Commodores and Bulldogs do battle is SEC Tournament semifinals

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Mississippi State Bulldogs and the 20th- ranked Vanderbilt Commodores are set to collide in the semifinal round of the 2010 SEC Tournament.

Tomorrow, the winner of this contest will take on either Kentucky or Tennessee for the championship.

The Commodores struggled early against Georgia in yesterday's quarterfinal game, but the team proved superior in the second half and knocked off the Bulldogs by a 78-66 final. Vanderbilt, the second seed from the East Division, earned its lone SEC Tournament title way back in 1951, by far the longest drought of any of the teams that have won the crown. The Commodores are 30-47 in this event, but this year's team is one of the best in recent memory. Vandy is 24-7 overall and went 12-4 in conference during the regular season.

Mississippi State, the top seed from the West Conference, knocked off Florida yesterday by a 75-69 final in the quarterfinal round. Considering the fact that the club closed out the regular season with back-to-back losses, fans of the Bulldogs were happy to see the solid performance against the Gators. MSU, which is 22-10 overall, is the defending champion of this event, as it defeated Tennessee in a 64-61 final in the 2009 title game, and the program has three SEC crowns to its credit. Still, the 26-46 record at this event is poor.

Vanderbilt won its only regular-season meeting with Mississippi State, 75-72, and the Commodores own a 72-43 advantage in the all-time series.

Yesterday, Vanderbilt earned a 43-32 rebounding advantage over Georgia and limited the Bulldogs to 3-of-16 shooting from three-point range, two obvious keys to victory. The Commodores shot an impressive 9-of-18 from three-point range and got solid contributions from several individuals. John Jenkins, a freshman guard, was sensational for Vanderbilt, as he poured in a career-high 25 points on the strength of a 5-of-8 effort from three-point range. Jenkins took the game over in the second stanza, scoring 22 of his points over the final 20 minutes. Jermaine Beal tallied 16 points and six assists, while A.J. Ogilvy registered 10 points. Andre Walker only scored six points, but he did grab 10 rebounds for Vandy. The Commodores are scoring 78.1 ppg while allowing 69.2 ppg to foes. Beal leads the well-balanced club with 14.8 ppg, and Ogilvy checks in with 13.8 ppg and 6.3 rpg. Jeffery Taylor (13.5 ppg) and Jenkins (11.0 ppg) are both talented scorers.

Barry Stewart scored 17 points to lead the Bulldogs to the six-point victory over Florida in the quarterfinal round. Jarvis Varnado added 15 points for Mississippi State, while Ravern Johnson tallied 12 points. Both Dee Bost and Kodi Augustus posted 10 points apiece for the Bulldogs, and the balanced scoring was key to the victory. Mississippi State opened the game with a 10-0 run and led 39-28 at intermission. The squad led by as many 19 points in the second half, but Florida ripped off 14 unanswered points and made the game much closer than it should have been. MSU tied an SEC Tournament record by hitting 10 three-pointers in the contest, as the club finished 10-of-20 from behind the arc. While the Bulldogs suffered a 32-20 rebounding disadvantage in the tilt, they were able to knock down 57.1 percent of their field goal attempts on the night. Overall this season, MSU is scoring 72.8 ppg while limiting opponents to 64.5 ppg. Both Johnson and Varnado entered this tournament averaging 13.5 ppg, but Varnado has gotten most of the attention, especially considering the fact that he recently became the NCAA's all-time leader in blocked shots.

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NFL ODDSTop Football Betting Free Agents to Change Teams

NFL Betting

It’s time to see how the biggest NFL free agent signings will perform for their news teams. Some will work out and could be the difference that makes a difference in the win column.

We look at the best off-season signings and if they should influence your NFL betting this season. Julius Peppers – Peppers was the biggest prize available on the 2010 NFL free agent market and the Chicago Bears opened the bank to bring his talents to the south side.

Peppers is explosive, he can get around blockers and cause quarterbacks to lose their minds. We all remember the classic Peppers game last year against the Vikings where he hounded Brett Favre into his worst game of the season. Peppers joining the Bears could be the reason Favre retired for good Tuesday morning. In addition to Peppers, the Bears added Chester Taylor to back up Matt Forte, Forte didn’t have the same intensity in 2009 compared to 2008 and bringing in Taylor will challenge Forte to bring it every game or he’ll risk losing carries to Taylor.

Betting on the Bears is a good option this season because of Julius Peppers and to a lesser extent Taylor. Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens – The Cincinnati Bengals signed two former number one wide receivers to line up with Chad Ocho Cinco. Antonio Bryant had a huge season in 2008 catching 83 passes for over 1200 yards but regressed last season. Playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs last season was a large part of the regression, everyone was bad in TB last season.

Bryant should have a bounce back season if he can win the number two spot from Terrell Owens. If Bryant wins the number 2 WR spot, it will open up a completely new set of problems for the Bengals. If Owens is forced to the bench in favor of Bryant, his attitude will create trouble for Carson Palmer and head coach Marv Lewis. If Owens is the number two receiver, it means Bryant can’t live up to his past numbers and the Bengals are still limited in the passing game. NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. 2010 football betting lines for this can be found at this top online sportsbook. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense.

NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense. They signed away the Arizona Cardinals top linebacker Karlos Danby. In the past two seasons, Danby has totaled 228 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. The Dolphins are the forgotten team of the AFC East with the second longest odds to win the division but with the addition of Karlos Danby and a trade for WR Brandon Marshall makes the Miami Dolphins legitimate contenders in the AFC East and in the NFL’s Eastern Conference.

The Dolphins will make NFL wagering fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Wagering

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El Duque expected to throw Tuesday

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.

Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.

El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.

MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds. 

Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.

New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.

Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''

Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

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