Nuggets hold off Pacers
Basketball Betting Lines
02/11/2012 -
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ty Lawson scored 27 points to lead the
Nuggets to a 113-109 win over the Pacers on Saturday.
Denver had five scorers in double figures, including 23 points from Arron
Afflalo and 19 from Corey Brewer, as the Nuggets snapped a five-game losing
streak.
Danny Granger led the way for the Pacers with 26 points and David West chipped
in 22 points and seven rebounds. A.J. Price scored 13 points off the bench for
a Pacers team that has now dropped a season-high three straight games.
Back-to-back triples from Paul George around an Al Harrington layup pulled the
Pacers within four, 106-102, with 3:07 remaining in regulation.
After an Andre Miller miss, Darren Collison got the hoop and the harm to close
the gap to 106-105 heading into the home stretch.
The Pacers had a chance to pull within one again on a three-point play but
West's free throw was off the mark. Afflalo missed a jumper on the other end,
and Indiana had the ball trailing 111-109 with 22.5 seconds to go.
Indiana looked to go inside to West again, but his kick out pass went wide of
Collison and bounced into the backcourt for an over-and-back violation.
Afflalo, who scored 12 points in the final frame, calmly stepped to the
charity stripe and hit both foul shots to give the Nuggets a two-possession
lead.
Granger came out of the gates scorching as he scored 18 points in the
first quarter on 7-of-9 shooting to give the Pacers a 35-26 lead heading
into the second stanza.
The Nuggets showed resolve, reeling off 10 straight points to cut the lead
to 53-51 with 3:05 left until halftime.
Ty Lawson finished the first half with 17 points, including a floater that
capped the scoring to pull the Nuggets even, 60-60, heading into the locker
room.
The two teams exchanged buckets throughout the third quarter as the Nuggets
took a slight 87-84 lead into the final stanza.
Game Notes
The Pacers have dropped 12 of 15 meetings in this series...The Pacers are 7-3
at home...The Pacers will host Miami on Tuesday, while Denver will host the
Suns on Tuesday...The Nuggets won the points in the paint battle 62-46...The
Pacers turned the ball over 20 points which led to 22 points for the Nuggets.
<< Princeton continues home dominance of Harvard
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harvard's unbeaten mark in the Ivy League
came to a halt Saturday night against a team they haven't solved on the road
in more than 23 years.
Ian Hummer scored 20 points, pulled down nine rebounds and h
<< Pinceton continues home dominance of Harvard
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harvard's unbeaten mark in the Ivy League
came to a halt Saturday night against a team they haven't solved on the road
in more than 23 years.
Ian Hummer scored 20 points, pulled down nine rebounds and h
<< Baylor thumps Texas A&M to stay perfect
Waco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittney Griner dropped in a game-high 21 points
to go with 10 rebounds and six blocks as top-ranked Baylor took care of
business with a 71-48 victory over Texas A&M on Saturday.
Odyssey Sims finishe
<< Spartans snap Ohio State's long home win streak
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adreian Payne scored a team-high 15 points as
No. 11 Michigan State handed third-ranked Ohio State its first home loss in
almost two years with a 58-48 decision at Value City Arena.
Keith Appling added 14
<< France tops Canada to take lead in Davis Cup
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra took
down Canadians Daniel Nestor and Milos Raonic in straight sets, 7-6 (7-1),
7-6 (7-2), 6-3 to give France a 2-1 edge in the third rubber of a best-of-
five tie
Clippers send Bobcats to 14th straight loss >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blake Griffin scored 21 points and pulled
down 10 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers dominated the Charlotte Bobcats,
111-86, at Time Warner Cable Arena.
Each of Griffin's fellow starters scored in
Stamkos leads Bolts past Sabres >>
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steven Stamkos lit the lamp and added an assist
while Mathieu Garon stopped 26 shots as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the
Buffalo Sabres, 2-1.
Steve Downie also scored for Tampa Bay, which had lost t
Price, Canadiens blank Maple Leafs >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carey Price made 32 saves to record his fourth
shutout of the season and 16th of his career as the Montreal Canadiens blanked
the Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-0, at Air Canada Centre.
Mathieu Darche had a goal and a
Sixers stop shorthanded Cavs >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jrue Holiday led a balanced Philadelphia
attack with 20 points as the 76ers rolled to a 99-84 victory over the
Cleveland Cavaliers.
Lou Williams added 19 points, Thaddeus Young had 16, Elton
Umberger paces Blue Jackets over Wild >>
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - R.J. Umberger scored a pair of goals, leading
the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy
Center.
James Wisniewski -- playing in his first game after missing the previous
The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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