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Stoudemire carries Suns back in West finalsBasketball Betting Lines05/24/2010 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amare Stoudemire erupted for a career playoff- high-tying 42 points to go with 11 rebounds, and the Phoenix Suns climbed back into the Western Conference finals with a 118-109 Game 3 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. The Suns were abused down in the post in losing the first two games in LA, but Stoudemire's valiant effort, coupled with a 37-of-42 showing from the free throw line, helped Phoenix cut its series deficit to 2-1. "We came out with great intensity. It was an important game. We had to get this one and we played well," Stoudemire said. "I was ready. I wanted to attack their bigs a little bit and get them into foul trouble." Robin Lopez put in 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, Jason Richardson added 19 points and Steve Nash contributed his usual 17 points and 15 assists for the Suns, who won the fourth quarter, 32-25. Kobe Bryant finished with 36 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for Los Angeles, which committed 17 turnovers compared to just seven for Phoenix. "Some of them were bobbled balls, dribbling with a toe out of bounds. Some of them came from their zone." Bryant said of the giveaways. "We were expecting them to have a breakout game at some point in this series." Pau Gasol scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and Derek Fisher netted 18 points for the Lakers, who had their eight-game winning streak broken. Lamar Odom, after averaging 18 points and 15 rebounds in the first two games in LA, had 10 and six before fouling out. Game 4 of the series will be in Phoenix on Tuesday. "We did a good job tonight and now we have to put all of our focus on Tuesday to try to win another game," Gentry said. Odom sank two free throws 3:13 into the final stanza to give LA its first -- and only -- lead of the second half, 90-89. Phoenix countered with 11 of the next 13 points, as Stoudemire's 15-footer from the top of the key resulted in a 100-92 game near the midway point. The Lakers got the next four points via Bryant free throws, the latter two coming with 3:51 remaining. Stoudemire, who suffered a cut between his eyebrows on a hard foul from Fisher late in the third quarter, answered with a driving layup through traffic, and Odom, after missing an open three, fouled out with 3:16 on the clock. Lopez's subsequent free throws made it 104-96, and Nash followed with a deep jumper for a 10-point game. The closest the Lakers got from there was six, 108-102, following a Ron Artest three-pointer with 1 1/2 minutes left. Stoudemire's quick bucket and an Artest miss on the next possession essentially sealed Phoenix's pivotal victory. "They attacked the rim and got 42 foul shots. That appeared to be their game plan," said Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, whose teams are a perfect 35-0 when taking a 2-0 series lead. "We didn't start out the way I wanted and we didn't finish the right way." An evenly-played first quarter ended with the Lakers, led by Bryant's 15 points, holding a 32-29 advantage. The Suns went through a cold stretch early in the second and trailed 45-39 following a Bryant fadeaway with under five minutes left. But a Stoudemire dunk off his own miss ignited a 15-2 stretch to end the half, as a pair of free throws by Grant Hill and Lopez in the final minute put Phoenix on top, 54-47. The Suns led at halftime thanks to 18-of-20 shooting from the foul line, compared to an 0-for-3 effort by LA. Phoenix never gave up the lead in the third despite holding no more than a two-possession cushion most of the way. Two late Leandro Barbosa free throws gave the hosts a slim 86-84 edge with 12 minutes to play. Game Notes The Lakers won the rebounding battle by a tight 41-40 margin...The Suns, who improved to 5-1 at US Airways Arena in these playoffs, tallied 18 fast-break points to just three for the Lakers...Artest finished with 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting...Hill grabbed nine rebounds to go with five points...Phoenix's Channing Frye had a mere one point on 0-of-7 shooting. He has made just one of his 20 field goal attempts in the series...Both teams shot poorly from three-point land, as LA made 9-of-32 (28.1 percent) and Phoenix connected on 5-of-20 (25 percent)...Andrew Bynum, battling a knee injury, played only 7 1/2 minutes and made his lone field goal attempt...Jackson, Fisher and Lopez were each whistled for technical fouls.
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Online Sportsbook Football BettingColts give the ‘D’ its dueThe Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain. They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities. "They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure." Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line. New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest. Not so sound on the ground If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU. Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com “We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star. Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground. Brees says bring it on Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites. Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship. Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game. "I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time." SportsBooks ready for a shootout Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses. “This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.” New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts. The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game. “Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.” |
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