Bryant, Gasol lead Lakers over Blazers

Basketball Betting Lines

02/21/2012 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What a difference a day makes.

Kobe Bryant, just 24 hours after expressing his displeasure regarding the Lakers' handling of star forward Pau Gasol, was all smiles after scoring 28 points in Los Angeles' 103-92 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.

Gasol, mired in trade talks throughout the season, totaled 16 points and 12 rebounds, while Andrew Bynum added 14 and 19 in the win, the Lakers' fourth in five games.

Steve Blake scored 14 of his 17 points in a first half that saw the hosts lead by as many as 30. The Blazers' comeback ultimately came up short and they fell for the fourth time in six games.

"In the first half, that's the best we played, especially defensively," Bryant said. "We came out with great energy."

LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum paced Portland with 18 points apiece.

Prior to the game, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak responded to Bryant's comments by saying it would serve no purpose to announce publicly whether or not the team will deal Gasol.

A roster shakeup didn't appear necessary the way the Lakers opened Monday's contest.

Portland put itself in a hole in the first quarter, hitting just 3-of-17 (18 percent) from the field. The Lakers had separate runs of 10 and 13 points during the Blazers' slow start and cruised to a healthy 29-7 lead.

"We didn't come out ready to play. I thought we started the All-Star break early," Blazers head coach Nate McMillan said.

Blake began the second quarter with a pair of three-pointers, and two Bynum free throws pushed the margin to 30 a little later.

Batum halted an eight-minute scoreless drought with a jumper, but the Blazers were still down, 52-30, at halftime.

Seven Portland three-pointers in the third, including Batum's trey in the closing seconds, helped close the gap to 80-66 with 12 minutes to play.

The Blazers had several chances to pull within single digits in the fourth. Jamal Crawford turned the ball over trailing 84-74, and the Lakers scored the next six points, going up 90-74 on Bryant's jumper at the midway point.

With 3 1/2 minutes to play, Wesley Matthews missed a three-pointer that could have cut the deficit to nine, and again LA responded with six of the next seven points to pull away for good.

Game Notes

The Lakers close out the first half of the season with a visit to Dallas on Wednesday, while Portland hosts the Spurs on Tuesday in its final game before the All-Star break...The Lakers improved to 14-2 at home...The Lakers are 5-0 when scoring over 100 points...The Blazers announced Monday that center Greg Oden will miss the remainder of the season after having microfracture surgery on his left knee. This was the fifth surgery the 7-foot Oden has endured since he was taken by the Blazers with the first pick in the 2007 draft.

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Will Ohio State continue to run the table in College Football betting odds?
MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.

NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.

Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.

Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.

Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.

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NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
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Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
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Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&amp;M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6

For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com