Instate rivals meet in critical ACC tilt

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/01/2007 - Charlottesville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 21st-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies and the Virginia Cavaliers are two of the three teams tied for first place in the ACC standings, making today's meeting in Charlottesville one to watch.

Tech has won its last two games to move to 20-8 overall and 10-4 in conference play. They knocked off Miami on Saturday by a 73-57 final, and that win was preceded by a 17-point romp over Boston College. Still, keep in mind that the Hokies are a mediocre 4-4 in true road games.

Virginia has won three of its last four outings and has a chance to reach the 20-win plateau if it can score a victory tonight. The Cavaliers knocked off Georgia Tech on Saturday by a 75-69 final and are now a stellar 15-1 at home.

Keep in mind that Virginia Tech crushed rival Virginia by an 84-57 final on February 10th, overshadowing the fact that the Cavs still own a commanding 77-47 advantage in the all-time series.

Zabian Dowdell is scoring 18.1 ppg to lead Virginia Tech, and he has posted 94 assists and 62 steals while shooting 41.8 percent from three-point range and 82.6 percent from the foul line. Deron Washington adds 11.9 ppg for the Hokies, who are getting 11.4 ppg from both Jamon Gordon and A.D. Vassallo. Tech is posting 73.6 ppg this season while holding opponents to 64.2 ppg on 41 percent shooting from the floor. Also key to the success of the Hokies is the fact that they have forced 123 more turnovers than they have committed. In the 16-point victory over Miami last time out, Virginia Tech shot 49 percent from the floor while limiting the Hurricanes to 36.8 percent overall efficiency. Also, the Hokies committed just eight giveaways, seven fewer than their counterparts.

It is no secret that Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds are the keys to Virginia's success, as those two players form one of the nation's most explosive duos. Singletary is netting 18.6 ppg to go along with 126 assists, and while he is shooting a lackluster 39.9 percent from the floor, his 39.1 percent efficiency from three-point range and 89 percent accuracy from the foul line are both impressive. As for Reynolds, he checks in with 18.5 ppg, including 21.1 ppg in league play. Reynolds exploded for 25 points in Saturday's victory over Georgia Tech, and Singletary was close behind with 24 points despite 7-of-21 overall shooting. The Cavaliers committed five fewer turnovers than the Yellow Jackets while also scoring five more points from the foul line.

Wwhangame NCAA Basketball Betting News

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

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