Jazz Helps Season Of Portland

Basketball Betting Lines

Billups, 35, has played over 30 minutes per game this season, averaging 15.0 points and 4.0 assists.

 

Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russell Westbrook blocked Nicolas Batum's drive to the hoop in the closing seconds of regulation, then hit the go-ahead basket in overtime, as the Thunder handed the Trail Blazers their second home loss of the season, 111-107. Prior to Westbrook's block, LaMarcus Aldridge was whistled for a controversial goaltending violation on Kevin Durant's layup attempt, tying the game with six seconds remaining.

 

Durant finished with 33 points, Westbrook added 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and Serge Ibaka chipped in 12 points and 13 boards for Oklahoma City, which was coming off Saturday's loss at San Antonio.

 

Westbrook opened the OT scoring with a pullup jumper, and Harden added a dunk off a Jamal Crawford turnover with 2:53 on the clock.

 

Durant slammed the door with a dunk.

 

The difference moved to 12 early in the third, but Portland responded with the next 13 points to continue a back-and-forth affair that featured 13 ties and just as many lead changes.

 

Game Notes

 

The Thunder committed 20 turnovers, but scored 23 points off 13 Portland giveaways...Wesley Matthews and Crawford totaled 18 and 17 points, respectively in defeat...Oklahoma City had 20 fastbreak points to the Blazers' seven in transition.

 

"It was a tough loss for us after a real strong week," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "We really never got into a rhythm offensively."

 

The Pacers, who have yet to lose back-to-back games this season, are 6-2 at home and will hit the road for two games against the Hawks and Grizzlies following Tuesday's game. They will try to get to the 90-point mark tonight and are 15-0 when doing so this season.

 

Al Jefferson paced the Jazz with 22 points, while Raja Bell and Gordon Hayward scored 15 and 14 points, respectively, for Utah, which has lost three in a row as the guest and is 2-6 away from home this season. Paul Millsap posted nine points and grabbed 13 rebounds in defeat.

 

"It doesn't matter who we're playing or where we're playing at, we have to come out with a certain kind of attitude right from the beginning," Jazz head coach Tyrone Corbin said. "We have to play at a high level, especially on the defensive side of the floor, on the road for any chance to be successful and we didn't demonstrate that tonight."

 

(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When LeBron James and Cleveland get together, it's always a little extra special. James and the Miami Heat will finish a brief two-game homestand tonight by welcoming the Cavaliers and the new face of their franchise, Kyrie Irving, to the shores of Biscayne Bay.

Casiononnet Basketball Betting Blog

<< Bynum For Kobe Clippers

<< Redshirt Gets Bell At Pounds

<< Redshirt Mitchell Smash Highlight Over Quarterback

<< Minutes Oilers Salvage Host From Monday

<< Shots Helps Games Of Bertuzzi

Bobcats Celtics Salvage Host From Heat >>

Anthony Games Edge Crush In Sacramento >>

New England Gets Brady At City >>

Following Year Of Steelers Teammates >>

Period Over Hiller Concussion >>

Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards