Butler hosts Wright State in Horizon League semis

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/07/2009 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Butler Bulldogs will finally take the floor in the 2009 Horizon League Tournament, when they host the Wright State Raiders in semifinal-round action at the Hinkle Fieldhouse.

The Raiders find themselves in the semis after defeating UW-Milwaukee, 80-70, in quarterfinal play on Friday. Wright State, which finished 12-6 in conference, earning the fourth-seed, opened the tournament with a 68-56 victory over Valparaiso.

As for the 22nd-ranked Bulldogs, they earned the top seed in this event and a bye into this round with a 15-3 conference ledger. It was the seventh Horizon League regular season championship for Butler, which is participating in the semifinals for the 11th time in 13 seasons and will be trying to repeat as conference tournament champion. The Bulldogs will have a clear advantage playing at home where the team is 14-1 this season, and 124-16 since 1999-2000.

The Bulldogs defeated Wright State twice this season, and that included a convincing 64-48 decision over the Raiders at Hinkle Fieldhouse back in January. With the two victories over Wright State this season, the Bulldogs now own a 19-15 mark in the all-time series.

The Raiders opened the second half against UW-Milwaukee with a 15-2 run, and never looked back as the team went on to defeat the Panthers in an 80-70 final. Wright State shot a sizzling 53.2 percent from the floor in the win, and that included an even more impressive 12-of-18 showing from behind the arc. Cory Cooperwood's double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds led the way, while Cooper Land tallied 13 points off the bench. N'Gai Evans added 12 points and five assists in the win, and Scott Grote chipped in 10 points. It was without question a surprising performance by WSU, which is averaging just 60.6 ppg. The team's leading scorer, Todd Brown (11.8 ppg), was not even a factor in the win over UWM, as the guard finished with just eight points. Although the Raiders were offensive-oriented in their recent win, the team still relies on its tenacious defensive play, which has held opponents to just 57.3 ppg on the season.

Butler's success this year also stems from the its outstanding defensive play. The Bulldogs allow a mere 57.4 ppg, and just a 37.9 percent shooting from the field. Butler is also forcing 13.6 turnovers per matchup, and as a team the Bulldogs are outrebounding the competition by 3.2 rpg. The Bulldogs were at it again in the regular-season finale against Cleveland State, as Butler held the Vikings to 56 points on a 40.4 percent shooting from the floor. Butler forced 14 turnovers. Offensively, the team was paced by Willie Veasley who scored 16 points and also collected seven rebounds. Matt Howard contributed 12 points, while Ronald Nored tallied 11. The HL's Newcomer of the Year, Gordon Hayward, chipped in with nine points and six boards for Butler. Hayward, who was also selected to the All-Horizon First Team, is contributing 13.8 ppg on the season, but the main scoring threat has been Howard who is averaging 14.3 ppg and 6.9 rpg. Shelvin Mac has been a terrific floor general for Butler, handing out 103 assists, to go with his 11.7 ppg.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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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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