Bears visit 'Horns in Lone Star State showdown

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

02/20/2012 - Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The suddenly struggling Baylor Bears head to the state capital to face the Texas Longhorns in Big 12 play at the Erwin Center.

Tonight will be the 238th meeting in the all-time series between Baylor and Texas, the most-played rivalry for both schools. Texas has a 157-80 record against Baylor and is 85-27 in contests placed in Austin.

Baylor has dropped three of its last four games and finally lost to a program not named Kansas or Missouri on Saturday as it dropped a 57-56 decision to the Kansas State Wildcats. The loss made Scott Drew's squad 22-5 overall and gives it a third-place position in the Big 12 standings with a 9-5 mark in league play. The Bears had a forgettable performance against Kansas State, as they shot just 38.5 percent from the floor and committed 18 turnovers in the loss. Baylor still is one of the top teams in the Big 12, as it has outscored its opponents by 11.1 ppg this season.

Perry Jones III paces the balanced attack for the Bears with team-best averages of 13.5 points and 7.5 boards per game. Jones has been hurting his NBA Draft stock as of late, as he has been held to five points or less in three of his last four games. Quincy Miller, Pierre Jackson, and Quincy Acy are all averaging just about 12 points per game to give Baylor unbelievable scoring depth. Jackson is also contributing 5.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game. Acy is knocking down 60 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc.

Head coach Rick Barnes will try to rally the troops after the Longhorns' 90-78 loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys on Saturday. The defeat dropped Texas to 17-10 overall and a fifth place standing in the league. Texas hit 49.1 percent of its field goals and converted 8-of-16 from tree point range against the Cowboys, but lost after OSU's Keiton Page erupted for a career-high 40 points. The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for Texas, which is sitting squarely on the bubble as the Selection Sunday slowly approaches.

J'Covan Brown is an elite scorer and leads the Big 12 with 19.7 ppg. Brown was efficient his last time out, as he went 6-of-14 from the field and 5-of-5 from the charity stripe to net 20 points versus Oklahoma State. Freshman Sheldon McClellan scored in double figures for the fifth straight game against OSU, as he chipped in 15 points. Myck Kabongo had an encouraging performance despite the loss to the Cowboys, as he poured in a career-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor. Jonathan Holmes is also a steady contributor on both ends, and made an impact his last time out with a career-high three steals.

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FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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