Cavs handle Pacers in Irving's return
Basketball Betting Lines
02/15/2012 -
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyrie Irving came back from a three-game
absence and scored 22 points, and the Cavaliers never trailed while earning a
98-87 victory over the shorthanded Pacers.
Irving, who suffered a concussion during a February 7 game at Miami when he
was kneed in the head, also had five assists for Cleveland, which improved to
2-2 on its nine-game homestand.
Semih Erden set a career-high with 18 points to go with eight rebounds, while
Ramon Sessions and Antawn Jamison each netted 13 points in the win.
The Pacers, playing without Danny Granger (ankle), George Hill (ankle) and
Jeff Foster (back), have lost a season-high five straight games. Darren
Collison and Roy Hibbert led the way Wednesday with 18 and 17 points,
respectively.
Irving came out in mid-season form, hitting 5-of-6 from the field in the first
quarter. Cleveland used the rookie's 12 points and a trio of three-pointers
from Omri Casspi to build a 32-20 cushion.
The Pacers made just 5-of-20 from the field in the second quarter, which saw
the hosts lead by as many as 21 when Daniel Gibson drained a three-pointer for
a 46-25 cushion five minutes in.
Gibson sprained his ankle in the third quarter and did not return, but the
Cavs never had their 56-38 halftime lead seriously threatened.
Despite shooting just 32 percent from the field in the third quarter,
Cleveland held a 79-61 advantage heading to the fourth and led by double
digits until the final minute.
Alonzo Gee's thunderous two-handed dunk with just under three minutes to go
put the exclamation point on the lopsided decision.
Game Notes
Cleveland welcomes former first son LeBron James and the Miami Heat on
Friday...The Pacers will open a three-game homestand versus the Nets on
Thursday...The Pacers had won six straight against the Cavs, including an
overtime win in Indianapolis on December 30...Indiana's David West had a
double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, but shot just 4-for-15 from the
field.
<< Gordon, Pistons pull away from Celtics
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ben Gordon scored 12 of his 22 points in the
fourth quarter as the Detroit Pistons pulled away to take a 98-88 victory over
the Boston Celtics at TD Garden.
Rodney Stuckey paced Detroit with 25 points and Gr
<< Wichita State clinches share of MVC title
Wichita, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Garrett Stutz's double-double of 21 points and
10 rebounds powered No. 24 Wichita State to a 73-58 win over Missouri State
and a share of the MVC regular-season title on Wednesday.
Ben Smith had 14 points a
<< Grizzlies escape New Jersey with win
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marreese Speights had a career-high 18 rebounds
to go with 20 points and the Memphis Grizzlies utilized a seven-point run in
the game's final minutes to defeat the New Jersey Nets, 105-100, at Prudential
Center.
<< Parker nets 34 as Spurs drop Raptors
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tony Parker finished with a double-double,
scoring 34 points and handing out 14 assists, as the Spurs won their season-
best ninth straight game with a 113-106 victory over the Raptors at Air Canada
Centre
<< No. 5 Duke races past Virginia Tech
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tricia Liston scored 17 points off the bench and
Chelsea Gray added 15, leading No. 5 Duke to a 67-45 win over Virginia Tech on
Wednesday night.
Elizabeth Williams scored 12 points and Haley Peters contribute
Murray State takes care of Redhawks >>
Cape Girardeau, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Donte Poole poured in a game-high 25
points, leading No. 16 Murray State to a 75-66 win over Southeast Missouri
State on Wednesday.
Ivan Aska netted 14 points and pulled down nine rebounds, wh
Martin leads Rockets over Thunder >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Martin scored 32 points, including the
go-ahead free throws with 23.6 seconds left in the game, to lead the Houston
Rockets to a 96-95 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.
Luis Scola
No. 1 Baylor rolls through Oklahoma State >>
Stillwater, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittney Griner led all scorers with 28
points as top-ranked Baylor dominated Oklahoma State 83-51 at Gallagher-Iba
Arena on Wednesday.
Griner also ripped down 10 boards and turned away six shots,
Barnes, No. 8 UNC top Miami-Florida >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harrison Barnes had 23 points and six rebounds as
No. 8 North Carolina took a 73-64 win over Miami-Florida.
John Henson added 14 points and 11 rebounds while Reggie Bullock contributed
10 points and seven boa
Hornets break road skid with win in Milwaukee >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marco Belinelli led the Hornets with 22
points as New Orleans snapped a six-game road losing streak, defeating the
Milwaukee Bucks 92-89 at Bradley Center on Wednesday.
Chris Kaman added a double-
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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