Richardson's hot shooting leads Orlando over Milwaukee

Basketball Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Richardson made 9-of-11 from long range, including four in the last five minutes of the game, to lead the Orlando Magic with 31 points as they defeated Milwaukee, 99-94, at the Bradley Center.

Richardson's nine threes ties him for second-most all-time in Magic history behind only Dennis Scott, who knocked down 11 on April 18, 1996.

Hedo Turkoglu added 19 points and Dwight Howard contributed a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds for the Magic, who have won five of their last seven.

Drew Gooden scored 21 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Ersan Ilyasova had 17 points and 16 boards as Milwaukee had its two-game winning streak snapped.

With the Bucks down 78-75, Carlos Delfino hit a triple to spark a 13-0 run that gave Milwaukee a 88-78 advantage with just under six minutes to play in the game.

Orlando answered with a 16-0 swing of its own that included four treys from Richardson to give the Magic a 94-88 lead with 2:06 left in the contest.

The Bucks got back-to-back threes from Gooden and Ilyasova around a Turkoglu trey as Milwaukee trailed 97-93 with 57.3 seconds to play.

Turkoglu went 2-of-4 from the charity stripe down the stretch as the Bucks held on to a glimmer of hope, trailing 99-94 with 17.3, but Gooden's last two field goals were off the mark to seal the victory for the Magic.

Orlando jumped out to a 7-0 lead but Milwaukee quickly countered with an 11-0 run to take an 11-7 lead midway through the first.

Mike Dunleavy ripped off eight straight in the last three minutes of the quarter to give the Bucks a 21-16 lead after one quarter of play.

J.J. Redick scored 10 of his team's 12 points over a 3 1/2 minute stretch in the second but the Magic were unable to chip away at the deficit as they trailed 49-43 heading into intermission.

The Magic knocked down five three-pointers in the third quarter as they trailed by one, 73-72, heading into the final frame.

Game Notes

The Magic have won 11 of the last 13 meetings with Milwaukee...The Magic will begin a three-game home stand against Minnesota on Monday, while The Bucks will host the Heat on Monday...Both teams shot 40 percent from long range.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.