OVC action pits Racers against Tigers

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/09/2012 - Murray, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ninth-ranked Murray State Racers will once again march out on the court to defend their perfect record as they host the Tennessee State Tigers in an Ohio Valley Conference clash at the CFSB Center.

This will be the first of two scheduled meetings between the Racers and Tennessee State this season. Murray State holds a 46-15 edge in the all-time series after winning the last eight encounters with the Tigers.

Tennessee State is going to be one of the tougher matchups for the Racers on their OVC schedule. The Tigers are 15-10 overall and 8-4 in league action after their 75-72 road victory over Southeast Missouri State on Saturday, which left them in a tie for second place in the league standings. Head coach John Cooper's team continued to play well offensively as it shot 42.4 percent from the fiend and 38.5 percent from beyond the arc in the victory over SEMO. Tennessee State is fourth in league action in the OVC with a scoring average of 72.0 ppg. The Tigers are the second hottest team in the conference, as they carry a five-game winning streak into tonight.

Robert Covington is one of the top players in the conference, as he carries averages of 17.8 points and 8.0 rebounds per contest. The junior forward was exceptional his last time out, as he netted 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help his squad push past Southeast Missouri State. Kellen Thornton came up big off the bench in the same contest with 15 points and six boards off the bench while Kenny Moore added 11 points. Patrick Miller controls the offense and is posting 11.7 points and a team-high 3.5 assists per game.

Head coach Steve Prohm is 23-0 for his career in leading the Racers to their incredible start. Murray State's road to perfection has seen recent close calls, as every OVC team is trying to make headlines with an upset. After a second-half comeback against Missouri State on Thursday of last week, the Racers outlasted Tennessee-Martin to pick up a 65-58 victory, which made them 11-0 in league action. Murray State's statistics illustrate their dominance, as it leads the OVC in both scoring offense (75.2) and scoring defense (61.3).

The Racers have been paced by their MVP candidate Isaiah Canaan. The junior guard is ranked second in the league and 24th in the nation in scoring with 19.3 ppg and is also third in the OVC in assists with 3.8 per game. Donte Poole and Ivan Aska have been steadily contributing to keep Murray State rolling. Poole has been slumping as of late, as he has gone 1-of-15 from the floor in his last two contests. Aska grabbing a team-best 5.9 boards per game. Jewuan Long stretches the defense with his 51.4 percent shooting from beyond the arc.

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.

Brandon Roy Favorite to Win 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year

Portland TrailBlazer’s guard, Brandon Roy, is MySportsbook.com’s overwhelming favorite to win the NBA Rookie of the Year odds.

Despite missing 20 games due to an injury earlier this season, Roy has definitely put up the best numbers of his 1st year peers. In 32 games, Roy is averaging 15.3 PPG, 4.2 boards and 3.5 assists in over 33 minutes of play per game. While most rookies breakdown as the season progresses (see Morrison), Roy is only getting stronger as his playing time and scoring average has increased each month.

With 30 or so games left in the regular season, Roy isn’t a lock for the award by any means. Other rookies are putting together some pretty impressive campaigns and a few could give Roy a run for the award with increased playing time. Heading the list is first pick, Andrea Bargnani of the Toronto Raptors. Even though he has started only two games all season, Bargnani is averaging 10.3 PPPG while shooting 35% from deep.

Randy Foye of the Minnesota Timberwolves could be set to give Roy the best competition NBA Rookie of the Year betting lines. With the benching of Mike James, Foye looks like he could be the starter in the T-Wolves backcourt for the rest of the season. So far, Foye has averaged 9 PPG and 2.4 assists in just under 21 minutes per game. With his new role of starter, Foye’s numbers will definitely increase. In his first game as the new starting guard this past Sunday, Foye had 10 points; five rebounds and 8 assists. More importantly, he logged 34 minutes of playing time; his third highest run of the season.

Adam Morrison, of the Charlotte Bobcats, was the favorite early on in the season after averaging 15+ PPG through the first month of the season. Ever since his torrid start, Morrison’s point production has declined each month. This really isn’t surprising, considering at 6’8” he only weighs 205 lbs. Obviously he will need to hit the weights big time during the off-season in order to keep from breaking down in the future.

Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to bet on the NBA. With the regular season about to hit the homestretch, it is important to point out that MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.

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