Owls and Explorers meet in clash of Philly rivals
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/22/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 22nd-ranked Temple Owls will try to continue their winning streak as they head across town to take on the La Salle Explorers at Tom Gola Arena in Atlantic 10 Conference action.
The Owls have almost doubled La Salle in the all-time Philadelphia Big 5 series, holding a 71-40 advantage thanks to a six-game win streak that saw Temple post a 76-70 win in the most recent meeting on January 18th last month. The Owls managed to hit 51.9 percent of their field goals in the first encounter this season, which gave them the advantage as the Explorers shot 45.2 percent from the floor.
Fran Dunphy led his Owls to their 10th straight victory on Saturday as they took down the Duquesne Dukes, 78-59, to improve to 21-5 overall. Temple's win gave it sole possession of first place in the A-10 standings as it is an impressive 10-2 in league action. The Owls had a stellar shooting performance against Duquesne on Saturday, as they hit 57.7 percent of their field goals including 10-of-19 from beyond the arc to pick up the victory. Temple is second in the A-10 in scoring offense with an average of 75.5 ppg, and is allowing opponents to net 68.5 ppg on the defensive end.
Khalif Wyatt took over on Saturday as he led the Owls with 24 points on 11- of-17 shooting from the field. Wyatt is the team's second leading scorer for the season with an average of 17.0 ppg. Ramone Moore has been the go-to-guy with a conference leading average of 18.2 ppg. Juan Fernandez does a nice job running the show for Temple, as he is adding 11.5 points and 3.9 assists per game. The Owls are powered inside by Michael Eric and Rahlir Hollis- Jefferson's forward play.
The Explorers ended their three-game losing streak on Saturday with a 72-71 win over the Massachusetts Minutemen, which kept them three games back of Temple in the league standings with a 7-5 A-10 record. La Salle is 18-9 overall. Head coach Dr. John Giannini is one win away from breaking his career-high with the program, which has not seen postseason action during any of his previous seven seasons. La Salle's +8.5 scoring margin this season is second best in the A-10.
Ramon Galloway is a lights out shooter from long range for La Salle. The junior guard is tied for the team's lead with 14.7 ppg while ranking second in the conference in three-point percentage (.468) and made three-point field goals per game (2.5). Earl Pettis, Tyreek Duren, and Sam Mills all possess scoring averages in double figures as well, which makes the Explorers very difficult to defend. Devon White and Matt Sheehan provide energy from the bench for Giannini as well.
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Super Bowl 2009 Betting
Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositionsUnderdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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