it would never relinquish as the Senators edged the struggling St. Louis
Blues, 3-2, at Scotiabank Place.
Antoine Vermette and Christoph Schubert also score
<< Beasley, K-State topple USC in first round upset
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freshman sensation Michael Beasley posted game-
highs with 23 points and 11 rebounds as Kansas State used a late surge to
discard Southern California, 80-67, in opening round action of the NCAA
Tournam
Texas Three-Step: Celtics complete Lone Star sweep in Dallas >>
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ray Allen scored 21 points, and made a crucial
three-pointer in the final minute to help the Boston Celtics top Dallas,
94-90, at American Airlines Center.
Paul Pierce finished with 22 points and a seaso
Notre Dame has no trouble with George Mason; advances to second round >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luke Harangody scored 18 points and raked down
14 rebounds as the fifth-seeded Notre Dame Fighting Irish ripped George
Mason, 68-50, in East Region action of the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Kyle
Flames edge Avs to keep pace in logjammed Northwest >>
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Craig Conroy and Daymond Langkow each scored
in the first period as the Calgary Flames held on to edge the Colorado
Avalanche, 2-1, in a crucial Northwest Division contest.
Miikka Kiprusoff stopped
Butch, Wisconsin knock off Cal State Fullerton to advance >>
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Butch posted 14 points to lead three-seed
Wisconsin over Cal State Fullerton, 71-56, in first round action from the
Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament.
Joe Krabbenhoft and Jason Bohannon registe
Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
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Brandon Roy Favorite to Win 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year
Portland TrailBlazer’s guard, Brandon Roy, is MySportsbook.com’s overwhelming favorite to win the NBA Rookie of the Year odds.
Despite missing 20 games due to an injury earlier this season, Roy has definitely put up the best numbers of his 1st year peers. In 32 games, Roy is averaging 15.3 PPG, 4.2 boards and 3.5 assists in over 33 minutes of play per game. While most rookies breakdown as the season progresses (see Morrison), Roy is only getting stronger as his playing time and scoring average has increased each month.
With 30 or so games left in the regular season, Roy isn’t a lock for the award by any means. Other rookies are putting together some pretty impressive campaigns and a few could give Roy a run for the award with increased playing time. Heading the list is first pick, Andrea Bargnani of the Toronto Raptors. Even though he has started only two games all season, Bargnani is averaging 10.3 PPPG while shooting 35% from deep.
Randy Foye of the Minnesota Timberwolves could be set to give Roy the best competition NBA Rookie of the Year betting lines. With the benching of Mike James, Foye looks like he could be the starter in the T-Wolves backcourt for the rest of the season. So far, Foye has averaged 9 PPG and 2.4 assists in just under 21 minutes per game. With his new role of starter, Foye’s numbers will definitely increase. In his first game as the new starting guard this past Sunday, Foye had 10 points; five rebounds and 8 assists. More importantly, he logged 34 minutes of playing time; his third highest run of the season.
Adam Morrison, of the Charlotte Bobcats, was the favorite early on in the season after averaging 15+ PPG through the first month of the season. Ever since his torrid start, Morrison’s point production has declined each month. This really isn’t surprising, considering at 6’8” he only weighs 205 lbs. Obviously he will need to hit the weights big time during the off-season in order to keep from breaking down in the future.
Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to bet on the NBA. With the regular season about to hit the homestretch, it is important to point out that MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.
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