Cavs and Bucks clash at the 'Q'

Basketball Betting Lines

02/10/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Kyrie Irving probably won't play again tonight after suffering a concussion earlier this week, but Ramon Sessions will be there to pick up the slack.

Sessions filled in nicely for Irving the previous time out and looks for an encore performance versus the Milwaukee Bucks tonight from Quicken Loans Arena. Irving, the first overall pick in last summer's NBA Draft, did not play in Wednesday's 99-92 win over the Los Angeles Clippers and Sessions recorded season highs in points and assists with 24 and 13, respectively. Sessions is averaging 11.8 points, 8.6 assists and 4.0 rebounds in his last five games.

Irving, who is day-to-day, suffered a concussion after being kneed in the head during the fourth quarter of Tuesday's 107-91 loss to the Miami Heat. He experienced headaches after the game that worsened over the course of the night and during pregame activities prior to Wednesday's contest.

"Obviously you could feel sorry for yourself and say one of our best players is out and go in the tank, or you could respond like we did," said Cleveland head coach Byron Scott.

Antawn Jamison finished with 27 points and eight rebounds for Cleveland, which won for the fourth time in the past 12 games and opened a franchise-record nine-game homestand on a winning note. The Cavs' homestand is tied for the third longest in NBA history and they are 5-5 at the Q this season. Cleveland will also host the 76ers, Pacers, Heat, Kings, Pistons, Hornets and Celtics.

Over his last three games, Jamison is averaging 23.7 points and 8.7 boards.

Milwaukee will wrap up a quick two-game road trip Friday in the Forest City and was able to halt a three-game losing streak with a 105-99 victory at Toronto on Wednesday.

Carlos Delfino scored a season-high 25 points to lead six players in double figures, while Drew Gooden had his fifth double-double of the season with 20 points and 14 rebounds for the Bucks. Mike Dunleavy added 18 points, Stephen Jackson had 17, Brandon Jennings scored 11 and Luc Mbah a Moute netted 10 in a winning cause. Jennings is posting just 7.3 ppg in his last three contests.

"We got out to a good start in the first half. Got a little behind defensively in the second half," said Gooden. "Carlos did a job picking up for us where Mike left off in the first half."

Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova did not play with back spasms and is listed as questionable for tonight's game. After visiting the Cavs at Quicken Loans Arena, Milwaukee will head to Brew City for a three-game homestand versus Orlando, Miami and New Orleans.

Gooden has scored 20-plus points in three straight games, averaging 23 points per game over that stretch. Milwaukee is only 4-10 as the guest this season.

Milwaukee and Cleveland are meeting for the first time since the Bucks took three of four meetings a year ago. The Cavs have still won 16 of the last 23 matchups with the Bucks, who are just 2-14 in the last 16 trips to the Q.

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How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

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