KG's knee is causing more problems

I’ll get to March Madness odds in a day or two, but for now I want to talk about some pro basketball. A pretty tough pill to swallow out of Boston today, as the Celtics announced they’re “shutting down” Kevin Garnett for an undisclosed period of time. KG has been bothered by a knee injury for a few months now and he only just returned, so this is a really bad sign of things to come.

Apparently, Garnett is supposed to return with a few games left in the regular season, but it makes you wonder why Boston even brought him back if he wasn’t ready. Yes, the C’s risk settling for third in the Eastern Conference standings, but they’re sportsbook odds to win the NBA title go from good to non-existent without KG.

So how does this affect NBA betting? Well, I’d stay away from Boston for the rest of the regular season. Orlando has alreayd caught them for second in the East, so the Celtics will likely just shut down things from here on out (they can’t blow third place) and get ready for the postseason. Obviously, it gives a big boost to Cavaliers lines. I don’t know if there was anyone left out there who didn’t think the East was Cleveland’s to lose come playoff time, but pretty much everyone should be thinking it now.

Nash had 31 points and 14 assists, but it wasn't enough

We’ve got a few days before we need to get into Final Four odds, but I still want to stick with basketball today. I didn’t catch the Suns game last night, but man, what a nightmare for Phoenix. They dropped a 128-118 decision to the Kings–the Kings!–on Sunday. The Suns were trying to stay in the playoff race, but now they trail the Mavs by 3.5 games, and there probably isn’t enough time to come back from that hole.

NBA odds with the Suns has been a roller coaster the last few days. If the Kings game for Phoenix was a nightmare, then consider the Utah Jazz Freddy Kruger. At one point the Suns battled back from a 21 point deficit, but they then managed to blow a seven-point lead and lose the game.

Elsewhere in the NBA, the Cavs won their 60th game, which is a team record. It was also their 12th win in a row, another team record. NBA betting fans were treated to the usual LeBron James goodness, as he rolled up 24 points and 12 assists in the 102-74 win over Dallas. The Mavs scored just 25 points in the entire second half, a pathetic effort.

And if you bet on basketball, you probably know all about what Chris Paul did. Paul’s been awesome lately (well, he’s always awesome) and he dropped 26 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals on San Antonio. New Orleans won 90-86 even though it didn’t have Posey, Peja and Chandler in the lineup. Pretty impressive stuff.

Ok, more tomorrow. Depends on how old Dirty Harry is feelin’, but maybe we’ll talk some Final Four betting.

Well, it was an up and down night in March Madness betting yesterday. On the bright side? Pittsburgh. Thank you, Pittsburgh, for waking up. Even though I picked Xavier on my bracket weeks ago, I went with the Panthers on the moneyline last night, and needless to say it was a nerve-wracking couple of minutes to end that game. I definitely enjoyed a nice glass of whisky after that one.

I was also a little terrifed by the UConn-Purdue game, so I backed off and didn’t play the March Madness odds. I was backing UConn on my bracket, but got cold feet at the last minute (I mentioned the other day that I simply had a bad gut feeling about Purde).

But while things worked out Ok at the sportsbook, I got absolutely obliterated on my bracket. Last night was a do-or-die for me and, well, Old Dirty Harry died. I had Memphis winning the whole damn thing, and they blew it against Missouri. 102 points? Who gives up 102 points?! That wasn’t fun to watch at all.

So in case you’re wondering, in my bracket I’ve got Michigan State, Louisville, North Carolina and Oklahoma all alive. Too little, too late, though. And you won’t catch me playing NCAA basketball lines tonight–the heart can’t take it after yesterday’s scare.

A little something different on March Madness betting today. Rather than breaking down the matchups, I just wanted to mention a cool story I read on ESPN today, which you can read here. It’s about Corey Fisher, a guard for No. 3 Villanova. Apparently, he’s the newphew of Guy Fisher, who you may of heard of. Guy was a hugely famous (infamous?) figure in 1970s Harlem, when he owned the Apollo Theater (he was the first African Amrican to do so) and did all kinds of stuff like the community, like giving away turkeys at Thanksgiving or starting bball tourneys for local kids.

Guy also was a huge heroin dealer, and he’s been in prison for over 25 years for various charges. All those things–the drugs, crime, etc–were there for Corey to pursue. But his family, including Guy, were in his ear his entire life, pushing him into other things, like basketball. Guy didn’t want Corey to follow his mistakes. It wasn’t all easy and Corey overcame some pretty interesting stuff. I won’t spoil anymore but check it out. I’ve got Duke over Villanova tonight, but I almost want to pull for Corey Fisher on sportsbook odds. If you want to remember why sports and college basketball are about so much cooler than simply breaking down March Madness odds, this should do the trick.

If you have North Carolina on March Madness odds, rest easy: Ty Lawson is going to play.

Or at least he says he will. The speedy guard says his toe is achy but feeling better, and he thinks in a few days he’ll be back to 100 percent—just in time for Friday’s game against Gonzaga.  That’s a big relief for old Dirty Harry, since I’ve got the Tar Heels losing to Memphis in the final.

Lawson missed three games in a row before LSU last week, and he did some drills and practice already this week. Still, when it comes to March Madness betting, I’d probably take Lawson at 50 percent over most of the other NCAA guards at 100 percent.

Anyway, we’ve still got four games tomorrow before we have to worry about Lawson. Those games are Missouir-Memphis; Xavier-Pittsburgh; Villanova-Duke; and Purdue-UConn. I have Memphis, Xavier, Duke and UConn. Obviously Xavier is the big upset pick out of everything, but I just haven’t gotten on the Pittsburgh bandwagon yet this season. I guess if they make the Elite Eight, I’ll finally be convinced.

The one that worries me most on March Madness lines? Connecticut over Purdue. The Huskies have steamrolled their first two opponents in the tourney, and it’s not so much I doubt them but have a gut feeling about Purdue. The Boilermakers have won five games in a row and feel like one of those teams that are peaking at just the right time. Would I change my pick if I could? No… probably not. But I bet it’s going to be a nerve wracking night for me and my sportsbook odds.

I know, I know. You’re focused on March Madness odds right now and don’t really care about the NBA until the college basketball season is done. And even for the NBA betting fans, who really cares about the Washington Wizards, right?

Well, here’s some good news for a team that is 16-55 and dead last in the Eastern Conference: Gilbert Arenas might return this Saturday.

The man became a Dirty Harry Backyard favorite after doing this shootout:

The best part is that there is no reason to bring him back now. NBA betting fans know that the Wizards have packed it up and packed it in for the season. Even their fans are hoping for a winless finish to the season so that they can be the odds-on favorite to win the NBA Draft Lottery.

But instead, Agent Zero is going to come back at moderately full strength, help the Wizards win a couple of games and keep them out of contention for Blake Griffin.

Wizards fans, don’t enjoy March Madness betting too much. Thanks to Agent Zero’s return, you probably won’t be drafting first overall. But at least you’ll get to see your superstar play in a few meaningless games at the end of an irrelevant season.

How can Dirty Harry stay mad at the Vols with fans like that?

Dirty Harry had a great start to March Madness betting–I went 15-1 on my bracket! The only loss was the LSU-Butler game, and I still can’t believe the Bulldogs blew it. Oh well, what can you do? In terms of today’s March Madness odds, Harry’s off to a solid start, going 3-1, running the total record at the moment up to 18-20 (lost the Volunteers game…  The best part is the two games I blew I was counting on the winner to go any further than a single win, so I’ve minimized the damage.

Of the games I’ve got going right now, here’s how it shakes down:

Arizona State over Temple. The Sun Devils are leading by nine at the half. Not a huge lead, but I’m feeling good about this one.

Pitt over East Tennessee State. This is a surprisingly close game early on, but Dirty Harry isn’t worried in the least. Pitt will get the job done… right? It’d be a spotsbook odds upset of the century if the Panthers lost, since a No. 1 seed has never lost to a No. 16.

West Virgina over Dayton. I’m feeling a little uneasy about this one. Not just my bracket, but I’ve got Dayton on March Madness lines. Right now West V is trailing by about six points. I don’t know why, but I’ve got a bad feeling about this. Crossing my fingers.

Mizzou over Cornell. Another tight game early, but Mizzou will get it going. They better, cause I have the Tigers winning the game after this, too.

Ok, let’s cap this day off with a huge run! Dirty Harry returns Monday, and I’ll fill you in on all my March madness picks and how the weekend went.

Memphis opened the tourney with a surprisingly close win

MARCH MADNESS ODDS ARE HERE! Finally, Christmas morning has OFFICIALLY arrived, and ol’ Dirty Harry couldn’t be happier. Early scores are already coming in, so let’s quickly go over what’s happened so far.

No. 9 Butler vs. No. 8 LSU - First game of the tourney, and Harry tips off the tournament with a loss. LSU wins 74-69. I liked the Bulldogs in this one, but LSU got a hot start and never looked back. They also couldn’t stop Marcus Thornton, who was awesome with 30 points and six rebounds. Sure it’s a loss, but I’m just glad March Madness lines are here–I’ll take it.

No. 15 Cal State Northern vs. No. 2 Memphis - Memphis won ended up 81-70, but it actually got pretty crazy. CSN actually led for a good portion of this game and didn’t actually give it away until the last few minutes (a 9-0 run from Memphis around the four or five minute mark did them in). I’ve got the Tigers in my Final Four, so I’m happy.

No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 8 BYU - Thanks to A&M, Dirty Harry opens March Madness betting 2-1! Not a bad start, considering there were some close matchups here. The Aggies won 79-66 thanks to double-digit points from five players, including 21 from Bryan Davis.

That’s it for now, I want to catch the next game–I’ve got Purdue over Northern Iowa on NCAA basketball lines.

God bless America, basketball and beef

Ok, so a few days ago Dirty Harry comment on the March Madness odds from The Big Lead’s “Culture Bracket”. That was a nice, “outside-the-box” bracket, but I don’t think there’s any way the So Good Blog will be topped, especially for a guy like me who loves March Madness betting and barbecuing.

Combine the two and you have the perfect combination. Courtesy of the So Good Blog, I give you Meat Madness. I probably spent more time and energy trying to handicap this thing this morning than I have on March Madness over the past two weeks.

Where to even begin? The No. 1 seeds are all great picks: beef steak, chicken, bacon and lobster.

Personally, I think bacon is a little overrated (kind of like Duke on NCAA basketball lines), and I wouldn’t mind seeing No. 2 sausage give it a run in the Pork Region. I’m really surprised ribs only get in as a No. 7 seed, especially because they have to face sausage in the first round. That’s one hell of a matchup.

Now, I don’t think any self-respecting man is going to hitch his wagon to the Seafood Region. I don’t mind some of these guys, but they’re more of an occasional kind of food. I want to be in the backyard grilling every day, and I’m not even sure if seafood actually counts as meat.

The Poultry Region is pretty top heavy, and I can’t imagine it coming down to anyone but chicken or turkey. I mean, four seems a little high for rabbit, doesn’t it?

The Red Meat region, on the other hand, is stacked. Lamb, ground beef, veal, roast beef and, of course No. 1 steak. I think veal deserved a higher seed. Ultimately, this will come down to steak and ground beef.

No, these aren’t March Madness lines, but they’ve still got me salivating. If Dirty Harry had to pick his own, personal Final Four of meat, I’d go with tuna in a big upset in the Seafood Region; sausage in the Pork Region; turkey in the Poultry Region; and my overall champion, coming out of the Red Meat Region, steak.

Alright, check back tomorrow and we’ll talk about some real March Madness bets.

Ok, I admit it: March Madness odds have Dirty Harry a little stressed. Normally, I whip through my brackets without any problems, but this year’s a little different. There really doesn’t feel like any standout teams this season. A lot of people are on the Tar Heels’ bandwagon, but I still can’t shake the feeling they can’t be trusted. Sure, they’ll probably get it going once the tournament begins, and yeah they’re in a pretty weak region, but I’m wondering if this just isn’t their year.

That seems to be how everyone is feeling about March Madness betting this season. Who can we trust? A whole whack of teams crashed into the tournament—Pittsburgh, UConn, UNC, Oklahoma, Xavier and LSU were all supposed to win their conference playoffs and all of them ended up crapping the bed (and three of those teams—Pittsburgh, UNC and UConn—are No. 1 seeds). Among the higher seeds, only Louisville took care of business.

I guess it can be attributed to teams “not caring” and already having March Madness berths wrapped up, but I’d like to see a little intensity heading into the postseason. Besides, think how many people thye screwed on sportsbook odds!

No matter what, if there’s one team I’m staying away from on March Madness lines, it’s LSU. They’ve absolutely stunk up the joint in the past few weeks, losing three of their past four games (including a brutal home loss to Vanderbilt). I know you have to considering the whole body of work, but that’s not the kind of shape you want to be in before the Big Dance. I’m taking Butler in that matchup.