Midwest Regional affair pits Panthers against Rebels

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/18/2010 - Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ninth-seeded Northern Iowa Panthers mix it up with the eighth-seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels in the first round of the NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional tonight at the Ford Center. The winner of this game will move on to face either Kansas or Lehigh in the second round on Saturday.

For the second year in a row, the Panthers swept both the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tourney titles to earn their spot in the Field of 65. UNI boasts a healthy 28-4 overall mark, helping the program to its highest seed ever in this event. The Panthers own a 1-5 all-time mark in the NCAA Tournament and are in search of their first win since 1990.

As for the Rebels, they earned their first at-large bid to the Big Dance since 2000 after falling short in the Mountain West Conference Tournament championship game on Saturday. Overall, this is UNLV's 17th trip to the NCAA Tournament and its third in the past four years. The program is 33-15 all-time in this event, including an impressive 13-2 mark in the first round.

Tonight's game marks the first-ever meeting between UNLV and UNI on the hardwood.

The Panthers are an experienced group, as nine of their top 10 players, including all five starters, participated in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. Jordan Eglseder, a seven-foot center, is the team's leading scorer (12.0 ppg) as well as rebounder (7.3 rpg) and figures to make a big impact in this event. Adam Koch ranks second in both departments, as the MVC Player of the year is churning out 11.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg. Kwadzo Ahelegbe tacks on 10.7 ppg for UNI, which ranks second in the nation in scoring defense, allowing a mere 54.3 ppg.

The Rebels offer a bit more of a scoring punch than the Panthers, as they are netting 73.3 ppg and making good on 46.2 percent of their field goals. UNLV though, can also play a some defense, recording 7.8 steals per game and holding opponents to just 39.8 percent shooting from the floor. Tre'Von Willis is the go-to-guy for UNLV, as he averages a team-high 17.3 ppg, to go with 3.4 apg. Chace Stanback is another versatile threat and he puts up 10.7 ppg, while leading the squad with 5.8 rpg and 53 steals. Running the offense for the Rebels is Oscar Bellfield, who distributes 4.8 apg.

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Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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