Miami's Pat Riley returns to bench in Houston

Basketball Betting Lines

02/21/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat welcome head coach Pat Riley back to the bench tonight when they travel to Houston to battle the Rockets at the Toyota Center.

Riley announced before the Heat's 104-85 win over Portland last Tuesday he would return after the All-Star break. Assistant Ron Rothstein took over in Riley's place and compiled a 13-9 mark. Miami is 13-17 under Riley this year.

Riley stepped aside from his duties on January 3rd because of health related issues. He was suffering from knee and hip conditions, both of which required surgery.

Dwyane Wade poured in 25 points in the win over Portland despite suffering a bruised left shoulder. He suffered the injury when colliding with the Trail Blazers' Joel Przybilla before landing on top of him.

He left the game, but did return and had 16 points in the final period. He is not expected to miss anytime with the ailment, and even netted 10 points with six steals in the East's 153-132 setback over the weekend.

Teammate Shaquille O'Neal added 10 points and six boards for the East on Sunday.

In other All-Star game festivities, Miami's Jason Kapono captured the Three- Point Shootout, while Wade repeated as the Skills Challenge champion.

The Heat have won seven of their last eight games to get back to .500 (26-26) and are 4 1/2 games back of Washington for the lead in the Southeast Division. The club currently is tied for seventh overall in the conference with Orlando and is 11-16 on the road this year.

Miami will play in Dallas on Thursday.

Houston is concluding a four-game homestand tonight. The Rockets fell to 2-1 on the stand after an 80-77 setback against Dallas last Thursday.

Tracy McGrady scored 27 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for the Rockets, are 19-7 as the host this year. Juwan Howard scored 14 points for Houston, and Shane Battier added 11 points.

McGrady represented Houston in Las Vegas over the weekend and had eight points and 11 assists in the West's win.

Houston center Yao Ming was voted into the game, but didn't play and is still expected to miss another 2-3 weeks because of a fracture bone under his right knee.

The Rockets are currently fifth overall in the west and are 10 1/2 games off the pace in the Southwest Division.

Houston captured the first meeting between the two teams this year to snap a two-game overall losing streak in the series. The Rockets, though, have dropped four of their last six at home against Miami.

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2007 Academy Award Betting : Oscars odds

The 79th Annual Academy Awards odds , which will air February 25th, is sparking an interest throughout the nation with the announcement of its nominees. As the public chooses their favorites, sportsbooks are creating odds for one of the biggest entertainment betting nights of the year.

Whether its at a “Oscar Party” or in an on line sportsbook, entertainment gambling on award shows represent a huge increase in betting. As the public speculation mounts, MySportsbook.com, the largest and most respected sportsbook on the web, posted odds on who is going home with a “Golden Best Friend.”

“ We see a majority of our entertainment wagers come from the Academy Awards,” said MySportsbook.com spokesperson, Tim Dalton. “This is a competition that applies to everyone. These are the people that entertain us on a daily basis and you want to see them win.”

MySportsbook.com posted the following odds for Academy Awards:

Odds to win the Achievement in Directing:

Alejandro González Iñárritu "Babel": 8/1

Martin Scorsese "The Departed": 2/17

Clint Eastwood "Letters From Iwo Jima: 4/1

Stephen Frears "The Queen": 12/1

Paul Greengrass "United 93": 15/1

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:

Leonardo DiCaprio in "Blood Diamond": 11/1

Ryan Gosling in "Half Nelson": 20/1

Peter O’Toole in "Venus": 16/5

Will Smith in "The Pursuit of Happyness": 16/1

Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland": 1/11

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:

Penélope Cruz in "Volver": 18/1

Judi Dench in "Notes on a Scandal": 15/1

Helen Mirren in "The Queen": 1/50

Meryl Streep in "The Devil Wears Prada": 10/1

Kate Winslet in "Little Children": 20/1

Best Animated Feature Film:

"Cars": 1/3

"Happy Feet": 2/1

"Monster House": 20/1

Best Foreign-Language Film of the Year:

"Water" – Canada: 22/1

"The Lives of Others" – Germany: 7/2

"After the Wedding" - Denmark: 24/1

"Days of Glory (Indigenes)" – Algeria: 23/1

"Pan's Labyrinth" - Mexico: 1/10

Odds to win the Best Live-Action Short Film:

"Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)": 6/5

"Eramos Pocos (One Too Many)": 7/2

"Helmer & Son": 5/2

"The Saviour": 6/1

"West Bank Story": 7/2

Odds to win the Best Original Screenplay:

"Babel": 7/4

"Letters From Iwo Jima": 3/1

"Little Miss Sunshine": 21/20

"Pan's Labyrinth": 11/4

"The Queen": 5/4

Best Motion Picture of the Year:

"Babel": 11/4

"The Departed": 1/2

"Letters from Iwo Jima": 15/2

"Little Miss Sunshine": 17/10

"The Queen": 20/1

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:

Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 11/10

Jackie Earle Haley in "Little Children": 10/1

Djimon Hounsou in "Blood Diamond": 9/1

Eddie Murphy in "Dreamgirls": 2/5

Mark Wahlberg in "The Departed": 5/1

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:

Adriana Barraza in "Babel": 14/1

Cate Blanchett in "Notes on a Scandal": 11/1

Abigail Breslin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 2/1

Jennifer Hudson in "Dreamgirls": 1/8

Rinko Kikuchi in "Babel": 11/1

Film To Win Most Oscars:

Dreamgirls: 2/3

Pans Labyrinth: 6/5

The Departed: 6/1

The Queen: 11/1

Babel: 15/1

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: 11/1

Little Miss Sunshine: 15/1


Additional sports and entertainment odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.