NCAA Tournament expansion to 68 approved

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

04/29/2010 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Division I Board of Directors on Thursday approved the plan to expand the men's basketball tournament field to 68 teams.

"Expanding to 68 teams gave us an opportunity to involve more teams in the championship, and in doing that, we were able to enhance the experience of the opening--round game," said board chair James Barker, president at Clemson. "Expansion enables us to give more exposure to the universities and provide more opportunities for student-athletes."

The NCAA Tournament expanded to 65 teams in 2001 and had expanded to 64 in 1985. The latest change will add three opening-round games to the schedule, beginning with next year's event.

The recommendation for expansion was made by the Division I men's basketball committee last week when the NCAA announced its new television agreement.

There was no discussion of expanding the tourney beyond 68 teams.

Blcakjack NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Rocky Mountain Sigh: Nene's knee only sprained
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets got good news on the injury front Thursday with an MRI exam revealing only a sprained left knee for center Nene. Reports swirled that the Nuggets feared their big man had torn the AC

<< Wolverhampton's Ward to miss final two matches
Wolverhampton, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wolverhampton midfielder Stephen Ward will miss the two remaining games of the season following an exploratory knee operation. Ward, 25, has made 25 appearances in all competitions this season

<< Jazz hoping to close out Nuggets at home
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -The Utah Jazz hope they just made their last trip to Denver this season.The playoff series between the Jazz and Nuggets returns to Utah on Friday night for Game 6. The Jazz can wrap up the series with a win at home or the Nugget

<< Flyers prepare for physical series against Bruins
VOORHEES, N.J. (AP) -The Philadelphia Flyers see a lot of themselves in the Boston Bruins.Both teams had to finish strongly just to make the playoffs. Both stress defense, with plenty of muscle.Beginning Saturday in Boston, they go at each other in

<< NBA Playoff Preview - Cleveland vs. Boston
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The light loads have been taken care of. Now, the top- seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and the veteran-laded Boston Celtics are preparing to do some heavy lifting, as the teams meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals in a remat

Willis, Tigers' bullpen blank Twins >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Austin Jackson went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, and Dontrelle Willis pitched six-plus innings of four-hit ball, as the Detroit Tigers earned a 3-0 win over the Minnesota Twins in the finale of a three

Rangers chairman hopes Smith commits to team >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rangers chairman Alastair Johnston has urged manager Walter Smith to pledge his future to the recently-crowned Scottish Premier League champions. Smith, who has been working at the cash-strapped

Tyreke Evans selected as NBA's top rookie >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sacramento Kings point guard Tyreke Evans was named the NBA's Rookie of the Year on Thursday. Selected with the fourth overall pick out of Memphis as a freshman, the 20- year-old Evans averaged 20.1 p

Stanley Cup Playoff Preview - Pittsburgh vs. Montreal >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the last two springs were any indication, the Pittsburgh Penguins playoff run is just getting started. Pittsburgh entered this postseason as the defending Stanley Cup champions and winner of the last two Eastern Confere

Eagles give QB Kolb one-year extension >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Eagles agreed to terms with quarterback Kevin Kolb on a one-year contract extension on Thursday. Financial terms were not announced. "We're happy to have Kevin under contract f

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

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


Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog 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.

Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard