SEC showdown pits Gators against Wildcats

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/07/2010 - Lexington, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Kentucky Wildcats close out the regular season this afternoon with an SEC clash against the Florida Gators, who need a victory to help their NCAA Tournament prospects.

Losses in the last two games have dropped Florida to 20-10 overall and 9-6 in conference, and the club is considered "on the bubble" as the SEC Tournament approaches. The two losses during the current slide have come by a total of six points, including a 64-60 setback at home to Vanderbilt on Tuesday. There is no question that a win over Kentucky on the road this afternoon would do wonders for the Gators' resume'.

The Wildcats clinched at least a share of their 44th SEC title with an 80-68 victory over Georgia on Wednesday, and they earned the outright title by virtue of Vanderbilt's loss yesterday. At 28-2 overall, including 13-2 versus league foes, it seems that Kentucky is a lock to receive a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The squad has dominated the SEC Tournament over the years and will be the favorite to win that event for sure.

Kentucky beat Florida by a 77-89 final on January 12th, and the Wildcats own a commanding 87-32 series advantage over the Gators.

Florida is generating 71.7 ppg this season while allowing 64.7 ppg to opponents. There are five double-digit scorers in the fold, and Kenny Boynton leads the way with 13.5 ppg despite his 36.8 percent shooting. Erving Walker, the team's second-leading scorer, provides 12.7 ppg despite his abysmal 34.8 percent field goal efficiency. On a positive note, Walker has dished out 151 assists, more than double his turnover total, and he tops the club with 45 steals as well. Chandler Parsons (12.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg), Alex Tyus (11.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg) and Vernon Macklin (10.7 ppg) are solid contributors as well. Macklin posted 21 points and nine rebounds from his center position against Vanderbilt on Tuesday, but he was the only Gator to reach double figures in scoring. Florida shot just 36.5 percent from the field and went ice cold down the stretch.

Not only are John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins two of the best players in all of college basketball, but the freshmen may be the top two picks in the next NBA Draft if they decide to leave Kentucky after only one season. Wall is a dynamic point guard who is averaging 17.0 ppg to go along with 6.2 apg, 4.1 rpg and 54 steals. Cousins, a beast on the low block, brings 15.9 ppg and 10.1 rpg to the mix to complement his team-high 54 blocked shots. While Cousins is shooting 54.5 percent from the floor, Patrick Patterson (15.0 ppg, 10.1 rpg) is even more efficient at 58.8 percent. Rounding out a foursome of double- digit scorers is Eric Bledsoe with 10.3 ppg. The Wildcats are netting 79.9 ppg while holding opponents to 65.6 ppg on 38.2 percent shooting. Against Georgia on Wednesday, Wall scored 24 points and handed out six assists. Patterson tallied 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Darnell Dodson posted 11 points. The Wildcats shot 54.5 percent from the field in that clash and overcame a 38-28 rebounding deficit.

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MySportsbook.com refunds all bets on Oakland, Green Bay and Tampa Bay from NFL week one.

(September 14) – Week one of NFL action saw three teams go scoreless for the first time since 1977.  Another four were unable to get a touchdown and almost half of the underdogs covered the spread. Those three teams saved bettors at MySportsbook.com from losing out completely, thanks to the company’s unique NFL Shutout Rule -- which ensures that if the team you backed goes scoreless, your wager is refunded.

Sportsbook refunded tens of thousands of dollars to customers who bet on Oakland, Green Bay and Tampa Bay, the three teams that stunk up the field so badly that their fans and backers never had a chance to get up from their couches and cheer.  In the spirit of the low scoring start to the season, odds makers at the world’s largest online sportsbook and casino have set odds on how many total shutouts there will be this season. 

MySportsbook.com has posted updated sports betting lines for week two of the season.  Ben Roethlisberger’s health status is still questionable, so Willie Parker will try to lead Pittsburgh again as they travel to Jacksonville as a one point favorite.  After beating up on his little brother last week, Peyton Manning will look to lead the Colts to victory against Houston. Indianapolis is a whopping 13.5 favorite in the match-up.

Seattle, last year’s highest scoring team, showed the power of their defense with their gritty 9-6 win in Motown over the ravenous Lions.  They take their act back home to the comforts of Qwest Field where they will face the resurgent Arizona Cardinals.  The Seahawks are favored by a touchdown. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

Sportsbooks to bet on football

Recently 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.