Deng helps Bulls stay on the rise, down Pacers
Basketball Betting Lines
02/24/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luol Deng poured in 31 points to go along with nine rebounds and four blocks, as resurgent Chicago continued its late February climb with a 120-110 victory over Indiana.
The Bulls, now winners in five of their last six games, also got 23 points, nine rebounds and eight assists from Derrick Rose. Taj Gibson and Kirk Hinrich each added 14 points, while new Bull Flip Murray added 16 points for the second straight game for Chicago.
Brandon Rush led a balanced Indiana attack with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Danny Granger totaled 20 points and seven boards. Luther Head added 15 points, T.J. Ford 14 and Dahntay Jones joined Troy Murphy with 13 points. The Pacers shot just 40.9 percent from the floor, but stayed close thanks to 13 three-pointers.
The Bulls made 56.5 percent of their shots in a dominating first period, leading by as many as 23 points before settling for a 37-18 advantage. Chicago tallied nine straight points for a 15-4 lead on Miller's trey and the edge grew to 23 points at 35-12 after Joakim Noah's free throw capped nine more points in succession. Deng drained all four of his shots for 11 first-period points.
The tied drastically turned in the second stanza. A 19-point margin quickly dropped to four nearly halfway through the period, as a 17-5 stretch capped by Granger's corner three made the score 46-40. Chicago grew the lead back out to 10 at 50-40 on Deng's two free throws, but eight straight points from the visitors cut the deficit to just two at 50-48 on a Rush three nearing the three-minute mark.
The Bulls led just 58-54 at the half, as the Pacers made 50 percent of their shots and drained 10-of-11 free throws in the period.
Chicago righted the ship in the third, opening a 83-67 advantage on the heels of an 8-0 spurt capped by Deng's long three with almost six minutes left in the period. The edge stayed in double digits for the remainder of the period with the Bulls holding a 95-82 edge after three quarters.
The margin only reached single digits in the final two minutes of the game, as the visitors never seriously threatened in the final quarter.
Game Notes
Chicago shot 50.6 percent from the floor and grabbed 12 offensive rebounds...The game featured no lead changes...Chicago is 12-5 since January 22...The Bulls have defeated the Pacers three times this season...Pacers forward Mike Dunleavy missed the game because of food poisoning.
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jumper with 7.7 seconds remaining in regulation, as No. 3 Purdue escaped
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John Salmons had 18 points, while Jerry Stackhouse chipped in 13 points off
the bench
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OKLAHOMA CITY (87)Durant 7-19 6-6 21, Green 8-16 2-3 19, Krstic 3-10 2-3 8, Westbrook 6-21 5-9 17, Sefolosha 5-8 1-2 12, Harden 3-7 0-0 8, Maynor 1-2 0-1 2, Mullens 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-83 16-24 87.SAN ANTONIO (95)Bogans 3-6 1-2 9, Duncan 6-11 7-8
<< No. 1 UConn continues domination, downs Syracuse
Syracuse, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Maya Moore's dominant 38-point, 20-rebound
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with an 87-66 victory over Syracuse, its 67th consecutive win.
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82-68 win over the San Diego State Aztecs at the Marriott Center.
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Dexter Pittman added 16 points a
Boozer powers Jazz to win over Bobcats >>
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Boozer went 13-o
Nebraska remains unbeaten, wins Big 12 title with rout of Oklahoma >>
Norman, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kelsey Griffin had 30 points and 13 rebounds,
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after defeating No. 11 Oklahoma, 80-64.
Cory Montgomery added a season-high 24 p
Online Sportsbook Football Betting
Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The 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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