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03/15/2010 -
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) -Look who's lurking deep in the Midwest bracket where Kansas proudly sits as overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
It's none other than Tennessee and Oklahoma State - the ``2'' in that glittering 32-2 record that the Jayhawks compiled while dominating a Big 12 Conference that sent seven teams into the 65-team field.
As expected, the Jayhawks were given the distinction of being overall No. 1 and, as hoped, get to play their opening game against Lehigh in Oklahoma City - an easy drive down Interstate 35 from Lawrence. But they weren't thinking that the only teams to beat them would be right there in their same bracket.
``My eyes got big,'' said sophomore guard Tyshawn Taylor. ``Maybe we'll get a chance to get these guys back.''
Tennessee, seeded No. 6 in the Midwest, beat the Jayhawks 76-68 on Jan. 10, while seventh-seeded Oklahoma State - Kansas coach Bill Self's alma mater - was an 85-77 winner on a cold night in Stillwater on Feb. 27.
But that was the last loss for a deep and talented Jayhawk team led by Sherron Collins, its all-conference senior guard, and Cole Aldrich, the 6-foot-11 junior center who shattered the team record this year for blocked shots.
Self made it clear they were in no mood to look ahead.
``There's also a team that beat us twice in there last year - Michigan State,'' said the coach of the team that was ranked No. 1 in The Associated Press poll all but four weeks this season.
``You would think if we had a chance to play any of those teams, it could mean two things. Either the other team will be confident, or it could mean that we would be angry,'' Self said. ``But we're not going that far. We've got to win a two-game tournament. You win a two-game tournament, the next two games obviously will be against quality opponents.''
It's the ninth time Kansas has been a No. 1 seed and the third time in four seasons they've rolled up 30 wins.
Kansas State, in the meantime, drew the No. 2 seed in the West Regional, the highest seeding ever for the Wildcats and an honor that Self said was ``well deserved.''
The Wildcats, who finished second to Kansas in the Big 12 tournament and regular season, will also get to play in Oklahoma City on Thursday against No. 15 seed North Texas.
``I didn't really know what to expect, but I'm happy we got a two-seed,'' said Kansas State guard Jacob Pullen. ``We have a chance to make a deep run. I think the players that were here my freshman year understand the venue and everything that's there. But it's a great opportunity. We get a chance to go into the tournament, face some teams that are good.''
Self said he would not argue with anyone who claimed the Midwest is the toughest regional.
``I would agree wholeheartedly,'' he said. ``If we're the overall No. 1 and you've got a team out there that's also the No. 2 seed (Ohio State) that several people thought were in the conversation for a No. 1 seed, and then you have in my opinion a team that played unbelievably down the stretch - Georgetown. Your No. 4 seed (Maryland) is your ACC co-champion, and your five-seed (Michigan State) is the Big Ten co-champion, or tri-champion. You can make a case looking at it like that.''
Perhaps with the experience of 2008 in mind, when the Jayhawks beat Memphis in overtime for the NCAA title, Self said he will not let his team worry about anybody but Lehigh.
And if they get by Lehigh, they will be concerned only with the next game, the winner between Northern Iowa and UNLV.
``We can get kind of carried away with the tournament if you look ahead,'' Self said. ``You can't look too far ahead because if you do, you might be preparing for something that doesn't even exist. You've got to stay in the present and the present is this weekend.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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