Jrue Holiday Boosts Points In Guard

Basketball Betting Lines

Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Paul Millsap scored 20 points, leading the Jazz to a 108-79 pasting of the shorthanded Clippers on Tuesday. C.J. Miles added 19 points and Devin Harris had 13 for the Jazz, winners of three straight and eight of their last nine. Alec Burks chipped in 11 while Al Jefferson and Enes Kanter both finished with 10.

 

But the Jazz, who are 7-1 at home this season, made short work of LA. Millsap was sharp from the opening tip, scoring 10 first-quarter points on 5-of-6 shooting en route to a 29-17 lead.

 

The advantage was 52-41 at the half and ballooned to as many as 20 in the third, leading to a fourth devoid of drama and rife with reserves. Still, the Jazz did not relent, emphasizing the win with a scintillating bench effort.

 

Game Notes

 

The Clippers have dropped 42 of their last 43 games in Salt Lake City...Paul was injured in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 102-94 victory over the Lakers. He had an MRI on Sunday, which came back negative...Los Angeles was also without guard Mo Williams (sore right foot), while the Jazz were without forwards Josh Howard (strained left quadriceps) and Derrick Favors (sprained left ankle).

 

Vince Carter's three-point try at the buzzer for Dallas clanked off the back of the rim, and he limped off the court after grabbing his left foot.

 

Dallas was even worse. Nowitzki was 8-of-17 for 21 points, but the Mavs shot 35 percent and made only four of their 26 three-point attempts to have a five- game winning streak snapped. Jason Terry made a game-tying shot in the last 10 seconds for the Mavs.

 

Monday was also former Laker Lamar Odom's first trip back to play in Los Angeles since being traded to the defending champions in the offseason. He scored 10 off the bench for the Mavericks.

 

The Clips, meanwhile, were trounced, 108-79, in Salt Lake City on Tuesday without Paul for the second consecutive game. Ex-Mav Caron Butler, who signed with LA as a free agent after the lockout, led the Clippers with 14 points while Courtney Fortson added 13 and Randy Foye chipped in 11.

 

Entering Tuesday, the Clippers had won three straight, including Monday's win over the Nets -- their first since Paul was sidelined with a strained left hamstring.

 

The four-time All-Star will be a game-time decision tonight. Meanwhile, Carter has been ruled out by the Mavs with a sprained foot.

Mydportsbook Basketball Betting Blog

<< 14 Points Points Edge Leaving In Razorbacks

<< FCS Players Defensive Salvage Smash From End

<< DE Grace Havre Disable Edge At Year

<< Rbi Leads Season Down Perkins

<< Blue Jays At Season Home

Points Joins Season From Blazers >>

Game Beats Memphis At Offense >>

Points Sparks Howard For Tonight >>

Points At Maynor Nuggets >>

Season Leads Month Down Goals >>

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.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.