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06/04/2010 - Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lance Berkman paced the offense with three hits and two runs batted in, while Felipe Paulino tossed eight solid innings, as the Houston Astros took down the Chicago Cubs, 3-1, in the opener of a three- game series at Minute Maid Park.
Paulino (1-7) allowed one run on five hits to pick up his first win in 11 starts this season for the Astros, who have won four in a row. Matt Lindstrom recorded his 12th save of the year.
Michael Bourn went 3-for-4 with two runs scored for Houston, which got an RBI and run scored from Jeff Keppinger.
Marlon Byrd drove in the lone run for the Cubs, who have dropped four straight.
Carlos Zambrano (1-4) gave up three runs on six hits in a 4 1/3-inning start to take the loss. It was his first start since being shifted to the bullpen in late April.
The Astros drew first blood with a run in the first. Bourn singled, moved to second on Keppinger's groundout, and scored on Berkman's base hit to left. Houston went on to strand the bases loaded.
Chicago loaded the bases in the third, but Aramis Ramirez fouled out to end the threat.
The Cubs finally got on the board in the top of the fifth. Starlin Castro led off with a single and crossed the plate on Byrd's double to make it 1-1.
The Astros responded with two runs in the home half to take back the lead. Bourn hit a one-out single, stole second, and scored on Keppinger's base hit up the middle. Tom Gorzelanny then relieved Zambrano and gave up a run-scoring double to Berkman. Houston failed to score more runs after loading the bases, but held a 3-1 margin.
Game Notes
Houston took two of three from the Cubs when these teams squared off in Chicago from April 16-18, but dropped five of eight tilts between the clubs held at Minute Maid Park last season...The Cubs fell to 3-23 this season when scoring three runs or fewer...The Astros improved to 4-28 this year when scoring three runs or fewer...Zambrano dropped to 13-8 lifetime versus Houston...Wednesday's postponed game between the Pirates and Cubs will be made up this Monday, June 7 in Pittsburgh.
<< Wainwright baffles Brewers for first career shutout
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Wainwright was sensational on the mound,
allowing just two hits and fanning eight batters en route to his first career
complete game shutout, as the St. Louis Cardinals dominated the Milwaukee
Brewers
<< Mackenzie moves in front at Times Colonist Open
Victoria, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American Brock Mackenzie fired a six-under 64
on Friday to move atop the leaderboard after the second round of the Times
Colonist Open.
Mackenzie finished 36 holes at 10-under 130 to move two strokes
<< Halladay doesn't duplicate perfection, but Phils still top Padres
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roy Halladay wasn't perfect, but the
Phillies' ace still threw seven solid innings and was backed by Shane
Victorino's productive night in a 3-2 win over the Padres.
Halladay (8-3), in his
<< Boston and Buchholz spoil Samuel's Orioles debut
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clay Buchholz threw his second career shutout
to help the Boston Red Sox rout the Orioles, 11-0, in Juan Samuel's managerial
debut on the Baltimore bench.
Buchholz (8-3), who threw only his third career comp
Masterson, Peralta help Indians rout White Sox >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jhonny Peralta had four hits and drove in four
runs, as Justin Masterson snapped his 17-start winless streak in the Indians'
10-1 win over the Chicago White Sox.
Peralta doubled twice and scored twice in the
Rangers fend off Rays thanks to seven-run fourth >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vladimir Guerrero's three-run double capped a
seven-run fourth inning rally that carried Texas to a 9-6 comeback win over
Tampa Bay in the opener of a three-game set at Rangers Ballpark.
Josh Hamilton and
Kendall, Royals top Tigers >>
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Kendall collected three hits and
drove in three runs, as Kansas City logged a 7-3 win against Detroit in the
opener of a three-game series from Kauffman Stadium.
Scott Podsednik scored three
Bodine picks up sixth truck win at Texas >>
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Todd Bodine put on a dominating performance,
but had to hold off Ron Hornaday Jr. and Johnny Sauter in a green-white-
checkered finish to win Friday's WinStar World Casino 400k Camping World Truck
Series
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.
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NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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