Robinson upsets Howard in Dunk Contest

Basketball Betting Lines

02/14/2009 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York's Nate Robinson earned 52 percent of the fans' votes to edge defending champion Dwight Howard, of Orlando, in the 2009 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

Howard's final two dunks received a great roar from the crowd and appeared to give the big man the upper-hand in the competition. The first dunk had Howard stationed behind the hoop at the right corner. He ran in towards the basket, threw the ball off the side of the backboard and caught it before slamming home a one-handed beauty. His second attempt was a dunk from the foul line, though some aura was taken away as replays showed his foot to be over the line.

Robinson's first dunk in the final round saw the 5-foot-9 guard, wearing an all green Knicks uniform, throw a lob pass from the left wing, run up and catch it with two hands before bringing the ball between his legs and then over his head for a reverse slam. Robinson's second effort was a one-handed slam over Howard.

After the fans' votes were tallied, Robinson was deemed the slam dunk champion, a title he also claimed in 2006.

J.R. Smith's first dunk, where he threw himself a pass while standing at mid-court and then caught it and slammed it down with a windmill, earned him a score of 43. Smith's second dunk saw his Denver teammate Sonny Weems throw a pass from the stands that he caught and turned into a two-handed slam, which garnered 42 points for a total of 85.

Rudy Fernandez' first dunk was a behind-the-back pass off the backboard into a one-handed slam, and it earned him a 42. His second effort, with help from Pau Gasol of the Lakers, garnered him another 42 for a total score of 84. Gasol tossed the ball off the back of the backboard and Fernandez came running from the right side, caught it and threw down a one-handed reverse slam.

Portland's Fernandez and Smith failed to make it out of the first round.

Robinson offered a windmill dunk for his first dunk and used teammate Wilson Chandler for his second. The latter had Chandler on his hands and knees as Robinson ran in and used him as a step for a one-handed slam. Robinson's first-round total was 87, good for a trip to the second round.

Howard displayed a one-handed slam on his opening dunk and recruited teammate Jameer Nelson for the next. The spectacle that was Howard's second dunk had officials bring in a new backboard and hoop -- which were set a bit higher at 12 feet -- and then the 6-foot-11 Howard came out of a phone booth donning a Superman cape. The act was an homage to last year's event when he won while wearing a Superman cape.

The actual dunk was set up as Nelson threw a pass off the backboard that Howard caught before slamming a two-handed dunk home. His first two dunks were both scored at a perfect 50, setting up the dramatic final round.

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Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back

With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.

"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."

Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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