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Deng, Rose lead Bulls over Heat

Basketball Betting Lines

02/06/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luol Deng had 25 points and Derrick Rose scored 24, as the Chicago Bulls got by the Miami Heat, 95-91, at the United Center.

Deng was 9-of-11 at the foul line and Rose hit 6-of-8 at the stripe as the Bulls snapped a three-game losing streak by getting to the free throw line a season-high 35 times, hitting 28 of those attempts.

John Salmons chipped in 15 points and five assists and Brad Miller notched 13 points, eight rebounds and five steals to help offset the absence of fellow bigs Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas. Noah is expected to remain sidelined until after the All-Star break with plantar fasciitis in his foot, while Thomas was suspended by the Bulls for Saturdays contest for conduct detrimental to the team.

Jermaine O'Neal paced Miami with 24 points, a game-high 16 rebounds and five assists. Dwyane Wade was 7-of-21 shooting for 20 points, while Michael Beasley also struggled in a 2-of-11 showing from the floor to end with six points in the Heat's fifth consecutive loss.

Quentin Richardson scored 13 points and Rafer Alston 11 for Miami, which has dropped seven of its last eight games overall.

The Heat were up 27-23 after 12 minutes, but scored just 15 points in the second quarter to fall behind by seven, 49-42, at the half. The visitors bounced back in the third, and took a 55-52 lead behind a quick 9-0 burst in the early going.

The momentum swung back Chicago's way moments later as Rose sank a medium- range jumper and Miller hit from long distance for a 61-57 lead with 4 1/2 minutes to go. Both teams played it tight right to the horn with score tied at 69 entering the final frame.

The game remained close straight through till the end as Salmons hit consecutive jumpers for an 81-75 Bulls edge at the halfway point. O'Neal single-handedly kept the Heat in contention, beginning a stretch of nine straight points for the visitors with a pair of hook shots to stay within four. He ended the stretch with three free throws to allow Miami only a three- point deficit, 89-86, with 43 ticks to go.

But Deng helped seal Chicago's win at the charity stripe, going 4-for-4 down the stretch to hold off any attempt at a comeback.

Game Notes

The Heat had taken five of their past six games with Chicago...Wade added eight assists and six rebounds, while Beasley chipped in with seven boards...Miami attempted only 19 free throws, making all but three...Miller's three-pointer was the only long distance make of the game for Chicago (1-of-8)...The Heat hit 7-of-21 three-point tries.

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What Is the Point Spread?

What are Sports Betting Point Spreads?

In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.

Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).

If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).

Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.

How to Read Point Spreads

New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)

In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:

  • Philly wins the actual game by any amount of points
    OR
  • Philly loses the game by less than 7 points.

  • There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.

    The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:

    Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots

    Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.

    For Those Who Like to Consider Things Mathematically

    Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:

  • Subtracting the point spread from the favorite’s score (thus the minus sign before the number) and then compare to the underdog’s score
    OR
  • Adding the point spread to the underdog’s score (thus the plus sign before the number) and then compare to the favorite’s score

    Who Really “Won” the Super Bowl odds ?

    Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21

    The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.

    Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.

    Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).

    Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.

    And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.

To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.