Lin pushes Knicks past T'Wolves

Basketball Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The legend of "Linsanity" grew a bit larger on Saturday as Jeremy Lin scored 20 points, including a game-winning free throw with the game tied to lead the Knicks over the Timberwolves 100-98 at Target Center.

Lin also had eight assists, while Iman Shumpert added 20 points and Landry Fields contributed 19 for the Knicks, who have now won five straight games.

Kevin Love had a game-high 32 points to go with 21 rebounds and Nikola Pekovic added a double-double with 21 points and 13 boards as Minnesota lost its third straight game after winning the previous three.

Down three with just under 40 seconds left, Steve Novak drilled a triple to tie the game, and Ricky Rubio turned the ball over on the T'Wolves next touch, giving the Knicks a chance to win with 25.9 seconds left.

Lin drove the lane, drew the contact from Luke Ridnour and stepped to the line for two shots with 4.9 seconds to play.

The first one hit back rim and missed, but the second went through as the Knicks took a 99-98 lead.

Rubio got the inbounds pass at the other end, but lost the handle and the ball rolled out of bounds to give possession over to New York.

Russell Walker split his free throws, giving Minnesota life, down 100-98 with 1.3 to go.

However, A Love three from the corner was way off the mark as the Knicks escaped Minnesota with the victory.

Love, who finished the first quarter with 15 points, added a layup for the final bucket of the stanza as Minnesota took a 33-30 lead.

Minnesota would score the final six points of the second stanza to take a 62-54 advantage into the locker room.

Fields scored the first six points of the third quarter as the Knicks cut into the deficit slightly, trailing 87-82 heading into the final frame.

A Novak three with 3:03 left in the fourth sparked a 7-0 run for the Knicks as they pulled ahead 95-94 with 1:23 to play.

Fields would miss a jumper after Love hit two free throws. Rubio then drove the lane and finished with his left hand on the ensuing possession to give Minnesota a three-point advantage with 39.9 remaining.

Game Notes

New York had lost six of seven in Minnesota coming into the game...New York will visit Toronto on Tuesday, while Minnesota will look to regroup in Orlando on Monday...The Knicks are 3-6 on the backend of a back-to-back...The Timberwolves had 18 second chance points, while the Knicks managed just seven.

Starliuck Basketball Betting News

<< Blues top Avs in OT
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Blues continue to pile up the wins and points on home ice. Carlo Colaiacovo scored the first goal since the opening period with 1:42 to play in overtime, sending St. Louis to a 3-2 victory over

<< Spurs continue domination of Nets
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A balanced San Antonio offensive attack, led by Gary Neal's 18 points off the bench, powered the Spurs past New Jersey, 103-89, at Prudential Center. Tim Duncan filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 10 r

<< Murray State routs Austin Peay
Murray, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Isaiah Canaan scored 23 points to pace ninth- ranked Murray State to an 82-63 rout of Austin Peay. Jewuan Long and Ivan Aska each added 12 points for the Racers (24-1, 12-1 OVC), who moved closer to the

<< Umberger paces Blue Jackets over Wild
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - R.J. Umberger scored a pair of goals, leading the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. James Wisniewski -- playing in his first game after missing the previous

<< Sixers stop shorthanded Cavs
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jrue Holiday led a balanced Philadelphia attack with 20 points as the 76ers rolled to a 99-84 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Lou Williams added 19 points, Thaddeus Young had 16, Elton

West helps Mavs outlast Blazers in 2-OT >>
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Delonte West scored six of his 10 points in the second overtime period as the Dallas Mavericks took a 97-94 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at American Airlines Center. Dirk Nowitzki scored a team-h

Richardson's hot shooting leads Orlando over Milwaukee >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Richardson made 9-of-11 from long range, including four in the last five minutes of the game, to lead the Orlando Magic with 31 points as they defeated Milwaukee, 99-94, at the Bradley Center.

Kentucky holds on against Vanderbilt >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doron Lamb scored 16 and his three-pointer with under four minutes left gave Kentucky the lead for good, as the top- ranked Wildcats beat Vanderbilt, 69-63, for their 17th straight win. Anthony Davis

Smith, Coyotes blank reeling Blackhawks >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mike Smith stood tall between the pipes, making 38 saves to backstop the surging Phoenix Coyotes to a 3-0 victory over the struggling Chicago Blackhawks Saturday night. Smith recorded his third s

Rangers, Napoli reach agreement on contract >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers and catcher Mike Napoli have reportedly agreed on a one-year contract for the 2012 season, thus avoiding arbitration. The Dallas Morning News reported Napoli will make $9.4

Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.