St. Mary's upsets No. 18 Gonzaga for WCC title

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/08/2010 - Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mickey McConnell and Ben Allen each hit four three-pointers to key the Gaels' terrific shooting effort, as St. Mary's downed No. 18 Gonzaga, 81-62, to capture the West Coast Conference Tournament title.

McConnell ended with 26 points, six assists and four steals, while Allen added 20 points and nine rebounds for the Gaels (26-5), who used a 14-3 run midway through the second half to secure the win and their sixth NCAA Tournament berth.

A 10-for-21 effort from three-point land and 14 forced turnovers helped spark the second WCC tournament crown in St. Mary's history.

Steven Gray scored 16 points and Matt Bouldin went for 14 on 2-of-8 shooting for the Bulldogs (26-6), who had swept the season series against the Gaels and beat them by 25 in last year's conference championship tilt.

The Zags are still expected to earn an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament when the field is announced on Sunday.

It was a two-possession game through the first 10 minutes of the second half, as a Gray bucket had Gonzaga, the WCC regular season champs, within 50-47.

Allen's three with just under nine minutes to play sparked the game-altering stretch, which ended appropriately on a McConnell three-ball for a 64-50 lead with 6 1/2 minutes left.

The margin was 64-54 before Allen and Jordan Page each hit from long distance, and Page's tear-drop while being fouled on the next possession put the finishing touches on an emphatic victory for St. Mary's.

McConnell scored the first seven points of the game to give the second-seeded Gaels an early lead. The Bulldogs settled down from a slow start, and though they never led in the opening 20 minutes, were within 30-29 at the break.

Game Notes

St. Mary's has won five straight overall, while Gonzaga was riding a five-game winning streak coming in...The only other WCC tourney title for the Gaels came back in 1997...The Bulldogs own 10 WCC Tournament titles and has captured five of the previous six crowns...Page ended with 11 points, while Omar Samhan had nine points and seven rebounds for the Gaels...Ellis Harris posted eight points on 3-of-13 shooting for Gonzaga.

Sporsillustrated NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Siena captures third straight MAAC title
Albany, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Edwin Ubiles recorded a game-high 27 points along with seven rebounds to help the Siena Saints past the Fairfield Stags in overtime, 72-65, to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Champio

<< Hornets hold off Warriors
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David West and Marcus Thornton each scored 28 points, as the New Orleans Hornets held on for a 135-131 win over the Golden State Warriors. Rookie Darren Collison finished with 16 points and a caree

<< Gallinari and Knicks squeak past Atlanta
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danilo Gallinari made four three-pointers and finished with a game-high 27 points, as the New York Knicks escaped with a 99-98 win over the Atlanta Hawks at Madison Square Garden. David Lee contributed a

<< Nets still searching for winning streak, fall to Grizzlies
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rudy Gay and Mike Conley each scored 21 points to push the Memphis Grizzlies past the New Jersey Nets, 107-101, at the FedEx Forum. Gay grabbed 10 rebounds, while Marc Gasol also tallied a double-double wi

<< Marion leads Mavs to 12th straight victory
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shawn Marion posted 29 points to go with 14 rebounds, pacing the Mavericks to their 12th straight victory in a 125-112 decision over the lowly Timberwolves. Dirk Nowitzki and Caron Butler added 24 a

West Virginia downs Rutgers, moves on to Big East final >>
Hartford, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sarah Miles scored 18 points to pace No. 9 West Virginia over Rutgers, 56-49, in the semifinals of the Big East Conference Tournament. Asya Bussie added 10 points for the second-seeded Mounta

Browns acquire rights to QB Wallace >>
Berea, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns acquired the rights to quarterback Seneca Wallace on Monday, sending an undisclosed 2011 draft pick to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange. The trade is contingent on Wallace passing a p

Atlanta Flacons >>
Re-signed long snapper Joe Zelenka.

Wofford beats Appalachian State, earns first NCAA berth >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cameron Rundles had 20 points to help Wofford capture the Southern Conference Tournament title with a 56-51 win over Appalachian State. The Terriers (26-8) captured their first title and gained the au

Kings cruise past listless Blue Jackets >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jonathan Quick needed to stop just 11 shots for his third shutout of the season and Los Angeles scored four first-period goals on its way to a 6-0 clobbering of Columbus. Alexander Frolov had a goal and t

Football Betting Lines

The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.

Bet NFL Sports Lines

Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.

Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.

A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.

Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.

Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.

And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.

2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win

Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1

Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1

Donald Brown (IND) 5/1

Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1

Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1

Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1

Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1

Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1

Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1

Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1

Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1

Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1

Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1

Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1

Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1

Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1

Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1

LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1

Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2

Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1

Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1

Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1

Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1

Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1

Jason Smith (STL) 40/1

Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1

Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1

Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1

Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2

Pat White (MIA) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 9/1

Betting Line

To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.

For sports betting with credit cards site go to BettingExpress.com as well.