Truex Jr. picks pole position for Budweiser Shootout
Autoracing Betting Lines
02/18/2012 - Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Truex Jr. selected the pole position for the Budweiser Shootout during Friday night's random drawing at Daytona International Speedway.
Truex Jr., driver of the No.56 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, was the 18th of 25 drivers to select his starting spot for Saturday's 75-lap preseason, non-points race at Daytona.
Kyle Busch picked the outside pole. Brad Keselowski will start third, followed by Jamie McMurray and David Ragan.
Kurt Busch, the defending race winner, Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt Jr., A.J. Allmendinger and Joey Logano will roll off sixth through 10th, respectively.
During the closing minutes of the first practice, scheduled late in the afternoon, a five-car crash occurred when Tony Stewart got into the rear of Kurt Busch and then turned him around coming out of turn three. Allmendinger, Keselowski and Kyle Busch were also caught up in the incident.
"I was pushing the 51 car [Kurt Busch], and he had to move a little bit, but I'm still the one pushing him, so I'm responsible for it," Stewart said.
Kurt Busch, making his debut in the No.51 Chevrolet for Phoenix Racing, will use a backup car.
"It was just a deal where Tony was trying to help, and we were just trying to learn the draft," he said. "A couple of slow cars were emerging in front of us, and I slid up to go around them, and I thought it was smooth, but I got turned around."
Allmendinger, Keselowski and Kyle Busch have also switched to their backup cars.
Stewart's No.14 team were hopeful to have his primary car repaired in time for the race.
Jeff Gordon managed to avoid the incident but did suffer minor damage to his car, which was quickly repaired.
Matt Kenseth led the way in the opening practice with a lap around the 2.5- mile superspeedway at 201.762 m.p.h.
The second and final practice, held in the evening, was curtailed due to rain. Just 12 drivers managed to turn a handful of laps in the opening minutes before the inclement weather forced NASCAR officials to halt action on the track.
Saturday's Budweiser Shootout is scheduled to start at 8:10 p.m. (et).
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Olver and Gabriel Landeskog each had a goal and an assist, as the Colorado Avalanche handled the Edmonton Oilers, 3-1. Erik Johnson also lit the lamp for the Avalanche, who improved to 1-1-1 on a
<< Jefferson, Jazz outlast Wizards
Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Al Jefferson scored 34 points with 12
rebounds and the Utah Jazz snapped a two-game losing streak with a 114-100 win
over the Washington Wizards on Friday night.
The Jazz also stopped a two-game sli
<< Nowitzki, Mavs pull away to beat Sixers
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 28 points, including
24 in the second half as the Dallas Mavericks completed a comeback victory
over the Philadelphia 76ers, 82-75, at Wells Fargo Center on Friday.
Nowitzki's 24
<< Love leads Timberwolves over Rockets
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Love had 33 points and 17 rebounds and
Nikola Pekovic scored a career-high 30, as the Timberwolves downed the
Rockets, 111-98, on Friday.
Ricky Rubio added 18 points and nine assists for the
<< Hornets beat Knicks; no last-minute luck for Lin
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trevor Ariza scored 25 points, Marco Belinelli
had 17 and the New Orleans Hornets beat Jeremy Lin and the Knicks on Friday
night, 89-85, to snap New York's seven-game winning streak.
There wasn't any late-
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant had 36 points, nine rebounds and six assists, as the Lakers downed the Suns, 111-99, in the opener of a home-and-home at Staples Center. Andrew Bynum added 17 points and 14 rebounds f
Roddick upset in straight sets in San Jose >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Andy Roddick lost to
Russia's Denis Istomin in the quarterfinals, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday at the
$531,000 SAP Open.
Roddick. a three-time San Jose titlist (2004-05, 2008), was the
Miyazato tops strong leaderboard in Thailand >>
Chonburi, Thailand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ai Miyazato fired a seven-under 65
Saturday to take a one-stroke lead after 54 holes of the Honda LPGA Thailand.
Miyazato, the 2010 winner, finished three rounds at 14-under-par 202. She will
go for her
Kruger owns slim lead at Avantha Masters >>
New Delhi, India (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jbe' Kruger carded a six-under 66 in the
third round Saturday to grab a one-stroke lead after 54 holes of the Avantha
Masters.
Kruger finished three rounds at 11-under-par 205, but there are 18 players
wi
Flyers, Penguins clash in Philadelphia >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The latest edition of the Battle of Pennsylvania is on tap
today in Philadelphia, as the Flyers welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins for an
afternoon battle at Wells Fargo Center.
Today's contest marks the third of six schedule
Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa
Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.
Should be in:
Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?
Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.
Work left to do:
Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.
Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.
Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.
Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.
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Problem with Bears?
Chicago, IL - New Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and star linebacker Brian Urlacher shot down reports of a rift, saying they're simply not true.
"There's nothing between us," Cutler said Thursday, when he reported to training camp. "I just want to put that to rest. There never has been anything between us."
Urlacher added: "I never said what I was quoted as saying and that's it. I have a lot of respect for Jay. I think Jay knows that."
Former Bears receiver Bobby Wade caused a stir when he told Minneapolis radio station KFAN-AM that Urlacher used a profanity while questioning Cutler's manhood during a conversation in Las Vegas last weekend. Wade, who now plays for the Vikings, said Urlacher used a profane version of the word "wimp" during the interview that had to be edited out.
go radio station WSCR-AM also reported that Urlacher had to be restrained from confronting Cutler during organized team activities.
"I wouldn't go face-to-face with Brian, anyway," Cutler said. "No, that's never happened. I've hung out with Brian away from the facility numerous times and we've always gotten along."
Urlacher, noting he was limited by a groin injury, denied the reports in an interview with the Chicago Tribune and did it again when he reported to camp.
"I didn't practice this summer, so I don't know how I would fight the guy if I didn't practice," Urlacher said. "We have no problems. I'm excited about football starting. I'm excited to have him as our quarterback."
Why would Wade say that?
"I don't know," Urlacher said. "Maybe he's jealous because we have a good quarterback now."
Cutler said the first he heard of any friction was when he got a call from Urlacher to clear the air. Urlacher, however, said he had already taken several calls from teammates wondering if the reports were true when Cutler phoned.
"He called me and I said, What's up (expletive), what are you doing?'" a grinning Urlacher said, uttering the same word he allegedly used with Wade. "It's so dumb to me that this even got to this point, but it did and then here we are."
better place after going 9-7 and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. They have a franchise quarterback for the first time in decades after acquiring Cutler in an offseason trade with Denver. But there are questions about his attitude following a fallout with Broncos management and new coach Josh McDaniels.
His critics include former Bears coach Mike Ditka and former Indianapolis and Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy, one of Smith's mentors. Smith, however, said Cutler has been a model teammate so far while denying any animosity with Urlacher.
"There's no issue with Jay and Brian, except Brian and Jay are both excited about being teammates for our club this year," coach Lovie Smith said. "No more than that. We can't spend a whole lot of time on something that isn't true. I have talked to the players. Whenever something comes out, you have to address it, but it's a non-issue."
In some ways, Cutler is getting a second chance in Chicago, an opportunity to repair his reputation.
Smith said another quarterback - Michael Vick - deserves one, although he doesn't see it happening with the Bears, who lack an experienced backup. The former Atlanta Falcons star, who served a 23-month sentence for running a dogfighting ring, said Thursday he is getting close to signing with a pro football team.
"A second chance, like everyone in society who has paid their debt to society," Smith said. "He deserves a second chance. As far as we're concerned, we like this team that we have right now."
Particularly the new quarterback.
"Me and Brian have been on a good relationship since I've been here, and I expect it to continue that way," Cutler said.
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