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08/14/2007 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States Men's National Team will play Brazil on Sept. 9 instead of Mexico.
The United States was scheduled to play at Mexico but the game was canceled because of financial problems. Instead of visiting Mexico, the U.S. will host No. 1-ranked Brazil in Chicago, Ill., on Sept. 9.
"It is a very exciting opportunity for our players to get to play perhaps the most storied team in the world," U.S. coach Bob Bradley said. "I have told our players many times that these are special games, and we need to take advantage of the opportunity. We are very much looking forward to the challenge."
This will be the first game between Brazil and the U.S. since the 2003 Gold Cup semifinals, which Brazil won 2-1 in overtime. The United States is 1-11 against the Brazilians, with its only win in the 1998 Gold Cup.
Brazil, which also plays Mexico in an exhibition on Sept. 12 in Foxborough, Mass., is expected to have stars Ronaldinho and Kaka - who didn't play in the team's recent Copa America win.
The U.S. had been scheduled to play Mexico at Azetca Stadium in Mexico City on Sept 9. in a rematch of the Gold Cup final. The U.S. rallied to win that match 2-1. The United States has not played in Mexico since 1984.
The United States visits Sweden in another international friendly on Aug. 22.
"We have developed a tremendous schedule for 2007, and adding Brazil is another important piece of the puzzle as we continue to build our team towards World Cup qualifying next year," Bradley said.
<< Celtics putting finishing touches on roster
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - All-Stars Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are not
the only players on Boston's roster, and that trio will need some help if the
Celtics hope to return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1987.
Guards Tony A
<< This Week in Auto Racing August 17 - August 19
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's a light week for racing unless you
are trying to make the "Chase for the Nextel Cup." Then it's a huge weekend,
one of just four remaining, before we determine who will race for the 2007
champio
<< Coyotes' Ricci hangs up skates
Peterborough, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Phoenix Coyotes center Mike Ricci
announced his retirement Monday, ending his 16-year career in the NHL,
according to a Canadian newspaper
Ricci, 35, made the announcement during the a
<< Rizzuto dead at 89
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yankees Hall of Famer and legendary
broadcaster Phil Rizzuto died on Tuesday morning. He was 89.
The former Yankee shortstop and 1950 MVP made an equally big name on the
airwaves, calling s
Still some big names left on free agent market >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NHL free agent season started with
such a flurry of activity that it's easy to forget that there is still some
quality talent left on the market.
It's been 1 1/2 months since the league's free agency p
Reds place Ross on DL >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds placed catcher David Ross
on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday.
Ross suffered a concussion during Sunday's 10-4 loss to the Padres when San
Diego outfielder Mike Cameron collided with Ro
U.S. coach names roster for friendly at Sweden >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - United States Men's National Team coach Bob
Bradley named a 19-man roster on Tuesday loaded with European-based players
for an upcoming friendly at Sweden.
Sixteen of the 19 players selected for the Au
Dunn not done in Cincinnati >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One of the biggest players rumored to be available at this
past trade deadline was the Reds' Adam Dunn. Yet, when all was said and done
the slugging outfielder went no where.
So what is next for Dunn?
It is still possib
Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com
For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com
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In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
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