Knicks down Hawks in OT

Basketball Betting Lines

03/04/2007 - Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stephon Marbury scored 38 points and dished out nine assists to lead the New York Knicks over the Atlanta Hawks, 104-100, in overtime at Philips Arena.

Steve Francis added a season-high 26 points for New York, which overcame a double-digit second-half deficit to win consecutive games for the first time since capturing a pair of games from February 3-6.

Renaldo Balkman tallied 12 points and 13 boards for the Knicks, who have won three of four overall and moved within one game of the New Jersey Nets for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Joe Johnson had 32 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to lead Atlanta, which has dropped five straight games. Josh Smith added 20 points, 11 boards and three blocks for the Hawks, who had a three-game home win streak halted.

With the game tied at 90-90 early in the overtime session, Marbury gave the Knicks the lead for good with his three-point play just over a minute into the stanza. He then extended the lead to six points, 96-90, with a a trey with just over three minutes to play.

The New York lead later reached 101-93 when Marbury again hit a three-pointer. Atlanta managed to draw within 103-100 on a Johnson three-pointer with 51 seconds left, but that was as close as the Hawks could get.

Marbury scored 21 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, while Francis had 16 of his points over that same time period.

The Hawks led for most of the contest, holding a 31-15 advantage after one quarter and a 49-37 cushion at halftime. The third quarter saw Atlanta extend to a 65-51 lead midway through the stanza, but New York started its comeback by scoring 11 of the final 17 points to go into the fourth down 71-62.

New York then opened the fourth with a 13-4 run to draw even. Francis scored the final six points of the surge, capping it with a bucket with 6 1/2 minute left to tie the contest at 75-75.

Francis later gave the Knicks their first lead since the opening quarter, hitting a pair of free throws with just over four minutes to play for an 82-81 edge. New York then went ahead 87-83 a minute later on two more free throws by Francis.

Atlanta, though, tied the game at 87-87 when Smith went coast-to-coast for a layup with 50 seconds left. The play was set up when Tyronn Lue stole an inbounds pass by the Knicks.

Johnson's missed turnaround jumper over Marbury with four seconds left failed to give Atlanta the lead. Marbury then missed a driving layup at the buzzer, forcing overtime.

Game Notes

Smith became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 500 career blocks at 21 year and 88 days old...NY's Nate Robinson missed the game with a stomach virus...NY's Quentin Richardson left the game in the first quarter with a back injury...NY hit 10-of-24 three-pointers, with Marbury going 6-of-14...The Knicks improved to 11-20 on the road...Atlanta fell to 10-18 at home.

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Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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