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06/15/2010 -
LOS ANGELES (AP) -When the Celtics wrapped up Game 5 and moved one win away from an unprecedented 18th championship, the jubilant Boston crowd sent them off to the West Coast for the final time this season with one last chorus of that age-old ``Beat L-A!'' chant.
Although Kevin Garnett and his teammates appreciate the suggestion, they know it's easier shouted than done - particularly in the playoffs, and especially on the road.
The Celtics will have to overcome their unimpressive record in closeout playoff games away from Boston to finish off the Lakers in Game 6 of the NBA finals on Tuesday night.
For all their remarkable success over the past three seasons, including the 2008 title and another finals run this year, the Celtics have converted just one of their eight chances to finish a playoff series away from home.
They've got two opportunities at Staples Center, which could be the fifth building in which the Celtics have won a title at the expense of their longtime rivals - or the site of a remarkable Hollywood ending for the Lakers. If Los Angeles survives Tuesday, a champion will be crowned Thursday in Game 7.
``They're playing at home. Home is always where your heart is,'' Garnett said. ``With the severity of the game, it's all-out on both ends for both teams. This will probably be the hardest game of the season, if not of the series, if not of everybody's career, this game coming up.''
Even after winning three of the series' last four games, and even after compiling the NBA's second-best road record in the regular season (26-15), the Celtics can't be lulled into thinking they've got the Lakers on the run.
Although Boston narrowly won Game 2 at Staples Center on the strength of Ray Allen's historic 3-point shooting binge and Rajon Rondo's late-game poise, Boston knows the Lakers are 9-1 at home in the postseason, with everybody from Kobe Bryant to the Lakers' bedraggled bench playing with much more passion and confidence.
``The Lakers ... got homecourt advantage, but we've played the best all year on the road,'' Boston coach Doc Rivers said. ``We're going to have to beat them at their best, because they're going to be great there, and we can't expect anything else.''
While the Celtics have ample reason to be confident, Lakers coach Phil Jackson and Bryant also didn't seem particularly worried before the grand finale. For all their struggles in the past four games, the Lakers realize they've usually risen to important occasions over the past three seasons - notwithstanding that 2008 finals blowout loss in Boston's clincher.
``If you look at it, they've come home and carried the 3-2 lead back,'' Jackson said. ``It's basically home court, home court. Now we're going back to home court to win it. That's the way it's supposed to be, isn't it?''
Sure, on paper. In real life, two straight losses in Boston led to a dire series deficit for the Lakers, who hadn't even trailed in any playoff series this season. Yet Jackson even described the Lakers' locker room as ``spirited'' after losing Game 5 in their lowest-scoring performance of the postseason in the 92-86 loss.
For all their struggles in Boston, the Lakers realize they only have to defend their home court to win their 16th title - and these Los Angeles crowds will be far from laid-back.
``We have a challenge, obviously, down 3-2,'' said Bryant, who scored 38 points in Game 5 while his struggling teammates only managed 48. ``We let a couple opportunities slip away, but it is what it is. Now you go home, you've got two games at home that you need to win, and you pull your boots up and get to work.''
Heading into the finals, the Celtics believed they could beat the Lakers by shutting down Bryant's teammates, even if Kobe went crazy on them. After all, that's what Boston did two years ago in the finals - and so far, it's working splendidly again.
Bryant is averaging 30.2 points per game, while Pau Gasol averages 18.8 points and 10 rebounds despite glaring inconsistency in his game in Boston. That's just about it: Nobody else in purple and gold is averaging more than Andrew Bynum's 9.6 points per game.
And two straight losses undeniably have frazzled the Lakers a bit, with Bryant noticeably furious on the court while Game 5 slipped away. Even Jackson seemed a bit testier than his usual placid self, yelling at Bryant and Ron Artest during the game and later attempting to inspire his team in the fourth quarter with a false bit of information about the Celtics' propensity for blowing late-game leads.
While Jackson likely senses the biggest danger yet to his streak of 47 straight playoff series victories after winning Game 1, the Celtics sense a golden opportunity to join the Boston greats who won multiple titles while repeatedly denying the Lakers nine previous times in the NBA finals.
They've just got to finish a playoff series on the road, something they failed to do in Miami and Orlando earlier this season. While Boston's current starters have never lost a playoff series, they also haven't finished one away from TD Garden since the 2008 Eastern Conference finals against Detroit.
``It's going to have to happen if we're going to win the title,'' Paul Pierce said. ``I mean, that would be great. I'm not going to try to jinx it right now. We've got to win one game, that's the goal, but it would be amazing if we get it done.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Buck belted two home runs while Aaron
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<< Oklahoma, Clemson complete College World Series field
Charlottesville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clemson and Oklahoma won their Super
Regional elimination games Monday to become the final two teams to
advance to the College World Series.
They join Florida, South Carolina, Florida S
<< Vancouver LW Burrows undergoes shoulder procedure
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vancouver Canucks left wing Alex Burrows
underwent surgery to repair an ailing shoulder, the club announced on Monday.
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regul
United signs Montenegrin midfielder Boskovic as a DP >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United signed Montenegrin midfielder
Branko Boskovic as a Designated Player, the Major League Soccer club announced
late Monday.
"We are excited to have concluded a deal to bring Branko to D.C.
New Zealand earns dramatic draw vs. Slovakia >>
Rustenburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Winston Reid scored three minutes
into stoppage time and New Zealand earned a dramatic 1-1 draw against Slovakia
on Tuesday in the FIFA World Cup Group F action at Royal Bafokeng Stadium.
Robert V
Caution: Is NASCAR now in show business? >>
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Debris, or not debris? That is the question
NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin has been asking after a late-race caution for debris
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Celtics try to clinch another title in Los Angeles >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics have a chance to clinch their record
18th championship tonight when they visit the Los Angeles Lakers for Game 6 of
the 2010 NBA Finals at Staples Center.
The Celtics pushed the defending champs to the b
Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.
Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.
Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.
Memphis vs. Ohio State
Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.
UCLA vs. Kansas
In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
MySportsbook.com Favors Fighting Irish to win College Football betting odds
According to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, on January 8, the Fighting Irish faithful may be toasting their 14th national title in Arizona – Notre Dame’s first national championship in close to 20 years.
Although MySportsbook.com has listed Notre Dame as the 5-1 favorite to win thecollege football College Football betting, fans in Columbus do not need to cancel their tickets to Glendale just yet. The Ohio State Buckeyes, listed right behind the Irish at 7-1, are also heavy favorites to win college football’s most coveted prize, while West Virginia, USC and the 2007 National Champion Texas Longhorns - all listed at 8-1 – are strong contenders as well.
MySportsbook.com has also posted gambling odds on the conference championships for the ACC, Big 12 and SEC. In the ACC – it could be anyone’s title, particularly for the two schools from the Sunshine State. Florida State and Miami, both listed at 2-1, are favored to win the ACC Championship Game odds, with the ‘Noles hoping to finish in the nation’s top 10 for the first time in five years, and the ‘Canes looking to avenge their 10-7 loss against FSU in last year’s ACC Championship betting.
Moving west to the Big 12, MySportsbook.com has betting lines listing Texas as 7-5 favorites to repeat as conference champions, even though the Longhorns lost their national championship-winning quarterback Vince Young to the NFL. In the south, the Auburn Tigers – led by Heisman-hopeful senior running back Kenny Irons – have been given the best odds to win the SEC Championship odds at 5-2.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
| Notre Dame Ohio State West Virginia Texas USC Florida California Auburn Oklahoma Iowa Louisville Florida State Michigan Miami (FL) LSU Penn State Virginia Tech Nebraska Tennessee Georgia Arizona State Oregon Clemson Texas A&M Texas Tech Alabama Arkansas Boston College Michigan State Maryland South Carolina Colorado Purdue Georgia Tech TCU UCLA Arizona Pittsburgh Iowa State Wisconsin North Carolina State Virginia North Carolina Fresno State Hawaii Northwestern BYU Oregon State UNLV Field (Any Other Team) |
5-1 7-1 8-1 8-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 18-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 25-1 40-1 40-1 50-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 70-1 70-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 150-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 250-1 250-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 400-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 1000-1 1000-1 40-1 |
| Miami (FL) Florida State Virginia Tech Clemson Georgia Tech Boston College Maryland Virginia North Carolina State North Carolina Wake Forest Duke |
2-1 2-1 3-1 7-1 15-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 500-1 |
| Texas Oklahoma Nebraska Texas Tech Colorado Iowa State Texas A&M Kansas State Missouri Kansas Baylor Oklahoma State |
7-5 9-5 9-2 12-1 14-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 35-1 100-1 100-1 |
| Auburn Florida LSU Georgia Tennessee Arkansas Alabama Mississippi South Carolina Mississippi State Kentucky Vanderbilt |
5-2 11-4 4-1 6-1 7-1 7-1 9-1 20-1 28-1 75-1 100-1 300-1 |
For complete NCAA football odds please visit Mysportsbook.com.
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