08/18/2008 - New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American wild cards Robby Ginepri and John Isner were among the Day-2 first-round winners at the $708,000 Pilot Pen Tennis event, a final U.S. Open tune-up. Red-hot Argentine Juan Martin del Potro, meanwhile, withdrew here on Monday, citing exhaustion.
A third-seeded del Potro has won his last 19 matches, with titles coming in his last four events. He's now up to No. 17 in the world.
"It is difficult to still play a lot of matches," del Potro said. "I want to recover for the U.S. Open. Unfortunately, I have to pull out of this tournament."
American Jesse Levine will replace del Potro in the draw.
Ginepri grounded Peruvian Luis Horna 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, while the 6-foot-9 Isner got past Russian Igor Kunitsyn 6-4, 6-4 on the hardcourts at the Connecticut Tennis Center.
Another American advanced Monday when Wayne Odesnik toppled veteran Frenchman Sebastien Grosjean 7-5, 6-4, while France got a win when pesky Arnaud Clement erased Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci 6-4, 6-4.
Last week's Washington, D.C. runner-up Viktor Troicki of Serbia won for the fifth time in six matches by holding off American qualifier Alex Bogomolov Jr. 7-5, 2-6, 6-1.
In other opening-round action, Slovenian qualifier Luka Gregorc defeated Paraguayan qualifier Ramon Delgado 6-2, 3-6, 6-0; Belgian Steve Darcis beat American Vincent Spadea 7-5, 5-0, retired; German Denis Gremelmayr overcame Brazilian Marcos Daniel 3-6, 6-3, 6-3; Belgian Olivier Rochus handled Russian Evgeny Korolev 6-4, 6-4; Italian Potito Starace stopped Czech Jiri Vanek 6-2, 7-6 (9-7); Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez bested Aussie Chris Guccione 7-5, 6-3; and Italian Fabio Fognini erased Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti 6-4, 4-4, retired. The qualifier Spadea quit with a lower back injury against Darcis, while Lapentti gave way to a left knee injury versus Fognini.
American James Blake beat compatriot Mardy Fish in last year's hardcourt final here. Blake, who also titled here in 2005, is not defending his title this week.
The 2008 U.S. Open will commence next Monday in New York.
<< Texans sign RB Shipp
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Texans announced Monday that they
have signed running back Marcel Shipp.
Shipp, an eight-year veteran, was released by Arizona earlier this month.
Signed as an undrafted rookie free agent b
<< Orton named Bears' starting quarterback
Lake Forest, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bears announced Monday that
Kyle Orton will line up under center in the team's season opener September 7
in Indianapolis.
Orton, a fourth-round draft pick in 2005 from Purdue, had been b
<< This Week in Golf - August 21st through August 24th
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - PGA TOUR - THE BARCLAYS, Ridgewood Country
Club, Paramus, New Jersey - The FedEx Cup Playoffs start this week at
Ridgewood Country Club, former host of the 1935 Ryder Cup, the 1990 U.S.
Senior Open and the 20
<< Ginepri, Isner reach second round in New Haven
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American wild cards Robby Ginepri and John
Isner were among the Day-2 first-round winners at the $708,000 Pilot Pen
Tennis event, a final U.S. Open tune-up.
Ginepri grounded Peruvian Luis Horna 7-6 (7-4), 6
Hull enters top 50 in Rolex Rankings >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Katherine Hull claimed her first LPGA Tour
win on Sunday and that helped her enter the top 50 in this week's Rolex
Women's World Golf Rankings.
Hull jumped 40 places to No. 49 this week.
Lorena
Rays' Percival opts against surgery >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Ray's closer Troy Percival
decided Monday not to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his injured right knee.
Rather, the 39-year-old elected rehabilitation and anti-inflammatory
medic
Zito's strong start helps Giants blank Braves >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aaron Rowand homered and drove in two runs
while Barry Zito hurled seven strong innings, as San Francisco shut down
Atlanta, 5-0, in the finale of a four-game set from Turner Field.
Zito (7-15) allow
Rangers' Kinsler placed on DL >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Texas Rangers second baseman and American
League MVP candidate Ian Kinsler was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday
with a sports hernia.
Coming into Monday's action, Kinsler, 26, led the majors
MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?
Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite. Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight. With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites. As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).
Midwest
#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler
The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April. Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT. After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games. Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season. As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers. Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS). Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field. With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.
#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV
As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year. If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season. As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well. This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons. Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late. There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games. It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.
East
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown
“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season. Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU. They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games. With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field. Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense. Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc. The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range. Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.
#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC
The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country. Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times. Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter. UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen. UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS. An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games. This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS. USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types. An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough. USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS. They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12. When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.
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 this sportsbook “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
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