Allen's sweet stroke saves Celtics

Basketball Betting Lines

06/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There is nothing more deflating for an NBA team than watching a great shooter get a good look from the three-point line.

The ball comes off the hand and almost seems frozen in time for a second or two before splashing through the net, never touching the cylinder.

It's an almost helpless feeling.

At some point in the NBA Finals, you knew the Boston Celtics were going to exploit a mismatch in the backcourt.

Kobe Bryant may be the best on-ball defender in professional basketball but the aging Derek Fisher was going to have trouble matching up with either Rajon Rondo or Ray Allen.

As one of the best shooters in the history of the game, a date with Bryant's torturous defense used to be a virtual guarantee for Allen, but the emergence of Rondo has made things difficult for Lakers coach Phil Jackson.

It's almost a "pick your poison" type of decision for Jackson. Kobe can stifle just about anyone but if you put him on Rondo, Allen is going to get a lot of open looks. Shut down Ray's outside shooting, and you open up the lane for Rondo's penetration.

Jackson was clearly more concerned with Rondo's ability to get to the rim, and made his decision to place Bryant on Rondo in Game 1.

"Teams have done that all year," Boston coach Doc Rivers said. "It's nothing new putting a big guy on Rondo and a small guy on Ray. And every time we do that we feel we can give Ray shots."

Jackson's roll of the dice worked and the Lakers earned a rather emphatic Game 1 victory as Allen struggled with foul trouble and was unable to take advantage of the 6-foot-1 Fisher's spotty defense.

"The other night was frustrating," Allen said of Game 1 "It was tough just trying to adjust the referees on the sideline. Physically I felt great. I was getting to the spots I needed to, just never really got in a great rhythm."

The NBA playoffs are all about adjustments between contests. Jackson stood pat in Game 2 and Rivers made sure his team understood what went wrong, reminding his players there was a significant mismatch to exploit. The result was Allen setting an NBA Finals record by sinking eight three-point shots in a 103-94 Game 2 win over the Lakers.

"I'm trying not to do too much," Allen said when describing Rivers' game plan. "Getting Fisher, run him off screens and forcing their bigs to help. That's somewhat the thought process. Making a hard cut from one side of the basket to the other."

Allen made his first seven from long range in the first half of Game 2 on the way to an incredible 27-point effort by halftime, boosting the Celtics to a 54-48 advantage.

"I thought they (Lakers) did everything they could to keep me from shooting threes and they worked tirelessly," Allen said. "We were setting great screens and I was getting to my spots."

The Lakers adjusted their defense on Allen after the first half but the damage was done. A deflated Celtics team was rejuvenated and able to take advantage of Bryant's own foul trouble to hold off LA.

"He was unbelievable," Pierce said of Allen. "He just came out here and shot lights out. You could tell he was frustrated from the last game because of the foul trouble and I think he showed us that Ray Allen is a future Hall of Famer and one of the greatest shooters to ever play."

Allen canned the record breaker with 4:40 left in the third quarter, helping Boston even the best-of-seven series and seize home-court advantage. He finished the game with 32 points, going 8-of-11 from three-point range, breaking the mark he shared with Houston's Kenny Smith (1995) and Chicago's Scottie Pippen (1997).

"I don't know what record it is that people are telling me that I got, but it's great to have," Allen said after the game. "Great to be able to look back on it and say I did that. This is definitely the time. There is no better place, moment or time to play a game, to win a game than the finals."

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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Football Betting Lines

The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.

Bet NFL Sports Lines

Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.

Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.

A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.

Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.

Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.

And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.

2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win

Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1

Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1

Donald Brown (IND) 5/1

Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1

Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1

Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1

Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1

Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1

Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1

Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1

Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1

Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1

Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1

Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1

Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1

Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1

Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1

LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1

Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2

Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1

Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1

Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1

Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1

Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1

Jason Smith (STL) 40/1

Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1

Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1

Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1

Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2

Pat White (MIA) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 9/1

Betting Line

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