Vandy aims for upset of 'Bama

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/17/2007 - Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vanderbilt Commodores hope to thrill the Nashville crowd with an upset of the 10th-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide this evening in an SEC tilt.

Alabama opened league play with an ugly 88-61 loss to Arkansas, but the club was able to rebound for a 71-61 decision over LSU in the next outing. It has been eight days since that most recent contest, and Alabama is undoubtedly eager to improve on its outstanding 14-2 overall record. On a down note, the Tide enters tonight's clash with a 1-2 mark in true road games.

Vanderbilt, which is 8-2 at home, owns a solid 11-6 overall record, but the team has only one win in three conference games thus far. On Saturday, the Commodores dropped an 85-73 decision to Georgia on the road.

Alabama holds a 65-59 edge in the all-time series with Vanderbilt, but the Commodores have won the last eight meetings at home.

The Crimson Tide is scoring 77.9 ppg this season on 48.3 percent shooting from the floor, including 39.3 percent accuracy from three-point range. Defensively, the squad is limiting its opponents to 63.4 ppg on 37.3 percent shooting from the field. Richard Hendrix leads a balanced offensive attack with 14.9 ppg, and he is ripping down 8.8 rpg. Alonzo Gee is close behind offensively with 14.8 ppg, and Jermareo Davidson accounts for 13.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg and 3.2 bpg. Mykal Riley (12.3 ppg) and Ronald Steele (10.5 ppg) round out the team's tremendously talented group of scorers. Hendix tallied 18 points in the win over LSU, and Gee managed 15 points. Riley and Davidson posted 12 points apiece, and Davidson also secured 12 rebounds. Strong defense was undoubtedly the key to that win, as 'Bama limited the Tigers to 35.7 percent shooting from the field.

Vanderbilt connected on only 38.6 percent of its field goal attempts in the loss to Georgia, and the Commodores scored only six points from the foul line in the contest. They also suffered a 43-33 rebounding disadvantage and permitted the Bulldogs to shoot 55.2 percent from the floor. Derrick Byars led the team with 23 points in defeat, and Dan Cage pitched in 17 points for Vandy. As for Shan Foster, he was limited to 3-of-13 shooting from the floor, including an 0-of-5 effort from three-point range. Byars holds the team scoring lead with 15.1 ppg, and Foster is close behind with 14.8 ppg. Cage has been a solid offensive contributor as well, as he is netting 11.5 ppg on 43.5 percent shooting from behind the arc. The Commodores are averaging 78.6 ppg while allowing 69.5 ppg to their opponents.

Wwwattheraces NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Surging Hokies take on Seminoles in Sunshine State
Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two teams sitting at opposite ends of the ACC landscape get together in Tallahassee this evening, as the red-hot 23rd-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies, take on the Florida State Seminoles in league

<< Red-hot Badgers play host to Boilermakers
Madison, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Winners of 13 straight games, the second- ranked Wisconsin Badgers play host to the Purdue Boilermakers this evening in Big Ten action from the Kohl Center in Madison. Bo Ryan's squad has been a pi

<< Top-25 battle in the ACC
Clemson, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Their reign atop the national polls was short-lived, now the fourth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels must find a way to bounce back from a devastating loss, as they invade Littlejohn Coliseum, for a b

<< Federer, Roddick advance; Baghdatis falls at Aussie Open
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Roger Federer and American star Andy Roddick were straight-set second-round winners, while 2006 runner-up Marcos Baghdatis went by way of the upset Wednesday at the Australian Open.

<< Mauresmo, Kuznetsova, Serena move on at Oz Open
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Reigning champion Amelie Mauresmo, French Open runner-up Svetlana Kuznetsova and two-time Melbourne titlist Serena Williams highlighted Wednesday' second-round winners at the Australian Open. The seco

Rebels and Tigers meet in Baton Rouge >>
Baton Rouge, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 16th-ranked LSU Tigers have the talent in place for another run at the Final Four, and they are clearly favored in tonight's game against a talented yet inconsistent Ole Miss team. On Saturday,

Vols try to right ship at Auburn >>
Auburn, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 22nd-ranked Tennessee Volunteers, led by SEC Player of the Year hopeful Chris Lofton, invade Auburn tonight for a battle with the Tigers. Tennessee had a streak of nine consecutive wins before los

Butler puts perfect home mark on the line >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 18th-ranked Butler Bulldogs are the favorites to win the Horizon League title this season, and they will attempt to avoid an upset tonight as they host the Youngstown State Peng

Buckeyes host Wildcats in Big Ten action >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two teams at opposite ends of the Big Ten Conference standings meet in Columbus tonight, as the Northwestern Wildcats come calling on the seventh-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. Northwestern started

Irish and Wildcats meet in Big East clash >>
Villanova, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 20th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish are a perfect 13-0 at home, but must go on the road this evening, as they take on the Villanova Wildcats in Big East action from the Pavilion. Mike Brey's s

Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.