Lions seek second straight upset in clash with Argos

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09/08/2010 - Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a huge upset win against the Montreal Alouettes, the British Columbia Lions shoot for back-to-back victories for the first time in 2010 as they entertain the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday afternoon at Empire Field.

The Lions, who defeated Edmonton in the season opener (25-10), had been slipping away ever since and were trapped at the bottom of the Western Division standings with a seven-game losing streak before entering the month of September. A team that is winless at home in four tries thus far, British Columbia caught front-running Montreal at the right time and used the opportunity to come up with a stunning 38-17 win over the Alouettes on the road.

Granted, the Als were without quarterback Anthony Calvillo who was still nursing a chest bruise, but still it was assumed that Montreal had enough quality players to get them by the Lions, yet that wasn't the case at all. Quarterback Casey Printers connected on 14-of-28 passes for 235 yards and a pair of touchdowns, helping offset Travis Lulay who had as many completions to the opposition (two) as he did to his own teammates (2-of-6 for 54 yards). Surprisingly, BC was able to overcome 12 penalties for 115 yards to gather the victory, partly because Montreal was flagged 11 times for a loss of 127 yards.

As for the Argonauts last week, they saw quarterback Cleo Lemon open up the offense and throw for a career-high 350 yards by completing 32-of-44 passes, but he was sacked three times and was guilty of three interceptions as well in his team's 28-13 loss to Hamilton on the road. Toronto kicker Grant Shaw kept the team involved in the first half with field goals of 39 and 16 yards, while running back Cory Boyd tacked on a seven-yard scoring run to cap a nine-play, 63-yard drive in the third period, but it wasn't nearly enough with the number of turnovers the Argos committed.

Boyd finished the game with 54 yards on 11 attempts, but no one else on the team was credited with more than a single carry in the setback. Toronto ended up with a pair of lost fumbles and that defeated a defensive effort that held the Tiger-Cats to just 34 yards rushing on 14 attempts.

Even though he had a lackluster game last week, the fact remains that Boyd is still the leading ground gainer in the CFL after nine games with 846 yards, averaging close to six yards per attempt. For much of the early part of the 2010 campaign the Argos had to lean heavily on Boyd because they were not sure what they'd be able to get out of Lemon, but now they know there is potential in the first-year signal-caller as long as he can cut down on his mistakes. In the first game of the season between these two squads, Lemon threw for 222 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but at he same time he was touched for a pair of interceptions, fumbled once and was sacked three times so really the only way to go is up for him versus the Lions at this stage.

In his first ever game against Toronto, Printers had huge production with three passing scores and one on the ground and his legs have since proven to be a lethal weapon versus the Argos. In two meetings back in 2008, the QB threw for a combined 332 yards but just one TD, while coming up with an even 100 yards on the ground and four majors, so at least Toronto knows what to plan for heading into this weekend.

Unfortunately for Printers and the Lions, 2008 seems like a lifetime ago because this season the passing attack for BC has fallen far short of the mark. At this stage the position has accounted for just seven touchdowns through the air and a league-low 55.2 percent completion rate. Add to that a total of 13 picks and it is easy to see how the program ranks dead last in the CFL in efficiency rating at 68.2.

In a bit of irony Toronto, which has allowed opponents to complete 70 percent of their pass attempts and is giving up a league-high 428.1 ypg, is actually better than the Lions when it comes to scoring defense, allowing 27.0 ppg compared to the 27.1 ppg permitted by BC entering this week's action.

With regards to the all-time, regular-season series between the programs, British Columbia owns a 46-31-2 edge dating back to 1954. The Argos won the most recent meeting earlier this season by a score of 24-20 at home, but that victory for Toronto was the first against the Lions since October 2004 when the team posted a 22-16 triumph. In between Toronto victories, BC had rattled off 10 straight wins in the series.

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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