05/09/2008 - Berlin, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the second time in two days, Dinara Safina knocked off a top-10 superstar, as the Russian ousted previously red-hot American Serena Williams on Friday to reach the semifinals at the $1.34 million German Open, a clay-court French Open tuneup.
The 13th-seeded Safina stunned world No. 1 Justine Henin in straight sets here on Thursday, and toppled a fifth-seeded Williams on Friday in three sets, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5), at LTTC Rot-Weiss. The former top-ranked Williams was riding a torrid 17-match winning streak and seeking a fourth title in four events.
The eight-time Grand Slam champion and 2002 Berlin runner-up Williams, who fell to 21-2 this season, hadn't lost since giving way to Serbian star Jelena Jankovic in the quarterfinals at January's Australian Open.
The giant-killer Safina will face last week's Prague runner-up Victoria Azarenka in Saturday's semifinals, as the Belarusian Azarenka surprised 15th- seeded Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 on Day 5.
A fourth-seeded Jankovic joined the list of upset victims here when seventh- seeded Russian Elena Dementieva dismissed the Serb, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.
One other quarterfinal bout was suspended because of darkness on Friday, as second-seeded and defending Berlin champion Ana Ivanovic was knotted with 10th-seeded Hungarian Agnes Szavay 3-6, 6-4 when play was halted for the day. The Australian and French Open runner-up Ivanovic and Szavay will complete their match here on Saturday, with the winner then taking on the two-time Grand Slam runner-up Dementieva.
The Serbian Ivanovic beat Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova in last year's Berlin finale.
The 2008 German Open titlist will pocket $196,900.
<< Atletico Madrid can lock up Champions League spot
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atletico Madrid hopes to secure a spot in the
Champions League on Sunday against Deportivo. But while that's Atletico's main
goal, Barcelona is also just three points away in third place.
Atletico Madrid beat
<< Turnbow outrighted to minors
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers announced on Friday
that relief pitcher Derrick Turnbow has been outrighted to Triple-A Nashville.
Last Friday, the 30-year old righty was designated for assignment, which he
opte
<< Inter tries again for third straight title
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After failing to secure its third straight
scudetto last Sunday with a 2-1 defeat to rivals AC Milan, Inter Milan will
attempt to lift the title once again with a home victory against Siena on
Sunday.
<< Kolzig not returning to Caps
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington Capitals goaltender Olaf Kolzig
has said that he will not be returning to the team he has spent his entire NHL
career with, according to a report on Friday.
Kolzig told the Washington Post th
Federer falls; Roddick reaches Rome semis >>
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 superstar Roger Federer
suffered a quarterfinal setback Friday at the hands of gritty Czech Radek
Stepanek at the $3.5 million Italian Masters. Meanwhile, former top-ranked
star Andy Roddic
Adebayor: I'm not leaving Arsenal >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor has
angrily slammed reports that he has asked to leave the club after being denied
a new bumper contract.
Several reports on Friday claimed the Togo international w
A's reliever Foulke activated off DL >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics activated reliever Keith
Foulke from the 15-day disabled list on Friday.
He had been on the DL since April 19, retroactive to April 11, with neck
stiffness.
In seven games this
Shakeup could soon be in store in San Diego >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Citizens of San Diego may be renowned for their laid-back
and easy-going approach to life, but the patience of the hometown Padres'
brass has got to be wearing thin with the way the team has performed over the
past three week
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.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
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.
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