Balanced Magic beat Timberwolves by 13

Basketball Betting Lines

02/13/2012 - Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Richardson had 17 points and was one of six Magic players to score in double figures Monday as Orlando took down the Minnesota Timberwolves, 102-89.

Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick and Hedo Turkoglu finished with 14 points apiece and Ryan Anderson added 13 for the Magic, who have won six of their last eight games.

Dwight Howard scored 11 points to go with seven boards in the victory.

Kevin Love had 19 points and 15 rebounds for Minnesota, which has lost four straight. The Wolves turned the ball over 18 times, leading to 17 Magic points.

The Magic used an early 12-4 run to build a 17-8 advantage midway through the first, but the Wolves fought back and Ricky Rubio's trey with 1.4 seconds left in the period pulled Minnesota within 29-26 after one.

Orlando reestablished its comfortable lead in the second after beginning the quarter on a 12-4 flurry. Earl Clark netted six points during the spurt. The Magic continued to hold a healthy margin for the remainder of the half and took a 55-44 advantage into the locker room.

Love had 10 points and eight rebounds to pace Minnesota in the first half while Orlando nailed 6-of-13 attempts from beyond the arc.

The Magic began the second half on a 14-5 push as Turkoglu's lob to Howard gave Orlando its largest lead of 20, 69-49, midway through the third frame. The hosts took a 79-66 advantage into the final quarter.

Minnesota rallied in the fourth and pulled within eight following a 10-2 run. J.J. Barea and Michael Beasley hit consecutive treys and Derrick Williams made a pair of foul shots to cap the spurt as the Wolves found themselves down 90-82 with 5:47 to play.

But back-to-back three-pointers by Redick and Nelson upped the margin back to double digits, and Orlando cruised the rest of the way.

Game Notes

The Magic are 13-1 when they score at least 100 points...Orlando was 12-of-30 from three-point range while Minnesota was just 6-of-21...Rubio had 11 points and eight assists.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.