Bryant, Gasol lead Lakers over Blazers

Basketball Betting Lines

02/21/2012 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What a difference a day makes.

Kobe Bryant, just 24 hours after expressing his displeasure regarding the Lakers' handling of star forward Pau Gasol, was all smiles after scoring 28 points in Los Angeles' 103-92 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.

Gasol, mired in trade talks throughout the season, totaled 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Andrew Bynum added 14 and 19 in the win, the Lakers' fourth in five games.

Steve Blake scored 14 of his 17 points in a first half that saw the hosts lead by as many as 30. The Blazers' comeback ultimately came up short and they fell for the fourth time in six games.

"In the first half, that's the best we played, especially defensively," Bryant said. "We came out with great energy."

LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum paced Portland with 18 points apiece.

Prior to the game, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak responded to Bryant's comments by saying it would serve no purpose to announce publicly whether or not the team will deal Gasol.

A roster shakeup didn't appear necessary the way the Lakers opened Monday's contest.

Portland put itself in a hole in the first quarter, hitting just 3-of-17 (18 percent) from the field. The Lakers had separate runs of 10 and 13 points during the Blazers' slow start and cruised to a healthy 29-7 lead.

"We didn't come out ready to play. I thought we started the All-Star break early," Blazers head coach Nate McMillan said.

Blake began the second quarter with a pair of three-pointers, and two Bynum free throws pushed the margin to 30 a little later.

Batum halted an eight-minute scoreless drought with a jumper, but the Blazers were still down, 52-30, at halftime.

Seven Portland three-pointers in the third, including Batum's trey in the closing seconds, helped close the gap to 80-66 with 12 minutes to play.

The Blazers had several chances to pull within single digits in the fourth. Jamal Crawford turned the ball over trailing 84-74, and the Lakers scored the next six points, going up 90-74 on Bryant's jumper at the midway point.

With 3 1/2 minutes to play, Wesley Matthews missed a three-pointer that could have cut the deficit to nine, and again LA responded with six of the next seven points to pull away for good.

Game Notes

The Lakers close out the first half of the season with a visit to Dallas on Wednesday, while Portland hosts the Spurs on Tuesday in its final game before the All-Star break...The Lakers improved to 14-2 at home...The Lakers are 5-0 when scoring over 100 points...The Blazers announced Monday that center Greg Oden will miss the remainder of the season after having microfracture surgery on his left knee. This was the fifth surgery the 7-foot Oden has endured since he was taken by the Blazers with the first pick in the 2007 draft.

Footballventure Basketball Betting News

<< Warriors pull away late against Clippers
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Monta Ellis scored 32 points and the Golden State Warriors finished on a 9-0 run Monday night to beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 104-97, and snap a three-game losing streak. David Lee added 24 points

<< Vinci, Errani advance at Monterrey
Monterrey, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Roberta Vinci advanced to the second round at the $220,000 Monterrey Open on Monday. The Italian defeated American Coco Vandeweghe in 7-5, 7-5 fashion on the hardcourts at Sierra Madre T

<< Top-seed Petrova ousted in Memphis first round
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Italian qualifier Camila Giorgi sent top-seeded Russian Nadia Petrova packing in the first round at the $220,000 Memphis International tennis event. Giorgi ousted the former world No. 3 Petrova in straig

<< No. 13 Baylor outlasts Texas
Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Quincy Acy carried No. 13 Baylor to a comeback win, a hard-fought 77-72 victory over in-state rival Texas sealed by Pierre Jackson's clinching free throws in the final minute. Acy made up for poor shootin

<< Nuggets slip by T'Wolves in OT
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arron Afflalo drained the go-ahead shot with 33.7 seconds remaining in overtime and the Denver Nuggets outlasted the Minnesota Timberwolves, 103-101, on Monday. Afflalo had 20 points overall and Al

Fanning-Otis to retire as MSU women's hoops coach >>
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sharon Fanning-Otis, Mississippi State's all-time winningest women's basketball coach, announced Monday she will retire at the end of the season Fanning-Otis has amassed a 608-457 record during her 36 y

Local rivals collide in Raleigh >>
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The seventh-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels continue their run toward the ACC regular-season title, as they make the short trip to Raleigh to take on rival NC State in a conference battle at the RBC Center. Ro

Top-ranked Kentucky eyes up SEC crown >>
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sporting the nation's longest win streak, the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats are closing in on an SEC regular-season title and hope to gain at least a share of the conference crown this evening, as they take on t

Instate rivals clash in ACC affair >>
Blacksburg, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Virginia Tech Hokies shoot for back-to- back wins for the first time in 2012 as they host the 25th-ranked Virginia Cavaliers in ACC action tonight at Cassell Coliseum. VaTech, which has won a total of ju

Wolverines meet Wildcats in Big Ten action >>
Evanston, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Riding a three-game win streak, the 11th- ranked Michigan Wolverines try to make it a clean sweep of Northwestern, as the two Big Ten programs clash at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston tonight. Michigan, now tied

FOOTBALL BETTING

Sportsbook Betting

After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.