Bucks need some road work

Basketball Betting Lines

12/22/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Bucks can just forget about their five-game home winning streak because it's on the road where this team struggles.

Milwaukee, which resides in last place in the Central Division, has lost four straight on the road and is 4-10 away from the friendly confines of the Bradley Center this season.

The Bucks have won two straight overall and will play four of their next five games on the road against Minnesota, San Antonio, Memphis and Cleveland. That is certainly not an easy task for a last-place squad.

But on a brighter note second-year center Andrew Bogut has been playing inspiring basketball as of late. Bogut had 17 points, six boards and five assists in a 121-95 win over Miami on Wednesday. Over his last five games, Bogut has made 28-of-39 shots for a 71 percent clip.

The Bucks, who are the worst team in the NBA with a 48.4 percent defensive field-goal percentage, are playing more like a Western Conference team with plenty of runs and a more fluid offense. Head coach Terry Stotts understands that if his team doesn't play defense it doesn't matter what type of numbers the offense is putting up.

"That's our game," Bucks star guard Michael Redd. "We play like a Western Conference style in the Eastern Conference. We have to push it, that's part of our game. I guess it's become part of our identity when we win. That's when we're at our best."

Meanwhile, Milwaukee forward Bobby Simmons had successful surgery this week to remove bone spurs on his injured right ankle. Simmons, who hasn't played this season, is out for the year and is expected to have another procedure performed on the ankle in the future.

Simmons averaged 13.4 points per game last season, his first with Milwaukee.

Wwwentercasino Basketball Betting News

<< Patriots sign P Sauerbrun
Foxboro, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Patriots signed former Pro Bowl punter Todd Sauerbrun on Friday. Sauerbrun, who was released by the Denver Broncos in October after serving a four-game suspension for testing positive for t

<< Playoffs Or Bust
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The final two weeks of the regular season are upon us, and now is the time to bet against teams that already have locked up playoff bids. Indianapolis and Seattle combined for a 1-5 ATS mark in the last th

<< Palermo hopes to close out solid 2006 run with a win
Siena, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a strong 2006 campaign, Palermo looks to close out the year on Saturday against a Siena team that has not seen a win in eight Serie A games. "We have to make the last effort in order to try to clo

<< Aberdeen, Rangers battle for second place
Aberdeen, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With league-leaders Celtic a whopping 14 points clear of the rest of the pack, it is time to start playing for second place for the rest of the Scottish Premier League. On Saturday, second-pla

<< Pistons get 'Sheed back
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Pistons got one of their key players back this week when Rasheed Wallace returned from a two-game absence to help beat the division-rival Cleveland Cavaliers. Wallace, who had missed the previous two wins

Top three stay the same in FIFA Women's Rankings >>
Zurich, Switzerland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany finishes the year as the world's top women's team for the fourth year in a row in the FIFA World Rankings which came out Friday. The USA and Norway hold the second and third place

Playoffs Remain a Possibility for Rams >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The playoffs are still on the minds of the St. Louis Rams, and they will try to do whatever it takes to stay afloat in the crowded waters of the NFC postseason race. St. Louis will shoot for its second straight win on Sund

Titans, Bills, Seek to Maintain Momentum >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tennessee Titans didn't need rookie quarterback Vince Young to lead them to their fifth straight win last week, because the defense did all the work. The Titans are likely to require more of Young's services on Sunday, wh

Browns, Bucs, Play for Pride, Draft Position >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In a year where it seems like every team has a shot at the playoffs, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Browns meet this Sunday in a battle for draft positioning. With two weeks left in the regular season, Tampa Bay an

Raptors eyeing division lead >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Raptors are in the midst of a four-game road trip and will need to keep pace with Boston and New Jersey in the Atlantic Division standings. The Raptors have won four of their last five games and are tied

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.