Titans seek upset of 13th-ranked Golden Bears

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11/11/2009 - Berkeley, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trying to win their first true season-opening road game since 1977, the Detroit Titans make their way to Haas Pavilion in Berkeley tonight where they will contend against 13th-ranked California in the 2K Sports Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.

Under the direction of head coach Ray McCallum, now in his second season with the Titans, the team is trying to bounce back from a very difficult 2008-09 campaign in which they won a grand total of just seven games. The Titans were a mere 2-16 versus the rest of the Horizon League and failed to win back-to- back games at any point during the season. Detroit comes into 2009-10 suffering from a seven-game slide.

As for the Golden Bears, this is their second game in three nights after opening the season with a narrow 75-70 win against Murray State at home. Last season, this team opened with five straight wins and lost only twice before the second week of January, so the group has a track record of winning early. Head coach Mike Montgomery became the third straight Cal head coach to tally at least 20 wins in his first season in Berkeley, returning the Bears to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005-06 in the process.

With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, Cal won the only previous meeting with a rousing 32-28 decision back during the 1937-38 campaign.

This version of the Titans figures to be guided by both Eli Holman and Thomas Kennedy, a couple of preseason all-conference picks who have a lot to prove. Kennedy is second on this team in double-figure scoring games for his career with 16, trailing only Eulis Stephens who is one of the top returning scorer for the program after putting up a meager 8.1 ppg a year ago. Unfortunately, even though Stephens put up some points, he did so at the expense of 39.5 percent shooting from the field and a miserable 26.3 percent behind the three- point line. As a unit, the Titans ranked second-to-last among 330 Division I programs in scoring a year ago, producing a meager 56.5 ppg. Although the team failed to qualify for the category, Detroit made a paltry 27.6 percent from three-point range, averaging just over three made baskets per outing. Xavier Keeling (12.4 ppg, 6.6 rpg) figures to be another important piece to the Detroit puzzle while Holman, a transfer from Indiana, should pay dividends at some point.

Cal played an up-and-down game versus the Racers two nights ago, managing to get to the free-throw line 17 more times than the visitors, but missing 10 of its 32 opportunities. The Bears forced 17 Murray State turnovers in 40 minutes of action, but at the same time also allowed the Racers to convert an even 50 percent from the field. Except for Markhuri Sanders-Frison who was limited to six points and seven rebounds in just 19 minutes of action, every starter for the team finished with double digits, beginning with Jerome Randle with his 18 points. Theo Robertson tallied 14 points, Patrick Christopher had 13 and Jamal Boykin another dozen in the close call. The good news for this team is that the three top scorers from last season are all back as Randle (18.3 ppg), Christopher (14.5 ppg) and Robertson (13.1 ppg) all return to make another run that will hopefully be more successful and more fulfilling. In addition to being a point producer, Randle also finished last season ranked 39th in the nation in assists with an even five per contest. Three-point shooting was critical for this group in 2008-09 when it ranked first in the nation at 42.7 percent.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.