Bulls open homestand against Kings

Basketball Betting Lines

02/14/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Back home after a successful and lengthy road trip, the Central Division-leading Chicago Bulls are scheduled to play their next six games on familiar territory and will host the Sacramento Kings tonight.

The Bulls own an Eastern Conference-best 23-7 record -- the fourth-best start in franchise history -- and went 6-3 on the nine-game road trip which was culminated by a 95-91 loss in Boston on Sunday. Celtics guard Rajon Rondo posted a triple-double with 32 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds, while the Bulls were led by 22 points from both Carlos Boozer and C.J. Watson. Watson filled in for an injured Derrick Rose for a second straight game and is averaging 15.6 points and 6.4 assists in five starts this season.

"Our energy wasn't there tonight," Rose said after the loss. "We didn't pick up our energy to the full court."

Rose has missed back-to-back games with an ailing lower back and the team is 5-2 without him in the lineup this season. An MRI revealed no structural damage and the reigning MVP is listed as day-to-day for a Chicago team that had a five-game winning streak stopped in Boston. Rose has also missed time this season because of a toe injury and is averaging 22.0 points, 7.8 assists and 3.4 rebounds in 23 games.

Joakim Noah tallied 16 points and nine rebounds for Chicago, which will also welcome the Celtics, Nets, Hawks, Bucks and Hornets to the United Center on the upcoming homestand and is 9-1 as the host. Dating back to last season, the Bulls are 45-6 (.882) in the Second City. The Bulls have been perfect this season when scoring 100-plus points, going 11-0 when doing so.

Sacramento will head east to begin a six-game road trip tonight and is only 3-12 away from California's capital this season. It will also makes stops in New York, Detroit, Cleveland, Miami and Washington, and had won four of five games until dropping a 98-84 decision versus Phoenix on Saturday.

DeMarcus Cousins and Marcus Thornton scored 26 and 21 points, respectively, for the Kings, who made just 35.1 percent of their shots and also received nine rebounds out of Cousins.

"They play well as a team," Kings forward Chuck Hayes said about the Suns. "Everybody plays with their man, they play their strengths, nobody tries anything extra and they actually play really hard."

The Kings are currently bottom feeders in the Pacific Division. Cousins has recorded 17 double-doubles this season (third-most in the NBA), while Thornton is averaging 19.7 ppg in his previous six contests. Tyreke Evans scored four points versus Phoenix after averaging 21.4 ppg in the previous seven games.

The Kings lost to the Bulls by a 108-98 score back on Dec. 29 this season at home, as Rose dropped 19 points and dished out eight assists to lead his team to victory. Cousins finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds in that one for the Kings, losers in three straight and six of the past seven matchups in this series. Sacramento, however, is 8-4 in its past 12 trips to the Windy City.

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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.