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02/21/2012 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What a difference a day makes.
Kobe Bryant, just 24 hours after expressing his displeasure regarding the Lakers' handling of star forward Pau Gasol, was all smiles after scoring 28 points in Los Angeles' 103-92 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.
Gasol, mired in trade talks throughout the season, totaled 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Andrew Bynum added 14 and 19 in the win, the Lakers' fourth in five games.
Steve Blake scored 14 of his 17 points in a first half that saw the hosts lead by as many as 30. The Blazers' comeback ultimately came up short and they fell for the fourth time in six games.
"In the first half, that's the best we played, especially defensively," Bryant said. "We came out with great energy."
LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum paced Portland with 18 points apiece.
Prior to the game, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak responded to Bryant's comments by saying it would serve no purpose to announce publicly whether or not the team will deal Gasol.
A roster shakeup didn't appear necessary the way the Lakers opened Monday's contest.
Portland put itself in a hole in the first quarter, hitting just 3-of-17 (18 percent) from the field. The Lakers had separate runs of 10 and 13 points during the Blazers' slow start and cruised to a healthy 29-7 lead.
"We didn't come out ready to play. I thought we started the All-Star break early," Blazers head coach Nate McMillan said.
Blake began the second quarter with a pair of three-pointers, and two Bynum free throws pushed the margin to 30 a little later.
Batum halted an eight-minute scoreless drought with a jumper, but the Blazers were still down, 52-30, at halftime.
Seven Portland three-pointers in the third, including Batum's trey in the closing seconds, helped close the gap to 80-66 with 12 minutes to play.
The Blazers had several chances to pull within single digits in the fourth. Jamal Crawford turned the ball over trailing 84-74, and the Lakers scored the next six points, going up 90-74 on Bryant's jumper at the midway point.
With 3 1/2 minutes to play, Wesley Matthews missed a three-pointer that could have cut the deficit to nine, and again LA responded with six of the next seven points to pull away for good.
Game Notes
The Lakers close out the first half of the season with a visit to Dallas on Wednesday, while Portland hosts the Spurs on Tuesday in its final game before the All-Star break...The Lakers improved to 14-2 at home...The Lakers are 5-0 when scoring over 100 points...The Blazers announced Monday that center Greg Oden will miss the remainder of the season after having microfracture surgery on his left knee. This was the fifth surgery the 7-foot Oden has endured since he was taken by the Blazers with the first pick in the 2007 draft.
<< Vinci, Errani advance at Monterrey
Monterrey, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Roberta Vinci advanced to the
second round at the $220,000 Monterrey Open on Monday.
The Italian defeated American Coco Vandeweghe in 7-5, 7-5 fashion on the
hardcourts at Sierra Madre T
<< Top-seed Petrova ousted in Memphis first round
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Italian qualifier Camila Giorgi sent top-seeded
Russian Nadia Petrova packing in the first round at the $220,000 Memphis
International tennis event.
Giorgi ousted the former world No. 3 Petrova in straig
<< No. 13 Baylor outlasts Texas
Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Quincy Acy carried No. 13 Baylor to a comeback
win, a hard-fought 77-72 victory over in-state rival Texas sealed by Pierre
Jackson's clinching free throws in the final minute.
Acy made up for poor shootin
<< Nuggets slip by T'Wolves in OT
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arron Afflalo drained the go-ahead shot with
33.7 seconds remaining in overtime and the Denver Nuggets outlasted the
Minnesota Timberwolves, 103-101, on Monday.
Afflalo had 20 points overall and Al
Local rivals collide in Raleigh >>
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The seventh-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels
continue their run toward the ACC regular-season title, as they make the short
trip to Raleigh to take on rival NC State in a conference battle at the RBC
Center.
Ro
Top-ranked Kentucky eyes up SEC crown >>
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sporting the nation's longest win streak,
the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats are closing in on an SEC regular-season title
and hope to gain at least a share of the conference crown this evening, as
they take on t
Instate rivals clash in ACC affair >>
Blacksburg, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Virginia Tech Hokies shoot for back-to-
back wins for the first time in 2012 as they host the 25th-ranked Virginia
Cavaliers in ACC action tonight at Cassell Coliseum.
VaTech, which has won a total of ju
Wolverines meet Wildcats in Big Ten action >>
Evanston, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Riding a three-game win streak, the 11th-
ranked Michigan Wolverines try to make it a clean sweep of Northwestern, as
the two Big Ten programs clash at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston tonight.
Michigan, now tied
Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)
"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."
Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins
There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.
Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins
Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.
USC Trojans - 10.5 wins
A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.
Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy
Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.
"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."
Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1
The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.
Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1
If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.
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Terrell Owens could return for Cowboys next game
A bye week will allow Terrell Owens broken hand to recover just in time for the next game the Dallas Cowboys are slated to play, according to reports. MySportsbook.com, an football sportsbook, has posted football betting lines on TO playing.
Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger Sunday night and had a plate surgically attached to it Monday. Although Owens' hand was swollen and aching Wednesday, Dallas Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said he's optimistic the receiver will be back at work next week and catching passes a week from Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.
MySportsbook.com online sportsbook listed Terrell Owens with odds of 7-2 (or $7 paid out for every $2 bet) to return back for the game against Tennessee.
"I certainly wouldn't rule it out now," Parcells said, referring to Terrell Owens immediate return. "Maybe five days from now I might, but I wouldn't rule it out now. ... I know we're looking to try to get him moving around pretty good in the next day or so. So we'll see where we are."
Owens did not speak with reporters Wednesday, but said Sunday he'd be out two to four weeks. A return against the Titans would be 13 days after the surgery. The Cowboys were listed as an early -7 1/2 favorite vs. the Tennessee Titans for Week 4 at MySportsbook.com
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