 |
 Basketball Betting |
 |
||||
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Durant, Thunder drop KingsBasketball Betting Lines03/07/2010 - Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Durant scored 27 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out five assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder stayed hot with a 108-102 win over the Sacramento Kings. Russell Westbrook added 21 points and eight boards for the Thunder, who have won five of six. James Harden contributed with 14 points off the bench, Jeff Green 12 and Serge Ibaka 11 in the win. Tyreke Evans paced the Kings with 24 points and seven assists, but Sacramento suffered its eighth loss in 11 games. Carl Landry provided 20 points and eight rebounds, while Francisco Garcia had 14 points in the setback. The Thunder led by two with 9 1/2 minutes to play and scored six straight points to grab a 94-86 advantage on an Ibaka jumper with 7:28 to go. Beno Udrih was able to get Sacramento back to within two at 98-96 on a three with four minutes left, but Oklahoma City scored on each of its next three touches, with Westbrook drilling a 14-footer for a seven-point lead with 2:16 remaining. The margin was at least four for the remainder of the game. The Thunder grabbed a 26-25 lead after the first quarter and increased the advantage to 57-52 at halftime. Durant was fouled from long distance and sank all three free throws midway through the third for a 76-65 Oklahoma City advantage, but the Kings closed out the period on a 10-2 burst to climb to within two. Evans had five of the points, including a three-pointer at the buzzer to make it 81-79. Game Notes The Thunder won the season series, 3-1...OKC is 19-13 on the road, while the Kings are 15-15 at home...Jason Thompson had 11 points and eight boards for the Kings...Thabo Sefolosha had 10 points for the Thunder.
<< Patriot League Tournament Recaps
Easton, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jared Mintz hit the go-ahead jumper with 35 seconds left and finished with 14 points, as Lafayette held on for a 66-63 win over Holy Cross in the Patriot League semifinal. Jim Mower had a team-high 17 poi
<< Twins closer Nathan to undergo tests on elbow
<< BC Lions extend QB Printers
<< Montreal rallies late, downs Ducks in SO
<< Gray, Gonzaga advance to WCC tourney final
Trail Blazers-Nuggets, Box >>
PORTLAND (106)Batum 2-7 0-0 4, Aldridge 6-14 4-5 16, Howard 4-6 0-2 8, Miller 7-15 5-6 19, Roy 3-14 5-6 12, Fernandez 5-9 0-0 14, Pendergraph 0-0 0-0 0, Bayless 6-10 9-11 24, Webster 1-6 1-2 4, Cunningham 1-1 3-4 5. Totals 35-82 27-36 106.DENVER
WTA renews partnership with Sony >>
Blazers C Przybilla to undergo surgery again >>
Anthony leads Nuggets past Blazers >>
Hornets aim to stop skid vs. Warriors >>
Sportsbooks to bet on footballRecently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it. He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games. "Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote. He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games. Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk. Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible. Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines. Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy. With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season. Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas). And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.) The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors. While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger. Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under. One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it. Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami. What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5. That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well. MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple. "The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money. "At the end of the day, we liked the home team." So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams. In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish. MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover. The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing. Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed. MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash. To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
|
