Tisdale helps Illinois edge Wisconsin in Big Ten quarters

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/12/2010 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mike Tisdale scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Illinois to a much-needed 58-54 victory over No. 13 Wisconsin in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament.

Demetri McCamey ended with 13 points and eight assists and D.J. Richardson added 12 points for the Fighting Illini (19-13), which had lost to Wisconsin, 72-57, in the regular season finale.

That was the fifth loss in six games for the fifth-seeded Illini, but they held Wisconsin to 28.6 percent shooting to advance to Saturday's semifinals against top-seeded Ohio State.

Jon Leuer and Trevon Hughes each netted 14 points for the fourth-seeded Badgers (23-8), who had a four-game winning streak snapped.

Hughes shot just 4-of-16 from the field but drained a trio of three-pointers in the final minute to pull Wisconsin within 56-54 with 31.4 seconds left.

After Jeff Jordan made 1-of-2 from the foul line to keep it a one-possession game, Jason Bohannon missed an open three from the right wing with Hughes having just fouled out.

Mike Davis, who finished with 10 points and 10 boards, came down with the long carom and made another freebie to seal the win and help Illinois' chances at gaining an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Wisconsin made just one field goal over the first six minutes of the game, allowing Illinois to take an 11-3 lead on a Davis field goal.

Leuer scored five straight to make it a three-point game, but that was as close as the Badgers got in the first half.

The Illini led 29-20 at the break and held the Badgers scoreless for the first four minutes of the second half, as Richardson's three provided a 34-20 lead.

Despite the horrid shooting effort, Wisconsin was within 46-38 with four minutes to go after Leuer capped an 8-0 run with a jumper.

After Bohannon missed a three in an attempt to make it a five-point game, McCamey drained one from behind the arc for some breathing room.

Davis' three-point play with just over a minute left gave Illinois a 54-45 lead before Hughes made things interesting.

Game Notes

Illinois and Wisconsin split the regular season series...The Illini shot 52.5 percent from the field but had 17 turnovers, compared to just five for Wisconsin...Hughes had five steals...Bohannon shot 1-for-10 from the field and ended with five points.

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

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