Serena leads U.S. past Belarus; Venus returns

Tennis Betting Lines

02/05/2012 - Worcester, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Serena Williams recorded a singles victory on Sunday to move the United States into the Fed Cup World Group Playoffs.

The 2011 U.S. Open runner-up Williams improved to 2-0 this week by overcoming Anastasiya Yakimova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 at DCU Center in Worcester. The victory gave the host Americans an insurmountable 3-0 lead in their best-of-five World Group II battle against Belarus, which was forced to play without world No. 1 star and Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who is nursing a back injury after beating Maria Sharapova in last week's Aussie Open finale.

Williams blew a 4-1 lead against Yakimova in the opening set on Sunday, but cruised after dropping the opening stanza by winning 12 of the next 14 games.

The former No. 1 and 13-time Grand Slam champion Williams and Christina McHale were a pair of singles winners on Saturday, as McHale beat Yakimova and Williams topped Olga Govortsova, in straight sets. McHale improved to 2-0 for the week on Sunday with a 6-0, 6-1 drubbing of Belarus' Darya Kustova to give the U.S. a laughable 4-0 margin.

The festivities in Worcester wrapped up with a dead doubles rubber, which the U.S. won 6-1, 6-2 with Venus Williams and Liezel Huber blasting Kustova and Yakimova to polish off a 5-0 win. It marked Venus' first tennis since pulling out of last year's U.S. Open in the second round as she battled Sjogren's syndrome, an incurable autoimmune disease that causes fatigue and joint pain.

Venus, like her young sister Serena, is a former world No. 1 and owns seven major singles titles.

This was the first-ever Fed Cup meeting between the 17-time champion U.S. and Belarus.

Team USA advanced to the World Group playoffs where it will meet a World Group first-round loser in April and needs to win in order to have a chance to compete for the Fed Cup title next year.

Wwwsupanet Tennis Betting News

<< Villarreal continues turnaround at Sevilla
Seville, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Javier Camunas scored in the 80th minute and Villarreal continued its turnaround with a 2-1 La Liga win Sunday over Sevilla at the Sanchez Pizjuan. Villarreal won just three of its first 18 fixtures this sea

<< Lyon, Marseille share points in Olympic clash
Marseille, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Souleymane Diawara's own goal in the late stages of the first half helped Lyon erase an early deficit and the seven-time Ligue 1 champions tied Marseille, 2-2, on Sunday at the Stade Velodrome. Benoit Che

<< No. 7 Miami-Florida cruises over Clemson
Coral Gables, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shenise Johnson had a double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds as No. 7 Miami-Florida ran over Clemson, 68-47, at BankUnited Center on Sunday. The Hurricanes (20-3, 9-1 ACC) got a 15-point effort

<< Price, Canadiens shut out Jets
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carey Price stopped 23 shots for his third shutout of the season as the Montreal Canadiens took a 3-0 decision over the Winnipeg Jets. Tomas Plekanec had a goal and an assist while Max Pacioretty and Ale

<< Johnson lifts No. 8 Tennessee past Auburn
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Glory Johnson recorded her ninth double- double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds as No. 8 Tennessee took down Auburn, 82-61. Ariel Massengale added 14 points, five rebounds and four

Miami upsets No. 7 Duke in overtime >>
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Early in the season, all Reggie Johnson could do was look on as his Miami-Florida Hurricanes got off to a disappointing 5-4 start. Recovering from offseason knee surgery to repair a torn meniscu

LSU upsets No. 6 Kentucky >>
Baton Rouge, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adrienne Webb scored 19 points to lead LSU as it upset No. 6 Kentucky 61-51 at Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Sunday. LaSondra Barrett added 12 points for the Lady Tigers (15-9, 5-5 SEC),

Patriots TE Gronkowski active for Super Bowl >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is active for the Super Bowl. Gronkowski had been listed as questionable on the injury report for Sunday's game against the New York Giants because of a high l

Giants lead Patriots 9-0 after 1st quarter >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eli Manning started the game 9-for-9 and threw a two-yard touchdown pass to Victor Cruz, giving the Giants a 9-0 lead over the Patriots after the first quarter of the Super Bowl. New York got two points on

Presbyterian football player dies >>
Clinton, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Presbyterian College student-athlete Kyle L. Allen died Sunday morning after being found unconscious in a campus fraternity house. The cause is being investigated by Laurens County Coroner Nick Nichols. Alle

MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards

About MySportsbook.com MySportsbook.com  is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, MySportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, MySportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.