Green wins dunk contest; Kapono 3-point champ

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02/18/2007 - Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston's Gerald Green soared over last year's slam dunk champion and then a table to win the 2007 slam dunk title as part of All-Star Saturday night.

Green received a perfect 50 score from a distinguished panel of judges for his final dunk to beat New York's Nate Robinson, the 2006 winner, on a night with interesting twists.

A pair of Miami Heat players were winners Saturday. Jason Kapono outlasted Washington's Gilbert Arenas to win the three-point shootout, while Dwyane Wade repeated as the Skills Challenge title victor.

Also, Detroit won the Shooting Stars challenge by default when the Chicago team took its shots out of turn in the final round.

However, the night belonged to Green, who compiled 91 points on a pair of dunks in the final round to beat Robinson.

Chicago's Tyrus Thomas and Orlando's Dwight Howard were eliminated before the finals, during the early rounds. However, Howard wooed the crowd by placing a sticker of himself on the backboard with his left hand while dunking with his right for his final dunk in the opening round. However, the dunk only added up to 42 points after the scores were posted by Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Julius "Dr. J" Erving, Michael Jordan and Dominique Wilkins.

During the dunk competition, Green changed his uniform and then his sneakers before walking away with the title. First, he put on the jersey No. 7 of former Boston dunk champion Dee Brown in 1991 for his final dunk of the opening round and leaped over a still Robinson for a jam, drawing a score of 47 to advance to the finals.

Robinson had trouble with both of his dunks in the final round, scoring a 39 on his first attempt and a 41 on the 10th attempt of his second dunk. Green netted a 41 on his first try and then came up with a perfect score by soaring over a table put in the lane, bringing the ball to his knees while in the air before hammering it through the basket.

Kapono tied Mark Price's final-round record with 24 points to win the three- point shootout. Arenas scored 17 in the final round, while Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, last year's champion, had nine.

Memphis' Mike Miller, Cleveland's Damon Jones and Dallas' Jason Terry were eliminated in the opening round.

Wade posted a final-round time of 26.4 seconds to beat Bryant to win the skills event. Wade's first-round time of 31.3 seconds was second only to Bryant (29.8) and eliminated Cleveland's LeBron James (35.4) and New Orleans/Oklahoma City's Chris Paul (39.6).

Detroit's team of Chauncey Billups, Swin Cash and Bill Laimbeer won the shooting stars portion, made up of NBA, WNBA and former NBA stars. Scottie Pippen thought he led Chicago to a victory after hitting a half-court shot, but Ben Gordon and Candice Dupree didn't shoot in turn.

In the lightest moment Saturday night, Hall of Famer Charles Barkley backpedaled down the stretch to beat 67-year-old NBA referee Dick Bavetta in a relay race. Bavetta dove to the finish line, while Barkley jogged backward before falling to the floor in an event for charity.

The festivities were a prelude to the NBA All-Star game, scheduled to take place Sunday at the Thomas & Mack Center.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.