Gasol carries short-handed Lakers over Spurs

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02/09/2010 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pau Gasol had a spectacular all-around game with 21 points, 19 rebounds, a season-high eight assists and five blocked shots, pacing the Los Angeles Lakers to a 101-89 win over the San Antonio Spurs.

Lakers All-Star guard Kobe Bryant sat out his second straight game due to a sprained left ankle. LA was also missing Andrew Bynum (bruised right hip), but Gasol filled the center role nicely.

"I can't move my ankle," Bryant said. "It's frustrating. If the All-Star game was today I wouldn't play. If I can move and get to the basket I'll play. We'll make a decision Wednesday."

Lamar Odom chipped in 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Ron Artest scored 18 for the Lakers, who moved to 25-4 at home this season. They've won seven of their last nine games overall.

"We finished well for a game that seemed to be a struggle," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "It's a good win for us. I like our defense. We're playing better. Rebounding was terrific. It's always good for a team to rally with two stars out."

Manu Ginobili had 21 points off the bench, while starter Tony Parker scored 20 for the Spurs, who failed to build on a victory in this same building two nights ago against the Clippers. Tim Duncan registered 16 points and 15 rebounds.

"A disappointing loss. The Lakers were obviously a little short-handed and played mentally tougher than we did," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "They played physically tougher than we did and got a win."

Ginobili's layup moved the Spurs within 74-70, 44 seconds into the final quarter, but the Lakers ran off the ensuing seven points, capped by Shannon Brown's three-ball.

A Ginobili three had the visitors within 81-75, but the Spurs failed to close the gap the rest of the way.

The Spurs led 34-28 after one quarter, but the Lakers surged back for a 50-47 halftime edge. LA held a double-digit lead in the third before going to the fourth with a 73-68 edge.

Game Notes

San Antonio's Richard Jefferson went 2-of-9 from the field for nine points. It was the 16th time this season he was held under double digits...San Antonio has lost four straight at the Lakers...Under Jackson, the Lakers are 17-19 against San Antonio in the regular season. In the postseason, Jackson is 15-7 against the Spurs, advancing to the next round in four of five series meetings...San Antonio is 9-2 against the Pacific Division this season...The Spurs are 2-2 on their eight-game rodeo road trip.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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