Shockers battle Panthers for MVC Tournament crown

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/07/2010 - St. Louis. MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gunning for their second straight Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championship, top-seeded Northern Iowa takes on second-seeded Wichita State in the title game this afternoon at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.

UNI, which defeated Illinois State in overtime last year to capture its second MVC Tournament title, first took care of Drake in the quarterfinals on Friday with a 55-40 triumph and then yesterday dismissed fifth-seeded Bradley by almost an identical score (57-40) to advance.

As for the Shockers, a program that has two MVC crowns but hasn't won it all since 1987, they too received a bye through the opening round and then took care of Missouri State (73-63) on Friday and Illinois State (65-61) yesterday.

With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, UNI owns a 22-18 advantage, but the programs split a pair of regular-season meetings with each winning on the road.

Toure' Murry tallied a team-best 17 points, shooting 6-og-9 from the field, as he helped lead Wichita State to the win against the Redbirds on Saturday afternoon. Also hitting for double figures were Garrett Stutz and Demetric Williams with 12 points apiece, the squad shooting just 4-of-14 behind the three-point line but still managing to get by. Clevin Hannah, who tallied eight points on a mere 3-of-10 effort from the field, is the leading scorer for the Shockers to this point with his 12.1 ppg, just fractions of a point ahead of Murry (12.0 ppg) who has not only handed out 105 assists and made 49 steals, but it also one of the leaders on the glass for the group with close to five boards per outing. Defensively, WSU has held opponents to just 61.2 ppg this season.

As for the Panthers, they held their second straight opponents to a mere 40 points and limited Bradley to just 33.3 percent shooting from the floor and 1- of-10 behind the three-point line yesterday afternoon. Jordan Eglseder and Marc Sonnen both delivered 10 points for the squad in an effort to offset a 2- of-11 shooting effort by Ali Farokhmanesh as he finished with just five points. UNI escaped the meeting with just 37.9 percent shooting from the floor. Adam Koch, who responded with seven points yesterday, is tied with Eglseder atop the overall scoring list this season with 12.1 ppg. Eglseder is good for almost seven and a half rebounds per game, yet it is still difficult to get beyond the fact that he has just 18 assists in his 28 starts. Not much of an offensive team this year with an average of only 63.2 ppg, the Panthers are getting the job done by holding foes to a mere 54.4 ppg, representing one of the top efforts in the nation.

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Super Bowl XLIV Odds

Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.

Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.

That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.

Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.

After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.

The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).

To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.

NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV

New England Patriots 8/1

Dallas Cowboys 9/1

New York Giants 10/1

Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1

Indianapolis Colts 12/1

San Diego Chargers 12/1

Baltimore Ravens 14/1

Tennessee Titans 16/1

Carolina Panthers 18/1

Philadelphia Eagles 18/1

New Orleans Saints 20/1

Atlanta Falcons 25/1

Denver Broncos 25/1

Green Bay Packers 25/1

Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1

Minnesota Vikings 25/1

New York Jets 25/1

Arizona Cardinals 30/1

Chicago BearS 30/1

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1

Buffalo Bills 35/1

Houston TexaNS 35/1

Miami Dolphins 35/1

Washington Redskins 35/1

Seattle SeahawkS 50/1

Cleveland Browns 55/1

Cincinnati Bengals 60/1

San Francisco 49ers 60/1

Oakland Raiders 75/1

St. Louis Rams 75/1

Detroit Lions 100/1

Kansas City Chiefs 100/1

Odds as of: 2/2/09

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.