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02/04/2012 - Columbia, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The most anticipated game in the Big 12 has finally arrived, as top-10 foes Kansas and Missouri collide in Columbia, with positioning atop the conference standings at stake.
The eighth-ranked Jayhawks lead the Big 12 with an 8-1 mark. Bill Self's squad, which is 18-4 overall, had a 10-game win streak halted at Iowa State last weekend (72-64), but bounced back in a big way three days ago in Lawrence, routing the Oklahoma Sooners, 84-62.
The fourth-ranked Tigers are just one game back at 7-2 in Big 12 play. Frank Haith's first season in Columbia has gone quite well with the team sitting at 20-2 overall. Missouri comes in having won two straight and six of its last seven games, including a hard-fought 67-66 decision at Texas on Monday.
This is the 266th meeting in this historic rivalry that dates back to 1907. Kansas holds a 171-94 series advantage and has won each of the last five meetings.
Kansas shot just .393 from the floor in the first half, but still led by three points at intermission against Oklahoma this week. The Jayhawks blew the game open after the break however, draining an eye-popping 20-of-28 shots from the floor (.714) to run away from the Sooners. All-American candidate Thomas Robinson was once again unstoppable down low, finishing with 20 points and 17 rebounds. He was actually trumped in the scoring column by point guard Tyshawn Taylor, who finished with 21 points and six assists. Center Jeff Withey got into the act with 15 points, while Travis Releford chipped in 12.
The scoring deluge is nothing new for the Jayhawks, who are averaging a steady 75.6 ppg, on a healthy .484 shooting. The team is doing all the little things right as well, averaging an impressive 16 assists per game and outrebounding foes by just over six boards per game. Of course, Robinson is a big reason for that, as he has to be considered a favorite for National Player of the Year honors, averaging 17.6 points and 12.0 rebounds per game this season. Taylor provides the perfect complement with his ability to score from the outside (16.7 ppg), as well as distribute (5.3 apg). Releford (9.8 ppg), Elijah Johnson (9.1 ppg) and Withey (8.5 ppg) round out the starting five.
Missouri is one of the few teams that would welcome a shootout with Kansas. The Tigers use a four-guard set, but are definitely comfortable in their own skin, shooting .498 from the floor (fifth nationally) and putting up 81.2 ppg (sixth nationally). Marcus Denmon leads the charge in the backcourt, averaging 17.2 ppg. He gets plenty of help from Kim English and his 14.1 ppg. The pair are both at their best draining the long ball, combining for 107 of the team's 169 three-pointers to date. Ricardo Ratliffe (14.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg) is the team's resident muscle down low. Michael Dixon (12.1 ppg) is one of the best sixth men in the game. The emergence of sophomore point guard Phil Pressey has provided stability as well. The 5-10 youngster is netting 9.7 ppg and is the conference's top distributor at 6.1 assists per game.
Dixon saved the day against Texas this week, coming off the bench to hit 9- of-10 shots from the floor, leading all scorers with 21 points in 27 minutes of work, including the game-winning layup with 31 seconds remaining in the one-point victory. Ratliffe and Phil Pressey netted 13 points apiece, but Demon and English struggled, combining for just 14 points and going a miserable 6-of-20 from the floor.
<< Waves hope to crash down on 24th-ranked Bulldogs
Malibu, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Coast Conference foes meet in Malibu
tonight, as the 24th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs pay a visit to the Pepperdine
Waves.
Gonzaga was recently re-admitted into the AP Top-25 after winning four in a
row from J
<< Hoosier State rivals square off in West Lafayette
West Lafayette, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of in-state rivals jockeying for
position in the competitive Big Ten Conference meet at Mackey Arena in West
Lafayette this evening, as the 20th-ranked Indiana Hoosiers tangle with the
Purdue Boilerm
<< Bluejays go in search of 12th straight win
Cedar Rapids, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Creighton Bluejays take
aim at their 12th straight victory, as they fly into Cedar Rapids for today's
Missouri Valley Conference showdown with the Panthers of Northern Iowa.
Creighton picke
<< Tigers and Bulldogs square off Starkville
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Meeting in the first of two games scheduled
over the next two weeks, the Auburn Tigers and Mississippi State Bulldogs
square off at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville this afternoon for an SEC
tussle.
Auburn i
No.5 UNC takes on Maryland in College Park >>
College Park, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The fifth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels
play their fourth road game in the last six outings, as they head to College
Park for an ACC showdown with the Maryland Terrapins.
Roy Williams' Tar Heels are sitt
Top-ranked Wildcats collide with Gamecocks in Columbia >>
Columbia, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two teams at opposite ends of the SEC spectrum
meet up in Columbia this evening, as the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats take on
the South Carolina Gamecocks at the Colonial Life Center.
John Calipari's Wildcats h
OVC action features 10th-ranked Racers at Skyhawks >>
Martin, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 10th-ranked Murray State Racers will try to
remain the only unbeaten team in Division I as they head to Skyhawk Arena for
an Ohio Valley Conference battle with the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks.
This will be the
TCU seeks upset of No. 17 San Diego State >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sharing the top spot in the Mountain West
Conference standings with 11th-ranked UNLV, the 17th-ranked San Diego State
Aztecs try to keep moving in the right direction tonight as they host the TCU
Horned Frogs at
In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
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