Rebels and Horned Frogs square off in MWC matchup

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02/14/2012 - Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Locked in a three-way tie for first place in the Mountain West Conference standings entering the week, the 11th-ranked UNLV Runnin' Rebels try to give themselves some breathing room as they take on the TCU Horned Frogs at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum in Fort Worth this evening.

UNLV, which is tied with both San Diego State and New Mexico with a record of 6-2 in league play, avenged the loss earlier this season to the Aztecs by claiming a hard-fought 65-63 win in the most recent meeting over the weekend at the Thomas & Mack Center. The Rebels, winners of six of their last seven outings, have matched their highest placement in the AP poll from earlier this season, an achievement not seen in Las Vegas in nearly two decades.

As for the Horned Frogs, a group which is tied with both Wyoming and Colorado State for fourth place in the MWC at the moment, they came away with a 75-71 win over Colorado State on Saturday night, snapping a two-game slide in order to get back to .500 in league play at 4-4. The home victory kept TCU perfect in four tries versus MWC foes in Fort Worth, 11-2 overall in 2011-12.

The Rebels blew the doors off TCU in the first meeting of the season last month in Las Vegas by a score of 101-78. Mike Moser, who just earned MWC Player of the Week honors for the fourth time this season on Monday, posted 16 points and 15 rebounds in the first matchup, one of three UNLV players to score in double figures as the team shot not only 57.8 percent from the floor, but also 11-of-21 behind the three-point line.

With the overwhelming win the first time around, UNLV now owns a 17-2 advantage in the all-time series with the Horned Frogs, taking six straight contests.

The Rebels should have had the meeting with San Diego State in the bag on Saturday, leading by 13 points in the second half, but still the locals had to come up with three steals in the final 42 seconds in order to secure the two- point decision at the Thomas & Mack. Moser came up a rebound shy of yet another double-double as he tallied 19 points, but he still found the time to post six steals, four blocked shots and a pair of assists, against just a single turnover. Oscar Bellfield and Brice Massamba responded with 15 and 12 points, respectively, while Anthony Marshall compensated for just 2-of-9 shooting from the floor by handing out eight assists and grabbing six rebounds. Moser has been on a mission for the Rebels all season long and after his performance on Saturday he might finally be getting some much-deserved national recognition with his 14.7 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. Throw in 51 steals, 24 blocked shots and 60 assists and there are few players in the nation who can duplicate his versatility. Chace Stanback (13.3 ppg) helps to shoulder some of the scoring burden thanks to his 44.3 percent accuracy behind the three-point line, but the team as a whole is still shooting only 36.3 percent out on the perimeter as they generate 79.5 ppg.

The Horned Frogs trailed by 10 points late in the first half against Colorado State after allowing the Rams to connect on better than 57 percent from the floor, but the second half was a different story and TCU was able to salvage the close call after surviving eight ties and just as many lead changes. Craig Williams gave the hosts a huge boost off the bench as he tallied 20 points, shooting 4-of-5 behind the three-point line, the team converting 12of-27 beyond the arc collectively. Hank Thorns tallied 15 points and six assists, J.R. Cadot 14 points and seven boards and Garlon Green 10 points for the victors. In the last six games the Frogs have had five different leading scorers which means either they are potentially balanced on offense or that there's too much inconsistency that prevents the group from counting on just one player to lead them on a regular basis. It seems like the answer might be the latter since Thorns (12.9 ppg) leads the team in scoring and assists (111) but is shooting just 38.4 percent from the floor and that has brought the entire team down to only 43.8 percent for the season.

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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.

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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.