Penn State seeks upset of 18th-ranked Illinois

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/18/2009 - Champaign, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Penn State Nittany Lions have made their way to Champaign to take on the 18th-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini in a Big Ten Conference battle.

Penn State carried a three-game losing streak into Saturday's home clash with Minnesota, but the result of that tilt was a much-needed 68-63 victory. The Nittany Lions are a solid 18-8 overall, and their 7-6 Big Ten record exceeds what most expected of the club entering the campaign.

Illinois brings a three-game win streak into tonight's tilt that has enabled the club to move to 21-5 overall and 9-4 in Big Ten action. The Illini were most recently in action on Sunday when they knocked off Indiana by a 65-52 final. They have held all three opponents during the current run to fewer than 60 points, and strong defense has been key to the team's success all season.

Illinois owns a 21-9 series advantage over Penn State, which includes a victory over the Nittany Lions in last year's Big Ten Conference Tournament.

Talor Battle led Penn State to the victory over Minnesota on Saturday, as the talented guard finished with 21 points. Stanley Pringle pitched in 13 points for the Nittany Lions, who only got six points from Jamelle Cornley. Penn State earned a 21-13 edge in points from the foul line and forced 19 turnovers, two obvious contributing factors in the win. Battle is scoring 17.6 ppg this season to go along with 134 assists. Cornley provides 14.9 ppg and 6.5 rpg, so he is a much better player than what he showed against Minnesota. As for Pringle, he adds 13.2 ppg to the mix. No other player on the roster is generating more than 5.4 ppg, emphasizing the importance of the "big three". Penn State is outrebounding its opponents by 3.5 rpg, and the club has attempted 136 more free throws than the opposition.

Opponents are only scoring 56.4 ppg against Illinois, which is limiting foes to 39.5 percent shooting from the field, including 29.1 percent accuracy from three-point range. The Illini have four double-digit scorers in the fold, and Demetri McCamey paces the balanced attack with 12.0 ppg to go along with his 128 assists. Mike Tisdale contributes 11.2 ppg, and Mike Davis is posting 10.8 ppg and 7.8 rpg. As for Trent Meachem, he rounds out the foursome with 10.1 ppg. Davis and Tisdale netted 16 points apiece in the win over Indiana, and Davis also pulled down 10 boards. The Illini connected on 50 percent of their field goal attempts and earned a 37-27 rebounding advantage as well.

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MySportsbook.com week 1 NFL lines


Now that the 2008 NFL schedule is finally out, it is only matter-of-course for lines on “Week 1” to follow.  Of course MySportsbook.com is the first to churn out odds for the NFL’s inaugural week for the upcoming season.   Expect a lot of fireworks the first Thursday night of the season as the defending champion Indianapolis Colts face off against the surprise of the 2008 season, the New Orleans Saints.  These teams were ranked #1 and #3 in the NFL respectively a season ago so a high scoring affair could be in order.  As of now, the Colts will be giving 6 points to the Saints; keep in mind the Saints were one of the better road teams last season going 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS.  The first Monday night of the season will again provide a “double feature”. Coming off a disappointing season, the Cincinnati Bengals will look to get back to playoffs and improve their public image as they take on the AFC North favorite Baltimore Ravens.  The second game features a couple of teams that haven’t had too much success recently but each could make some noise if the NFC is as weak as it was last year as the San Francisco 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals. The most interesting game of the opening week will feature the NFC champion Bears as they hit the road to take on the NFL’s top team during last year’s regular season, the San Diego Chargers.

MySportsbook.com Week 1 odds:

Saints +6 @ Colts -6

Falcons @ Vikings (pick ‘em)

Panthers @ Rams (pick ‘em)

Broncos -3.5 @ Bills +3.5

Chiefs -1 @ Texans +1

Dolphins +3 @ Redskins -3

Patriots -5 @ Jets +5

Eagles -3.5 @ Packers +3.5

Steelers -4 @ Browns +4

Titans +6 @ Jaguars -6

Bears +6 @ Chargers -6

Lions +3 @ Raiders -3

Bucs +6.5 @ Seahawks -6.5

Giants +4 @ Cowboys -4

Ravens +3 @ Bengals -3

Cardinals +3 @ 49ers -3

 Super Bowl line (2008)

NFC +6.5 vs. AFC -6.5

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