France tops Canada to take lead in Davis Cup

Tennis Betting Lines

02/11/2012 - Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra took down Canadians Daniel Nestor and Milos Raonic in straight sets, 7-6 (7-1), 7-6 (7-2), 6-3 to give France a 2-1 edge in the third rubber of a best-of- five tie in Davis Cup play at Thunderbird Sports Centre.

Benneteau and Llodra had the better of the play all match, winning 81 percent of first serve points, to just 71 percent for Nestor and Raonic. The French tandem also converted 2-of-8 break points and did a fantastic job holding serve as well. Nestor and Raonic had only three break-point opportunities and failed to record a break in the match.

The Canadian duo also committed 28 unforced errors to only 18 for the French side.

France took the opening rubber on Friday after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga made quick work of Vasek Pospisil, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3. Tsonga dominated throughout the match with 91 percent (41-of-45) of first serve points won, while breaking Pospisil five times.

Canada responded to tie things in Friday's nightcap after Raonic topped Benneteau in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, 7-5 on the strength of 24 aces, 89 percent (51-of-57) first serve points won and 4-of-7 break points won.

Play in this tie will continue on Sunday when Raonic battles Tsonga and Pospisil will take on Benneteau.

France owns nine Davis Cup titles, with its last one coming in 2001, while Canada has never reached a World Group final. France is 1-0 all-time against the Canadians, with the victory coming in Paris back in 1966.

The winner here will face the USA in the quarterfinals in April. The Americans surprisingly swept Switzerland this weekend.

Wwwsuperslots Tennis Betting News

<< Alabama suspends three players
Baton Rouge, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alabama has suspended three players, including leading forward JaMychal Green, for a violation of team rules. Green, who leads the Crimson Tide in scoring at 14.1 points per contest and in rebounding

<< Ragland, Wichita State coast past No. 17 Creighton
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Ragland had 24 points and six assists, as Wichita State downed No. 17 Creighton, 89-68, on Saturday. Ben Smith added 22 points while Toure' Murry and Demetric Williams had 11 apiece for the Shockers

<< No. 3 Connecticut dismantles No. 14 Georgetown
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scored 23 points, as No. 3 Connecticut dismantled No. 14 Georgetown, 80-38, on Saturday. Bria Hartley added 18 points and Tiffany Hayes had 12 for the Huskies (23-2, 11-1 Big East), w

<< Wi still leads; Tiger 4 back at Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Charlie Wi posted a bogey-free, three- under 69 Saturday to maintain his three-stroke lead after three rounds of the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Wi, who will go for his first PGA Tour win on Sunday, fini

<< Montana's Gregorak elevated to defensive coordinator
Missoula, MT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Montana assistant football coach Ty Gregorak was promoted to defensive coordinator, Grizzlies third-year head coach Robin Pflugrad announced Saturday. Gregorak, 33, rejoined the Montana program

Spartans snap Ohio State's long home win streak >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adreian Payne scored a team-high 15 points as No. 11 Michigan State handed third-ranked Ohio State its first home loss in almost two years with a 58-48 decision at Value City Arena. Keith Appling added 14

Baylor thumps Texas A&M to stay perfect >>
Waco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittney Griner dropped in a game-high 21 points to go with 10 rebounds and six blocks as top-ranked Baylor took care of business with a 71-48 victory over Texas A&M on Saturday. Odyssey Sims finishe

Pinceton continues home dominance of Harvard >>
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harvard's unbeaten mark in the Ivy League came to a halt Saturday night against a team they haven't solved on the road in more than 23 years. Ian Hummer scored 20 points, pulled down nine rebounds and h

Princeton continues home dominance of Harvard >>
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harvard's unbeaten mark in the Ivy League came to a halt Saturday night against a team they haven't solved on the road in more than 23 years. Ian Hummer scored 20 points, pulled down nine rebounds and h

Nuggets hold off Pacers >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ty Lawson scored 27 points to lead the Nuggets to a 113-109 win over the Pacers on Saturday. Denver had five scorers in double figures, including 23 points from Arron Afflalo and 19 from Corey B

Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.