Felton helps Bobcats rally past Heat

Basketball Betting Lines

03/09/2010 - Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Raymond Felton poured in 15 points and dished out a season-high 11 assists, as the Charlotte Bobcats rallied late to down the Miami Heat, 83-78, at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Stephen Jackson added 17 points for the Bobcats, who improved to 23-8 at home this season. That matches the franchise record of 23 home wins in a season set last year.

Boris Diaw donated 11 points and eight rebounds for Charlotte, which went perfect on a three-game homestand.

Dwyane Wade had 27 points and seven boards for the Heat, who saw a three-game win streak come to an end. Jermaine O'Neal added 19 points and five rebounds. Michael Beasley finished with 11 points and nine boards in defeat.

Miami started the fourth on a brief 6-1 flurry to go in front 72-63 with nine minutes to play.

But Charlotte fought right back with a 15-4 spurt to go ahead by two. D.J. Augustin tallied the first eight points of the run, which Felton ended with a trey to give the Bobcats a 78-76 edge with 3 1/2 minutes to go.

The margin was the same following buckets from O'Neal and Tyrus Thomas. Wade then missed a three-pointer before Charlotte was called for a shot clock violation with 32.3 ticks left.

Udonis Haslem couldn't make a 15-foot jumper and Felton was there for the defensive rebound. Felton made 1-of-2 from the foul line with 7.2 seconds remaining to make it 81-78.

Miami's next trip down the court ended with Wade missing a trey. Diaw pulled down the defensive rebound and made a pair of free throws with 2.3 ticks left to seal the victory.

The Heat led by as many as 11 in the first quarter and took a 30-20 margin into the second.

Miami scored the first four points of the second to build a 14-point cushion. Charlotte was down by the same margin late in the stanza when they scored the final five points to cut the gap to 48-39 at the half.

Trailing 63-52 with less than six minutes left in the third, the Bobcats ripped off nine straight points to get within two. Felton tallied five points during the burst, which Tyson Chandler capped with a deuce to make it 63-61 with 2:30 remaining. Miami led by four, 66-62, after three periods.

Game Notes

The Bobcats have won the first three meetings with Miami this season and nine of the last 13 matchups between the clubs. The Heat have also lost six of their last seven trips to the Queen City...Miami shot 40.3 percent from the floor, while Charlotte made 38.9 percent of its shots...The Bobcats went 22-of-30 from the foul line, while Miami went 13-of-16 from the charity stripe.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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