 |
 Basketball Betting |
 |
||||
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Garnett's all-around game boosts CelticsBasketball Betting Lines06/13/2010 - BOSTON (AP) -Kevin Garnett scored, rebounded and blocked shots. Steal the ball? He did that, too. Five times. Garnett's best all-around performance of the NBA finals lacked one memorable gesture. Boston's emotional leader didn't kiss the leprechaun symbol at center court the way he did two years ago moments after the Celtics won their 17th championship. But his brilliance in their 92-86 win over the Lakers on Sunday night helped the Celtics move one win away from their 18th title even though the clincher will have to come in Los Angeles. Leading 3-2, Boston can finish the series in Game 6 on Tuesday night or Game 7 on Thursday. In the Celtics final home game of the season, Garnett did it all - 18 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and those five steals. He sank his first five shots and didn't miss until 4:30 remained in the third quarter. He went 6 for 7 from the free throw line. And down the stretch, he made two critical plays. The Lakers cut the lead to 81-75 on a putback by Lamar Odom, and the Celtics called timeout with 6:02 left. When they came out of the break, Garnett connected from the foul line for an eight-point lead. He delivered again when Kobe Bryant tried to pass into the lane. Garnett got a hand on the ball, and he and Odom tied it up. Garnett won the jump ball, but Paul Pierce missed a shot on that possession. Rajon Rondo, though, tipped the ball in to give Boston an 87-75 lead with 3:55 remaining. Now the star who went as far as the Western Conference finals just once in 12 years with the Minnesota Timberwolves stands on the brink of his second championship in three years with the Celtics. During his trip to the West finals came in 2004, the Lakers were the opponent and a six-game elimination was the result. Garnett had 22 points and 17 rebounds in the last game, but also committed eight turnovers in the 96-90 loss. On Sunday, he had just 3. Garnett's worst game of the series was Game 2. The Celtics won 103-94 in Los Angeles but he had just six points and four rebounds with no steals or blocks. ``I'm down on myself about being proactive and being in the game and doing multiple things,'' Garnett said before practice Saturday. One day later, that's exactly what he did. When the game ended after a missed shot by the Lakers, Garnett stood under the Los Angeles basket, raised his right fist ever so slightly and walked calmly off the court. He has one more game to win. The Celtics leave for Los Angeles on Monday morning with a 3-2 series lead that Garnett helped build. He hopes to return Wednesday with another title.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
<< Gasol little more than a spectator to Kobe show
BOSTON (AP) -Pau Gasol finally got the ball with a chance to shoot, and Kevin Garnett sent it back at him.A few minutes later, the same thing happened.Gasol was little more than a spectator of the Kobe Bryant show in Game 5 of the NBA finals on Sund
<< Lakers-Celtics, Box
<< 2010 Near No-Hitters
<< McNamee claims Clemens' foundation paid for drugs
<< Pierce leads Celtics to halftime lead in Game 5
Lilly flirts with no-hitter as Cubs edge White Sox >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ted Lilly did not allow hit through eight innings and Chad Tracy drove in the game's lone run, as the Cubs avoided a sweep with a 1-0 win over the White Sox in the finale of their three-game interleague series at
Celtics hold off late charge by Lakers to take Game 5 >>
Vince Young cited for assault >>
Arizona State among teams advancing to CWS >>
Own goal damages Danes against Dutch >>
MySportsbook features easy-to-use online betting software that’s the most reliable in the industry. If you’re looking to bet underdogs, then this Sportsbook is the place - we have the best betting lines in the business. MySportsbook is your one-stop shop for all your betting needs - sports betting, poker, casino, and horse racing . MySportsbook offers every bet type with lightning fast settlement of wagers. Take advantage of free statistical analysis - including against-the-spread and straight-up trends - in MySportsbook’s game previews section. With MySportsbook there are unlimited free deposits and payouts - and no transaction fees! To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?" A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook. In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small. "Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets." But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?" Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year. This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here. Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions. In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries. No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning. And that's all any bettor can ask for. To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. |
|
