Terriers and Catamounts clash in America East title tilt

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - Burlington. VT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A berth in the NCAA Tournament is on the line in Burlington today, as the second-seeded Vermont Catamounts battle the fourth-seeded Boston University Terriers in the 2010 America East Conference Championship Game.

Boston University crushed fifth-seeded Hartford by 41 points in the quarterfinal round before edging top-seeded Stony Brook, 70-63, in a semifinal matchup last Sunday. The Terriers, who are now 19-12 overall, have won this tournament five times, more than any other active member of the NEC. Still, the program hasn't captured the title since 2002 and last reached the championship game in 2003.

As for Vermont, it beat up on seventh-seeded UMBC in the quarterfinals and played tremendous defense in a 57-38 decision over sixth-seeded New Hampshire in the semis. Champions of this tournament on three occasions, all of which came during a spectacular run from 2003-2005, the Catamounts also lost in the title game in both 2006 and 2007. They are 24-9 overall this season and have the obvious advantage of playing at home today.

The Terriers own a 51-41 series advantage over the Catamounts, but Vermont won both meetings during the recently completed regular season.

John Holland leads a foursome of double-digit scorers for Boston University with 19.3 ppg, and he is grabbing 6.2 rpg as well. Corey Lowe checks in with 14.8 ppg and 125 assists, but his 37.4 percent shooting from the field is far from impressive. The same can be said of Jake O'Brien's 39 percent shooting, although he does contribute 13.4 ppg and 6.5 rpg. Carlos Strong rounds out the group with an even 10.0 ppg for the Terriers, who are netting 70.8 ppg while allowing 66.4 ppg. Against Stony Brook in the semifinal round of this tournament, Lowe scored 24 points off the bench to pace his squad, while Strong recorded 15 points. Both Holland and O'Brien netted 10 points apiece for BU, which committed nine fewer turnovers than the opposition.

Senior Marqus Blakely is a tremendous performer for Vermont, as he has won the America East Defensive Player of the Year award the last three seasons and is a First-Team All-league performer. Blakely leads the club in scoring (17.2 ppg), rebounding (9.1 rpg), assists (122), blocks (65) and steals (81), as his versatility is impressive. While Blakely is clearly the man to watch, he does get some help from Maurice Joseph (14.1 ppg), and Evan Fjeld (10.7 ppg). The Catamounts are generating 70.2 ppg while allowing 64.2 ppg to opponents on just 39.7 percent shooting from the field. In the semifinal victory over New Hampshire, Vermont allowed a meager 27.7 percent shooting, including 2-of-18 from three-point range. The Catamounts also forced 15 turnovers and earned a 37-30 rebounding advantage. Garvey Young led the Catamounts with 15 points, and Fjeld added 14 points. Surprisingly, Blakely was held to eight points and five rebounds.

Mysportblog NCAA Basketball Betting News

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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