Celtic claims 13th-straight league win

Soccer Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Celtic continued its stunning run of form Saturday, defeating Inverness, 1-0, at Parkhead to extend its winning streak in Scottish Premier League play to 13 games.

The Bhoys have not dropped points in Scotland's top flight since Oct. 29 when it was held to a 0-0 draw with Hibernian, and it hasn't lost a league match since Oct. 2 when it fell 2-0 to Hearts.

Neil Lennon's men have been on a roll since, winning 13 successive contests to overtake Rangers at the top of the table.

With Rangers also taking three points on Saturday after a 4-1 defeat of Dunfermline, the Premier League table remains unchanged with Celtic leading its fierce rival by four points.

Celtic needed only one goal to dispatch Inverness, and Joe Ledley provided that lone strike in the 16th minute.

The goal was slightly overshadowed by red cards issued to players on both squads, as Celtic's Daniel Majstorovic was sent off in the 60th minute before Steve Williams of Inverness picked up his second yellow card in the 78th minute.

But all that mattered for the home side at the end of the day was three points, which they earned through Ledley's early strike.

Celtic's 21st win of the season gives the club 65 points on the season, while Inverness remains third from bottom on just 26 points.

Rangers 4, Dunfermline 1

Dunfermline, Scotland - Rangers surrendered an early lead at Dunfermline on Saturday but battled back to claim a resounding 4-1 victory at East End Park.

Andy Kirk opened the scoring to shock the visitors in the 16th minute. Rangers responded quickly with goals in the 24th and 39th minutes from David Healy and Lee McCulloch respectively.

Rangers extended the lead and secured the victory in second-half play with goals from Sone Aluko and Salim Kerkar.

The Gers keep pace with league-leaders Celtic, sitting four points of the pace with 61 points on the season. Dunfermline remains in the cellar of Scotland's top tier with 18 points.

Dundee United 5, St. Johnstone 1

Perth, Scotland - Dundee United handed St. Johnstone its second-straight league defeat in stunning fashion, trouncing the fifth-place club, 5-1, at McDiarmid Park on Saturday.

A pair of own goals gifted the visitors the lead as Steven Anderson conceded the opener in the 35th minute before Callum Davidson gave away another in the 61st minute.

Anderson made amends by pulling a goal back in the 66th, but Dundee responded with three more goals through Johnny Russell, Jon Daly, and Milos Lacny.

Dundee moves into the top half of the table on 30 points where it sits five points behind St. Johnstone.

Kilmarnock 1, Hearts 1

Kilmarnock, Scotland - Hearts earned a dramatic point on the road, grabbing a 90th minute goal as it played to a 1-1 draw with Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Saturday.

Paul Heffernan thought he handed Killie the win with a 79th-minute goal, but it was canceled out late on by Suso Santana as the Spanish winger helped Hearts earn a share of the points.

Hearts improve to 36 points in fourth place, while Killie remains in eighth place after drawing its second straight match.

Hibernian 0, Aberdeen 0

Edinburgh, Scotland - Hibernian was held scoreless at home as it played to a 0-0 draw with Aberdeen at Easter Road on Saturday.

Hibs, sitting second from bottom, have managed just one point from it last three Scottish league games.

Aberdeen has fared much better as it extended its unbeaten streak to five games.

St. Mirren 0, Motherwell 0

Paisley, Scotland - St. Mirren and Motherwell played to a 0-0 draw in a stalemate at St. Mirren Park on Saturday.

With its second-straight draw, St. Mirren improves to 28 points on the season, good enough for ninth place in the Scottish Premier League.

Motherwell, unbeaten in its last four, sits third in the league on 42 points.

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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.