10/02/2008 -
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas named Paul Westphal executive vice
president of basketball operations on Thursday.
The 12-year NBA veteran brings a 25-year coaching career to his new role with
the Mavericks. Westphal led Phoenix to the 1993 NBA Finals and was the second-
fastest coach in NBA history to reach 150 wins.
"I can't tell you how excited we are to add Westy to our management team,"
said president of basketball operations/general manager Donnie Nelson. "The
Mavericks have gained a valuable asset. As a player and coach, Paul has pretty
much seen and done it all."
That includes playing stints in Boston, Phoenix, New York and Seattle. He
played for the 1974 NBA-champion Celtics.
<< Overton's 67 leads at chilly Turning Stone
Verona, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Overton shot a five-under 67 in chilly
conditions Thursday to take the first-round lead at the Turning Stone Resort
Championship.
Steve Allan and Michael Allen were a stroke off the lead at four-
<< Bills sign Evans to extension
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Buffalo Bills wide receiver Lee Evans
has signed a multi-year contract extension, the club announced Thursday.
Evans, selected 13th overall by the Bills in the 2004 draft, had been working
with Buff
<< Chelsea striker Drogba injures knee
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea star Didier Drogba, who injured his
knee in Wednesday's Champions game against CFR Cluj, sustained minor ligament
damage and will be out for a few weeks, the club announced Thursday.
Chelsea fear
<< Mathieu strolls into Metz quarters
Metz, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fourth-seeded French crowd favorite Paul-
Henri Mathieu was among Thursday's second-round winners at the $540,000
Open de Moselle tennis tournament.
Mathieu whipped qualifier and fellow Frenchman
<< Islanders sign first-round pick Bailey
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Islanders signed center Josh
Bailey, the team's first-round pick in the 2008 draft, to a three-year, entry-
level contract on Thursday.
Bailey, who turned 19 on Thursday, was chosen as the
Helton has back surgery >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton
underwent surgery on his lower back, the club announced Thursday.
The procedure took place Tuesday at Marina Del Rey Hospital in Los Angeles,
performed by Dr.
Colgate-Georgetown football game cancelled >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The football game between the Colgate
Raiders and Georgetown Hoyas scheduled for Saturday has been cancelled.
Due to an outbreak of norovirus on the Georgetown campus, the contest will not
be played.
Rays 1B Pena leaves game >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Carlos
Pena left Thursday's 6-4 win over the Chicago White Sox in Game 1 of the
American League Division Series with blurred vision in his left eye.
Pena had appa
Bears suspend DT Harris >>
Lake Forest, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bears suspended three-time Pro
Bowl defensive tackle Tommie Harris for Sunday's road game against the Detroit
Lions for breaking an unspecified team rule.
Harris missed this past Sunday's victo
Phillies slam Sabbathia, take 2-0 lead in NLDS >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shane Victorino hit a grand slam, and
Brett Myers tossed seven strong innings as Philadelphia downed Milwaukee, 5-2,
in Game 2 of the teams' National League Division Series.
The Phillies took a 2-0 l
Huskers' Lucky hospitalized for undisclosed reason
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska running back Marlon Lucky was hospitalized Monday for undisclosed reasons after Lincoln police responded to a call at his residence.
The Nebraska athletic department said in a release Monday that Lucky was admitted Sunday night.
MySportsbook.com has the Cornhuskers listed at +2500 to win the 2008 BCS National Championship odds.
A nursing supervisor at the hospital said all questions about Lucky were being referred to the athletic department. The athletic department said there would be no further comment from the department or Lucky's family.
A Lincoln Police spokesman said officers responded to a call at Lucky's residence 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The spokesman said he didn't know Lucky's condition at the time he was taken to the hospital.
Lucky, from North Hollywood, Calif., started six games last season as a sophomore and was the team's second-leading rusher, with 728 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 32 passes for 383 yards. He averaged 19.1 yards on eight kickoff returns.
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Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting
So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.
Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?
If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)
Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).
In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.
Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.
As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.
(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)
If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.
Atlantic Coast Conference
Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech
The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.
Work left to do:
Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.
Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).
Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.
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