A busy night in the National Basketball Association as nine games were played; here’s a look at the basketball betting results from two of the more interesting contests:
Dallas 89, Charlotte 84
Dallas came into this contest as a three-point road underdog, yet emerged the victor thanks to the performances of three key guys — Dirk Nowitzki, who went for 27 points; Caron Butler, who popped for 22 and Jason Terry, who rang up 20 off the bench on 8 of 17 shooting.
For the Bobcats, balance was the name of the game. Five different players notched double figures in points, led by Stephen Jackson’s 20. Tyrus Thomas finished with 16 (and 12 boards), Boris Diaw chipped in with 15 while Gerald Wallace (11) and Raymond Felton (10) rounded out the notable scorers.
The win only added fuel to talks that Dallas is amongst the NBA’s most improved teams thanks to their work at the trade deadline. The additions of Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson — and, perhaps most importantly, the subtraction of Josh Howard — has spurred the Mavs onto big things. Dallas has won eight consecutive games straight up and have gone 5-2-1 against the spread over that time. As a result, the Mavs have staked out to a big lead in the Southwest Division standings (at 40-21, they’re seven games ahead of second-place San Antonio) and could be a real force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference playoffs.
Cleveland 124, New York 93
The Cavs came into this one as heavy (-11) home favourites, and the covered with ease, hammering the Knicks by 31 points. Somewhat surprisingly, the 124-point explosion by Cleveland wasn’t due to a huge offensive output from LeBron James — the King had just 22 points, but was led by a strong supporting cast (eight players scored seven points or more). This was a big night for Antawn Jamison; the former Washington Wizard had one of his best games in a Cleveland uniform, scoring 17 points while chipping in with 12 boards. Sophomore sensation JJ Hickson went an impressive 6-7 shooting from the field for 17 points as well, which Delonte West chipped in with 15 off the pine.
For the Knicks, well, the strugglers keep on struggling. The loss was New York’s ninth in the last 10 games; during that stretch, the Knicks have only covered four times, pushing their against-the-spread record in the year to a dismal 26-33. If there was a bright spot for the Knicks, it was the play of newly acquired Bill Walker, who came over from Boston in the Nate Washington trade. Walker went 9-14 shooting for a team-high 21 points, and also chipped in with five rebounds.
If you’d like to get in on more NBA basketball betting or futures betting for the 2010 NBA outright championship, head on over to the Sports Interaction online sportsbook and check things out today!
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