Wbobcats Basketball Betting News

<< Utah State puts nation's longest win streak on line against Idaho
Moscow, ID (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ranked for the first time since the 2003-04 campaign when they were members of the Big West Conference, the Utah State Aggies take their act on the road tonight to do battle with Western Athletic Conference foe Ida

<< Zags and Gaels mix it up in West Coast Conference showdown
Moraga, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 19th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs will attempt to remain unbeaten in West Coast Conference play as they take on the Saint Mary's Gaels on the road this evening. Gonzaga carried a nine-game win streak into Saturda

<< Top-25 foes meet in Tempe
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A top-25 matchup takes place in the desert this evening, as the 11th-ranked UCLA Bruins come calling on the 18th-ranked Arizona State Sun Devils in a key Pac-10 tilt from Wells Fargo Arena. Ben Howland's troops t

<< Land of Lincoln rivals meet in Big Ten tussle
Evanston, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 22nd-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini take aim at their 20th win of the season as they battle the Northwestern Wildcats in Big Ten Conference action from Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston. Illinois has won two o

Warriors welcome Blazers to Oakland >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Golden State Warriors resume a five-game homestand tonight when they welcome the Portland Trail Blazers to ORACLE Arena in the NBA's final game before the All-Star break. The Warriors improved to 2-0 on the

Sens seek third straight win in test vs. Flyers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Ottawa Senators will aim for their first three-game winning streak of the season when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers for tonight's test at the Wachovia Center. The Senators completed a home-and-home sweep of Buffal

Hurricanes, Panthers battle in Raleigh >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of teams battling for playoff positions will meet tonight in Raleigh, as the Carolina Hurricanes invite the Florida Panthers for a Southeast Division battle at RBC Center. The Panthers are currently holding onto the

Lightning hope to get back in win column against Maple Leafs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning will try to win for just the second time in seven games when they welcome the Toronto Maple Leafs for tonight's battle between struggling teams at St. Pete Times Forum. The Lightning, who are 12th o

Huskers' Lucky hospitalized for undisclosed reason

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska running back Marlon Lucky was hospitalized Monday for undisclosed reasons after Lincoln police responded to a call at his residence.

The Nebraska athletic department said in a release Monday that Lucky was admitted Sunday night.

MySportsbook.com has the Cornhuskers listed at +2500 to win the BCS National Championship odds.

A nursing supervisor at the hospital said all questions about Lucky were being referred to the athletic department. The athletic department said there would be no further comment from the department or Lucky's family.

A Lincoln Police spokesman said officers responded to a call at Lucky's residence 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The spokesman said he didn't know Lucky's condition at the time he was taken to the hospital.

Lucky, from North Hollywood, Calif., started six games last season as a sophomore and was the team's second-leading rusher, with 728 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 32 passes for 383 yards. He averaged 19.1 yards on eight kickoff returns.

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

Sportsbooks to bet on football

Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.

He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.

"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.

He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.

Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.

Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.

Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.

Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.

With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.

Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).

And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)

The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.

While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.

Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.

One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.

Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.

What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.

That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.

MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.

"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.

"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."

So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.

In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.

MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.

The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.

Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.

MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.

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