11/29/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The defending champion Boston Celtics will try to extend their winning streak to eight games tonight when they take on the Charlotte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena.
Boston has been on fire lately with seven straight wins, eclipsing the century mark in each of the last three games and five times total during the streak. In Friday's 102-78 pounding of the visiting Philadelphia 76ers at TD Banknorth Garden, Ray Allen finished with 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting.
Kevin Garnett added 16 points and Rajon Rondo ended with 12 assists, six rebounds and six points for the Celtics, who have won by an average margin of 13.7 points over their last seven games.
Boston is allowing a league-low 90.5 points per game and will put its six-game road winning streak to the test this evening in Charlotte.
The Bobcats have won two of three games and will open a three-game homestand Saturday versus Boston, Minnesota and Oklahoma City. They are coming off a 115-108 overtime victory against the Indiana Pacers at Conseco Fieldhouse, as Raymond Felton tied a career-high with 31 points to lead Charlotte to its first road win of the season and largest point total in 2008-09.
Emeka Okafor scored 13 points and pulled down 20 rebounds while Jason Richardson had 21 points in a winning cause. Gerald Wallace had a busy night with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five steals for the Bobcats. Richardson was back on the court after missing seven straight games with knee inflammation.
Boston went 3-1 against Charlotte last season and has won 11 of the 15 meetings in this series. The Celtics have also won three in a row and five of the seven all-time matchups on the road.
<< Australia, Spain share World Cup lead
Shenzhen, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Australian duo of Richard Green and
Brendan Jones combined for a nine-under 63 in fourball action Saturday to join
the Spanish tandem of Miguel Angel Jimenez and Pablo Larrazabal atop the
leaderb
<< Lexus Cup remains tied through two days
Singapore (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Katherine Hull and Nikki Campbell held on for a
1-up win for the International team in the final match Saturday to keep the
International and Asian teams tied, 6-6, after two days of the Lexus Cup.
Suzann Pe
<< Dunn carries Baylor to win over Arizona State
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - LaceDarius Dunn scored 27 points to help Baylor
upend No. 14 Arizona State, 87-78, in second-round action at the 76 Classic.
Curtis Jerrells scored 22 points and doled out seven assists for the Bears
(6-0),
<< Allenby, Sim share Australian Masters lead
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robert Allenby carded a five-under 67
Saturday, while his playing partner Michael Sim posted a four-under 68 as the
two share the lead after three rounds of the Australian Masters.
Allenby and Sim co
Knicks try to avoid distractions vs. Warriors >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks aim to get back on track when they open
a quick two-game homestand tonight by welcoming the Golden State Warriors to
historic Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks dropped their second straight game to fa
Nuggets take on familiar Timberwolves >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets will try to continue their recent
dominance of the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight when the two teams square off
at the Target Center.
The Nuggets have won six straight against Minnesota, includin
Lowly Thunder try to stop skid in Memphis >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The woeful Oklahoma City Thunder will try to stop a 14-game
slide when they open a four-game road trip tonight against the Memphis
Grizzlies at FedEx Forum.
Oklahoma City hasn't tasted victory since its first w
Rockets, Spurs square off in Houston >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Rockets will try to get back on the winning
track tonight when they host the San Antonio Spurs at the Toyota Center.
The Rockets had their three-game winning streak come to an end with
Wednesday'
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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