Sixers stop shorthanded Cavs

Basketball Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jrue Holiday led a balanced Philadelphia attack with 20 points as the 76ers rolled to a 99-84 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Lou Williams added 19 points, Thaddeus Young had 16, Elton Brand dropped in 11, and Jodie Meeks and Nikola Vucevic each contributed 10 as the Sixers snapped their season-high two-game losing streak.

Antawn Jamison paced the undermanned Cavaliers with 20 points, while Ramon Sessions and Alonzo Gee had 19 and 17, respectively, in the Cleveland's second straight loss and its sixth in the last nine games.

Cleveland was playing its third straight game without its No. 1 pick Kyrie Irving because of a concussion. The Cavs were also without guard Anthony Parker (lower back spasms) and center Anderson Varejao (broken right wrist).

Cleveland recorded the first points of the game with an Omri Casspi runner before Philadelphia reeled off a 12-3 run.

The Cavaliers, though, responded with a 12-4 swing to take a one-point lead, 17-16, with less than three minutes left in the opening frame.

Sessions sank a jumper after a Vucevic layup to put Cleveland back on top, but that would be the last time the Cavaliers would have the lead.

Philadelphia recorded the final three points of the first and held a 21-19 advantage after one. The Sixers then opened the second quarter with nine straight points, part of an 18-4 spurt, to jump out to a 39-23 cushion.

Williams tallied seven straight Philly points in the run, while Gee scored all four of the Cavaliers' points.

The Sixers held a double digit lead for the remainder of the half, leading by as much as 21 points en route to a 58-41 halftime advantage.

Cleveland never got closer than 13 in the third quarter before taking a 79-60 deficit into the fourth, where they trailed by as much as 21.

Game Notes

Philadelphia improved to 6-4 on the road this season, while Cleveland fell to 5-7 at home...The Sixers' bench outscored the Cavaliers', 50-32...Cleveland held a 52-40 advantage on the glass and outscored Philadelphia, 44-40, in the paint.

Wwfroogle Basketball Betting News

<< Price, Canadiens blank Maple Leafs
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carey Price made 32 saves to record his fourth shutout of the season and 16th of his career as the Montreal Canadiens blanked the Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-0, at Air Canada Centre. Mathieu Darche had a goal and a

<< Stamkos leads Bolts past Sabres
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steven Stamkos lit the lamp and added an assist while Mathieu Garon stopped 26 shots as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Buffalo Sabres, 2-1. Steve Downie also scored for Tampa Bay, which had lost t

<< Clippers send Bobcats to 14th straight loss
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blake Griffin scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers dominated the Charlotte Bobcats, 111-86, at Time Warner Cable Arena. Each of Griffin's fellow starters scored in

<< Nuggets hold off Pacers
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ty Lawson scored 27 points to lead the Nuggets to a 113-109 win over the Pacers on Saturday. Denver had five scorers in double figures, including 23 points from Arron Afflalo and 19 from Corey B

<< Princeton continues home dominance of Harvard
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harvard's unbeaten mark in the Ivy League came to a halt Saturday night against a team they haven't solved on the road in more than 23 years. Ian Hummer scored 20 points, pulled down nine rebounds and h

Umberger paces Blue Jackets over Wild >>
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - R.J. Umberger scored a pair of goals, leading the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. James Wisniewski -- playing in his first game after missing the previous

Murray State routs Austin Peay >>
Murray, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Isaiah Canaan scored 23 points to pace ninth- ranked Murray State to an 82-63 rout of Austin Peay. Jewuan Long and Ivan Aska each added 12 points for the Racers (24-1, 12-1 OVC), who moved closer to the

Spurs continue domination of Nets >>
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A balanced San Antonio offensive attack, led by Gary Neal's 18 points off the bench, powered the Spurs past New Jersey, 103-89, at Prudential Center. Tim Duncan filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 10 r

Blues top Avs in OT >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Blues continue to pile up the wins and points on home ice. Carlo Colaiacovo scored the first goal since the opening period with 1:42 to play in overtime, sending St. Louis to a 3-2 victory over

Lin pushes Knicks past T'Wolves >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The legend of "Linsanity" grew a bit larger on Saturday as Jeremy Lin scored 20 points, including a game-winning free throw with the game tied to lead the Knicks over the Timberwolves 100-98 at Target

Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

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.