Michigan State topples BC; captures NCAA championship

Chockey Betting Lines

04/08/2007 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Abdelkader's goal with 18.9 seconds left in regulation was the game-winner, as Michigan State claimed its third championship in school history with a 3-1 win over Boston College at Scottrade Center in St. Louis.

Tim Kennedy had a goal and an assist for the Spartans, who ended the season with five straight wins. Chris Mueller also tallied and Jeff Lerg stopped 28 shots.

"BC was coming to the net hard all game, but I knew if I made key saves, we'd have a chance, because we could not play their game," said Lerg. "In the end, we outplayed them."

Brian Boyle scored the lone goal for the Eagles, who saw their 13-game win streak snapped in cruel fashion. Cory Schneider stopped 26 shots in the loss, BC's second consecutive finals defeat.

Michigan State claimed the championship by scoring three times on a passive Boston College team in the third period.

Kennedy answered to tie the game for Michigan State on a power-play goal at 9:53, breaking away from two BC checkers and scoring low and inside the left post.

Then, with the clock ticking down towards overtime, Michigan State kept pressure on in the Eagles' defensive zone. Kennedy broke down the right side and clanged a shot off the right goalpost. He followed the puck behind the goal line and emerged from a scrum with the disc and fed in front to Abdelkader, who slipped the puck by Schneider for a 2-1 lead.

"It was an unbelievable play," Abdelkader said. "I saw the puck go behind the net, and wanted to find a spot in the slot. I got my stick on it, and it was fortunate that it went in."

Mueller added an empty-netter with 1.2 seconds to go and the bench erupted as the Spartans claimed their first title since 1986.

"We knew going into the game, they were a patient team,"said BC forward Joe Rooney. "They kept five guys low. We got our chances, but didn't get the bounces we needed. Got TO hand it to their goalie, he played well."

The Spartans, playing out of the CCHA, broke a streak of five consecutive champions from the WCHA stretching back to Boston College's win in 2001. The last school from the CCHA to win a title was Michigan, who took the crown in 1998 against Boston College.

Neither team scored in a spirited first period which saw BC outshoot Michigan State 13-6.

BC had a 5-on-3 advantage with five minutes played in the second, and capitalized while skating with one extra man as Nathan Gerbe won a battle along the boards and pushed the puck into the left circle. Brock Bradford stepped up and ripped a shot from the faceoff dot that hit Boyle's leg and sailed into the right corner of the net for a 1-0 lead at 6:50.

Michigan State went up by two men midway through the period, but BC held on without allowing a quality chance. Despite 12 shots in the second, the Spartans were still unable to solve Schneider.

That would set the stage for a stunning reversal in the final 20 minutes of the contest.

Sportslne Chockey Betting News

<< Slim Pickens: Fire goalie blanks Revs in opener
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Fire got a measure of revenge against the New England Revolution Saturday at Toyota Park. The Fire used a fourth minute goal from Logan Pause and an outstanding performance from third- year g

<< Willingham leads Marlins past Phillies
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Willingham went 3-for-4 with a homer, triple and double and had four RBI as the Florida Marlins beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-5 in the second game of a three-game set at Dolphins Stadium. Marlins s

<< Webb, D-Backs pound Nationals
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Webb recovered from a shaky first start by throwing seven solid innings, and Eric Byrnes finished 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two runs batted in to power the Arizona Diamondbacks over the Was

<< Senators pound Bruins, clinch fourth seed in East
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Spezza scored twice, Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley each had a three-point night with a goal and two assists, and the Ottawa Senators beat up on the Boston Bruins, 6-3, to clinch home-ice advanta

<< Smith helps Minnesota over St. Louis
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Niklas Backstrom made 24 saves as Minnesota slammed St. Louis, 5-1, at Xcel Energy Center. Wyatt Smith scored two goals and Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Branko Radivojevic and Wes Walz each found the back of th

Big Hurt's grand slam lifts Toronto over Tampa Bay >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Frank Thomas belted his ninth grand slam, moving him into a tie with Al Kaline (1,583) for 32nd on the all-time RBI list, as the Toronto Blue Jays downed the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 8-5, to continu

Carter, Kidd lead Nets past Wizards >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vince Carter recorded a triple-double with 46 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists, as New Jersey collected a thrilling, 120-114, overtime victory over Washington at the Continental Airline

Terry, Mavs down Trail Blazers >>
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Terry scored 29 points, as the Southwest Division-champion Dallas Mavericks righted the ship after having hit a slight snag with an 86-74 win over the Portland Trail Blazers in the opener of a short t

Preds down Avs; Colorado's playoff hopes dashed >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - J.P. Dumont scored twice to help the Nashville Predators close out their regular season with a 4-2 win over Colorado at Pepsi Center. David Legwand and Paul Kariya each had a goal for the Predators (51-23-8),

Sosa hits first HR as Rangers down Red Sox >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sammy Sosa went 2-for-5 and hit his first home run of the season, as Texas dumped Boston, 8-4, in the middle contest of a three-game set. Sosa's homer was his first since the 2005 campaign when he was a

Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook

Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds.  The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.

Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.

Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).

Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.

World Series odds

Adam Dunn 15-1

Albert Pujols 5-1

Alex Rodriguez 12-1

Alfonso Soriano 15-1

Andruw Jones 25-1

Barry Bonds 50-1

Carlos Delgado 40-1

David Ortiz 8-1

Jermaine Dye 40-1

Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1

Lance Berkman 40-1

Manny Ramirez 20-1

Richie Sexson 40-1

Ryan Howard 6-1

Travis Hafner 20-1

Vladimir Guerrero 40-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.