March Madness, NBA Playoff Race - Sports Betting Games of the Week
by Bodog Sportsbook | Mar 26 2008
There is only one word to describe March as the NBA playoff race heats up and the NCAA tournament heads into the round of Sweetest 16… Madness! In the league, it’s the battle of Texas, as San Antonio takes on Rafer Alston and the Houston Rockets, and a “Dirkless” Dallas squad limps into Cali to take on Baron Davis and the Golden State Warriors.
In the college ranks, Duke? Georgetown? UConn? Please believe it, believe it please, some top-tier teams got their tickets punched early, leaving perhaps one of the most competitive and exciting Sweet 16 rounds in recent memory.
Games of the Week
Michigan State vs. Memphis We have a battle between two legendary coaches in college basketball as Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans will lock horns with the No. 1 seed from the South, John Calipari’s Memphis Tigers. Memphis has been called the weakest of the No. 1 seeds. Derrick Rose and the Tigers will have to prove their critics wrong as they take on Drew Neitzel and the Michigan State Spartans in what should be their biggest test of the tournament thus far.
Davidson vs. Wisconsin The anticipation builds as Davidson, the Cinderella team from the Midwest, gets ready to take on their next big challenge as they face off against Wisconsin. We might be watching one of the better shooters, period, in Davidson’s Stephen Curry. Son of former NBA player Dell Curry, known for having the quickest release in the league, Stephen Curry has emerged as a star in this year’s tournament. His team hasn’t lost a game in months and he can shoot it from anywhere. Can he do it one more time against Bo Ryan’s lock-down defense? Well, they said he couldn’t do it against Georgetown. 30 points later, here we go again.
Tennessee vs. Louisville Pitino vs. Pearl. The Tennessee Volunteers and head coach Bruce Pearl, take on the Louisville Cardinals. Basketball fans are chomping at the bit for this matchup. Two well-coached teams, two athletic and offensively talented teams that can play versatile styles - this could be the game of the tournament. It’s hard not to give the early nod to Rick Pitino’s Cardinals; you just never feel comfortable betting against the man in the pin-striped suit.
Stanford vs. Texas
Stanford and Texas will do battle in Houston. Home court advantage may be advantageous in a game where the two teams are so closely matched. But Texas will have their work cut out for them - they will have to figure out how contain Brook Lopez, who has been unconscious. Texas will have to find ways to extend the defense in order to score against twin towers Robin and Brook, who swat everything that comes into the paint.
Golden State vs. Dallas
In the NBA, Golden State will be trying to make up ground on the wounded Mavericks. Less than two games back, Golden State will be looking to gain some breathing space on Denver by taking advantage of the struggling Mavericks, who are currently without their star player, Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki went down earlier this week with a knee and ankle injury and remains out indefinitely.
