Wolves welcome Spurs to the Twin Cities
Basketball Betting Lines
01/27/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Timberwolves were able to snap a 16-game losing streak to the San Antonio Spurs when the two clubs met in early January and shoot for a rare win streak in the series tonight at the Target Center.
The Timberwolves finally got the best of the Spurs with a 106-96 victory on Jan. 2 in Minneapolis thanks to 24 points and 15 rebounds from Kevin Love, while Michael Beasley and Luke Ridnour both had 19 points. They had not defeated the Spurs since January 3, 2007, but have still lost 21 of the last 23 meetings between the two clubs.
San Antonio lost guard Manu Ginobili in that one with a fractured fifth metacarpal in his left hand and is 10-2 in the previous 12 contests in the Twin Cities. The Wolves have still lost 14 in a row in the Alamo City.
Minnesota is in the midst of a tough schedule and will play the Spurs, Lakers, Rockets and Pacers in succession. It has split the last four games against the Clippers, Jazz, Rockets and Mavericks, and recorded a 105-90 triumph at Dallas the last time out on Wednesday behind 31 points and 10 boards from Love, who inked a contract extension prior to the game. He has posted 17 double-doubles this season and helped Minnesota stop a two-game slide and win for the fifth time in eight tries.
"It was a good day," said Love. "I wanted to put everything aside that happened off the court and really wanted to focus on the game tonight.
Ricky Rubio added 17 points and 12 assists, and Wayne Ellington scored 16 points for the Timberwolves, who are 4-6 as the host and last in the Northwest Division standings. The Wolves will play two straight and three of the next four games at the Target Center. Wolves guard Luke Ridnour (knee) is questionable for Friday's game.
San Antonio is just 2-6 away from home this season and will begin a three-game trek tonight against the Wolves, Mavericks and Grizzlies. It has won two straight and six of its last nine games, including Wednesday's 105-83 victory versus the Atlanta Hawks.
Matt Bonner and DeJuan Blair each scored 17 points for the Spurs, who improved to 10-1 at home this season and got 16 points from Tiago Splitter. Tony Parker added 15 points and seven assists, while reserve Danny Green had 10 points. The Spurs bench scored 51 points to make head coach Gregg Popovich happy.
"Our bench was fantastic," Popovich said. "A number of people came into the game and played good solid basketball both at the defensive and offensive ends."
Tim Duncan had just six points and grabbed 11 boards for a San Antonio squad that sits one game ahead of Dallas for Southwest supremacy. Duncan leads the team with five double-doubles this season. Parker holds the record for most points at the Target Center with 55 on Nov. 5, 2008 in a double-overtime win. He is averaging 21.3 points and 8.9 assists in his previous 10 games.
The Spurs are currently in the midst of playing 16 of 21 road games. They are currently 3-3 during that stretch, with four games on the road and two at the AT&T Center.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It has been a season of frustration for Bucks center Andrew Bogut and his latest setback will keep him out of action indefinitely. That leaves Milwaukee a big hole in the middle this evening as it visits a Chicago Bulls club
<< Cavs and Nets meet at The Q
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets have yet to win consecutive games this
season. The Cleveland Cavaliers have done it just once.
Both teams will be trying to put together win streaks this evening at Quicken
Loans Arena.
The Nets have
<< Mavs hope to rebound with Jazz in town
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Celebrations don't seem to be agreeing with the Dallas
Mavericks and the reigning NBA champs are probably glad they can put the
ceremonies in the rearview mirror as they get ready to host the Utah Jazz.
The Mav
<< Nuggets aim to stay hot vs. Raptors
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The streaking Denver Nuggets aim for a sixth straight win
tonight when they host a Toronto team that expects to be without leading
scorer Andrea Bargnani.
The Nuggets are fresh off a brilliant 5-0 road trip tha
<< Blazers welcome Suns to Rip City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Blazers haven't been much of a threat away from Rip
City this season but things have been far different when they are hitting the
hardwood in the Pacific Northwest.
Portland will shoot for its sixth straight win a
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers try to bounce back from a rare loss at home this evening when they welcome the hapless Charlotte Bobcats to the Wells Fargo Center. Philadelphia lost for only the second time in 10 tries in front of
Wagner will play FBS school for first time >>
Staten Island, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Wagner College football program will
open its 2012 season at Florida Atlantic - the Seahawks' first game against a
Football Bowl Subdivision school.
Wagner announced an 11-game schedule on Friday, beg
Phillies sign OF Pierre >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies on Friday inked
outfielder Juan Pierre to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring
training.
The 34-year-old veteran finished 2011 with a .279 average, two home run
Inter aims to bounce back against Lecce >>
Lecce, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Inter Milan will attempt to get back to
winning ways on Sunday at Lecce after the club saw its eight-match winning
streak halted in the Coppa Italia by Napoli in midweek.
The 2-0 setback prevent
Raptors' Bargnani out with calf issue >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Raptors forward Andrea Bargnani will be
out for an undefined period of time after aggravating a previous calf injury.
The 26-year-old suffered a strained left calf back on January 11 and missed
six
MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.
Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.
According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).
Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.
''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.
Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.
''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''
Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.
”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.
For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Big 12 Conference betting odds
Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State
Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.
Work left to do:
Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.
Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.
Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.