Salukis seek double-digit win streak in Terre Haute

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/21/2007 - Terre Haute, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 13th-ranked Southern Illinois Salukis have achieved their highest ranking in program history, and they carry a wealth of momentum into tonight's Missouri Valley Conference clash with the Indiana State Sycamores.

Nine consecutive victories have enabled Southern Illinois to move to 23-5 overall and 13-3 in conference. The Salukis took a break from league play on Saturday to record an impressive 68-64 road win over Butler in a BracketBuster game.

Meanwhile, Indiana State is mired in a four-game losing skid that has dropped the club to 12-15 overall and 5-11 in conference. Eleven of the team's last 12 outings have resulted in defeat, and nine of the 11 setbacks have come by double figures. On Saturday, the Sycamores played Miami-Ohio of the MAC, and the result was a 70-58 defeat.

Southern Illinois recorded a 61-48 victory over Indiana State back on January 31st, and the Salukis hold a commanding 73-35 advantage in the all- time series between the teams.

Jamaal Tatum scored 20 points to lead Southern Illinois to the four- point victory over Butler on Saturday. Matt Shaw contributed 15 points for the Salukis, who got 11 points from Tony Young. A 33-24 rebounding advantage and a 27-19 edge in points from the foul line proved key to the win. Tatum is the team's leading scorer this season with 14.5 ppg, as he is shooting 41.2 percent from three-point range. Randal Falker checks in with 12.9 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 58 blocks, making him one of the best all-around frontcourt performers in the MVC. As for Shaw, he is contributing 11.4 ppg for Southern Illinois, which is limiting its opponents to just 56.0 ppg on 41.5 percent shooting from the field. Clearly, strong defense has been the driving force behind the club's success.

There is only one double-digit scorer on the Indiana State roster, as Gabe Moore leads the team with 12.1 ppg despite the fact that he is shooting 36.2 percent from the floor. Aside from his scoring output, Moore also tops the team with 108 assists and 48 steals. There are four players netting between 9.1 ppg and 9.7 ppg, but the Sycamores' overall output of 62.7 ppg leaves much to be desired. In the 12-point loss to Miami-Ohio, Moore scored 15 points and dished out eight assists with no turnovers. Cole Holmstrom added 13 points for the Sycamores, who got 11 points from Trent Wurtz. Unfortunately, they shot just 38 percent from the floor as a team and suffered a 19-12 deficit in points from the foul line.

Nikkanspots NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Second-ranked Ohio State plays host to Penn State
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the second time in eight days, the second-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will take on the Penn State Nittany Lions in Big Ten Conference action. Last Wednesday, Ohio State built a

<< Tar Heels and Wolfpack meet in Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The fifth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels will have revenge on their minds as they host the NC State Wolfpack tonight in an ACC clash. These two teams met on February 3rd, and NC Sta

<< Hoyas take on Bearcats in the Queen City
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 12th-ranked Georgetown Hoyas are one of the nation's hottest teams, and they will attempt to extend their winning streak to 10 games as they take on the Cincinnati Bearcats in a

<< Tide rolls into Knoxville
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 25th-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide and Tennessee Volunteers will do battle in an SEC contest tonight in Knoxville. Alabama carried a two-game losing skid into Saturday's game a

<< Red-hot Cavs take on Hurricanes in Sunshine State
Coral Gables, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A set of teams at completely different ends of the ACC standings collide at the BankUnited Center tonight, as the 24th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers take on the Miami-Florida Hurricanes. The C

Aggies meet Cowboys in Stillwater >>
Stillwater, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The eighth-ranked Texas A&M Aggies have made the trip to Stillwater for a Big 12 Conference clash with the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Texas A&M has won six of its last seven games to move

Streaking Commodores set to battle Bulldogs >>
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off one of the most memorable victories in recent memory for the program, the 17th-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores hope to carry the momentum into tonight's SEC clash with the Mississ

Louisville seeks 20th victory of the season >>
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 20th-ranked Louisville Cardinals gun for their fourth straight win tonight, as they host the St. John's Red Storm in Big East play from Freedom Hall. The Cardinals moved into the Top-25 this

Florida inches closer to SEC crown, as Gators host Gamecocks >>
Gainesville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Florida Gators have been knocked off their perch atop the college basketball world, at least temporarily, but they continue to rule the SEC and are heavy favorit

Knicks visit Atlantic Division-rival Philadelphia >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers conclude their seven-game homestand tonight when they welcome the Atlantic Division rival New York Knicks to the Wachovia Center. The Sixers fell to 2-4 on their stand before the All-Star break when

NFL Football Office Pool Printable Schedules
MySportsbook.com , leading online sportsbook, offers free NFL football office pool printable sheets! Run your own NFL Football Office Pool. Create your own pool, invite your friends to join. Compete with your with co-workers, friends or family for bragging rights every week. Exchange some hard hits without risk of injury -- Trash Talk with your fellow co-workers.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football sportsbook needs.

Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards