Terry leads Mavs past hobbled Rockets
Basketball Betting Lines
11/20/2008 -
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Terry scored 31 points, and Dirk Nowitzki
added 24 points and 12 rebounds to pace Dallas to a 96-86 victory over the
injury-riddled Houston Rockets.
Jason Kidd contributed eight points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the
Mavericks, who won their third in a row following a five-game skid. The Mavs,
who played without second-leading scorer Josh Howard (left ankle), also beat
Houston for the 11th time in the last 14 meetings.
Rafer Alston and Tracy McGrady each scored 16 points, but the Rockets were
without center Yao Ming (sore left foot). Forward Shane Battier practiced on
Tuesday for the first time this season, but was in street clothes again as he
continues be sidelined due to offseason foot surgery.
"When you don't have Yao, you've got to move the ball and you have to create
situations," said Rockets coach Rick Adelman. "We don't have a lot of guys who
can break you down off the dribble. So the guys who can't do that, you've got
to give them some room and I thought there were times when we had the ball in
the hands of someone who could get there and our thought process was very
poor."
McGrady played despite leaving Monday's game against Oklahoma City with a knee
injury, and Ron Artest put together a solid performance with 14 points and 13
rebounds despite playing on a gimpy ankle. But Houston shot just 37.2 percent
from the field.
The Mavericks carried a 72-61 lead going to the fourth quarter, but Houston
got three-balls from Aaron Brooks and Von Wafer to start the period. The
Rockets, though, failed in their bid to play catch-up. McGrady's three-pointer
had the hosts within 88-84 with 1:15 remaining, but Terry then knifed through
the lane for a bucket with a minute left.
McGrady missed a three-pointer at the other end, and Nowitzki made four free
throws down the stretch.
"We won the game defensively, not giving them second opportunities," said
Terry. "Obviously, without Yao they didn't have that post presence, but our
bench did a good job of maintaining a good balance on both ends of the floor."
The Mavericks started the game on fire, scoring the first eight points, but
Houston bounced back to tie the game at 16 on an Artest layup. The Mavs
finished the quarter on a 9-2 spurt for a 31-25 lead and they were up 53-46 at
the half. The visitors held a sizeable lead throughout the third stanza.
Game Notes
Dallas will play nine of its next 11 games at home, starting Friday against
Memphis. The Mavericks are 0-4 at home for the first time since the 1993-94
season when they lost their first 19 at home. Dallas is the only team in the
league to not win a game at home this season...The Rockets play Washington
Friday in the opener of a three-game road trip...Scola and Brooks each had 15
points...The Rockets were 6-of-25 from three-point range.
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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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