Football Betting

Blue Devils take on Terps in Durham

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coming off their biggest win of the season, the 10th-ranked Duke Blue Devils return to Cameron Indoor Stadium, as they play host to the Maryland Terrapins in ACC action this afternoon.

Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils recorded a thrilling 85-84 win in Chapel Hill over arch rival North Carolina on Wednesday and in the process created a three-way tie atop the ACC standings with UNC and Florida State at 7-2. Usually a safe haven, Duke has dropped two of its last three games in Durham.

Mark Turgeon's first season in College Park has certainly produced its share of ups and downs. The Terrapins are five games over .500 overall at 14-9, but just 4-5 in conference play. Maryland has dropped five of its last seven games but does enter this contest off a 64-62 road win at Clemson.

Duke owns a 111-61 series advantage overall and has won the last four meetings. In addition, the Blue Devils have won four straight in Durham, with Maryland's last win at Duke coming in 2007.

The Terrapins lack a great deal of scoring punch at a meager 69.1 ppg this season, but ironically boast of the ACC's top scoring threat in guard Terrell Stoglin, who is averaging 22.0 ppg. Stoglin, who has a team-high 63 three- pointers to his credit, has scored in double figures in 22 of the 23 games this season, including reaching the 20-point mark 17 times. His backcourt mate Sean Mosley is a distant second in the scoring column at 10.4 ppg. James Padgett (9.0 ppg. 5.8 rpg) is the top option in the frontcourt.

The Terps led by 14 points with just under eight minutes left, but needed to hold off Clemson to earn a two-point win. Stoglin was once again unstoppable, netting a game-high 27 points. The Terps shot a impressive .489 from the floor, the second-best mark in ACC play this year. Mosley once again played Robin to Stoglin's Batman, finishing with 16 points.

Freshman Austin Rivers drilled a three-pointer and ended North Carolina's 31- game homecourt winning streak, shocking the Chapel Hill faithful in attendance. Rivers was certainly not intimidated in his first Duke/North Carolina clash, hitting six three-pointers and finishing with a game-high 29 points. Ryan Kelly and Seth Curry added 15 points apiece, while Mason Plumlee finished with eight points and 14 rebounds.

The Blue Devils bring a balanced offensive attack into their games, averaging a steady 80.0 ppg, on .480 shooting. The scoring is spread out with four players currently in double figures, led by Rivers' 15.1 ppg. Curry and Kelly provide perimeter depth and are tied for second at 12.7 ppg each. Mason Plumlee is the resident muscle in the paint at 11.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per game.


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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.