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02/09/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets are not making excuses that injuries are the main reason why they're mired in a season-high four-game losing streak.
"We have a lot of young talent and a lot of players with experience. We have a long bench and at this moment with the injuries, we have to find a way to play better and more aggressively," said Nuggets reserve guard Rudy Fernandez.
The Nuggets hope to right the ship tonight in the finale of a three-game homestand versus the Golden State Warriors at the Pepsi Center and have been dealing with a rash of injuries to leading scorer Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov and the absence of Corey Brewer, who is dealing with the death of his father. Gallinari is expected to miss about a month with an ankle injury and Mozgov is nursing the same kind of injury.
Denver did get a healthy Aaron Afflalo (ankle/toe) and Nene (heel) back in Wednesday's matchup with the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, but dropped a 105-95 decision. Al Harrington and Fernandez each scored 17 points, while Ty Lawson chipped in 16 points and 10 assists in the Nuggets' sixth loss in seven tries since a season-best six-game winning streak.
"I don't think we're playing bad basketball, I just don't think we're playing winning basketball," said Nuggets coach George Karl about his team's skid. "I think right now we're doing the [right] things probably 30-35 minutes a game."
Nene added 16 points and grabbed 10 boards, and Afflalo finished with 12 points. Andre Miller posted 11 in a losing effort. The Nuggets, who are 7-6 at home this season, will play four of five games on the road following tonight's test with the Warriors.
Warriors leading scorer Monta Ellis is averaging 33.0 points over his last three games and his career-high 48-point performance in Tuesday's 119-116 loss versus Oklahoma City wasn't enough to lift his team to victory. Ellis has averaged 19.4 points in 16 career games against Denver and hopes to improve that number Thursday night in the Rocky Mountains.
"It was just going in for me tonight," Ellis said after the loss. "Unfortunately we didn't get the win. Our effort was there, we played them hard the whole game and it just came down to one shot."
David Lee had a triple-double with 25 points 11 boards and 10 assists in the loss to the Thunder, while Stephen Curry recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 assists for Golden State, which has lost two straight and six of its last nine contests. The Warriors shot 55 percent and still lost. Dorell Wright had just nine points, but is averaging 16.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.40 steals in his last five games.
Lee's second career triple-double was the first by a Warriors power forward since Chris Webber back in 1993. The Warriors look to build on their 2-6 road record this evening and have dropped two straight as the guest. They are 3-9 against the West this season and will have several chances to improve that record in a current stretch of 15 games in a row against the conference (3-4).
Warriors guard Nate Robinson (groin) is questionable against the Nuggets.
Golden State lost two of three meetings with Denver a year ago and has dropped 10 of the past 12 matchups between the teams. The Warriors haven't played so well lately in the Rockies either, losing six straight and 13 of 14 visits there. They haven't won a set with the Nuggets since a four-game sweep in 2002-03.
<< Celtics, Lakers renew rivalry in Beantown
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pro basketball's most storied rivalry resumes in Beantown
on Thursday, when the streaking Boston Celtics aim to complete a perfect five-
game homestand versus the despised Los Angeles Lakers.
The Celtics (17) and Lake
<< Rangers try to rebound against Lightning
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Rangers will try to rebound from a
controversial loss when they welcome the Tampa Bay Lightning for tonight's
battle at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers dropped a 1-0 regulation decision Tuesday against the
<< Habs aim to make it three straight in clash with Isles
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens will try to post their longest
winning streak in over three months when they visit the New York Islanders
tonight at Nassau Coliseum.
The Canadiens have recorded recent home wins over Winnipeg and Pi
<< OVC action pits Racers against Tigers
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
Argentines set to face host Germans in Davis Cup >>
Bamberg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last year's runner-up Argentina will
battle host Germany in an opening-round Davis Cup tie this weekend.
The best-of-five affair will commence with a pair of opening singles rubbers
on Friday, as
Wings, Leafs to meet in 2013 Winter Classic at the Big House >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs
will play in the 2013 Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman made the announcement Thursday at Comerica Park
in Detroit,
Whiting seeks another Run for the Roses >>
Hot Springs, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's been 20 years since trainer Lynn
Whiting saddled longshot colt Lil E. Tee to win the 118th Kentucky Derby. The
Midwest conditioner has another three-year-old in his stable at Oaklawn Park
giving
U.S. will host friendly against Brazil in May >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The U.S. men's national team will host five-
time World Cup champion Brazil in a friendly on May 30 in Landover, Md. during
final preparations for 2014 World Cup qualifying.
The U.S. opened the year with win
The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.
Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.
The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
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."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
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.
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