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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Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds  
As of February 9, MySportsbook.com has released its coveted 2007 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds. “March Madness betting ” only a month away, the top ranked Florida Gators are favorite at 7-2 to win it all. The defending champs have not disappointed at all this season and currently have a 22-2 record and are undefeated (9-0) in SEC play. The Gators’ thrive off of their extremely balanced, experienced and versatile attack. All five starters started in last seasons National Championship game. What is most impressive with this group is their balance; the five starters all average between 10.7 and 13.6 PPG. The Gators have been on an absolute roll having won 15 straight by an average of 16.4 PPG.

Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though.

Other teams that the MySportsbook.com members seem to believe will win it all include the west coasts’ top team #2 UCLA (6-1), #3 OSU behind man-child Greg Oden (8-1), and #4 Wisconsin (10-1) behind their defense which has given up 70+ points only three times all season.

Below is a list of some of the favorites to win the 2007 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship lines. For the full list of teams and March Madness odds be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com. If you want to use your credit card to bet on college hoops or any other event, MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.

Arizona 20-1

Butler 20-1

Duke 30-1

Florida 7-2

Georgetown 30-1

Indiana 35-1

Kansas 15-1

Marquette 25-1

Maryland 40-1

Memphis 50-1

Nevada 50-1

UNC 9-2

OSU 8-1

Oregon 30-1

Pittsburgh 15-1

Texas 30-1

Texas A&M 18-1

UCLA 6-1

Wisconsin 10-1

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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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