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05/08/2010 -
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) -Kentucky freshmen Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton are choosing to remain in the NBA Draft.
Orton and Bledsoe announced Saturday they will not return to school for their sophomore seasons. They'll join fellow underclassmen John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson in the draft.
Bledsoe averaged 11.9 points in the backcourt alongside Wall, the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.
Orton spent most of the season as a reserve center behind Cousins. He averaged 3.4 points and 3.3 rebounds and was second on the team with 53 blocks.
They are projected to go in the mid-to-late first round. All NCAA underclassmen had until Saturday to return to school.
They helped Kentucky go 35-3 and win the SEC regular season and conference tournament titles.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
<< Braves' bats hope to break out in middle test with Phils
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Injuries to a number of key regulars have rendered the
Atlanta Braves' offense punchless over the last few games, a trend the
slumping club would like to end in this afternoon's divisional showdown with
the National League Ea
<< Rockies' youngster to try to knock off improving Dodgers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Dodgers set their sights on a third
consecutive victory when the reigning National League West champions host the
Colorado Rockies tonight in the second test of a three-game series between
2009 postseason part
<< Angels attempt to pin eighth straight loss on Mariners
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The struggling Seattle Mariners will try to snap out of
their rut tonight as they host the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the middle
bout of a three-game set at Safeco Field.
After last night's 8-0 setback to the Angels,
<< Cards, Pirates set to continue series between Central foes
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals hope to carry over the momentum
from a late-inning victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday into
tonight's clash between the National League Central teams from PNC Park.
The division-leading Ca
Martinez Sanchez downs Jankovic for Rome crown >>
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Unseeded Spaniard Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez
finished off her stellar run of tennis at the $2 million Italian Masters on
Saturday, defeating Jelena Jankovic in a long straight-sets final.
Martinez Sanche
Canada rolls by Italy in Worlds opener >>
Mannheim, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rene Bourque, Matt Duchene and Steven
Stamkos each posted a goal and assist as Canada opened its 2010 World
Championship slate with a 5-1 victory over Italy.
Corey Perry and Kris Russell al
Golf Course Review - TPC San Antonio (Oaks & Canyons Courses) >>
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - FACTS AND STATS: AT&T Oaks Course
Architect: Greg Norman, with player consultant Sergio Garcia. Year Opened:
January, 2010. Location: San Antonio, Texas. Slope: 148. Rating: 76.5.
Par: 72. Yardage: 7,435.
Purdue's Johnson, Moore withdraw from NBA Draft >>
West Lafayette, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Purdue juniors JaJuan Johnson and
E'Twaun Moore have withdrawn their names from June's NBA Draft and will return
for their senior seasons.
"We're obviously happy to have two players of the caliber
Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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