Heat battle Cavs down south

Basketball Betting Lines

02/07/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When LeBron James and Cleveland get together, it's always a little extra special.

James and the Miami Heat will finish a brief two-game homestand tonight by welcoming the Cavaliers and the new face of their franchise, Kyrie Irving, to the shores of Biscayne Bay.

Cleveland, of course, was the NBA home of James for the first seven years of his career before the All-Star "took his talents to South Beach" before last season. James was a two-time NBA MVP with the Cavs, a former scoring champion and led the team to the 2007 NBA Finals before the Cavs succumbed to the San Antonio Spurs.

The superstar led Miami to the NBA Finals last season but the Heat lost in six games to the Dallas Mavericks.

A favorite to win the championship again, the Heat have been streaking lately, winning seven of eight and compiling a solid 18-6 mark overall.

Most recently James had a game-high 30 points to go with nine rebounds as Miami outlasted the Toronto Raptors, 95-89, at AmericanAirlines Arena on Sunday.

"The Big Three" accounted for 67 of the team's 95 points as Dwyane Wade scored 25 points and Chris Bosh added 12 points and eight boards for the Heat, who have won two straight.

"We knew it was going to be one of those grind-out kind of games," Wade said. "We understand that a lot of teams do that when they play the Heat - come out on fire."

Miami, which is 11-2 at home, will embark on a six-game road trip after tonight's encounter.

The Cavs, meanwhile, are coming off one of their most impressive wins of the season, a 91-88 victory over the reigning NBA champion Mavericks on Saturday. Irving scored 20 points, including a tough reverse layup in traffic with 15.8 seconds remaining in that one.

After Irving's layup made it a three-point margin, Jason Terry missed a three- pointer from the top of the arc with 0.9 left. But following a review, the Mavericks got one final opportunity with 0.5 showing on the clock. Brandan Wright's desperation shot at the buzzer was off the mark.

"In that fourth quarter he was pretty fresh and we put the ball in his hands and let him make decisions," Cavs head coach Byron Scott said of Irving. "He's got the unique ability to get to the basket. And when he gets there he has a great way of finishing."

Anderson Varejao had a huge game with 17 points and 17 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who snapped a two-game skid. Antawn Jamison netted 19 points and pulled down nine rebounds.

The Heat and Cavs are meeting for the second of three matchups this season. Miami bested Cleveland in South Florida, 92-85, back on Jan. 24 behind Bosh's 35 points. In 2010-11, Miami took three of four from the Cavs.

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Super Bowl XLIV Odds

Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.

Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.

That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.

Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.

After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.

The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).

To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.

NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV

New England Patriots 8/1

Dallas Cowboys 9/1

New York Giants 10/1

Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1

Indianapolis Colts 12/1

San Diego Chargers 12/1

Baltimore Ravens 14/1

Tennessee Titans 16/1

Carolina Panthers 18/1

Philadelphia Eagles 18/1

New Orleans Saints 20/1

Atlanta Falcons 25/1

Denver Broncos 25/1

Green Bay Packers 25/1

Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1

Minnesota Vikings 25/1

New York Jets 25/1

Arizona Cardinals 30/1

Chicago BearS 30/1

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1

Buffalo Bills 35/1

Houston TexaNS 35/1

Miami Dolphins 35/1

Washington Redskins 35/1

Seattle SeahawkS 50/1

Cleveland Browns 55/1

Cincinnati Bengals 60/1

San Francisco 49ers 60/1

Oakland Raiders 75/1

St. Louis Rams 75/1

Detroit Lions 100/1

Kansas City Chiefs 100/1

Odds as of: 2/2/09

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

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