Johnson, Syracuse have little trouble downing Gonzaga

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/21/2010 - Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wes Johnson poured in a career-high 31 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, leading Syracuse to an 87-65 victory over Gonzaga in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Andy Rautins scored 24 for Syracuse (30-4), which has won its first two games in the West Region by a combined 45 points. The top-seeded Orange beat Vermont by 23 in the first round and will next face Butler in the regional semifinals on Thursday in Salt Lake City.

Johnson, the Big East Player of the Year, and Rautins combined to make 9-of-15 three-point tries for Syracuse, which finished 12-of-25 from beyond the arc. The Orange again played without center Arinze Onuaku, who also sat out Friday's contest because of a quadriceps injury suffered during the Big East Tournament.

Syracuse will make its 19th appearance in the Sweet 16 and second straight. The Orange lost to Oklahoma last year in the regional semifinals.

Elias Harris scored 24 points for Gonzaga (27-7), which knocked off Florida State in the first round on Friday. West Coast Conference Player of the Year Matt Bouldin didn't score for the first 24 minutes and finished with only eight on Sunday after leading the Bulldogs with 17 in their first-round win.

Gonzaga opened a 13-8 lead early in the contest, but Syracuse answered with a 14-4 run. A three-pointer by Scoop Jardine gave the Orange a 15-13 edge and a shot from beyond the arc by Rautins capped the surge to make it 22-17 with 11 1/2 minutes left in the first half.

Harris followed with consecutive baskets for Gonzaga and Syracuse lost center Rick Jackson with 8:58 to play in the half when he picked up his third foul, but the Orange scored nine straight points without him and opened a 31-21 advantage on a Johnson jumper.

Gonzaga followed with a 7-1 spurt to draw within four, but the Orange responded with 11 in a row as part of a half-closing 15-4 run. Rautins ignited it with a jumper and Brandon Triche hit a three-pointer to give Syracuse its largest lead at that time at 46-30 before the Orange went into the break with a 47-32 margin.

Syracuse made 7-of-14 three-point tries in the opening 20 minutes, while Gonzaga was just 2-of-11 from beyond the arc. Triche scored all of his 13 points in the first half for the Orange.

The long-range accuracy continued for the Orange early in the second half, as Rautins made a trio of threes and added three free throws in a 13-2 run. His last make from the stripe gave Syracuse a 60-34 advantage with 16:20 to play.

Two free throws by Johnson extended the Orange cushion to 30, 71-41, with just over 12 minutes left. Syracuse cruised from there, leading by as many as 32.

Game Notes

Jardine finished with nine points and Jackson had five with nine rebounds for the Orange, who shot 54.7 percent overall...Robert Sacre scored 17 points for Gonzaga, which finished just 3-of-21 from three-point range....Bouldin made only 3-of-13 shots from the field and missed each of his six three-point attempts...Syracuse reached 30 wins for the first time since the 2002-03 squad finished 30-5 and captured the NCAA championship...Gonzaga fell to 0-5 when facing a top seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs also lost to top-seeded North Carolina in last year's tourney...Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim notched his 44th career NCAA Tournament win, tying him with Jim Calhoun for seventh on the all-time list...This was the first meeting between the schools.

Innercasino NCAA Basketball Betting News

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American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6  

The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.

Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com.  "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.

It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis.  It's like Week 1 of the NFL.  Pre-season means nada!

We do know the 24 finalists however.

Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24.  He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway.  He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien. 

Brandon Rogers - Who?

Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition.  He should go a good distance.

Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was.  And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition.  He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice!  People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way. 

"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks.  He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes.  But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.

A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”

Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes. 

"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate.  "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past.  He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far.  Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."

Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts) 

And the others:

Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter

The girls

"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis.  "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has.  The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive.  I think she will go far."

Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.

"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams.  Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth.  "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.

Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.

Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.

Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan

MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with). 

Last two contestants will be?

1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)

2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)

2 Females +130 (a $10 bet pays $13 plus your initial $10)

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