March Madness 2010

2010 Valero Alamo Bowl

Jan. 2, 2010. 9:00 pm EST - ESPN

San Antonio, Alamodome

Texas tech 41 - Michigan State 31

December means more than Christmas lights and jingle bells to San Antonio. Since the first game in 1993, the Valero Alamo Bowl has created excitement and pageantry in San Antonio that wraps up the end of the month with thrilling games in front of capacity crowds and record television ratings. But on 2010, for the first time ever, the Alamo Bowl will be played on January, marking the begining of a new year for San Antonio's sports fans.

The Valero Alamo Bowl showcases two of the premier conferences in the country, the Big 12 and Big Ten. The Bowl has quickly become one of the most popular bowls in the country, producing eight of the top 25 most-watched bowl games in ESPN history while selling out three of the last four years. On August 2010, the organizers of the Alamo Bowl announced they had reached an agreement to have the Pac-10 Conference replace Big 10 on futures bowls, starting with the 2010 college football season.

Over the last 15 years, the Valero Alamo Bowl has hosted 15 bowl games and three Big 12 Football Championship games in the Alamodome in San Antonio. These 18 games have attracted 1,075,753 spectators (over 50% are out-of-town visitors), generated a direct economic impact in excess of $292 million, contributed nearly $48.3 million to higher education, distributed $362,000 in local scholarship funds and been viewed by 115 million national television viewers on ESPN and ABC.

In 2007, an Alamodome record sports crowd of 66,166 for the 2007 Valero Alamo Bowl between Penn State and Texas A&M translated into a bowl record $42.6 million direct economic impact for San Antonio. In 2006, the Alamo Bowl featured Texas and Iowa in a game that earned a 6.0 rating making it the most-watched college football game in ESPN history as more than 8.83 million viewers saw the telecast.

From NCAA record-breaking performances, like Nebraska's 66 points in 2000, to thrilling finishes, like Drew Brees leading Purdue in an 80 yard touchdown drive to overtake Kansas State in 1998 in the final seconds, the Valero Alamo Bowl has something for everyone.

Football Betting News

NBA Friday/Saturday Outlook

Posted on 3/17/2010 12:00:00 AMby Getchalk

Need a break from the madness of March? The NBA has plenty of wagering options this weekend starting with a busy schedule Friday night. Here's a look at the best bets in pro hoops this weekend:

Friday - Washington Wizards at Portland Trail Blazers

For a few brief moments the Washington Wizards were the best bet in the NBA. After shipping out their top two stars during the trade deadline, while also suffering through the suspension of Gilbert Arenas, oddsmakers pitied the Wizards to the point where you couldn't bet against them.

However, things are back to normal in D.C. - which means Washington is losing and failing to cover the spread. The Wizards have lost nine games in a row, going just 3-6 ATS in that span and conclude their current four-game road trip in Portland and Los Angeles.

Washington comes into Friday's game off a loss to the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday. The Wizards actually led by six points after the first quarter but were overwhelmed by the Nuggets on both ends of the floor. They gave up 32 points in the fourth quarter but managed to stay within the 14.5-point spread, losing 97-87. Andray Blatche, who led Washington with 23 points, tweaked his ankle in the loss but is expected to play Friday night.

The Blazers are heading in the opposite direction, winning four straight games and improving to 8-2 in their last 10 outings. Portland has covered the spread in six of those contests including its two most recent wins over Sacramento and Toronto.

The Trail Blazers face the Wizards before taking to the road for a one-game swing to Phoenix on Sunday. They are 22-13 at the Rose Garden this season but books have sucked most of the value out of their home court, leaving backers to go 16-18-1 ATS in those games.

Portland got a great all-around effort from their starting five against the Raptors on Sunday. All five starters scored in double figures while Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Nicolas Batum each scored 20 or more points.

The Blazers' offense is on fire, averaging almost 110 points per game in their last three outings while playing over the betting total in all three games. On the season, Portland scores 98.4 points a night and boasts a 38-31 over/under record.

Saturday - Boston Celtics at Dallas Mavericks

Boston heads west for three games, starting with Houston on Friday then visiting the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night. The Celtics are solid on the road, posting a 22-12 record away from Beantown heading into Friday.

They are 17-16-1 against the spread in opposing gyms and have gone 2-1-1 ATS in their four most recent away games. Dallas knocked off Boston inside the Garden back in January, winning 99-90 as a 4.5-point road underdog.

The Celtics are under a lot of scrutiny in the past week after losing three of their last five games heading into Wednesday's meeting with the New York Knicks. Former teammate Leon Powe, who now plays for the rival Cleveland Cavaliers, told the media he thinks Boston looks old. These comments came after the Cavaliers beat Boston 104-93 last weekend.

However, the Celtics' Big 5 continue to produce, including veterans Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. Heading into Wednesday, Boston's offense had averaged more than 104 points per game in the past four outings – playing over the total in each of those contests.

Dallas is enjoying a four-game homestand which wraps against the Celtics on Saturday. The Mavericks welcome the Chicago Bulls to the American Airlines Center on Wednesday before getting the rest of the week to prepare for Boston.

Dallas will be trying to put a loss to the Knicks behind them after giving up 128 points to New York on Saturday. They hope to have high-scoring shooting guard Jason Terry back this week after he missed most of the month with a broken orbital bone in his face.