Huskies set record for longest consecutive top ranking
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/01/2010 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Connecticut was again a unanimous choice as the top-ranked women's basketball team in the nation, claiming the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press poll for a record 37th consecutive week.
The Huskies (21-0), riding a 60-game winning streak, topped the old record of 36 straight weeks set by Louisiana Tech from 1980-82. UConn received all 40 first-place votes and a total of 1,000 points from a nationwide media panel.
Connecticut's win streak, each game of which has been a double-digit triumph, is the second-longest in women's basketball history. The Huskies also own the top mark of 70 straight wins from 2001-03.
Stanford again remained second and Notre Dame third. Both teams have just one loss -- both falling to UConn.
Nebraska (19-0), the only other unbeaten team in the nation, moved up two spots to fourth and is followed by Tennessee, Duke, Xavier, Ohio State, North Carolina and Oklahoma State. Ohio State was 1-2 last week and dropped four spots from fourth, while Oklahoma State climbed five places into the top 10 with wins over Missouri and then-No. 8 Texas A&M.
The second 10 consists of West Virginia, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Georgia, Baylor, Florida State, Texas, Georgetown, LSU and Kentucky. Texas A&M lost twice last week and fell four spots, while Georgia also dropped a pair of games last week and tumbled five spots from ninth.
Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Gonzaga and St. John's are the last five teams ranked this week.
Kentucky, Gonzaga and St. John's are newcomers to the poll, replacing TCU, Virginia and Penn State.
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Phoenix Coyotes forward Shane Doan, Ottawa Senators goaltender Brian Elliott and Washington Capitals forward Nicklas Backstrom have been named the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the week ending January 31.
<< Bills bring back DeHaven
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey
has hired three assistant coaches, bringing back Bruce DeHaven to run the
club's special teams.
DeHaven previously spent 13 seasons as Buffalo's special
<< Crespo happy to return to Parma
Parma, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Veteran Argentina striker Hernan Crespo is
delighted to have been given the chance to finish his career in Italy with
Parma.
The 34-year-old has joined Parma from Genoa, having started his career
<< Hitzlsperger swaps Stuttgart for Lazio
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lazio have sealed the signing of Germany
midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger, after he agreed to end his contract with
Stuttgart.
The 27-year-old's deal with his Bundesliga employers was due to run unt
<< Cassano to remain with Sampdoria
Genoa, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sampdoria and Italy forward Antonio Cassano
has rejected the chance to leave Genoa to join Fiorentina.
The 27-year-old admitted that he was tempted to move on, before being swayed
by the reaction of the c
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester City have landed Middlesbrough winger Adam Johnson for an undisclosed fee on transfer deadline day. The England Under-21 international had been linked with a move to Eastlands
Kansas moves back to the top of the poll >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas is again the top team in men's college
basketball, ascending to the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press poll for the
second time this season.
The Jayhawks (20-1) were the top team in the country in th
Begovic swaps Pompey for Stoke City >>
Stoke-on-Trent, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stoke City have landed goalkeeper
Asmir Begovic from Premier League rivals Portsmouth.
The Potters, who were involved in a protracted but ultimately fruitless deal
to sign Begovic's teammate, D
Hornets' Paul likely to need knee surgery >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul
had his injured left knee examined by team doctors and will likely need
surgery.
Hornets coach Jeff Bower said the team is still reviewing the test results
Revs re-sign pair of veterans, rookie draft pick >>
Foxborough, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Revolution re-signed
midfielder Mauricio Castro and goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth, the Major League
Soccer club announced on Monday.
"We're pleased to bring Mauricio and Bobby back,"
SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting
NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.