Bryant leads West to easy All-Star game win

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02/19/2007 - Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant scored 31 points, dished out six assists and had six steals to lead the West to an easy 153-132 win over the East in the 56th annual All-Star Game at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Bryant was named the MVP of the contest for leading a West team that registered an All-Star game record 52 assists and fell just two points short of its own All-Star game record for points -- 155 set in 2003.

Amare Stoudemire added 29 points and nine rebounds for the West, who snapped a two-game skid in the event. Carmelo Anthony chipped in with 20 points and nine boards, while Shawn Marion finished with 18 points and eight rebounds.

"We wanted to come out and play pretty well," said Bryant. "We lost the last two games and wanted to get back in the win column. We had a blast. If you had a shot you took it, otherwise you penetrated and dished it."

LeBron James -- who was the MVP in last year's game -- netted 28 points, six rebounds and six assists for the East. Dwight Howard was a force inside in his All-Star debut with 20 points and a game-high 12 boards, while Joe Johnson had 12 points.

The opening quarter featured some sloppy play early but the West heated up quickly. Anthony's fade away jumper from the right corner gave them a 10-point advantage, 35-25, with just over a minute to go in the stanza.

Less than 30 seconds later, Vince Carter provided a spark for the East and electrified the crowd with a slam off a beautiful spin move but the West still managed to keep a 39-31 advantage after the opening 12 minutes.

Carter continued to provide a show for the fans early in the second quarter, taking a Chauncey Billups feed off the glass and depositing another slam. But, it was the West establishing control in the frame. Dirk Nowitzki's three, with 9:44 remaining before the half, made it a 51-35 game.

The West continued to dominate the next few minutes. A 7-0 run, featuring back-to-back layups by Nowitzki and Marion and a McGrady triple, gave the West its first 20-point cushion, 59-39, with a little over seven minutes to go in the second

The teams then traded baskets for the rest of the half and the West took a 79-59 edge into the locker room. Bryant led the West with 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while James paced the East with 16 points and shot 6-of-10 from the floor.

The West continued to run away early in the third quarter. Ray Allen's three, with 4:08 left in the frame, gave the West a commanding 108-76 advantage.

Nowitzki then capped the scoring in the frame with a jumper to make it 119-88 heading into the final frame.

The East failed to make any kind of serious run in the fourth quarter. A Dwyane Wade jumper cut the deficit to 25, 129-104, with 7:53 left in the game but Bryant stemmed any momentum by draining a three 17 seconds later.

The Lakers' star then got loose for a reverse dunk on the baseline and Marion followed that with another reverse jam to extend the West's advantage to 136-106 with 6:51 on the clock.

The West coasted to the finish line from there. Bryant capped his MVP performance with a spinning slam with 30 seconds left.

Game Notes

This was the first All-Star game held outside an NBA franchise city...Bryant captured his second All-Star MVP award. His first was in his hometown of Philadelphia during the 2002 game...Wade's follow shot in the lane with 16.6 seconds remaining rallied the East past the West, 122-120, at Houston's Toyota Center in last year's game...The East still holds a commanding 35-21 advantage in the all-time series...New Jersey guard Jason Kidd was originally named as a reserve to the East squad, however but was sidelined with a back injury and did not play in the contest. Meanwhile, the Western Conference was without ailing center Yao Ming and guards Steve Nash of the Suns and Denver's Allen Iverson...Las Vegas legend Wayne Newton entertained the crowd before the game while the city's nine time entertainer of the year Andy Gans sang the National Anthem...Six-time Grammy winner Toni Braxton and Christina Aguilera headlined the halftime show.

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Betting Football

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.