Dayton visits Xavier in pivotal Atlantic 10 battle

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/05/2009 - Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dayton Flyers and 17th-ranked Xavier Musketeers will do battle tonight in a game with major implications in the race for the Atlantic 10 Conference title.

Xavier sits atop the A-10 standings with an 11-3 league record, but Rhode Island (11-4) and Dayton (10-4) are obviously close behind. The Flyers managed to halt a two-game skid with a much-needed 70-65 decision over Temple on Saturday. Dayton has reached 24 wins in the regular season for the first time since 1953-54.

The Flyers have won their last 19 home games, including 17 this season, but they have been nothing more than mediocre on the road. As for Xavier, it can clinch the top seed in the A-10 Tournament and at least a share of its third straight league title with a win tonight. The Musketeers have only lost once in 14 home games, so expect the squad to play with confidence this evening. They have won their last two outings, including a 68-54 decision over Saint Joseph's the last time out.

Dayton beat Xavier in a 71-58 final on February 11th, and the Flyers own an 81-67 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams.

Dayton depends heavily on strong defense to win games, as the squad is limiting foes to 60.4 ppg on 39.3 percent shooting from the field. The Flyers, who are generating 67.4 ppg, are outrebounding opponents by just over five boards per contest. Chris Wright leads the team in scoring with 13.3 ppg, and he is pulling down 6.7 rpg as well. As for Marcus Johnson, who is the only other double-digit scorer on the roster, he provides 12.0 ppg. Wright scored 20 points to lead the way in the hard-fought win over Temple the last time out. Johnson added 14 points, and Mickey Perry pitched in with 10 for the Flyers, who racked up 21 assists against only nine turnovers. They also earned a 16-5 edge in points from the foul line and a 36-29 rebounding advantage.

Derrick Brown and B.J. Raymond both scored 18 points to lead Xavier over Saint Joseph's in a recent battle, and Brown also pulled down 10 rebounds. C.J. Anderson added 10 points for the Musketeers, who overcame 17 turnovers by earning a 40-27 rebounding advantage and limiting the Hawks to 37 percent shooting from the floor. Brown is scoring 13.8 ppg this season on 52.1 percent field goal efficiency, and he is pulling down 5.9 rpg. Raymond is close behind with his 13.7 ppg on 41.8 percent shooting from three-point range. As for Anderson, he adds some balance to the lineup with 10.5 ppg. Xavier is scoring 73.1 ppg while limiting opponents to 62.7 ppg on 38.6 percent shooting from the field. A strength of the Musketeers is that they are outrebounding opponents by 8.4 rpg.

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An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.

Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off.  Randy was not impressed though.  Paula thought he started off fantastic.  "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either. 

Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed.  Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact.  He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition. 

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22 year old Chris Richardson was up next.  He was listed with +1100 odds coming in.  He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great. 

Nick was boring and pitchy.  Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week.  Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition. 

Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds .  These of course were the early odds.  He was considered original for picking an "odd song".  He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night. 

Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good. 

Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds.  Great voice and a great sense of humor.  He's a real standout.  Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit.  Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig". 

Jared Cotter followed.  He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition.  The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good. 

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Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition.  He was the last to perform.  He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start. 

Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys.  Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.

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