Benfals Basketball Betting News

<< Finch leads by one at Gleneagles
Perthshire, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Richard Finch opened with a six-under 66 Thursday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles. Four of Finch's fellow Englishmen are tied f

<< Another loss for USC after investigation, sanctions
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Southern California has been stripped of the 2004 Grantland Rice Trophy it received in recognition for winning the national football title. The award was revoked by the Football Write

<< Hockey "Cold War" rages on
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cold War may be a thing of the past in a political sense, but the battle between Russia and the West is still alive and well in the hockey world. This week, representatives of the NHL and KHL, among nu

<< Knicks sign second-round pick Fields
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks have signed guard/forward Landry Fields, the 39th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. As per team policy, terms of the deal were not released. The 22-year-old Fields averaged 22 points, good for

Villanova's Bell out indefinitely >>
Villanova, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Villanova freshman guard James Bell will be out indefinitely, the school reported on Thursday. Bell, an Orlando native, was diagnosed with stress fractures in the tibia of both legs. He will not part

Rodriguez solid as punchless Phils are swept by Astros >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wandy Rodriguez stymied the Philadelphia hitters over seven innings and helped his own cause with an RBI single, as the Houston Astros beat the Phillies, 5-1, to complete a four-game sweep at Citizen

Saban becoming big multimedia presence >>
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) -Nick Saban is all about efficiency, even when it comes to capitalizing on the positive publicity from a national championship season.Instead of hunkering down and writing a book like he did at LSU, the Alabama coach allowed ca

Illinois' Sanni lost for season with Achilles injury >>
Champaign, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Illinois safety Supo Sanni will be lost for the 2010 season after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon. Illini head coach Ron Zook made the announcement on Thursday, revealing that Sanni, who was pro

American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout

An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.

Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off.  Randy was not impressed though.  Paula thought he started off fantastic.  "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either. 

Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed.  Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact.  He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition. 

Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula.  Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.

Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next.  Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential.  Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell.  He sang "Careless Whisper".

22 year old Chris Richardson was up next.  He was listed with +1100 odds coming in.  He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great. 

Nick was boring and pitchy.  Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week.  Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition. 

Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds .  These of course were the early odds.  He was considered original for picking an "odd song".  He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night. 

Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good. 

Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds.  Great voice and a great sense of humor.  He's a real standout.  Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit.  Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig". 

Jared Cotter followed.  He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition.  The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good. 

22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next.  "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon.  Though the judges felt he performed okay.  Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.

Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition.  He was the last to perform.  He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start. 

Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys.  Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.

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

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.