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Jazz hit the road to HoustonBasketball Betting Lines02/16/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Deron Williams and the Utah Jazz kick off a four-game road trip tonight in south Texas against a Houston Rockets team on the outside looking in at the Western Conference playoff picture. The Jazz won nine of 10 games heading into the All-Star break with their lone loss coming last Wednesday when the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers invaded Salt Lake City and waxed Utah, 96-81. Lamar Odom made 7-of-9 shots from the field on his way to 25 points while pulling down 11 rebounds in that one. Pau Gasol added 22 points and 19 rebounds for the Lakers, who were playing without All-Star guard Kobe Bryant for a third straight game due to a balky left ankle. Andrei Kirilenko finished with 17 points and five rebounds for the Jazz, who trail Denver by two games in the Northwest Division and have won 13 of their last 15 overall. Wesley Matthews made 6-of-7 shots from the floor on his way to 13 points off the bench while Carlos Boozer and Williams had 11 points apiece, with Boozer pulling down 10 rebounds and Williams dishing out 10 assists in defeat. Williams was also one of the Western Conference's best players in Sundays All-Star game, netting 14 points and six assists in a 141-139 loss to the East. The Rockets, meanwhile, entered the break off one of their worst losses of the season, a 99-66 drubbing at the hands of the Miami Heat in South Beach. All-Star MVP Dwyane Wade compiled 17 points, seven assists and five steals over the first three quarters in that one as Miami snapped a season-high five- game skid. Chase Budinger had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Houston, which tied its franchise record for fewest points in a game. Luis Scola chipped in 12 points, Carl Landry netted 11, while Aaron Brooks scored 10. The Rockets, who shot a woeful 30.2 percent (26-of-86), were missing Trevor Ariza (left hip pointer) and Kyle Lowry (sprained left ankle) from the lineup. "Too many turnovers, we didn't make shots, and Wade got going," Brooks said. "We haven't been playing good basketball as of late. During the (All-Star) break we'll have time to think about it and be ready for the next round of games." Ariza may return tonight but Lowry will remain on the sidelines for Houston, which is now two games behind Portland for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. "We have to get our mindset right for the last 31 games," Rockets coach Rick Adelman told the team's Web site.
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Most consider the Boston Celtics a serious contender to win their second NBA championship in three years but Doc Rivers' veteran-laden bunch must stay healthy the rest of the way as it kicks off the second-half of the sea
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Sportsbooks to bet on footballRecently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it. He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games. "Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote. He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games. Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk. Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible. Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines. Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy. With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season. Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas). And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.) The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors. While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger. Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under. One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it. Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami. What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5. That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well. MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple. "The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money. "At the end of the day, we liked the home team." So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams. In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish. MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover. The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing. Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed. MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash. To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards. |
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