05/09/2008 - Darlington, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tony Stewart dominated for most of the night winning Friday night's Diamond Hill Plywood 200 at the famed Darlington Raceway. He led 90 of 149 laps.
The No.20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota crossed the finish line 0.814 seconds ahead of Clint Bowyer. It was the fourth straight win for the No.20 car (with three different drivers) and the sixth in a row for JGR in the series. The victory was Stewart's fourth of the season and sixth of his Nationwide Series career.
Stewart led most of the night, but found himself in second place behind Matt Kenseth with 27 laps to go when Kenseth suddenly pulled down pit lane with a problem. From there Stewart withstood a couple of restarts for the easy victory.
It was not a good day for pole winner Carl Edwards. After being fastest in qualifying, he chose to start from the outside lane and the strategy didn't work. In the first three laps. he hit the wall twice, the second time hard enough to end his day.
After Edwards' accident, it was Sprint Cup star Stewart who took control. He led 61 of the first 85 laps. But he was second behind Kenseth on lap 87 when an accident brought out the yellow flag to set up final pit stops.
Kenseth got off pit road with the lead, but Stewart's crew had problems and he found himself in ninth place. They restarted with 52 laps to go and Stewart struggled a little without the clean air of a leader.
Meanwhile, Kenseth and Todd Bodine were having fun up front and built a lead of almost two seconds before Kyle Busch slapped the outside wall on lap 101.
The accident meant two of the top-three drivers in the series were going to have a bad result. The third driver, Bowyer, was running in fifth and looking like he would leave the "Lady in Black" with a sizable points lead.
They restarted with 40 laps remaining and Stewart was up to seventh. By lap 114 Stewart was up to third, but three seconds behind Kenseth. He was second with 27 laps to go when Kenseth unexpectedly pulled down pit road with a bad vibration. He got four new tires, but he was no longer a challenger for the win.
Stewart inherited the lead and held more than one second on Mark Martin and two seconds on Jason Leffler. He was still holding a big lead when Kenseth slammed the wall on lap 128.
After a red flag, the race restarted on lap 134. Stewart, who had never won a Cup or Nationwide Series race at Darlington leading Martin, who owned a series-record eight Nationwide wins on the 1.366-mile oval.
Stewart and Martin took off together, but the No.5 Chevrolet couldn't keep pace. Then David Ragan slammed the wall on lap 137 giving Martin one last shot at win No.9.
Only three laps remained when the green flag dropped to restart the race. But Martin's car didn't go on the start, he was out of fuel and he was slammed from behind to start a multi-car accident. NASCAR brought out the red flag for a second time with al least six cars involved in the incident.
After cars pitted to repair damage, the race got back underway with Stewart and Bowyer one-two. Like Martin, Bowyer hung with Stewart for the first lap, but it was all Stewart to the checkered flag.
Bowyer will take a 112-point lead over Busch to next race - May 24th at the Lowe's Motor Speedway.
<< Stiles, Morris share Fort Smith lead
Fort Smith, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darron Stiles and Rich Morris both fired
rounds of seven-under 63 Friday to grab a share of the lead after two rounds
of the Fort Smith Classic.
Stiles and Morris completed 36 holes at 10-under-par 130
<< Wells leaves game early
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Vernon Wells
left Friday's game against the Cleveland Indians after diving for a fly ball
hit by Franklin Gutierrez in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Wells made the catch, bu
<< Sorenstam on top in Williamsburg, Ochoa three back
Williamsburg, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 2 Annika Sorenstam fired a five-
under 66 Friday to take a three-stroke lead after two rounds of the Michelob
ULTRA Open at Kingsmill.
Sorenstam completed 36 holes at 12-under-par 130, whic
<< Reds/Mets postponed by rain
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Friday's game between the Cincinnati Reds
and New York Mets was postponed due to rain.
The game will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader on Saturday, with
the start times at 1:10 p.m. (et) and 7:
Tribe rally in seven to beat Jays >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ben Francisco had a pinch-hit, two-run
double, part of a six-run Cleveland seventh inning, to lead the Indians past
the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-1, in the opener of a four-game set from Progressive
Field.
Sanchez lifts Pirates over Braves >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freddie Sanchez ripped a bouncer up the
middle to plate the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Pi
game series at PNC Park.
The Pirates blew a one-run lead in the eighth, but a
Malkin guides Pens past Flyers in Game 1 >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Evgeni Malkin scored twice and added an
assist, as Pittsburgh doubled up Philadelphia, 4-2, in Game 1 of the Eastern
Conference finals from Mellon Arena.
Sidney Crosby and Petr Sykora also tallied f
Gonzalez, Marlins dominate Nats in nation's capital >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luis Gonzalez stroked a three-run double and
Ricky Nolasco threw six strong innings in Florida's 7-3 win over the
Washington Nationals in the opener of a three-game series.
Jorge Cantu had a pair
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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