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03/09/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It is the usual suspects that are destined to do the most damage in Las Vegas this week, as the members of the Mountain West Conference descend on the Thomas & Mack Center for the 11th annual conference tournament.
All season long there was a tug-of-war going on between New Mexico and BYU and in the end the Lobos (28-3, 14-2) won out and captured the regular-season title and the top seed in this event, while the Cougars (28-4, 13-3) continued to fight hard and placed second in the standings. Both UNLV and San Diego State had their moments, but the inconsistency from game-to-game meant that investing too much faith in either program would certainly break one's heart. As a result, each team finished at 11-5 in conference, with the tie-breaker going to the host team in this event and the Aztecs being the fourth seed.
Any one of the four aforementioned programs have a strong chance of raising the trophy and earning the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and by the same token, the other five teams in the MWC are long shots to get beyond the quarterfinal round on Thursday.
Actually, the tourney begins on Wednesday when ninth-seeded Air Force and eighth-seeded Wyoming clash in the desert. The Falcons (9-20, 1-15) started off the season well enough with four wins in five games, but even the academy couldn't convince itself that victories over Western State, Dickinson State, Charleston Southern and NC Central were worthy statements to say that the team had finally arrived. In fact, the Falcons won just five games from then on and just one in conference, against Wyoming at home as it were. Air Force, one of the lowest-scoring teams in the nation with a mere 56.7 ppg, again had a strong defense as it allowed just 63.5 ppg, but there were just too many times when Air Force was overwhelmed and outplayed. Grant Parker finished the season scoring 12.9 ppg, but because he did not participate in 75 percent of the squad's games he failed to earn a spot in the league's top-20 in scoring.
As for the Cowboys (10-20, 3-13), losing Afam Muojeke to injury prevented them from being competitive down the stretch. In fact, the team won just two games after he went down, and one of those was against Air Force last week at home. Wyoming is listed as the fourth-highest scoring team in the league with 71.7 ppg, but that is rather misleading given that the team cranked out a combined 243 points in just two games against Peru State and Adams State. Take away those two romps and the Pokes were less than ordinary, especially with the defense giving up a league-high 75 ppg in 2009-10. With A.J. Davis now out of action, that takes another 10.0 ppg off the books and leaves the Cowboys wondering what happened to their season.
Unfortunately, either Air Force or Wyoming is going to advance on Wednesday night, and when it does it will see nationally-ranked New Mexico waiting in the wings. As hyped as the Lobos are these days the Falcons and Cowboys, two teams that have still not won an MWC Tournament title, have to be somewhat confident seeing as how both programs took UNM to the brink at some point this season before being turned away. Because of some of those isolated struggles, the Lobos are third in the conference in scoring margin at plus-10.1 ppg, trailing both BYU and UNLV. What UNM does have going in its favor is senior leadership in Roman Martinez (14.1 ppg), and surprising input from newcomer Darington Hobson (15.8 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 143 assists). Because of Martinez and Hobson, the Lobos recently ranked as high as 33rd in the country with more than eight three-pointers per game. Add Dairese Gary (12.4 ppg) and Phillip McDonald (10.9 ppg) to the list of contributors and any one of them have the potential to take over a game and lead the Lobos to the next level.
Assuming New Mexico will make it out of the quarterfinals, waiting for the Lobos will be either fourth-seeded San Diego State or fifth-seeded Colorado State in the semis. The Aztecs (22-8, 11-5) lost both of their meetings against UNM during the regular season, but they too played a close game versus the Lobos later in the campaign and took them to overtime before bowing by a basket. Head coach Steve Fisher and his squad has a lot to prove after the team lost by two points in the title game last season to Utah and it begins by letting the rest of the league know that they will struggle to score points against the top defense in the MWC, with SDSU allowing just 61.8 ppg. Kawhi Leonard was a great addition to the Aztecs lineup this season, averaging 12.6 points and 9.6 rebounds per outing, although his mere 19.7 percent shooting from three-point range took some of the luster off his efforts. Malcolm Thomas (11.1 ppg, 7.9 rpg) was another key ingredient to the squad's success. However, the most frustrating aspect of the Aztecs is that they leave far too many points on the floor with a miserable 60.8 percent shooting at the free- throw line.
The Rams (16-14, 7-9) beat the teams that they should have in the conference, but at the same time had some truly awful efforts against the top-tier schools mixed in as well. CSU lost to the Aztecs by double digits in both regular- season meetings, so that in itself doesn't bode well for this group. Were it not for a 76-67 win over Utah on Saturday, Colorado State would be heading into the postseason with a lengthy losing streak. The offense for the Rams was not one to light up the scoreboard, producing just 66.3 ppg to rank second-to- last in the MWC ahead of only Air Force. Andy Ogide sits atop the scoring list for the team with his 11.9 ppg, having shot 54.2 percent from the field. He is also first on the glass with 6.6 rpg as well, but those numbers don't begin to make up for the fact that he delivered just 27 assists in 30 games. Dorian Green and Travis Franklin were responsible for 11.7 and 10.6 ppg, respectively, but even though the former accounted for a team-best 71 assists, there's no getting past his mere 35.0 percent shooting from the field.
Because the Lobos are the talk of the conference, the one team that might be able to fly under the radar somewhat is second-seeded BYU which has one of the top scoring threats in the nation in Jimmer Fredette. The Cougars, a unit with one of the largest scoring margins in all of college basketball this season at plus- 18.7 ppg, showed great balance on both offense and defense, which is why seventh-seeded TCU is in for a rude awakening in the desert this week.
BYU, which crushed the Horned Frogs (13-18, 5-11) in the regular-season finale on Saturday with a 107-77 rout in Fort Worth, was among the top scoring teams in the nation this season with 83.1 ppg and much of the credit goes to Fredette and his 20.6 ppg. A three-point specialist with his 47.2 percent accuracy out on the perimeter, Fredette showed great range and the ability to slash through defenses to get to the rim and force contact, so much so that he shot 171-of-194 at the free-throw line. When the shot wasn't there for Fredette he was more than happy to give up the ball and let a teammate share the spotlight, which is why he was able to tally a team-best 141 assists. Jackson Emery (12.6 ppg) and Tyler Haws (11.4 ppg) were also big contributors from the starting lineup, but the one player that many forget about is Jonathan Tavernari because he seemingly lost his touch in the early part of the season and then ended up coming off the bench. Tavernari (10.5 ppg) doesn't get much of the glory anymore, but he is no less important to this program.
TCU, just 1-4 in this tournament since joining the Mountain West a few years back, may have shown its true colors back on November 24th when it needed three overtime periods just to get past Texas State at home. Of the five wins the Frogs logged in conference play, four came against Air Force and Wyoming, just a few more reasons why BYU should feel comfortable in the quarterfinals. Ronnie Moss, one of the nation's leaders in assists with 185 over the course of 31 games, is also the leading scorer for the group with his 14.6 ppg. However, as crucial as Moss is to the offense, his 39.7 percent shooting from the field doesn't scare too many opponents. Imports Zvonko Buljan and Edvinas Ruzgas kick in another 12.4 and 10.7 ppg, respectively, the former also standing in to clear 8.6 rpg. Because he plays so well in the paint, one would think that Buljan would have been instructed to refrain from letting loose from three-point range where he is just 26.9 percent accurate. Because of size restrictions placed on Air Force players its understood that the Falcons will struggle on the glass and when it comes to blocked shots, but TCU was only fractions ahead of the academy in the latter category with just two rejections per game.
Always a favorite to come out on top in this tourney, especially since the games are played on their home floor, the third-seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels (23-7, 11-5) will be gunning for their fourth crown and the third in the last four years when they begin with a quarterfinals meeting against sixth-seeded Utah, the defending tournament champion. UNLV finished the regular season with the second-best scoring margin in the league with a plus-10.5 ppg, but the moment it looked like the Rebels were about to assert themselves in the conference they ended up dropping the ball. Following their crushing win over BYU the first week of February, the team turned around and promptly dropped three straight, so you have to wonder which version is going to show up for this tourney. Leading scorer Tre'Von Willis had his share of strong games for the group, averaged 20.3 ppg in MWC outings and was also second on the team overall with 103 assists, but all of that still didn't disguise the fact that he shot only 29.8 percent behind the three-point line. Chace Stanback (12.3 ppg) came on strong late in the campaign, but at the same time Oscar Bellfield (9.3 ppg) began to slow down.
A far cry from last year's team that ended up winning this tournament for the second time, the Utes (14-16, 7-9) were the worst in the conference when it came to turnover margin this season and that's just one of the reasons why Utah finished in the middle of the pack and was rather average all-around. Ranked seventh in the league in scoring, Carlon Brown (12.6 ppg) was the one who often appeared at the top of the scoring chart for the program, but what does it say about a team when the top scorer is someone who comes off the bench. Despite his freshman status, Marshall Henderson was also a factor on offense for the Utes with his 12.0 ppg, although his mere 37.5 percent shooting from the field left a lot to be desired. Putting up a tough defense was the one thing that kept the Utes in contention in so many outings, limiting teams to just 40.9 percent shooting from the field and 30.1 percent behind the three-point line, but the squad was desperate to still find offense of its own in order to succeed at a higher level.
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Terrell Owens will address the media at a 3:15 p.m. ET news conference outside the Cowboys' practice facility after an internal police report indicated he tried to kill himself by overdosing on prescription pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened.
The Dallas police report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"
Owens left the hospital late Wednesday morning, giving reporters a "thumbs up" but making no comment as he was driven away in an SUV.
Michael Irvin said that Owens denied he attempted suicide and said he was rushed to the hospital as a result of an adverse reaction to medication. And a source close to Owens told Michael A. Smith that Owens wasn't attempting suicide.
NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders said he spoke with Owens shortly before his release from the hospital and that Owens was in good spirits.
"The fact that it has been reported a suicide attempt, he's laughed at that notion. It was a case that medication that was taken wasn't accepted well in his system with the other vitamins he's on," Sanders said.
The series of events began a little before 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Owens' publicist, Kim Etheredge, said she was at Owens' home when he took pain medicine for his broken right hand. Concerned by how he began acting, Etheredge said in various interviews Wednesday with Dallas-area media that she called 911. Owens was taken to a hospital, with Etheredge saying it was an allergic reaction to the medicine.
But early Wednesday, several media outlets received a police report -- that had yet to be released by the authorities -- saying Owens had attempted suicide by overdosing on the painkillers, even putting two more pills into his mouth after an unidentified friend intervened.
The police document, first reported by WFAA-TV, said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"
When officially released by police, about half the document was blacked out, including the phrases "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication" and "a drug overdose," as well as the details of Owens having two pills pried from his mouth and Owens saying "Yes" when asked if he intended to harm himself.
Etheredge, who said she was the friend cited in the police document, told Dallas-area media Wednesday that the police got the story wrong.
The tape of the 911 call could help clear things up. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get its contents, but fire department officials said it would not be available before late Wednesday.
The police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.
The friend, who is not identified in the report, "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth," the police report said.
Using her fingers, the friend attempted to pry them out of Owens' mouth. Owens told police he had taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied before the incident.
Etheredge told the Star-Telegram that Owens was "fine."
Etheredge said she called 911 because Owens was groggy and lethargic. After taking some supplements "it kicked in a reaction" with the painkillers, she told the Star-Telegram.
"Here's a person whose body is so clean, it really had a negative reaction to the medication and supplements he was taking," Etheridge told The Morning News. "Thank goodness someone was there to call an ambulance."
Police Lt. Rick Watson said he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.
It is not a crime in Texas for a person to attempt suicide.
"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."
Watson and fire department spokesman Joel Lavender cited privacy laws for the lack of information they could provide. Lavender said more details could come from the 911 call. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get the contents of the call.
"Let's just look at the tape, review the tape," Lavender said. "I'll give you an honest answer once I know something."
At the police news conference, Watson released a version of the police narrative with certain sections blacked out. The full report was obtained by several news outlets and reported first by WFAA. The AP received the full version from WFAA.
According to the police report, Dallas Fire and Rescue was called regarding someone "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication." Officers arrived to find Owens being stabilized by ambulance workers, who then took him to Baylor University Medical Center.
Owens was hospitalized late Tuesday because of what his publicist said was an allergic reaction to pain medicine he was taking for a broken hand. Doctors reportedly tried to induce vomiting.
Owens, one of the league's top receivers during his 11-year NFL career, is best known for wild stunts on the field and other publicity-seeking antics off it.
When the Cowboys signed him to a $25 million, three-year deal in March, they said their background checks indicated no red flags. In fact, team consultant Calvin Hill -- who mostly deals with troubled players -- said during training camp that his department was not involved with Owens because he didn't have a history of those kinds of problems.
He missed most of training camp, and three of four preseason games, because of a hamstring injury. He was late for work during his recovery and was fined for it, but Owens laughed it off, saying he overslept. He said it had happened before, though not with Dallas, and would probably happen again.
Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger during a game a week ago Sunday. The next day, doctors screwed in a plate so the bone could heal without fear of further damage. Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said last week that the pain medicine made Owens ill.
Owens had not practiced since the injury, but because Dallas had a bye this past weekend he did not miss a game. He was expected to practice Wednesday, and Parcells had said there was a chance Owens could play Sunday against Tennessee.
Owens had been especially looking forward to the Cowboys' game after that -- Oct. 8, in Philadelphia, against the team that dumped him midway through last season only months after he helped them nearly win the Super Bowl.
Owens was seen laughing and joking on the practice field Tuesday morning. He chatted briefly with reporters in the locker room in the afternoon and seemed fine. A 2-inch scar on the top of his hand was puffy but not wrapped, and he said the swelling was doing down.
While in the locker room, he took a pill from a white paper bag and looked at another medicine bottle that was in the bag. He also called a business partner about a towel-wrap venture they're starting and joked to TV cameras that he wasn't talking until Wednesday and it was only Tuesday.
"My little boy knows better than that," he said, laughing, as he plopped onto a sofa in the middle of the locker room.
Also Tuesday, Owens was involved in launching a national campaign for the National Alliance to End Abuse, an organization aimed at helping at-risk youngsters. He appeared at a high school Tuesday morning and was scheduled to visit others but had to cancel because of changes in the team's practice schedule.
Owens has played two games for the Cowboys, catching nine passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. For updated football betting lines and Dallas Cowboy Superbowl odds visit online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
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