St Etienne eases relegation worries
Soccer Betting Lines
02/07/2010 - Saint Etienne, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St Etienne moved seven points clear of the bottom three on Sunday with a comfortable 3-0 win over Monaco at the Geoffroy Guichard Stadium.
Blaise Matuidi had the home side in front after 14 minutes, and goals from Gonzalo Bergessio and Emmanuel Riviere in the final 15 minutes sealed the win, which is only the second in 11 games for St Etienne.
Monaco could have moved into third with a win, but they are now sixth, level on 39 points with Auxerre and Marseille.
St Etienne entered the game without a goal in its last six home contests, but that streak came to an end in the 14th minute when some good work by Dimitri Payet allowed Matuidi to fire into the bottom corner of the net from 10 yards.
Bakary Sako came close to doubling the lead before halftime when his volley sailed inches wide of the post, while both goalkeepers needed to be alert to keep the match at 1-0.
St Etienne's Jeremie Janot kept out a good effort from Thomas Mangani, with Monaco netminder Stephane Ruffier doing well to keep out Bergessio's shot.
Ruffier was unable to prevent Bergessio from scoring 15 minutes from time, however, as he easily beat the keeper with a side-footed shot after a good pass from Riviere.
The hosts remained two goals ahead when defender Yohan Benalouane cleared a header off the goal line from Yannick Sagbo, and the lead was extended to three goals right before the final whistle with a great individual goal from Riviere.
Lyon remained in fourth place as they were held to a 0-0 draw at Toulouse, while Marseille pounded Valenciennes, 5-1.
Mallorca, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mallorca took over fourth place in the La Liga table on Sunday as Jose Carlos Nunes scored in the 81st minute of a 1-0 win over Villarreal at the Son Moix Stadium. Mallorca entered the match having wo
<< Syracuse thumps Cincinnati on the road
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Rautins had 20 points, as third-ranked
Syracuse downed Cincinnati, 71-54, at Fifth Third Arena.
Kris Joseph had 17 points, while Scoop Jardine and Arinze Onuaku each chipped
in with 11 points for t
<< Ohio State rallies in second half to clip Lady Lions
University Park, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Samantha Prahalis hit five three-
pointers and scored 26 points to pair with 12 assists, as No. 8 Ohio State
rallied from down 14 in the second half to secure an 86-73 win over Penn
State.
<< Ovechkin's hat trick keys Caps' OT comeback over Pens
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mike Knuble scored on the power-play with
2:11 remaining in overtime, and Alex Ovechkin recorded a hat trick, as the
Washington Capitals fought back from a three-goal deficit to edge Pittsburgh,
5-4, an
<< UConn rolls on with 46-point win
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tina Charles scored 20 points and Maya Moore
added 16, as top-ranked Connecticut demoralized Louisville on the road in an
84-38 romp at Freedom Hall.
The Huskies (23-0, 10-0 Big East) took a commanding 5
Udine, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Antonio di Natale scored two goals in stoppage time to complete a hat trick as Udinese beat Napoli, 3-1, on Sunday at the Stadio Friuli. Di Natale put Udinese in front after seven minutes when he followed
NFL Inactives (Sunday, February 7, 2010) >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The following is a list of inactive players
for Super Bowl XLIV in Miami.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS VS. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, 6:25 P.M. (ET)
Saints - 3rd QB Chase Daniel, TE Darnell Dinkins, RB Lynell Hamilton, T
Freeney active for Super Bowl >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney
is listed as active for the Super Bowl despite a right ankle injury.
Freeney hasn't practiced all week due to a third-degree sprain and torn
ligament in h
Sharks get D Wallin from Carolina >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks made a trade on Sunday,
acquiring defenseman Niclas Wallin and a fifth-round pick in the 2010 draft
from the Carolina Hurricanes for a second-round pick in the 2010 draft.
Wallin, a
Carter leads Magic over Boston >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vince Carter led a balanced attack with 20
points and Dwight Howard logged 16 points and 13 rebounds despite battling
foul trouble, as Orlando rallied back from an 11-point halftime deficit to
beat Bo
NFL Football Betting
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.