Badgers rally past Illini for 15th straight win

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/21/2007 - Champaign, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kammron Taylor scored 20 points and Alando Tucker added 17, as second-ranked Wisconsin notched its 15th straight win with a 71-64 triumph over Illinois at Assembly Hall.

Greg Stiemsma chipped in 12 points for the Badgers (19-1, 5-0 Big Ten), who closed the game with a 12-2 run and haven't lost since a 66-64 decision against Missouri State on November 24.

Wisconsin owns the nation's longest winning streak and it is the longest for the school since a 15-game run to end the 1940-41 season. The Badgers are also 5-0 in conference play for the first time since 1961-62.

Shaun Pruitt scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for Illinois (14-7, 2-4), which has lost five of its last seven games. Rich McBride contributed 15 points in defeat.

Illinois used a 10-1 run late in the second half and took a 60-57 lead on a three-pointer by McBride with 5:07 to play. A trade of baskets still left the Illini ahead by three with 4:01 remaining, but they would not hit another shot from the field the rest of the way.

Stiemsma buried a 14-foot jumper to make it a one-point game and followed with a pair of free throws with 2:06 left to put the Badgers ahead for good at 63-62.

After Chester Frazier missed a shot for Illinois, a couple of calls went Wisconsin's way.

Taylor had a three-point try partially blocked and Tucker appeared to go over the back of an Illinois player to grab the loose ball. As both players fell to the floor and no foul was called, Tucker freed the ball up for Taylor, who drained a jumper from the elbow to give Wisconsin a 65-62 edge with just over a minute left.

McBride then made one of two free throws for Illinois and Marcus Landry hit a tough shot at the other end. He was also called for an offensive foul on the play and Brian Randle made one free throw to leave the Illini down 67-64 with 32.6 seconds remaining.

Taylor then hit two from the stripe for the Badgers and Frazier misfired on a three-point attempt before Michael Flowers converted two more from the line for the final margin.

Wisconsin missed just three of its 21 free throws to offset a poor 3-for-16 effort from three-point range. Taylor was 8-for-8 from the stripe.

In a tight first half, Wisconsin scored six straight points to ignite a 12-2 run and two free throws by Taylor with 7:01 to play in the half gave the Badgers a 27-18 edge. The Illini responded with a 10-4 burst to pull within three, then went into the break down 35-31.

Illinois tied it at 39-39 on a jumper by Frazier early in the second half, but Wisconsin followed with 12 of the next 16 points and took a 51-43 lead on a free throw by Brian Butch with 9:42 remaining.

Game Notes

Illinois was just 14-of-23 from the line and made only 6-of-19 three-point tries...Frazier scored nine points for the Illini...Landry had six points for the Badgers, Butch finished with five and Flowers scored four...Wisconsin improved to 4-0 on the road.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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