09/03/2008 - San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - San Antonio Spurs star guard Manu Ginobili underwent surgery Wednesday to correct a posterior impingement of his left ankle.
Ginobili will be in a splint and on crutches for three weeks. He will then be evaluated to begin a rehabilitation process.
The reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year originally suffered the injury in the Spurs' playoff series with the Phoenix Suns. After a rehabilitation program, Ginobili was cleared to play in the 2008 Olympics. He then aggravated the injury in a semifinal loss to the United States during the Olympics and did not play when Argentina downed Lithuania in the bronze medal game.
Following the conclusion of the Olympic Games, Ginobili returned to San Antonio and an MRI conducted confirmed that he had aggravated the injury but there was no additional damage to the ankle or the ligament.
Ginobili averaged 19.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 74 games for the Spurs last season.
<< Diamondbacks rally in ninth to edge Cardinals
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Dunn's RBI double capped a two-run ninth
inning as Arizona recovered from a three-run deficit to nip St. Louis, 4-3, in
the rubber match of a three-game set.
Stephen Drew greeted Chris Perez (2-2) with
<< Murray reaches first Grand Slam semifinal
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sixth seed Andy Murray of Great
Britain reached the semifinals at the U.S. Open on Wednesday with a tough
four-set victory over 17th seed Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina.
Murray secured
<< Giants-Redskins issue final injury report for season opener
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Giants will be without
linebacker Jonathan Goff (back), cornerback Terrell Thomas (hamstring) and
kicker Lawrence Tynes (left knee) as the team opens its 2008 regular season
against
<< Panthers' Moore breaks leg
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carolina Panthers quarterback Matt Moore
suffered a broken left leg in practice Wednesday.
Moore was originally injured in the third quarter of the Panthers' final
preseason game at Pittsburgh las
NCAA denies final appeal of Cincinnati QB Ben Mauk >>
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Cincinnati quarterback Ben
Mauk had his request for reconsideration on his original waiver for a sixth
year of eligibility denied for the final time by the NCAA on Wednesday.
The NCAA re
The brothers LaRoche lead the Bucs past the Reds >>
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brothers Adam and Andy LaRoche each had RBI
singles in the eighth inning to boost Pittsburgh to a 6-5 victory over the
Cincinnati Reds.
Adam LaRoche, who ended an 0-for-16 slump, drove in two runs,
Nats win slugfest against Phils >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ronnie Belliard had the go-ahead RBI
single in the eighth and Cristian Guzman hit a bases-clearing, three-run
double to put the game out of reach as the Nationals notched a 9-7 victory
over t
Wolf leads 'Stros to eighth straight and sweep of Cubs >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Randy Wolf threw his eighth career shutout,
guiding Houston to its eighth straight win and a three-game sweep of the
Chicago Cubs with a 4-0 triumph Wednesday night.
Wolf (9-11) scattered six hits and
The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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