Rockets hold off Blazers

Basketball Betting Lines

02/09/2012 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Goran Dragic filled in for an injured Kyle Lowry and scored all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter as the Houston Rockets downed the Portland Trail Blazers, 103-96.

Lowry, who left the game late in the third quarter with a strained right elbow, finished the contest with 12 points.

"Elbow is really sore gotta do treatment and see how I feel in the am thanks for the concern,!!" said Lowry on his Twitter account following the game.

Chase Budinger had 22 points to lead the Rockets, who won their second straight game and got a season-high 66 points from their bench.

Jamal Crawford netted 21 points to go with six assists and Gerald Wallace added 20 points, nine rebounds and five assists for the Blazers, who have lost two straight at home since beginning the season with an 11-1 mark at the Rose Garden. Portland has dropped three of its last four contests.

Down by as many as 19 in the third quarter, the Blazers rallied to tie the game at 82 in the final stanza, but Houston scored eight straight points to make it a 90-82 game midway through the fourth. Courtney Lee began the spurt with a short jumper, Dragic made 1-of-2 from the line, Budinger nailed a trey and Dragic capped the spurt with a layup.

A bit later, Wallace's three-point play cut the deficit to four, but Dragic's three-point play extended Houston's advantage to 96-88 with 3:31 to play.

The Blazers pulled within five late, but that was as close as they got down the stretch.

Luis Scola netted 10 points in the opening period as the Rockets took a 30-28 lead into the second.

The Rockets closed the opening half on a 15-4 run, taking a 60-46 advantage into the break. Budinger, who nailed a pair of treys during the flurry, capped the surge with a layup with 2.9 seconds left in the half.

Houston shot a blistering 66.7 percent in the second stanza.

"They (Houston) came out very aggressive, we weren't aggressive defensively and they ran their offense hard," said Portland head coach Nate McMillan.

Kevin Martin's jumper extended Houston's advantage to 69-50 with 8:10 remaining in the third, but the Blazers used a 13-2 run to pull within 71-63 late in the frame. Wesley Matthews and Crawford netted four points apiece during the surge.

The Blazers used a 10-0 spurt that bridged the third and fourth quarters to tie the game at 77 early in the final frame. Crawford's trey and nice feed to LaMarcus Aldridge for an easy slam capped the surge.

Game Notes

Scola finished the contest with 12 points...The Rockets shot 10-of-23 from beyond the arc and outrebounded Portland 39-29...Houston turned the ball over 23 times while Portland gave the ball away 19 times.

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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS

NFL Sports Betting

NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.

Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.

There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.

Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.

The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

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