Clippers continue dominance of Wizards

Basketball Betting Lines

02/16/2012 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blake Griffin had 23 points and 15 rebounds and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Washington Wizards for the seventh time in a row, 102-84, on Wednesday night.

Caron Butler added 21 points and Chris Paul scored 16 with nine assists in the win, including an alley-oop pass to DeAndre Jordan for a one-handed dunk that punctuated LA's ninth victory in 12 games overall.

John Wall had 18 points and 12 assists to lead Washington while JaVale McGee also scored 18, but the Wizards had a two-game winning streak snapped -- their first of the season.

Washington was trying to win three in a row for the first time since April 1-5 last season, but shot under 40 percent and trailed by as many as 20 points.

It was a lot closer early on, and LA needed to pull away in the fourth quarter for the win.

The Clippers clung to a 23-20 lead after the first quarter and a 50-47 edge at halftime despite playing a Wizards team in the midst of a five-game road trip.

"We didn't play well at the start and they did," said Paul. "We need to come out with more energy and that starts with me."

Griffin had two dunks to spark and 8-0 run at the end of the third quarter, including an alley-oop from Paul. The burst snapped a tie and gave LA a 74-66 lead going into the fourth.

The Wizards scored six of the first seven points in the final quarter, capped by a Wall jumper that drew them within three.

"Then, we couldn't hit a shot," said Wizards coach Randy Wittman. "This wasn't an 18-point game, we just ran out of gas."

Clippers guard Randy Foye scored all 10 of his points during a 13-4 run that put the game away, including a pair of three-pointers. It gave LA an 88-76 lead with under seven minutes remaining and it was never closer than nine the rest of the way.

"We knew they won two in a row and it was going to be a tough game," said Foye. "We had to come out and play as hard as we could."

Game Notes

The Wizards fell to 3-11 on the road this season...LA was coming off a 4-2 road trip and plays at Portland on Thursday night...The Clippers shot 42.2 percent and Washington shot 39.5 percent.

Wwhitbox Basketball Betting News

<< New Mexico downs No. 13 San Diego State
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kendall Williams had 21 points, Drew Gordon scored 17 with 17 rebounds and New Mexico beat No. 13 San Diego State, 77-67, on Wednesday night to take sole possession of first place in the Mountain West Confere

<< Blazers steal one from Warriors
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamal Crawford made the game-winning free throws in the final minute, as the Trail Blazers survived a seesaw battle with the Warriors, 93-91, at Oracle Arena. Gerald Wallace chipped in 24 points, Nico

<< Luongo strong as Canucks top Avs
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roberto Luongo made 29 saves to lift the Vancouver Canucks to a 3-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday. David Booth, Alexandre Burrows and Jannik Hansen all scored for the Canucks, who have w

<< Connolly lifts Leafs to OT win over Oilers
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tim Connolly scored the game-winning goal just 1:39 into the overtime period, leading the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers at Rexall Place. Joffrey Lupul collected the disc in the

<< Loyola Marymount hands Saint Mary's rare home defeat
Moraga, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Drew Viney dropped in a team-high 17 points while Anthony Ireland added 16 with seven assists as Loyola Marymount handed No. 21 Saint Mary's its first home loss in almost a year with a 75-60 decisio

Roddick survives scare in San Jose; Monfils withdraws >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Roddick was taken to three sets by fellow American Denis Kudla Wednesday before ultimately prevailing 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 in second-round action at the $531,000 SAP Open. Third-seeded Milos

Miyazato tops crowded leaderboard in Thailand >>
Chonburi, Thailand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ai Miyazato posted a five-under 67 on Thursday to grab a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Honda LPGA Thailand. Miyazato, the 2010 winner, won last year at the Evian Masters. She has seven

Canizares, Whiteford share lead in India >>
New Delhi, India (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alejandro Canizares and Peter Whiteford posted matching rounds of six-under 66 Thursday to share the lead after the first round of the Avantha Masters. Canizares' lone tour win was at the 2006 Russian Open

Jackson State to open season at Mississippi State >>
Jackson, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jackson State will kick off its 2012 football season against Mississippi State - the Tigers' first game against a FBS opponent in three years. The Tigers will travel to Starksville on Sept. 1. They opened their

Top-25 foes square off in Big Ten brawl >>
East Lansing, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers will try to keep up their winning ways and be the first team to steal a road victory at the Breslin Center this season as they head to East Lansing for a Big Ten Conference b

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.