Bulls to try and clip wings of 23rd-ranked Cardinals

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/07/2009 - Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 23rd-ranked Louisville Cardinals open the Big East portion of their schedule in Tampa tonight, as they take on the South Florida Bulls at the Sun Dome.

With disappointing losses to Western Kentucky, Minnesota and UNLV, the Cardinals find themselves on the verge of falling out of the Top 25 after entering the season with a loft No.3 ranking. The team though, showed its resiliency on Sunday, capturing a thrilling 74-71 victory over instate foe Kentucky. Now at 9-3 overall, Louisville turns its focus to the Big East, where it has opened play with a loss in each of the past four seasons. The Cardinals however, have rebounded to finish second in the league in each of the last two seasons.

As for USF, it kicked off its Big East slate on Friday, dropping a 59-54 decision to nationally-ranked Syracuse. It was a hard fought game, but an expected result, as the Bulls have now gone just 7-44 in conference play since joining the Big East. Losers of three of their last four games, USF now sits at just 5-8 on the campaign.

In regard to the all-time series, Louisville holds a 21-3 advantage over the Bulls and it has won seven straight and 10 of the last 11 meetings in the rivalry.

Edgar Sosa drained a three-pointer with 2.8 seconds remaining, lifting the Cardinals to a 74-71 victory over Kentucky on Sunday. It was a huge shot for Louisville and Sosa, who finished with a season-high 18 points. The Cardinals did a great job from long range all game long, hitting on 11-of-20 chances. Terrence Williams led the way with an all-around effort of 19 points, eight rebounds and five steals. Jerry Smith made all three of his long-range attempts for 11 points, while Earl Clark had 10 points and eight boards. Freshman Samardo Samuels, however, was limited to just four points due to foul trouble, but despite that performance, he still leads the team in scoring with 13.8 ppg on the season. Clark is second on the squad with 12.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg and 3.0 apg, while Williams adds 12.3 ppg and team highs of 8.8 rpg and 4.7 apg to the rotation. Louisville as a team, is scoring a solid 76.0 ppg and it has also fared well on defense, holding foes to just 38.1 percent shooting from the field.

The Bulls made only 36.7 percent of their attempts from the floor and just 4- of-23 from downtown, as they were unable to pull off the upset of Syracuse on Friday. The team also struggled a bit at the foul line, going 6-of-10, and was also dominated on the boards, 44-33. Dominique Jones guided USF in defeat with 17 points and three steals, while Mobolaji Ajayi had 15 points and seven rebounds. On the season, Jones has displayed his versatility by leading the Bulls in scoring (17.1 ppg), assists (4.0 apg) and steals (24). Jesus Verdejo has provided a solid second option at 15.5 ppg and he is shooting 37.6 percent from long range. He, however, was 0-of-10 from beyond the arc against Syracuse and is shooting a poor 59.0 percent at the foul line on the season. As a team, USF has struggled from both three-point range (.303) and at the charity stripe (.578) and that explains why it is only averaging 61.3 ppg.

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2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

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