Gaels and Cougars meet in WCC tussle

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/28/2012 - Provo, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ranked 21st in the nation this week, the Saint Mary's-CA Gaels continue to battle through the rest of the West Coast Conference as the team clashes with the BYU Cougars at the Marriott Center in Provo tonight.

On Thursday night, the Gaels ran their overall win streak to 10 in a row with a 71-64 road victory against Loyola Marymount. The victory kept the team undefeated in conference play at 9-0 which means the Gaels are all alone atop the WCC standings, with Gonzaga looming close behind at 7-1.

As for the Cougars, currently 6-2 in conference and in third place in their first year in the WCC after making the jump from the Mountain West Conference, they took a break from league action on Wednesday night and made the trip to Blacksburg, Virginia to tangle with Virginia Tech. The meeting was a tight one, but in the end BYU pulled out the 70-68 triumph, the team's second in a row and the seventh in the last eight games.

The Gaels, losers against only Baylor and Denver this year, won the first meeting of the season rather easily last month with a 98-82 triumph at McKeon Pavilion in Moraga. Rob Jones had a huge game for the hosts that night with 24 points and 15 rebounds, while Matthew Dellavedova logged a double-double of his own for the hometown team with 18 points and 12 assists. Despite the loss, the Cougars still own an 8-3 advantage in the all-time series.

Refusing to go away quietly, the Lions of LMU gave Saint Mary's all it could handle on Thursday night before the buzzer sounded in the seven-point decision. Stephen Holt scored a game-high 19 points for the visitors, followed by Dellavedova with 13 and seven of the team's 10 assists. Jones logged another double-double with 11 points and a game-high 15 boards, while Brad Waldow tacked on 10 points for the victors. The Gaels have had a different leading scorer in each of the last three outings, showing their balance and versatility, but when it comes to overall stats on the season it is Dellavedova who is first on the unit with his 15.7 ppg as he shoots just over 40 percent from three-point range. Jones is averaging a double-double for the group with 14.3 ppg and a team-best 10.9 rpg, his efforts on the glass helping to give the Gaels a rebounding edge of 8.5 per game which is one of the top numbers in the country.

For the third straight game Noah Hartsock scored at least 20 points, putting up 22 against Virginia Tech earlier this week as the Cougars slipped by the Hokies in a two-point decision at Cassell Coliseum. Also scoring in double figures again for the Cougars was Brandon Davis as he hit for 17 points, thanks mostly to his 11-of-12 performance at the free-throw line. BYU made it through with just 33.3 percent from the floor and 5-of-24 behind the three- point line, thanks to 21-of-24 shooting at the charity stripe. Getting back to conference play, Davies is close to averaging a double-double in those matchups with his 19.3 points and 9.6 rebounds per outing, both of which pace the Cougars. Hartsock checks in with 17.4 ppg, although his 2-of-11 shooting behind the three-point line in such games is certainly a concern, but at least the defense has been able to pick up some of the slack on the perimeter by holding WCC foes to just 28.4 percent success from long range.

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Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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