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03/05/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2009 Colonial Athletic Association Tournament will take place in Richmond, Virginia, beginning with the first round on Friday and wrapping up with Monday's title game.
The top four seeds each receive a bye for the opening round, and the winner of the tournament gets an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Virginia Commonwealth grabbed the top seed after picking up its third consecutive CAA regular-season title. However, the Rams know all too well that they've got some more work to do, as they missed out on a NCAA Tournament invite last year after losing to fifth-seeded William & Mary in the semifinals. VCU is led by CAA Player of the Year candidate Eric Maynor, who leads the league in scoring (22.4 ppg), and also broke the school's career scoring record in the season finale. George Mason, last season's CAA Champion, has the No. 2 seed. The Patriots have won four of their last five games. The No. 3 seed belongs to the Northeastern Huskies, who faded a bit down the stretch, losing four of their final six games. The final first-round bye belongs to the fourth-seeded Old Dominion Monarchs, winners of five straight and nine of their last 10 overall.
Kicking off the first-round action will be the eighth-seeded Georgia State Panthers and ninth-seeded Delaware Blue Hens on Friday at noon. The winner gets a date with VCU in the quarterfinals on Saturday. Georgia State (11-19, 8-10 CAA) and Delaware (13-18, 6-12) split the season series. This marks the Panthers' highest seed since joining the CAA four years ago, as they closed out the regular season by winning four of their final five games. Leading the way for Georgia State is guard Joe Dukes, who averages 12.3 ppg to go along with 4.4 rpg and 4.4 apg. He is complemented in the backcourt by Trae Goldston (11.0 ppg), the team's top three-point shooter at 34.6 percent. Shooting hasn't exactly been the team's strong point throughout the season. They are putting up just 60.8 ppg on 42.1-percent shooting from the floor. They've even struggled at the free-throw line, shooting just 61 percent.
Delaware has gone with the same starting lineup for all but two games this season, and while four of those players are scoring in double figures and logging 30-plus minutes per game, the team doesn't have a whole lot of depth beyond that. Marc Egerson is averaging 15.5 ppg and 10.4 ppg, and he is also a 39-percent shooter from beyond the arc. Jawan Carter is good for two three- pointers per game (34.1 percent) and is averaging 15.3 ppg. Other key contributors include Alphonso Dawson (14.2 ppg) and Brian Johnson (10.2 ppg). As a team, the Blue Hens are knocking down 7.4 threes per game, though they attempt more than 20 per game, which also waters down their field-goal percentage a bit (41.7 percent).
Game two pits the fifth-seeded Hofstra Pride against the 12th-seeded UNC- Wilmington Seahawks. The winner will advance to face fourth-seeded Old Dominion in quarterfinal action. Hofstra (20-10, 11-7) and UNCW (7-24, 3-15) played a pair of tightly-contested games in the regular season. The Pride notched a two-point victory at UNCW on Jan. 28, then beat the Seahawks in overtime in the season finale this past Saturday. In fact, it marked the fourth straight season these two played in an overtime game.
Hofstra was able to reach the 20-win mark for the fourth time in the past five seasons, thanks largely to guard Charles Jenkins (19.2 ppg). One of only two sophomores in school history to eclipse 1,000 points, Jenkins recorded a career-high 35 points on Saturday, including what turned out to be the game- clinching bucket late in overtime. His previous career-high was 33 points, set against those same Seahawks in late-January. Cornelius Vines is scoring 10.6 ppg on the season.
As for UNCW, the offense filters mostly through Chad Tomko, who leads the team with 15.8 ppg. A 31.8-percent shooter from beyond the arc, Tomko launches an average of nearly eight three-point attempts per game. Johnny Wolf (13.7 ppg), a 34.3-percent shooter from beyond the arc, also gets plenty of looks in the back court. In the low post, Dominique Lacy is averaging 10.6 ppg and 6.0 rpg. However, the Seahawks are often at a disadvantage on the boards, as they are a -6.9 in rebounding margin this season. And while they do have a few guys who can score, defensive stops have been few and far between, with opponents putting up 83.7 ppg and shooting 50.7 percent from the floor. Still, you can't sleep on a program that has more tournament wins than any other school in the CAA.
Seventh-seeded James Madison (18-13, 9-9) will take on the 10th-seeded William & Mary Tribe (10-19, 5-13) in Game three of the first round. The winner moves on to face George Mason Saturday night. JMU swept the season series for the first time since 1999-2000. Last year, William & Mary lost to George Mason in the CAA Championship game. So, while the Tribe enter this year's conference tourney as the 10th-seed, they've got some players who have proven they know what it takes to win in postseason play. The Tribe prefer to slow the tempo down and operate out of their half-court offense. They've held opponents to 63.2 ppg, but are scoring just 61.9 ppg and shooting 41.5 percent as a team. Guards David Schneider and Danny Sumner headline this group. Schneider leads the team with 14.4 ppg and Sumner is scoring 13.2 ppg, though neither is shooting better than 40 percent from the floor. In fact, Schneider has taken more shots than any player on the team, but is shooting a rather ugly 34.7 percent from the floor.
As for the Dukes, they need to find a way to rebound after closing out the regular season with losses in three of their final four games. Juwann James leads JMU with 15.4 ppg despite starting only three games this season. He is shooting a scorching 59.4 percent from the floor. Kyle Swanston (11.9 ppg), Julius Wells (11.8 ppg) and Devon Moore (10.1 ppg) are each key figures in the offense. One of the team's main strengths is its foul shooting, as the Dukes have four players who rank in the top-six in the CAA in free-throw percentage. Should the game come down to the last few possessions, JMU has the advantage here.
In the night cap of Friday's first-round action, sixth-seeded Drexel will take on 11th-seeded Towson, with the winner advancing to face Northeastern in the quarterfinals. Drexel won both regular-season meetings against Towson. The Dragons (15-13, 10-8) rank dead-last in the CAA in field-goal percentage (37.9) and three-point percentage (29.7) although they rank second in field- goal percentage defense (39.6). The team sputtered down the stretch, losing three of its final four games. The Dragons closed out the season with a 48-47 loss to William & Mary, which followed up a 47-46 loss to Northeastern three days earlier. Scott Rodgers is the only player averaging double figures, with 13.8 ppg to go along with 5.0 rpg. He averages a team-high 12 shot attempts per game, and is shooting just 35.6 percent from the floor.
Towson (10-21, 5-13) didn't fare too well down the stretch, either, dropping four of its final five games. As a team, the Tigers are shooting just 40.1 percent from the floor and are being outscored by an average margin of 6.1 ppg. Still, they've got one of the league's top big men in Junior Hairston (12.7 ppg, 7.3 rpg). Josh Thornton is scoring 11.2 ppg and is a threat along the perimeter, where he has knocked down a team-high 74 three-pointers (36.5 percent). Jarrel Smith is tallying 10.4 ppg and 4.9 rpg and is the only player to have started all 29 games this season.
<< Creamer among three co-leaders in Singapore
Singapore (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a disappointing finish in Thailand,
Paula Creamer fired a five-under 67 on Thursday to share the lead with two
other players after the first round of the HSBC Champions tournament.
Creamer, who
<< Report: Denver signs QB Simms
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos continued their off-season
spending spree by reportedly adding free agent quarterback Chris Simms to
their roster.
The Denver Post reports the 28-year-old Simms has joined the team, presumably
<< Gay helps Grizzlies top Clippers, snap eight-game skid
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rudy Gay poured in a season-best 35 points
and pulled down eight rebounds and Memphis snapped an eight-game skid with a
118-95 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Marc Gasol had 20 points, eight boards
<< Kurt Barnes leads New Zealand PGA
Christchurch, New Zealand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Barnes fired an eight-under
64 on Thursday to take the first-round lead of the New Zealand PGA
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Ryan Hammond birdied six holes in a row during the middle of his
2009 Southern Conference Tournament Preview >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 88th-annual Southern Conference
Tournament is set to begin on Friday from the McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga.
Once again the top team in the Southern Conference was the Davidson Wildcats,
who finished w
2009 West Coast Conference Tournament Preview >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The West Coast Conference Tournament will
be held at a neutral site for the first time, as Orleans Arena in Las Vegas
will serve host to the 23rd annual event.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs, the only ranked team in
Dayton visits Xavier in pivotal Atlantic 10 battle >>
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dayton Flyers and 17th-ranked Xavier
Musketeers will do battle tonight in a game with major implications in the
race for the Atlantic 10 Conference title.
Xavier sits atop the A-10 standings with an 11-3
Nittany Lions seek upset of 23rd-ranked Fighting Illini >>
University Park, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Penn State Nittany Lions hope to
impress the NCAA Tournament selection committee with a Big Ten Conference
victory over the 23rd-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini.
Illinois carried a modest two-game w
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The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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