An SEC catfight pits Wildcats against Tigers

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/28/2012 - Baton Rouge, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats close out a two-game road trip this afternoon, invading Baton Rouge for an SEC showdown with the LSU Tigers at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

John Calipari's Wildcats have lost just once this season and are certainly clicking on all cylinders, bringing a lengthy 12-game win streak into this contest. Kentucky continued its winning ways this week while remaining unbeaten in conference play with a 57-44 decision over Georgia in Athens.

Trent Johnson's Tigers are four games over .500 on the season at 12-8, but have found it much tougher in league play with a mere 2-4 mark thus far. This is the third straight ranked opponent on the docket for the Tigers, who have lost at Florida (76-64) and at Mississippi State (76-71) in the last week.

Kentucky holds a sizable 80-24 advantage in the series with LSU and leads in games played in Baton Rouge, 28-16. More recently, the Wildcats have won two straight and four of the last five meetings.

The Wildcats have one of the youngest rosters in the nation, but that hasn't prevented the team from ascending the polls. Kentucky has done it with balance at both ends of the floor and is enjoying an impressive +19.5 scoring margin as a result (second in the nation). The youngsters have certainly bought into the team's defensive gameplan, allowing a mere 59.0 ppg (18th nationally) on a nation's best .362 shooting. UK's scoring depth is unmatched with six players currently averaging double figures. Still, it is the emergence of freshman forward Anthony Davis that has the team rolling. The 6-10 Davis is shooting .629 from the floor, averaging a double-double with 13.2 points and 10.3 rebounds per game, while leading the nation in blocked shots (4.7 per game). Doron Lamb (13.7 ppg), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (13.2 ppg), Terrence Jones (11.6 ppg), Darius Miller (10.3 ppg) and Marquis Teague (10.0 ppg) all have the ability to fill up the basket.

LSU's problems usually come at the offensive end of the floor, where a lack of consistency has plagued the team. The Tigers are averaging a modest 67.2 ppg, while shooting just over 40 percent from the floor. Forward Justin Hamilton leads the way, with team-highs in scoring (13.9 ppg), rebounding (7.4 rpg) and blocks (29). Andre Stringer and Anthony Hickey round out the top scoring threats at 10.8 and 10.0 ppg, respectively. Ralston Turner (8.9 ppg) and Storm Warren (8.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg) complete the starting five. In the loss to the Bulldogs this week, LSU knocked down 11 three-pointers but it wasn't enough. Stringer led the way with 17 points. Hickey hit four three-pointers en route to a 16-point outing. Hamilton finished with 11 points. Despite committing just nine turnovers in the game, LSU was beat up on the glass, getting outrebounded, 46-26. The Wildcats showed their defensive prowess in the win over Georgia, holding the Bulldogs to a mere 44 points. Miller led the Wildcats in scoring with 19 points off the bench, hitting 7-of-8 shots from the floor including all four of his three-point attempts. Kidd-Gilchrist posted a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Davis struggled offensively with just four points, but did grab 11 rebounds and block five shots in the win.

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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