Ford, Pacers finish off Thunder

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11/10/2008 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - T.J. Ford scored 11 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 10 assists, as Indiana toppled Oklahoma City, 107-99, at Conseco Fieldhouse.

Ford was 10-of-19 from the field with a pair of threes and collected seven rebounds and two steals for the Pacers, who won their second straight game.

Danny Granger logged 20 points and seven boards while Jeff Foster and Marquis Daniels chipped in 15 and 14 points, respectively, for Indiana, which next travels to New Jersey to take on the Nets Wednesday.

Kevin Durant netted a game-high 37 points on 13-of-27 shooting with eight boards for the Thunder, who lost for the sixth time in seven games to open the season and have now dropped four straight.

Jeff Green had 14 points and seven rebounds for Oklahoma City, which will next host the Magic on Wednesday.

The third quarter finished with the game tied, 78-78, and the final quarter was neck-and-neck with the margin kept between five points from the outset until the waning moments.

A pair of free throws from Russell Westbrook tied the game at 95 with just under four minutes to play, but the Pacers got five straight points, including consecutive layups from Daniels and Foster, the latter of which came with under two minutes left.

Earl Watson nailed a jumper for Oklahoma City, but Ford answered with a three- ball. A Nick Collison layup pulled the Thunder back within four, but Ford came through again with a bucket and drained two free throws with 28 seconds left to help ice the victory.

A 9-2 run late in the first gave the Thunder a 10-point advantage heading to the second and a jumper by Joe Smith a little over a minute in made it a 15- point game. Indiana, though, followed with a 13-0 run to pull within two and a Ford jumper with just about a minute left kept the halftime deficit at 51-48.

Another jump shot by Ford with just under eight minutes left in the third gave Indiana its first lead since the 9:07 mark of the first and was part of a 15-2 run which saw the Pacers grab a seven-point lead.

Game Notes

The teams split a pair of meetings last year when Oklahoma City was known as the Seattle SuperSonics. Overall, the Oklahoma City/Seattle franchise has won six of the past nine in the series...Pacers sharp-shooter Mike Dunleavy remains sidelined with right knee tendinitis, while center Rasho Nesterovic also sat with a sprained right ankle...Thunder forward Chris Wilcox also sat with a sprained right knee...Eighteen Thunder turnovers led to 19 points for the Pacers.

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Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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