Big East action pits Mountaineers at Friars

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/20/2007 - Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In need of a quality win, the Providence Friars host the 22nd-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers in a key Big East showdown from the Dunkin' Donuts Center tonight.

The Friars have had a solid campaign thus far, but they still have a lot of work ahead of them to earn an invite to the NCAA Tournament. Providence, which hasn't defeated a ranked opponent since beating Marquette (74-59) in its Big East opener, enters the contest fresh off a 71-66 victory over St. John's on Saturday. The win put an end to a brief two-game slide and improved the team to 16-9 overall and an even 6-6 in league play. It was also the Friars' 15th home win in 17 games at the Dunkin' Donuts Center this season.

As for WVU, barring a major collapse, it seems pretty certain it will make an appearance in the NCAA Tournament behind a 20-6 record. On Saturday, the Mountaineers defeated Seton Hall, 81-71, to improved to 8-5 in league play. WVU, which has now posted three straight 20-win seasons for the first time since 1985-87, takes to the road, where it has gone just 3-4 thus far.

In terms of the all-time series, Providence owns an 10-9 edge over WVU, although the Mountaineers have won the last four meetings.

The Mountaineers possess one of the best turnover margins in the Big East, as they are forcing their opponents into 17.2 turnovers per game, while committing just 11.4 tpg themselves. Another area WVU has excelled in has been defense, as it is allowing just 59.5 ppg. Offensively, Frank Young leads the way with 14.2 ppg and he is shooting 40.6 percent from three-point range. Joe Alexander has provided a nice complement to him and he is turning in 12.2 ppg and a team-high 4.6 rpg. Darris Nichols adds 10.2 pg and 4.3 apg, while Da'Sean Butler chips in with 10.1 ppg off the bench. In the team's last game, Young tallied 18 points and collected five caroms in leading WVU to a 10-point win over Seton Hall. Nichols posted 17 points and five assists for the Mountaineers, who shot 57.4 percent from the field, including a 9-of-23 effort from long range.

The Friars have a definite advantage on the boards in this game, and they are outrebounding their opponents to by a solid 7.6 rpg on the season. The team has also fared well at the offensive end of the court, where it is averaging a hardy 77.1 ppg on an efficient 49.3 percent shooting from the floor. Herbert Hill currently leads the team in scoring with 17.0 ppg and he is also ripping down 8.3 rpg. Sharaud Curry is second on the roster in scoring (16.9 ppg) as well as assists (4.9 apg), while Weyinmi Efejuku adds 13.9 ppg and 4.4 rpg. Geoff McDermott is another player worth mentioning, as he leads the team in rebounding (9.4 rpg), assists (5.5 apg) and steals (51) to go along with his 10.9 ppg average. In the squad's previous outing, Efejuku poured in 22 points and recorded three steals, as the Friars earned a five-point win over St. John's. Curry netted 18 points, while Hill notched a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Providence converted 18-of-20 free-throw attempts in the game and dominated the boards 39-24.

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NFL ODDSTop Football Betting Free Agents to Change Teams

NFL Betting

It’s time to see how the biggest NFL free agent signings will perform for their news teams. Some will work out and could be the difference that makes a difference in the win column.

We look at the best off-season signings and if they should influence your NFL betting this season. Julius Peppers – Peppers was the biggest prize available on the 2010 NFL free agent market and the Chicago Bears opened the bank to bring his talents to the south side.

Peppers is explosive, he can get around blockers and cause quarterbacks to lose their minds. We all remember the classic Peppers game last year against the Vikings where he hounded Brett Favre into his worst game of the season. Peppers joining the Bears could be the reason Favre retired for good Tuesday morning. In addition to Peppers, the Bears added Chester Taylor to back up Matt Forte, Forte didn’t have the same intensity in 2009 compared to 2008 and bringing in Taylor will challenge Forte to bring it every game or he’ll risk losing carries to Taylor.

Betting on the Bears is a good option this season because of Julius Peppers and to a lesser extent Taylor. Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens – The Cincinnati Bengals signed two former number one wide receivers to line up with Chad Ocho Cinco. Antonio Bryant had a huge season in 2008 catching 83 passes for over 1200 yards but regressed last season. Playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs last season was a large part of the regression, everyone was bad in TB last season.

Bryant should have a bounce back season if he can win the number two spot from Terrell Owens. If Bryant wins the number 2 WR spot, it will open up a completely new set of problems for the Bengals. If Owens is forced to the bench in favor of Bryant, his attitude will create trouble for Carson Palmer and head coach Marv Lewis. If Owens is the number two receiver, it means Bryant can’t live up to his past numbers and the Bengals are still limited in the passing game. NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. 2010 football betting lines for this can be found at this top online sportsbook. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense.

NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense. They signed away the Arizona Cardinals top linebacker Karlos Danby. In the past two seasons, Danby has totaled 228 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. The Dolphins are the forgotten team of the AFC East with the second longest odds to win the division but with the addition of Karlos Danby and a trade for WR Brandon Marshall makes the Miami Dolphins legitimate contenders in the AFC East and in the NFL’s Eastern Conference.

The Dolphins will make NFL wagering fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Wagering

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