Motherwell stays hot courtesy of Higdon

Soccer Betting Lines

02/22/2012 - Motherwell, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Higdon's hat trick helped Motherwell to a 4-3 win over Hibernian at Fir Park Stadium on Wednesday to help the home side close the gap on second-place Rangers.

Isaiah Osbourne tallied the lone goal for either side in the first half when he beat Motherwell goalkeeper Darren Randolph from six yards.

But the match opened up after the break and Motherwell was back on level terms in the 47th minute when Higdon scored from the penalty spot after goalkeeper Graham Stack fouled Henrik Ojamaa inside the area.

Omar Daley set up Motherwell's second goal when he picked out Jamie Murphy inside the box for a goal from six yards, only for Matthew Doherty to answer back a few minutes later and level the match.

Higdon's second goal came after a pass from Murphy in the 70th minute and he completed his hat trick from the penalty spot five minutes later.

Ivan Sproule pulled a goal back five minutes from time but it wasn't enough to prevent Hibs from dropping its fourth game in the last five.

Motherwell moves to within three points of second-place Rangers with its fourth victory in five matches.

Celtic 2, Dunfermline 0

Glasgow, Scotland - Celtic moved 20 points clear at the top of the Scottish Premier League on Wednesday after recording a 2-0 win over Dunfermline at Parkhead.

Charlie Mulgrew scored on a great strike from 30 yards midway through the first half to put the hosts ahead, and the Hoops continued to pile on the pressure before finding a second goal in the 76th minute.

Gary Hooper's low cross was stabbed home at the back post by James Forrest, clinching Celtic's 16th straight win in SPL play and leaving Dunfermline on the bottom of the league having claimed just two points from its last six games.

Zportsbook Soccer Betting News

<< Basel leaves it late to shock Bayern
Basel, Switzerland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Basel continued its impressive Champions League campaign on Wednesday, leaving it late to shock Bayern Munich with a 1-0 victory at St. Jakob-Park. In a back-and-forth match where both sides traded sc

<< Sauter vs. younger Dillon for truck title?
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck. Date: Friday, February 24. Race: NextEra Energy Resources 250. Site: Daytona International Speedway. Track: 2.5-mile tri-oval. Start time: 7:30 p.m. (et). Laps: 100. Miles:

<< Stenhouse Jr. ready to get Nationwide title defense underway
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Nationwide. Date: Saturday, February 25. Race: DRIVE4COPD 300. Site: Daytona International Speedway. Track: 2.5-mile tri-oval. Start time: 1:15 p.m. (et). Laps: 120. Miles: 300. 2011 Winner: To

<< Pack 'em in for the Daytona 500
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup. Date: Sunday, February 26. Race: Daytona 500. Site: Daytona International Speedway. Track: 2.5-mile tri-oval. Start time: 1:00 p.m. (et). Laps: 200. Miles: 500. 2011 Winner: Trevor

<< Gatorade Duels: Who's in and who's not in the Daytona 500?
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup. Date: Thursday, February 23. Race: Gatorade Duel twin-qualifying races. Site: Daytona International Speedway. Track: 2.5-mile tri-oval. Start time: 2:00 p.m. (et). Laps: 60 (each ra

Pervak, Hradecka exit Memphis >>
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second seed Ksenia Pervak and third-seeded Lucie Hradecka were second-round losers Wednesday at the $220,000 Memphis International tennis event. Italian Alberta Brianti erased Kazakhstan's Pervak

Chivas acquires Mexican striker Romero >>
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chivas USA announced Wednesday that it has acquired Mexican striker Cesar Romero. Per league and club policy, terms of the deal were not released. Romero, 22, most recently played for Murcielagos FC d

Pats release two players >>
Foxboro, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Patriots released offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger and defensive lineman Mike Wright on Wednesday. Wright, who originally joined New England as rookie free agent o

Bills restructure McGee's contract >>
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Bills on Wednesday restructured the contract of cornerback Terrence McGee. McGee, who was due $3.6 million next season, is coming off patella tendon surgery. He suffered the

UConn coach Calhoun to have surgery >>
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Connecticut men's basketball coach Jim Calhoun will miss at least two more games after having surgery to help alleviate the spinal stenosis that forced him to take a medical leave of absence. Calhoun will u

Football Betting Sportsbook Accepts Credit Cards

Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.

As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.

Bet 2010 Super Bowl Odds

The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.

Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).

But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.

Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.

Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:

Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1

Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2

New York Giants - 9 - 2

Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).

Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.

So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.

And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.

They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.

Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.

But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.

Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.

Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.

Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.

Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?

Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.

In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.

Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.

Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.

The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.

The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.

RSS Sports Betting Odds Feeds

Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.

FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.