Vols open SEC Tournament against hapless Tigers

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/11/2010 - Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers are set to take on the LSU Tigers in the first round of the 2010 SEC Tournament.

The winner of this contest will move on to face Ole Miss, the West Division's second seed, in Friday's quarterfinal round.

LSU, 11-19 overall, is the sixth seed from the West Division, and it captured its lone SEC crown back in 1980. The Tigers finished 2-14 versus league foes during the regular season, but the team did close out the campaign with a victory and may enter this tournament with some confidence.

The Vols have won the SEC Tournament four times, but it has been 31 years since their last title. Last season, Tennessee reached the title game, only to fall to Mississippi State by a 64-61 final. The 2009-10 Vols are 23-7 overall, and they closed the regular season with three consecutive wins.

Tennessee and LSU played just once during the regular season, and the Vols escaped Baton Rouge with a five-point win. In regard to the all-time series, Tennessee owns a 57-42 advantage.

The Tigers lack depth and are the lowest-scoring team in the SEC (61.9 ppg) despite boasting two of the league's top 13 scorers, including Tasmin Mitchell (17.0 ppg, 9.5 rpg). Bo Spencer provides 14.9 ppg, and he leads the team with 79 assists. Unfortunately, Spencer is shooting a woeful 33.9 percent from the field. Storm Warren is the third and final double-digit scorer on the roster with 11.6 ppg, and he is grabbing 7.2 rpg to complement a team-high 43 blocks. Unfortunately, no other player on the team is netting more than 4.6 ppg, so the trio mentioned is responsible for almost all of the Tigers' 61.9 ppg. LSU managed to beat Georgia in the regular-season finale despite shooting just 31 percent from the floor.

Tennessee owns the second-best scoring margin in the SEC (+9.8 ppg), surprising considering the fact that it doesn't possess a single player ranked in the top 20 in the league in scoring. Scotty Hopson paces the squad with 13.1 ppg, and Wayne Chism checks in with 12.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg. Chism has also blocked 44 shots, but he has been inconsistent this season, choosing to play a role rather than use his unique skill set to dominate games. The Vols are the top team in the conference when it comes to defending the three-point shot. They are limiting opponents to 65.2 ppg while generating 75.0 ppg at the offensive end. In a 16-point victory over Mississippi State to close out the regular season, the Vols shot 50 percent from the floor, had five double-digit scorers and held the Bulldogs to 33.9 percent shooting.

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

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