20th-ranked Seminoles play host to Hokies

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/16/2012 - Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 20th-ranked Florida State Seminoles will try to stay in the race for the Atlantic Coast Conference's top spot as they welcome the Virginia Tech Hokies to the Donald Tucker Center for a league battle.

This will be the second meeting this season and 46th in history between the Hokies and Florida State. The Seminoles lead the all-time series 26-19 after their 63-59 triumph in the first matchup this season on Jan. 10th. Virginia Tech had to have felt like it let one get away against Florida State in the first bout, as it shot only 30.5 percent from the field in the four-point loss.

Virginia Tech picked up a 66-65 victory over the Boston College Eagles on Sunday to improve to 3-7 in ACC action. Head coach Seth Greenberg has led the Hokies to a 14-11 overall record so far. Virginia Tech was lucky to get past the Eagles, as Boston College shot a season-high 55.8 percent from the field in the contest. The Hokies have a knack at slowing down their opponents, as they allow only 62.2 ppg. Virginia Tech leads the ACC in free throw percentage with a 74.6 percent rate from the charity stripe, and averages 66.6 ppg.

The Hokies' Erick Green has been consistently torturing opponents on the offensive end. Green leads the team with 15.5 ppg and carries an ACC leading streak of 26 straight games with double-figures scoring finishes. Dorian Finney-Smith played a huge role in the win over Virginia Tech, as he had 17 points and eight rebounds. Dorenzo Hudson chipped in 11 points and Victor Davila netted 10 points in the same contest to help Virginia Tech avoid back-to-back losses.

Head coach Leonard Hamilton has led Florida State to its best start in ACC play in school history, as it is 8-2 in league action. The Seminoles are a tough adversary at home, as they are 5-0 in Tallahassee in conference games. Florida State improved to 17-7 with its 64-59 victory over the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday. The Seminoles hit 46 percent of their field goals and held Miami under 40 percent shooting to find success. Florida State is capable of frustrating its opponents, as it has held opponents to 61.3 ppg this season.

Michael Snaer is pacing Florida State with a team-best 13.8 ppg. The junior guard has made just 10-of-29 of his field goal attempts to average 14 points to go along with six rebounds per game over the span of his last two outings. Bernard James took a step into the spotlight versus the Hurricanes, as he scored a team-high 18 points and blocked four shots. Deividas Dulkys showed off his versatility in the same contest, as he netted seven points, grabbed six boards, and pulled down six rebounds.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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