ETSU wins Atlantic Sun for second straight year

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/06/2010 - Macon, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Tubbs led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points, and the East Tennessee State Buccaneers secured their second consecutive Atlantic Sun tournament championship with a 72-66 victory over Mercer.

Tommy Hubbard added 14 points and six rebounds for the Bucs (20-14), who will make their second straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and ninth in school history. ETSU lost a hard-fought battle with top-seeded Pittsburgh last year, 72-62, in a first-round matchup.

Micah Williams contributed 13 points and nine boards, Isiah Brown had 12 points and Adam Sollazzo posted 11 points for East Tennessee State, which, as the fifth seed, beat fourth-seeded Campbell in the quarters before knocking off second-seeded Jacksonville in the semis.

The Bucs had lost both regular season games to Mercer this season.

E.J. Kusnyer led the Bears (16-17) with 16 points, but Mercer was unable to capture its first conference championship since 1985. Brandon Moore added 13 points in the loss.

A Daniel Emerson tip shot and Jeff Smith free throw helped the Bears tie the game, 60-60, with just over two minutes to go.

ETSU, though, went ahead for good on a pair of Williams free throws that were followed by a Tubbs three-pointer for a 65-61 advantage with under 1 1/2 minutes remaining.

Sollazzo padded the lead with two free throws for a six-point edge with a minute to play, although Kusnyer answered with a three for Mercer to make it a one-possession game.

Emerson brought the Bears to within 68-66 with 35 seconds left with a pair from the line, but Tubbs was able to hit both of his shots after a foul to restore a four-point lead. Mercer was unable to respond.

ETSU held an 11-point lead, 21-10, after a Jocolby Davis dunk midway through the first half, but Mercer battled back and faced only a two-point deficit at halftime, 37-35.

The Bears grabbed a 42-41 lead with 15 minutes left on a James Florence three, but the Bucs answered with the next seven points and held a slim lead down the stretch.

Game Notes

Mercer, the sixth seed, beat third-seeded Belmont in the quarterfinals and eighth-seeded Kennesaw State in the semifinals...ETSU had won the first eight games in this series before getting swept by the Bears in the regular season...The Bucs have won this tournament only twice -- 2009 and 2010...East Tennessee State is 2-9 all time in the NCAA Tournament, with its last win coming in 1992 over Arizona...Emerson and Florence each finished with nine points.

Wcondenast NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Raiders release RB Fargas
Alameda, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Raiders released long-time running back Justin Fargas on Saturday. The team indicated Fargas had failed a physical and issued a statement thanking him for his contributions over

<< Celtics add guard Finley
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics officially announced the signing of guard Michael Finley on Saturday. Finley was waived at his request Monday by San Antonio after his playing time dwindled upon returning from a spra

<< Misremembered wins Big 'Cap and Alphie's Bet takes Sham
Arcadia, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Misremembered, ridden by Martin Garcia, held off Neko Bay down the stretch to win Saturday's 73rd running of the $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap (Big 'Cap) at Santa Anita Park. The four-year-old covered the

<< No. 25 Xavier downs St. Bonaventure to gain share of A-10 title
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jordan Crawford scored 22 points to lead 25th-ranked Xavier to a 93-72 win over St. Bonaventure in the regular-season finale for both teams at Cintas Center. Jamel McLean poured in 15 points for the M

<< BYU trounces TCU to end season on high note
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jonathan Tavernari scored 23 points, as 14th-ranked BYU breezed past TCU, 107-77, at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. Jackson Emery and Charles Abouo each added 22 points for the Cougars (28-4, 13-3 MWC), who

Theodore, Caps blank Rangers >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jose Theodore stopped all 30 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season, as Washington posted a defensive-oriented 2-0 victory over the New York Rangers at Verizon Center. Eric Fehr and Eric Belang

Vokun stops 31 in win over Carolina >>
Sunrise, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tomas Vokoun's 31 saves set the tone for Florida's 4-1 victory to snap the Carolina Hurricanes' seven-game win streak at Bank Atlantic Center. Kamil Kreps scored twice, including an empty-net goal,

Summit League Tournament Recaps >>
Sioux Falls, SD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Larry Wright scored 16 points, and the Oakland Golden Grizzlies advanced to the semifinals of the Summit League Tournament with an 85-70 win over UMKC. Keith Benson and Derick Nelson each sco

Winthrop wins Big South >>
Conway, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mantoris Robinson finished with 14 points, as Winthrop defeated Coastal Carolina, 64-53, in the Big South Tournament final to earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Matt Morgan finished w

Cyclones shock Kansas State in Big 12 finale >>
Manhattan, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scott Christopherson scored 18 points and made two key foul shots with 3.2 seconds left in overtime, as the Iowa State Cyclones upended fifth-ranked Kansas State, 85-82, in the regular-season finale

Football Betting: Defensive Rookie of the Year Awards

Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.

Bet on NFL Football

Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.

Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.

Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.

Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.

All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.

A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.

2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1

Ron Brace (NE) 25/1

Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1

Darius Butler (NE) 40/1

Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1

Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1

Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1

Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1

Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1

Larry English (SD) 15/1

Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1

Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1

Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1

Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1

James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1

Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1

Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1

Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1

Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1

Roy Miller (TB) 20/1

Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1

Fili Moala (IND) 30/1

Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1

Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1

B J Raji (GB) 7/1

Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1

Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1

David Verkune (CLE) 20/1

Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 6/1

NFL football gambling

To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.