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06/15/2010 -
LOS ANGELES (AP) -When the Celtics wrapped up Game 5 and moved one win away from an unprecedented 18th championship, the jubilant Boston crowd sent them off to the West Coast for the final time this season with one last chorus of that age-old ``Beat L-A!'' chant.
Although Kevin Garnett and his teammates appreciate the suggestion, they know it's easier shouted than done - particularly in the playoffs, and especially on the road.
The Celtics will have to overcome their unimpressive record in closeout playoff games away from Boston to finish off the Lakers in Game 6 of the NBA finals on Tuesday night.
For all their remarkable success over the past three seasons, including the 2008 title and another finals run this year, the Celtics have converted just one of their eight chances to finish a playoff series away from home.
They've got two opportunities at Staples Center, which could be the fifth building in which the Celtics have won a title at the expense of their longtime rivals - or the site of a remarkable Hollywood ending for the Lakers. If Los Angeles survives Tuesday, a champion will be crowned Thursday in Game 7.
``They're playing at home. Home is always where your heart is,'' Garnett said. ``With the severity of the game, it's all-out on both ends for both teams. This will probably be the hardest game of the season, if not of the series, if not of everybody's career, this game coming up.''
Even after winning three of the series' last four games, and even after compiling the NBA's second-best road record in the regular season (26-15), the Celtics can't be lulled into thinking they've got the Lakers on the run.
Although Boston narrowly won Game 2 at Staples Center on the strength of Ray Allen's historic 3-point shooting binge and Rajon Rondo's late-game poise, Boston knows the Lakers are 9-1 at home in the postseason, with everybody from Kobe Bryant to the Lakers' bedraggled bench playing with much more passion and confidence.
``The Lakers ... got homecourt advantage, but we've played the best all year on the road,'' Boston coach Doc Rivers said. ``We're going to have to beat them at their best, because they're going to be great there, and we can't expect anything else.''
While the Celtics have ample reason to be confident, Lakers coach Phil Jackson and Bryant also didn't seem particularly worried before the grand finale. For all their struggles in the past four games, the Lakers realize they've usually risen to important occasions over the past three seasons - notwithstanding that 2008 finals blowout loss in Boston's clincher.
``If you look at it, they've come home and carried the 3-2 lead back,'' Jackson said. ``It's basically home court, home court. Now we're going back to home court to win it. That's the way it's supposed to be, isn't it?''
Sure, on paper. In real life, two straight losses in Boston led to a dire series deficit for the Lakers, who hadn't even trailed in any playoff series this season. Yet Jackson even described the Lakers' locker room as ``spirited'' after losing Game 5 in their lowest-scoring performance of the postseason in the 92-86 loss.
For all their struggles in Boston, the Lakers realize they only have to defend their home court to win their 16th title - and these Los Angeles crowds will be far from laid-back.
``We have a challenge, obviously, down 3-2,'' said Bryant, who scored 38 points in Game 5 while his struggling teammates only managed 48. ``We let a couple opportunities slip away, but it is what it is. Now you go home, you've got two games at home that you need to win, and you pull your boots up and get to work.''
Heading into the finals, the Celtics believed they could beat the Lakers by shutting down Bryant's teammates, even if Kobe went crazy on them. After all, that's what Boston did two years ago in the finals - and so far, it's working splendidly again.
Bryant is averaging 30.2 points per game, while Pau Gasol averages 18.8 points and 10 rebounds despite glaring inconsistency in his game in Boston. That's just about it: Nobody else in purple and gold is averaging more than Andrew Bynum's 9.6 points per game.
And two straight losses undeniably have frazzled the Lakers a bit, with Bryant noticeably furious on the court while Game 5 slipped away. Even Jackson seemed a bit testier than his usual placid self, yelling at Bryant and Ron Artest during the game and later attempting to inspire his team in the fourth quarter with a false bit of information about the Celtics' propensity for blowing late-game leads.
While Jackson likely senses the biggest danger yet to his streak of 47 straight playoff series victories after winning Game 1, the Celtics sense a golden opportunity to join the Boston greats who won multiple titles while repeatedly denying the Lakers nine previous times in the NBA finals.
They've just got to finish a playoff series on the road, something they failed to do in Miami and Orlando earlier this season. While Boston's current starters have never lost a playoff series, they also haven't finished one away from TD Garden since the 2008 Eastern Conference finals against Detroit.
``It's going to have to happen if we're going to win the title,'' Paul Pierce said. ``I mean, that would be great. I'm not going to try to jinx it right now. We've got to win one game, that's the goal, but it would be amazing if we get it done.''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.
<< Giants stay hot at home with rout of Orioles
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jonathan Sanchez pitched into the eighth
inning and Freddy Sanchez drove in four runs, helping the Giants to a 10-2
rout of Baltimore in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
Pat Burrell h
<< Buck, Hill push Blue Jays over Padres
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Buck belted two home runs while Aaron
Hill hit three doubles and drove in three, as the Toronto Blue Jays opened a
three-game interleague series against the San Diego Padres with a 6-3 victory.
Buck
<< Oklahoma, Clemson complete College World Series field
Charlottesville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clemson and Oklahoma won their Super
Regional elimination games Monday to become the final two teams to
advance to the College World Series.
They join Florida, South Carolina, Florida S
<< Vancouver LW Burrows undergoes shoulder procedure
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vancouver Canucks left wing Alex Burrows
underwent surgery to repair an ailing shoulder, the club announced on Monday.
The 29-year-old tallied a team-high 35 goals to go along with 32 assists in 82
regul
United signs Montenegrin midfielder Boskovic as a DP >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United signed Montenegrin midfielder
Branko Boskovic as a Designated Player, the Major League Soccer club announced
late Monday.
"We are excited to have concluded a deal to bring Branko to D.C.
New Zealand earns dramatic draw vs. Slovakia >>
Rustenburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Winston Reid scored three minutes
into stoppage time and New Zealand earned a dramatic 1-1 draw against Slovakia
on Tuesday in the FIFA World Cup Group F action at Royal Bafokeng Stadium.
Robert V
Caution: Is NASCAR now in show business? >>
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Debris, or not debris? That is the question
NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin has been asking after a late-race caution for debris
possibly cost him a victory in Sunday's race at Michigan International
Speedway.
Ham
Celtics try to clinch another title in Los Angeles >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics have a chance to clinch their record
18th championship tonight when they visit the Los Angeles Lakers for Game 6 of
the 2010 NBA Finals at Staples Center.
The Celtics pushed the defending champs to the b
MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.
As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.
The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.
Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).
But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.
Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.
Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2
New York Giants - 9 - 2
Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).
Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.
So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.
And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.
They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.
Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.
But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.
Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.
Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.
Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.
Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?
Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.
In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.
Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.
Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.
The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.
The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.
Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.
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