Blockbuster Nadal-Federer Aussie semi set for Friday

Tennis Betting Lines

01/24/2012 - Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former world No. 1 greats Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will do battle in the semifinals Friday at the 2012 Australian Open.

The second-seeded Nadal snuck past seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych in four sets, while a third-seeded Federer whipped 11th-seeded Argentine slugger Juan Martin del Potro in straights in a rematch of the 2009 U.S. Open final, which was won by the towering del Potro. Nadal beat Berdych in the 2010 Wimbledon championship match.

The 30-year-old Federer played in his 1,000th ATP-pevel match on Tuesday and secured a berth in his 30th Grand Slam semifinal.

"It's a lot of matches and a lot tennis," Federer said. "Either I have been around for a long time or I'm extremely fit. You decide which way you want to describe it. But I'm happy."

The 10-time major champion and reigning French Open titlist Nadal was tested mightily in a 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (8-6), 6-4, 6-3 victory over Berdych at Rod Laver Arena, where the legendary Aussie Laver was on hand to watch on Day 9. The 16- time Grand Slam titlist Federer dismantled del Potro 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 earlier Tuesday in quarterfinal action at Laver.

Nadal needed a whopping 4 hours, 16 minutes to stave off a game Berdych, who finally succumbed on Nadal's first match point by framing one final forehand into the court, as the mighty Spaniard broke to close out the quality bout.

Berdych fired 17 aces, but also piled up 56 unforced errors and had his serve broken five times, compared to only two breaks he tallied against the Spanish strongman.

"Happy with how I finished match physically, I was able to keep running with high intensity," Nadal said.

The four-time Aussie Open champion Federer, meanwhile, handled del Potro in just 1 hour, 59 minutes, as the super Swiss recorded 38 winners to send the Argentine home after he reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal since the '09 U.S. Open.

"We have played some big matches against each other, so just knowing how well he's been playing as of late, I was just hoping that I would get off a good start," Federer said. "I was able to mix it up well and control the ball, and right away sort of felt confident."

Federer, who hasn't won a Grand Slam event since titling here in Melbourne two years ago, has yet to drop a set at this latest Aussie fortnight.

The 25-year-old Nadal and Federer will meet for a 27th time, with the Spaniard leading the all-time series 17-9. Nadal is 7-2 in their Grand Slam meetings, including wins in their last four matchups. The two stalwarts have met in a record eight major finals, with Nadal winning six of them.

Nadal topped Federer in a compelling 2009 Aussie Open finale.

The other quarterfinals will be staged on Wednesday, as current world No. 1 Novak Djokovic will face fifth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer and fourth-seeded Andy Murray will take on 24th-seeded Japanese Kei Nishikori.

Djokovic is 6-5 lifetime against Ferrer, who titled in Auckland two weeks ago and is a perfect 8-0 this season.

The high-flying Djokovic beat Murray in last year's Aussie final to capture his second title here in four years. The four-time major champion is also the reigning Wimbledon and U.S. Open titlist.

Murray, who titled in Brisbane three weeks ago, is a three-time major runner- up, including a loss to Federer in the 2010 Aussie Open finale.

Djokovic has won 36 of his last 38 Grand Slam matches and is seeking a third straight major title. A title this week would put him in select company, as only four players -- Laver, Pete Sampras, Federer and Nadal -- have captured three straight Grand Slam championships in the Open Era (since 1968).

Nishikori is the first Japanese man to reach the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam event since Shuzo Matsuoka in 1995 (Wimbledon) and he's also the first Japanese man in 80 years to advance to the Aussie Open quarters, since Ryosuki Nunoi and Jiro Satoh turned the trick way back in 1932.

Djokovic, Nadal and Federer have combined to win seven of the last eight Aussie Open titles.

Ganespot Tennis Betting News

<< Federer disposes of del Potro, reaches Aussie semis
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third-seeded Roger Federer cruised past 11th-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro in straight sets Tuesday to reach the semifinals of the Australian Open. Federer handled the Argentine 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in a mere

<< Gay, Grizzlies rally to beat Warriors
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rudy Gay scored 23 points and the Memphis Grizzlies erased an 18-point point deficit in the fourth quarter to extend their winning streak to seven with a 91-90 comeback victory over the Warriors. Memp

<< Oilers top Sharks in shootout
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Taylor Hall scored in the fourth round of the shootout to lift the Edmonton Oilers to a 2-1 win over the San Jose Sharks. In the fourth round, Hall faked to the backhand and was able to lift the puck past Th

<< Kings chase Anderson, beat Senators
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Clifford had a goal and an assist while Jonathan Quick turned aside 27 shots to lift the Los Angeles Kings to a 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators. Jack Johnson, Trevor Lewis and Willie Mitchell

<< Crawford helps Portland get past Sacramento
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamal Crawford had 26 points off the bench, Gerald Wallace scored 20 and the Portland Trail Blazers continued to win against the Sacramento Kings, beating them 101-89 on Monday night. The Trail Blaze

Blue Jays ink Morrow to three-year deal >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays have signed pitcher Brandon Morrow to a three-year contract worth $20 million with a club option for 2015. Morrow was 11-11 with a 4.27 earned run average and 203 strikeouts

Murray State's moment in the spotlight >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kentucky has always been a state shaped by its basketball. The wide fields serving as the outer boundaries to hardwood sandlots carved on God's ground, where games have been played dawn to dusk. It's n

Bryans reach Aussie semis >>
Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The world No. 1 twin Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike, were hard-fought doubles quarterfinal winners Tuesday at the Australian Open. The Bryans snuck past a sixth-seeded Polish team of Mariusz Fyr

Aztecs collide with Cowboys in MWC affair >>
Laramie, WY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the top teams in the Mountain West Conference collide in Laramie this evening, as the 13th-ranked San Diego State Aztecs take on the Wyoming Cowboys at Arena-Auditorium. Steve Fisher's Aztecs are sitting

Top-ranked Kentucky takes act on the road against Georgia >>
Athens, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Back at the top of the national polls, the Kentucky Wildcats put an 11-game win streak on the line this evening, as they take on the Georgia Bulldogs in SEC action at Stegeman Coliseum. The Wildcats moved to 5-0

Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.