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Celtics shoot for commanding 3-0 series lead over visiting MagicBasketball Betting Lines05/22/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics return to TD Garden tonight hoping to take a commanding 3-0 lead over the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference finals. Paul Pierce scored 28 points with five assists and five rebounds on Tuesday, as Boston took a surprising 2-0 edge in the set, downing Orlando, 95-92, in Game 2 at Amway Arena. "It was a great game, a game of runs," said Boston head coach Doc Rivers. "They brought the fight to us and we withstood the hits." The win marked the first time in the Celtics' storied history that the franchise has taken two straight road games to start a playoff series. It was also the team's fifth straight playoff triumph overall, as well as Orlando's second straight home loss for the first time all season. In fact, Orlando had not lost consecutive home games since Games 4 and 5 of last season's NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Pierce fouled out with 31.9 seconds left in the game and Boston clinging to a 95-92 lead, and watched from the bench as Vince Carter missed two key free throws. After a Kevin Garnett miss at the other end, the Magic had one last chance, which ended in Jameer Nelson's off-balance 30-foot heave that drew air just short of the rim. Rajon Rondo added 25 points with eight assists and five boards for the Celtics while Garnett and Kendrick Perkins donated 10 points apiece for Boston. Dwight Howard, in a far better effort than his 13-point showing in the series opener last Sunday, scored a game-best 30 points with eight rebounds, while Carter and JJ Redick added 16 points apiece for Orlando. "We have to go play the next game and win it," said Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy. "We played harder, but we don't sustain it." The Celtics, who have never blown a 2-0 lead in a best-of-seven series, now have a chance to advance to the Finals without leaving Beantown but the team struggled on its home floor this season, compiling just a 24-17 mark as the host, tied for the worst of all teams that made the playoffs. Boston, which was 26-15 as the visitor in the regular season, was one of just two NBA teams that was better on the road than at home, the first time the C's had a better record on the road than at home since 1974. The Celtics have seemed to rebound in the postseason, however, compiling a 5-1 home mark so far in the playoffs. "I think our guys are getting comfortable playing at home again," Rivers said. "I feel pretty good about it," Perkins added. "I think this Game 3 is the most important, though. We can't give them any hope." The Magic do have hope though. Van Gundy's club was one of two teams to win twice in Boston this year and also topped the Celtics in Beantown twice in the playoffs last season, including the deciding Game 7 in the Eastern Conference semifinals -- Boston's first-ever loss at home in a seventh game. "We have won there before, and there's no reason we can't do it again," Magic forward Rashard Lewis said. "Boston came to us and beat us twice on our home court, so it's happened before. Why can't we do it? "Last year, Boston never lost a Game 7 on their home floor. We went in and beat them. It can happen." The Magic won three of four games vs. the Celtics in the regular season this year and has taken both previous playoff matchups between the two franchises, last year's semifinals set and a first round win back in the 1994-95 season. The best-of-seven series continues on Monday in Boston for Game 4.
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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting. "They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over." Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.) According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26. As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines). Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday. Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind. *UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007 New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results. "We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games." While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season." About MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Master Card needs. |
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