Magic welcome Hawks to central Florida
Basketball Betting Lines
02/10/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Orlando Magic try to stay hot tonight when they welcome the Atlanta Hawks to the Amway Center.
This, of course, is the first meeting between these Southeast Division rivals since Atlanta knocked the Magic out of last year's playoffs in six games.
Orlando, though, enters tonight's tilt playing some of its best basketball of the season, having won four of its last five games. On Wednesday, Ryan Anderson scored 27 points, Dwight Howard added 25 and both players had double- doubles to lead the Magic to a 102-89 win over the Miami Heat.
The Magic made 17 three-pointers and led wire-to-wire, going ahead by as many as 17 and fending off a couple of Miami runs. Their strong play of late comes on the heels of a four-game slide.
"I thought we did a good job gathering ourselves. We held our composure and nobody seemed the least bit worried, we just kept making plays," said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy.
Anderson, who made five threes and scored 24 points in a big first half, added 11 rebounds and Howard pulled down a game-high 24. Orlando improved to 12-1 this season when scoring at least 100 points.
The Magic are in the midst of a stretch that sees them play six of seven at home, where they are 9-5 on the year.
Atlanta, meanwhile, snapped a three-game skid on Wednesday, as Josh Smith had 28 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Hawks to a 97-87 win over the Indiana Pacers.
Atlanta got 20 points and eight assists from Joe Johnson, 17 points from Kirk Hinrich and 13 from Tracy McGrady to close its four-game homestand with a victory.
"We weren't playing well," said McGrady, who scored seven of his points in the fourth quarter. "I think we recognized that. Tonight we wanted to provide that energy and that effort and I think we did that."
Atlanta is 12-1 this season when Johnson scores at least 20 points. Johnson was named as a reserve for the Eastern Conference All-Star team on Thursday.
"Im Blessed to have the opportunity to play in my 6th AllStar game," Johnson wrote on his Twitter page. "It never gets old."
After tonight's contest the Hawks will return home to host the Heat, then hit the road again for five straight games. Atlanta is 8-5 away from home this season.
Atlanta knocked off the Magic in six games in the first round of last year's playoffs and has won three straight and four of the last five regular season meetings between the two teams.
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Will Ohio State continue to run the table in College Football betting odds?
MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.
NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.
Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.
Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.
Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
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Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
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Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6
For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com