Third-quarter drought dooms Hawks

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02/21/2007 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta went through the definition of futile in the third quarter, ending the period without a field goal, as the Chicago Bulls widened a halftime edge and rolled to a 106-81 rout of the Hawks at the United Center.

Atlanta made eight free throws during the period, not making a field goal for 14:06 spanning three periods. Chicago outscored the Hawks 28-8 in the decisive period, and opened a 76-51 lead at the stanza's conclusion.

"In the third quarter, we couldn't make a shot," Hawks head coach Mike Woodson said. "I thought we had good looks, but they got on a nice roll and we continued to not make shots."

The Bulls have owned the Hawks of late, winning their 10th straight in the series. Atlanta's last victory occurred on April 9, 2004 at the United Center, but a Chicago victory in the last season meeting would result in three straight season sweeps.

Chris Duhon scored a game-high 17 points with seven assists, Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng added 16 points apiece and Malik Allen donated 12 points for Chicago, which snapped a brief two-game losing streak.

Josh Childress scored 16 points with seven boards and Marvin Williams added 12 points with six rebounds for the Hawks, who have lost two of three.

Atlanta was positioned nicely entering the third quarter, trailing just 48-43, before going the entire period without a basket from the floor. The Hawks finished the stanza 0-for-16 from the field.

"We were good (on defense) and they just missed some shots," said Chicago head coach Scott Skiles. "When they had opportunities, we fouled them and they weren't able to get the shot off."

P.J. Brown's free throws capped 10 in a row out of the halftime gates for a 58-43 edge, then a Ben Wallace tip-in made the score 70-47 with 2:15 on the clock.

The Bulls cruised to victory from there.

Chicago led 26-19 after one quarter before Atlanta cut into the deficit. It drew within two points multiple times in the second quarter, the last coming at 34-32 on Childress' jumper with 6:29 remaining.

Game Notes

Ben Gordon left the game with a left thigh bruise and could have returned if the game was close. Gordon finished with six points on 3-of-11 from the floor...Chicago improved to 21-7 at home this season, while Atlanta fell to 12-17 on the road...The Bulls held a 51-40 edge on the glass.

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.