Boggan's triple ends 3-OT thriller

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/17/2007 - Stillwater, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mario Boggan did a freshman one better in a conference thriller, draining a contested three-pointer with 3.2 seconds left to end 55 minutes of Big 12 basketball in 12th-ranked Oklahoma State's 105-103 victory over No. 21 Texas from Gallagher-Iba Arena.

The final three-plus seconds included a walk and an in-bound formality, capping a game featuring clutch shooting, massive momentum swings and Cowboys head coach Sean Sutton almost fainting at the end of regulation.

If he only knew 15 more minutes were in store.

Kevin Durant, who tied a career-high with 37 points, collected an air ball and scored off the glass while being fouled with 10.5 ticks remaining in the third overtime. He drained the foul shot to push Texas in front, 103-102.

The Cowboys eventually got the ball to Boggan at the top of the left wing with two Longhorns surrounding him. He shook the first defender then double- clutched his shot to avoid the outstretched arms of the second player.

Just 5-of-33 from beyond the arc entering the game, Boggan's three trumped Durant's conventional three-point possession, handing the Longhorns (13-4, 3-1 Big 12) their first conference loss.

Boggan's shot capped a 37-point, 20-rebound performance, continuing his stellar senior season. He entered the contest averaging a team-leading 21 points and 7.1 rebounds per game and shooting just over 60 percent from the floor.

JamesOn Curry totaled 28 points, nine rebounds and four assists, while Terrel Harris scored 16 points and Byron Eaton added 11 points for the Cowboys (16-2, 2-1), who improved to 11-0 on Eddie Sutton court.

D.J. Augustin contributed 19 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and Justin Mason totaled 18 points for Texas. Damion James collected 10 points and 11 rebounds, while Durant added 12 boards in the loss.

Augustin's three-pointer with 21 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime -- the first of three extra sessions.

The guard made the pivotal shot again in the waning stages of the first overtime, converting a layup to square the contest at 83-83 with 13 seconds on the clock.

David Monds' heave from the right corner didn't draw iron, and an offensive putback occurred about one second after the horn.

The Cowboys seized a 91-88 edge in the second overtime on Boggan's mid-range jumper, but Durant -- who made 4-of-12 threes on the contest -- connected from near the top of the circle to tie the game.

Tyler Hatch -- a walk-on surrounded on the floor by a group of high school All-Americans -- attempted to stamp a feel-good story on the contest by making a reverse layup to put the Cowboys up 93-91 with 43 seconds left.

It was for naught, as Durant answered with a dunk to tie the game again, eventually forcing the third extra session.

Curry started it with a three-pointer then Harris buried two free throws to open a 98-93 advantage.

However, as proven much earlier in the night, no lead was safe.

Durant made 1-of-2 free throws then Mason drilled a contested three from the right wing to draw the Longhorns within one.

After a Boggan jumper, Connor Atchley raced down a loose ball and connected from long distance to make the score 100-100 with 1:55 on the clock.

Curry then made a pair of free throws before the frantic finish.

The Cowboys led 38-36 at the half.

Game Notes

The all-time series is tied at 34-34...Texas had 34 second chance points, while the Cowboys only mustered 20...The game featured 15 ties and 16 lead changes...Neither team lead by more than seven points...Oklahoma State shot 52.4 percent over the course of three overtimes...Texas attempted 33 three- pointers...Both teams committed 20 turnovers.

Wnorthernlight NCAA Basketball Betting News

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.