Irish put win streak on the line against dangerous Wildcats

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/27/2007 - South Bend, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Undefeated at home this season, the 22nd-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish attempt to remain that way, as they host the Villanova Wildcats in Big East action from the Joyce Center this afternoon.

This is the second time in the last 10 days that these teams have faced off, with Villanova capturing the first meeting, 102-87. Since then, Jay Wright's squad has strung together two more victories, with impressive performances against Texas (76-69) and most recently, at Providence (82-73). The win over the Friars moved Villanova to 14-5 overall and 3-3 in league play.

The Irish are a half game better at 4-3 in Big East tilts, but Mike Brey's team is coming off a 71-68 loss at St. John's, the team's second loss in the last three games. Still, the Irish return home where they have won all 14 games this season and are enjoying a 16-game homecourt winning streak overall.

The Wildcats hold a 16-12 edge in the series with Notre Dame and have won the last three meetings.

Villanova's top player, Curt Sumpter has been nursing a bone bruise the last two games, but that hasn't stopped the team from winning. In fact, Jay Wright has utilized several other players, who have stepped up when needed lately. In the victory over Providence, freshman Scottie Reynolds erupted for a team-high 20 points to lead the way. Backcourt mate Mike Nardi was right behind with 19 points, while Dante Cunningham and Shane Clark tallied 13 and 11 points, respectively. Sumpter did play sparingly, coming off the bench for 16 minutes of work, finishing with seven points and four rebounds. On the season, Sumpter leads the team in both scoring (18.3 ppg) and rebounding (6.6 rpg) and getting him healthy is a priority the rest of the way. Nardi (14.3 ppg) and Reynolds (12.2 ppg) are decent complements with their perimeter efforts. Nardi is shooting .381 from long range this year and paces the team with 51 three- pointers. The team as a whole is averaging a steady 77.5 ppg, on .456 shooting.

Notre Dame has plenty of scoring punch, as one of the top offensive teams in the nation at 83.3 ppg (seventh nationally). The team is shooting .479 from the floor and nearly 40 percent from behind the arc (.397). Russell Carter is one of the Big East's most exciting players, as he is draining 44.7 percent of his three-point shots (59-of-132), en route to a team-high 18.3 ppg. Several others are averaging double-digits in support, with Rob Kurz (14.2 ppg), Colin Falls (12.8 ppg) and Luke Harangody (11.1 ppg) all getting in the act as well. Carter erupted for a career-high 32 points, but it wasn't enough in a three- point setback to St. John's. Falls poured in 16 points in support, but Harangody was held to a season-low one point. The Irish shot .439 from the floor, but really struggled in the second half, converting a mere 9-of-30 attempts (.300).

Wwwasian-odds NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< WAC rivals lock horns in Reno
Reno, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Utah State Aggies take on their toughest opponent of the season tonight as they matchup against the 18th-ranked Nevada Wolf Pack in Western Athletic Conference action from the Lawlor Events

<< BYU puts lengthy home winning streak on line vs. Air Force
Provo, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The BYU Cougars put the nation's third-longest home winning streak on the line today as they battle the 16th-ranked Air Force Falcons in Mountain West Conference action from the Marriott Center. Trailin

<< Red Storm seek upset in Steel City
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. John's Red Storm are coming off a big-time win over a league opponent, and they will attempt to score a Big East upset on the road today against the ninth-ranked Pittsburgh Panthers. St.

<< Memphis goes in search of ninth straight win
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The premier team in Conference USA is the 11th-ranked Memphis Tigers, and they welcome the Southern Miss Golden Eagles to town this afternoon. With back-to-back wins, Southern Miss has improve

<< Big Ten foes meet in Bloomington
Bloomington, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Long-time rivals will meet in Bloomington this afternoon, as 23rd-ranked Indiana and Michigan collide in a Big Ten Conference contest. Michigan carried a two-game win streak into Wednesday

Kings head to Edmonton attempting to get on a roll >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After finally breaking out of a lengthy losing streak on Friday, the Los Angeles Kings will try to make it back-to-back wins when they invade Edmonton's Rexall Place tonight for a matchup with the Oilers. Los Angeles

Pacers close out homestand vs. Toronto >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Indiana Pacers will close out a four-game homestand this evening when they welcome the Toronto Raptors to Conseco Fieldhouse. Indiana is 2-1 on the homestand and has posted back-to-back wins, including Wednesday

Hawks welcome 76ers to Philips Arena >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers open a three-game road trip when they visit the Atlanta Hawks tonight at Philips Arena. The 76ers had a two-game winning streak stopped with Friday's 105-97 loss to the LeBron James-less Clev

Portland takes on Grizzlies in Memphis >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Memphis Grizzlies will open a five-game homestand this evening when they welcome the Portland Trail Blazers to FedExForum. Memphis, which is last in the Southwest standings and 8-13 at home this season, comple

Hornets aim to sting visiting Jazz >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Northwest Division-leading Utah Jazz hit the road this evening to take on the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets at the Ford Center. Utah has won five of its last six games, including Friday's 116-111 victory over

Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond!

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .