Villanova visits West Virginia in Big East showdown
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/08/2010 -
Morgantown, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off their first Big East Conference
loss of the season, the Villanova Wildcats will attempt to get back on track
in Morgantown against the West Virginia Mountaineers this evening.
Villanova dropped a 103-90 decision at Georgetown on Saturday in a game that
was never really close. That setback halted an 11-game win streak for the
Wildcats, who are now 20-2 overall and 9-1 in league action. They had recorded
four consecutive double-digit triumphs prior to Saturday's loss.
As for West Virginia, it has quietly put together a six-game win streak to
move to 19-3 overall and 8-2 in conference. The club has posted back-to-back
19-point victories, including Saturday's 79-60 decision over St. John's.
Expect the Mountaineers to play with a wealth of confidence this evening, as
they are 9-1 at home this season.
Although Villanova holds a 20-18 edge over WVU in the all-time series, the
Mountaineers have won four of the last five meetings.
Villanova trailed Georgetown by 19 points at intermission on Saturday after
allowing the Hoyas to shoot 55.6 percent from the floor in the first half,
including 8-of-13 from three-point range. Rather than make adjustments and
improve in the second half, the Wildcats permitted an even higher shooting
percentage over the final 20 minutes. Villanova turned the ball over 18 times
in the tilt and was outscored 39-17 from the foul line. Both Scottie Reynolds
and Corey Fisher scored 24 points in defeat, and Corey Stokes added 10 points.
Through 22 games, Reynolds is averaging 18.7 ppg on the strength of his 40.5
percent efficiency from three-point range. Fisher checks in with 13.7 ppg, and
Antonio Pena adds 11.0 ppg and 7.4 rpg. The Wildcats are generating 85.2 ppg
while limiting opponents to 72.0 ppg on 40.5 percent shooting.
There are four double-digit scorers in the fold for West Virginia, and Da'Sean
Butler leads the pack with 17.3 ppg. More than just a scorer, Butler also
brings 6.2 rpg and 74 assists to the lineup. Kevin Jones provides 14.2 ppg and
7.6 rpg for WVU, which is getting 11.1 ppg and 8.7 rpg from Devin Ebanks.
Darryl Bryant rounds out the foursome with 10.3 ppg and 76 assists for a
Mountaineer squad that is netting 73.8 ppg while holding opponents to 61.5
ppg. Rebounding has clearly been a strength for the team, as it is ripping
down 8.0 rpg more than foes. Butler was sensational against St. John's over
the weekend, as he exploded for 33 points on the strength of a 7-of-7 effort
from three-point range. The Mountaineers connected on only 25 percent of their
total shots in the first half and trailed by 11 points at intermission.
Fortunately, the team shot 65.5 percent in the second half, including 8-of-8
from behind the arc, and made good on all 11 free throws to claim the win.
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run at a perfect Horizon League campaign tonight, as they host the Loyola
Chicago Ramblers at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
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tonight against the top team in the Western Conference, as they host the San
Jose Sharks at Air Canada Centre.
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FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million
Football Betting
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
NFL Betting Lines
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