Tsonga advances, Bogolomov falters at Aussie Open
Tennis Betting Lines
01/18/2012 - Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jo-Wilfred Tsonga rolled into the third round of the Australian Open, while Alex Bogolomov Jr. was dispatched at the first Grand Slam event of the year on Thursday.
France's Tsonga, the tournament's sixth seed, defeated Ricardo Mello of Brazil 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 in straight sets. The 2008 Aussie runner-up committed 44 unforced errors in the match, but also hit 54 winners to advance to the third round.
The 32-seeded Russian Bogolomov dropped the first two sets of his match before taking the next two, but faltered in the fifth set to take a marathon 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 5-7, 6-4 defeat at the hands of France's Michael Llodra.
Also on Thursday, 23rd-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic downed Germany's Philipp Petzschner 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5, hitting 17 aces and converting on 5-of-7 break chances, and Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela, the 27th seed, rolled to a 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 decision over Spain's Pablo Andujar.
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Love had 20 points and 17 rebounds for his 14th straight double-double to open the season, leading the Minnesota Timberwolves over the Detroit Pistons, 93-85. Love broke Hall of Famer and former
<< Williams leads Nets past Warriors
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Deron Williams had 24 points, 10 assists and
eight rebounds, leading the Nets to a 107-100 win over the Warriors on
Wednesday.
MarShon Brooks added 22 points, six assists and eight boards for the Net
<< Griner leads No. 1 Baylor past No. 17 Texas Tech
Lubbock, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittney Griner scored 21 points, grabbed six
rebounds and blocked seven shots as No. 1 Baylor took down No. 17 Texas Tech,
72-64, on Tuesday.
Destiny Williams had 16 points and a career-high 16 rebounds for
<< Caps top Canadiens behind Neuvirth's shutout
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michal Neuvirth made 31 saves en route to his
second shutout of the season and sixth of his career Wednesday as the
Washington Capitals blanked the Montreal Canadiens, 3-0, at Bell Centre.
Alex Ovech
<< Johnson leads Hawks over Trail Blazers
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Johnson had 24 points, seven rebounds, five
assists and two steals as the Atlanta Hawks held off the Portland Trail
Blazers to take a 92-89 decision on Wednesday.
Josh Smith added 17 points and 11 bo
Oxford, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Reginald Buckner had 19 points and 15 rebounds as Ole Miss upended No. 18 Mississippi State, 75-68. Nick Williams had 17 points while Jarvis Summers and Terrance Henry each added 12 points for the Rebels (12-6
Kansas State survives late hiccup, beats Texas >>
Manhattan, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Enduring five missed free throws in the final
35 seconds Wednesday night, No. 25 Kansas State came up with a key steal down
the stretch to beat Texas and snap its two-game losing streak.
Rodney McGruder scor
O'Reilly's OT winner lifts Avs over Panthers >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan O'Reilly scored the winner with 65 seconds
left in overtime to help Colorado rally for a 4-3 win over Florida.
In the extra session, O'Reilly took a feed and skated down the right wing.
From the circl
Ducks thump Coyotes >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Francois Beauchemin led a balanced Anaheim
attack with a pair of goals and an assist as the Ducks came away with an
emphatic 6-2 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes at Honda Center on Wednesday.
Jason
Kings rally in 4th to down Pacers >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Francisco Garcia scored 10 of his 16 points
in the fourth quarter as the Sacramento Kings mounted a huge comeback to down
the Indiana Pacers, 92-88.
Marcus Thornton added 17 points and DeMarcus Cousins h
SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting
NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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