Artest leads Rockets past Kings in return to Sacramento

Basketball Betting Lines

04/10/2009 - Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ron Artest scored 26 points in his first visit back to Sacramento since being traded from the Kings in the offseason, as Houston rolled through the second half in a 115-98 triumph.

Yao Ming added 20 points and nine rebounds, while Luis Scola added 15 points and eight boards for the Rockets. Von Wafer donated 13 points and Shane Battier recorded 12 points and five rebounds in the win, Houston's third in a row.

Houston moved a half-game in front of idle San Antonio for first place in the Southwest Division with the victory. The Rockets also moved a half-game in front of idle Portland and the Spurs for third place in the Western Conference.

Spencer Hawes led Sacramento with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Andres Nocioni and Francisco Garcia contributed 17 points apiece. Jason Thompson added 16 points and 10 rebounds and Beno Udrih added 12 for the Kings, who have dropped six straight.

The Kings held steady through two quarters, going toe-to-toe with the playoff- bound Rockets. Sacramento took a 33-30 edge into the second stanza and a 54-49 advantage into the locker room.

However, in the third quarter, the Kings struggled. Hawes opened the third- period scoring with a three-pointer for a 57-49 advantage, but Houston came back with a 19-6 scoring stretch. In that long shift in momentum, the Rockets reeled off nine straight points capped by an Artest jumper, Yao slam and Artest three for a 68-63 lead.

Nocioni's two free throws brought the home-standing Kings within 74-72, but Houston scored the next seven points. The Rockets outscored Sacramento, 36-20, in the period to take a double-digit advantage, 85-74, into the final 12 minutes.

The Rockets ran out to a 93-74 lead on two Scola free throws, and the rout was on. Sacramento drained treys on three straight possessions to get within 96-83, but never put a major dent in the deficit the rest of the way.

Game Notes

The Rockets also swept the Kings in a pair of games in Houston this season...Houston snapped a three-game road losing streak and improved to 20-7 without Tracy McGrady...Sacramento made just 44 percent of its shots, while Houston connected on 54 percent of its shots and 11-of-21 three- pointers...Artest played for Sacramento in the later half of the 2005-06 season and the next two campaigns. In 167 games, he averaged 18.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

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According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

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Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

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