Bulls on parade in Motor City
Basketball Betting Lines
04/05/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bulls wrap up a short two-game road trip tonight when they pay a visit to the Central Division-leading Detroit Pistons at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
Chicago is 4 1/2 games off Detroit's lead in the division, while the Cleveland Cavaliers are second in the standings at 3 1/2 games back. The Bulls posted their fifth win in six tries with Sunday's 105-97 victory over the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena.
Luol Deng poured in a game-high 30 points and grabbed six rebounds, while Kirk Hinrich added 22 points for the playoff-bound Bulls, who have won two straight on the road and are 16-21 as the visitor this season. Ben Gordon scored 15 points and dished out seven assists in the winning cause.
Chicago is fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
In injury news for the Bulls, guard Adrian Griffin (back spasms) is listed as questionable for Wednesday's game against Detroit.
Detroit, meanwhile, has won three in a row and will open a two-game homestand this evening versus Chicago. In Tuesday's 100-85 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Conseco Fieldhouse, Tayshaun Prince tallied a game-high 24 points to lead the top team in the East.
Richard Hamilton scored 19 points and Chauncey Billups ended with 11 points and four assists for the playoff-bound Pistons, winners of five of their last six games. Rasheed Wallace and Chris Webber both added 10 points in the win. Wallace is questionable for tonight with a hyperextended left pointer finger.
The Pistons, who will host the division-rival Cavaliers, on Sunday and are 23-13 at The Palace of Auburn Hills this season.
Wednesday's game between Chicago and Detroit is the fourth and final meeting of the regular season. The Bulls are 2-1 so far in the season series, but Detroit has won six of the last eight meetings.
Chicago has lost three straight and seven of its last nine trips to the Motor City.
Boulder, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Bzdelik, who posted a 50-16 record the past two seasons at Air Force, agreed on a five-year contract to become the University of Colorado's new men's basketball coach on Wednesday. The contract in
<< Rockets continue homestand vs. Golden State
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The playoff-bound Houston Rockets play the middle contest
of a three-game homestand, as they welcome the Golden State Warriors tonight
to the Toyota Center.
Houston is No. 5 in the Western Conference playoff race, while Go
<< Penguins name Morehouse team president
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins named David
Morehouse team president on Wednesday.
The 46-year-old Morehouse will represent the franchise primarily in the
redevelopment of the Mellon Arena site,
<< Hornets, SuperSonics clash at Ford Center
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets try to keep their
playoff hopes alive, as they welcome the Seattle SuperSonics tonight to the
Ford Center.
The Hornets are 2 1/2 games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the eighth an
<< Vikings add S Doss
Eden Prairie, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Vikings signed free agent
safety Mike Doss on Wednesday.
Doss played the first six games of the season for Indianapolis last year --
including four starts -- before going down with a
Mexico City, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United was knocked out of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup on Tuesday as they dropped a 2-1 decision to Guadalajara in the second leg of their semifinal with the Mexican side, who elimina
Trail Blazers are playing like they are ready to go on vacation >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The youthful Portland Trail Blazers have showed signs
during the campaign that the future looks bright. However, they have struggled
lately and are not finishing the season like they had hoped.
Portland (29-44) is in
Golden State is still alive in playoff race >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Golden State Warriors still have a chance to grab the
eighth and final playoff berth in the Western Conference. They are 1 1/2 games
behind the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers.
Golden State (35-39) has eight game
It's time for Philly to focus on next season >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - They flirted and teased with a playoff berth like the old
high school bombshell who wouldn't give anyone the time of day. And now the
Sixers are back where they started several months ago in the offseason.
Philadelphi
Coaching legend Eddie Robinson dies >>
Grambling, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Grambling State head coach Eddie
Robinson passed away late Tuesday night after a long bout with Alzheimer's.
He was 88.
Robinson spent 56 years coaching at Grambling and became the first c
Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
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