05/14/2008 - (Basketball Betting) - The Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers battle in the pivotal Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series tonight at TD Banknorth Garden.
This best-of-seven series is tied 2-2. Game 6 is scheduled for Friday at Quicken Loans Arena. The home team has won all four games in this set.
In Game 4, LeBron James scored 21 points and dished out 13 assists as the fourth-seeded Cavaliers pulled away down the stretch to beat the top-seeded Celtics, 88-77, at Quicken Loans Arena.
Wally Szczerbiak and Daniel Gibson each tallied 14 points for the Cavaliers, who played spectacular defense in the fourth quarter, holding the Celtics to 5-of-16 shooting in the last 12 minutes.
Defensive Player of the Year Kevin Garnett had 15 points for Boston. Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen also scored 15 apiece, but none coming in the fourth quarter. Paul Pierce scored 13 for Boston, which finished at 38.6 percent from the field, including 3-of-14 from three-point range.
Cleveland has lost two of its last three Game 5s in the postseason. The Cavaliers are 2-3 on the road in this year's playoffs.
The Celtics are 5-0 at home in this year's postseason. Boston has dropped three of its last four Game 5s in the playoffs.
This is the fourth time these teams have met in the postseason. Boston defeated the Cavaliers in six games, 4-2, in the 1976 East finals, and in four contests, 3-1, in the first round of the 1985 playoffs. Cleveland knocked out the Celtics in seven games in the 1992 East semis.
The Cavaliers have won a best-of-seven series after losing Games 1 and 2. Cleveland defeated the Detroit Pistons in the 2007 East finals after dropping the first two games of the set at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
The Celtics have lost a playoff series after winning the first two games of the set. In the 1990 first round, the New York Knicks knocked out Boston in five contests, 3-2.
Boston has made it to the East semis for the first time since 2003. That year, the Celtics were swept by the New Jersey Nets, 4-0. The last time the Celtics won in this round was in 2002 when they knocked out Detroit in five, 4-1, before losing to the Nets in the East finals, 4-2.
The Celtics survived a scare in the opening round, as they knocked out the eighth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in seven games. The home team won every game in the series. Boston won its four contests by an average of 25.3 points.
The Cavaliers, who are the defending Eastern Conference champions and knocked out the Wizards in round one, are 3-2 all-time in the semifinals. They defeated the Washington Bullets in 1976, Boston in 1992 and New Jersey in 2007. Cleveland lost in the semis to Chicago in 1993 and Detroit in 2006.
<< Nedved secures Juve future
Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Veteran midfielder Pavel Nedved has pledged
his future to Juventus by signing a new one-year contract with the Turin club.
The 35-year-old former Czech Republic international had been linked with a
move
<< Newspaper apologizes for Spygate error
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Herald apologized to its readers and
the New England Patriots for shoddy reporting during the NFL's "Spygate"
affair.
On February 2, the newspaper reported that a member of the New Engl
<< Owings leads D'Backs vs. Rockies
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arizona's Micah Owings will try to get back in the win
column tonight, when the Diamondbacks play the second test of a three-game
series with the Colorado Rockies at Chase Field.
Owings won his first four starts
<< Rangers go for home sweep of Mariners
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers try and complete a three-game sweep of
the Seattle Mariners this afternoon when the AL West rivals conclude their set
at Rangers Ballpark.
The Rangers made it seven wins in their last eight tries on Tu
Red Wings try to clinch Western Conference crown in Dallas >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Detroit Red Wings will try to punch their
ticket to the Stanley Cup finals tonight, when they go for a four-game sweep
of the Stars in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals at American Airlines
Center in Dall
AFL honors Dolezel, Rachal and Huebner >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas Desperados QB CLINT DOLEZEL,
Tampa Bay Storm DB TRACO RACHAL and Georgia Force FB/LB MATT
HUEBNER have been named Offensive Player, ADT Defensive Player,
and Ironman of the Week, respectively, for Week 11
Agent says Laudrup will likely leave Getafe >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Getafe coach Michael Laudrup is almost
certain the quit the club this summer, according to his agent, Bayram Tutumlu.
The Dane is wanted by a number of clubs across Europe, with Tutumlu
regi
Freier leaves Leverkusen for Bochum return >>
Bochum, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Midfielder Paul Freier will return to
former club Bochum in the summer, ending a four-year stint with Bayer
Leverkusen.
The 28-year-old former Germany international has fallen down the peckin
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smith and Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running back Deuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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