Buckeyes battle streaking Golden Gophers for Big Ten title

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/14/2010 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - An unlikely matchup will take place at Conseco Fieldhouse, as the sixth-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers will battle the top-seeded Ohio State Buckeyes in the championship game of the Big Ten Conference Tournament.

Minnesota is one step away from claiming its first-ever Big Ten Tournament championship, and even though the top-seeded Buckeyes stand in the way, the Golden Gophers are riding a tremendous wave of momentum. The Gophers dominated Penn State in the opening round (76-55), but that was nothing compared to the team's next two wins. In the quarterfinals, the Golden Gophers defeated the third-seeded Michigan State Spartans, 72-67, in overtime, and if that was not impressive enough, Minnesota completely dominated the second-seeded Purdue Boilermakers on Saturday, winning by a 69-42 margin.

Ohio State, which claimed the Big Ten regular season title with a 14-4 league record, is looking to erase the memory of last season's loss to Purdue in the championship game. Ohio State has won this event twice however, with the last title coming in 2007. The Buckeyes avoided disaster in the quarterfinals with a last second, 69-68, victory over Michigan, and followed that win with an 88-81 decision over Illinois in double overtime on Saturday.

In regard to the all-time series between the two schools on the hardwood, the Buckeyes own a commanding, 75-55 edge over Minnesota. Earlier this season the Golden Gophers defeated Ohio State, 73-62, but the Buckeyes responded with an 85-63 victory over Minnesota on January 31st. The two teams have never clashed on a neutral site, but when ranked, the Buckeyes are an outstanding 21-3 against Minnesota.

The Golden Gophers used the perfect time of the season to put forth their best showing at the defensive end of the court, as Minnesota held Purdue to just 42 points in the semifinal victory. Minnesota simply dominated the Boilermakers in the first half, limiting Purdue to just 11 points on a horrific 18.5 percent shooting effort. Overall, the Gophers held Purdue to a woeful 27.6 percent clip from the floor and that included an equally poor 2-of-14 showing from behind the arc. At the other end of the floor Minnesota shot 48.0 percent overall and was paced by Ralph Sampson III, who finished with 13 points. Colton Iverson added 11 points off the bench, while Devoe Joseph tallied 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists. On the season however, the Gophers have been led by Lawrence Westbrook, who is averaging 12.5 ppg. Blake Hoffarber is contributing 10.5 ppg, while Damian Johnson is posting 10.1 ppg.

The Buckeyes needed double overtime, but eventually Ohio State was able to avoid another scare by pushing past Illinois, 88-81. Ohio State shot 47.8 percent from the floor in the matchup, and also connected on 9-of-25 shots from behind the arc. Evan Turner continues to show why he is one of the best players in the nation, as the guard poured in 31 points, to go along with 10 rebounds. However, Turner was not flawless in this contest, as he finished the game with 10 turnovers. William Buford also finished with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Jon Diebler and David Lighty helped out with 14 and 12 points, respectively. While the Buckeyes possess a few options offensively, the team is clearly led by Turner, who comes into this title game pacing the squad with 19.9 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 160 assists and 49 steals. Buford is contributing 14.5 ppg and has also dished out 104 assists for Ohio State, which as a whole is producing 73.8 ppg on the season.

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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.

Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds

Will he or won't he?  Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.

Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.

"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."

Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.

Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.

But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.

Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback.  It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.

Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1


Atlanta Falcons 50-1


Baltimore Ravens 15-1


Buffalo Bills 50-1


Carolina Panthers 18-1


Chicago Bears 10-1


Cincinnati Bengals 15-1


Cleveland Browns 100-1


Dallas Cowboys 15-1


Denver Broncos 15-1


Detroit Lions 100-1


Green Bay Packers 50-1


Houston Texans 100-1


Indianapolis Colts 6-1


Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1


Kansas City Chiefs 30-1


Miami Dolphins 40-1


Minnesota Vikings 75-1


New England Patriots 10-1


New Orleans Saints 18-1


New York Giants 20-1


New York Jets 30-1


Oakland Raiders 100-1


Philadelphia Eagles 18-1


Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1


Saint Louis Rams 60-1


San Diego Chargers 6-1


San Francisco 49ers 75-1


Seattle Seahawks 20-1


Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1


Tennessee Titans 40-1


Washington Redskins 50-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook credit cards needs.