Jayhawks and Longhorns duke it out in Austin
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/08/2010 - Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of Big 12 heavyweights collide in Austin this evening, as the top-ranked Kansas Jayhawks take on the ninth-ranked Texas Longhorns from the Frank Erwin Center.
Bill Self's Jayhawks sit atop the Big 12 standings with a flawless 8-0 record. The team has won 22 of its 23 games on the year and enters this tilt with an eight-game win streak in tow, including Saturday's 75-64 win over Nebraska in Lawrence. The victory extended the nation's longest homecourt winning streak to 55 games.
The Longhorns looked like the team to beat in the Big 12 just a few weeks ago, but they have hit a wall of late, losing four of their last six games, including an 80-71 setback at Oklahoma on Saturday. With the loss, Texas fell to 5-3 in league play.
These are the two winningest programs in conference play since the inception of the Big 12, with Kansas posting a league-best 180 league wins and Texas ranking second with 150. This is the 23rd all-time meeting between these two teams, with Kansas holding a 16-6 series advantage, including wins in each of the last two meetings.
The Jayhawks forced Nebraska into 19 turnovers and shot an efficient .481 from the floor, marking the team's 55th consecutive win at the Allen Fieldhouse. Marcus Morris led the way with his fourth double-double this season, finishing with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Sherron Collins added 17 points and six assists for Kansas, which remained unbeaten in league play. The Jayhawks have been able to rack up the victories thanks to stellar play at both ends of the floor. The team boasts of an impressive +21.0 scoring margin (leads the nation), averaging 83.7 ppg, while allowing just 62.7. KU has certainly been efficient shooting the ball, converting 49.3 percent from the floor, with four players currently averaging double figures. It starts with Collins, an All- American candidate with the ability to create for himself (15.6 ppg) and others (team-high 98 assists). Morris, a sophomore, and Xavier Henry, a freshman, are next at 13.0 ppg, while junior Cole Aldrich (11.6 ppg, 10.3 rpg) rounds things out with his dominant play inside.
The Longhorns are definitely capable of hanging with Kansas at the offensive end, as Texas comes into this week averaging a steady 84.1 ppg on 48-percent efficiency from the field. The key to this game may be the battle inside between KU's Aldrich and UT's standout Damion James. The Big 12's all-time leading rebounder, James is a force down low, averaging a double-double with team-highs of 17.8 points (sixth in the league) and 11.0 rebounds per game (leads the league). The 6-7 senior gets perimeter support from Avery Bradley (12.5 ppg), J'Covan Brown (9.4 ppg) and Jordan Hamilton (9.3 ppg), while big man Dexter Pittman (11.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg, team-high 48 blocks) helps out in the paint. Texas was its own worst enemy in Norman this past weekend, as the team shot just .417 from the floor and a miserable 10-of-27 from the free-throw line (.370) in a nine-point loss to the Sooners. Bradley did his best to keep the Longhorns in it, finishing with 21 points. James just missed a double- double with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Gary Johnson did complete the feat, coming off the bench with 11 points and 10 boards. Pittman tallied eight points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds in the loss.
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FOOTBALL BETTING
After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.
Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.
Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.
So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.
In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.
For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.
The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.
The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.
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