Saturday, December
16, 2006

 

Bowls are here. Approved
sportsbooks are at www.linetrackers.com
  

Creighton-Fresno

Press Notes

Fresno State
prepares for one home game this week against Creighton at 7 p.m. Saturday, December 16 at the Save
Mart Center.
The Bulldogs are coming off three consecutive road games, going 2-1 against Oregon
State, UC
Santa Barbara and Montana State.
Fresno State
returns home and will play its next six games at the SMC. The Bulldogs carry an
8-1 record into Saturday’s game, while the Bluejays
are 4-2. Fresno State
holds a 0-5 all-time record against Creighton, including a 67-62 loss last
season in Omaha in the Bulldogs’
ESPN Bracket Buster game. Saturday’s game will mark the first time in history
that Creighton will visit Fresno.

Cincinnati-Ohio State

Press Notes

The University
of Cincinnati faces its first Top
25-ranked foe of the season when the Bearcats clash with No. 4 Ohio State on
Saturday at the John Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis,
Ind. Cincinnati
enters the game with a 7-2 record following Wednesday’s 67-57 win over crosstown rival Xavier. The Bearcats’ two losses were by a
combined total of three points. Ohio State
is 8-1. The Buckeyes have been idle since last Saturday’s 78-57 win over Cleveland
State.

Akron-Illinois Chicago

Press Notes

The Flames sit at 5-5 on the year and are a perfect 3-0 at
home. UIC has had a week off for final exams after
dropping a hard-fought decision to Illinois
last Saturday at the United Center, 71-66. This is the start of a rigorous
stretch for UIC. The Flames will play four games in
the next seven days with stops after Saturday’s tilt with Akron
at Mississippi (Dec. 19) and Penn
(Dec. 21), before returning home to take on Illinois
State (Dec. 23). The Zips come into
their showdown with UIC riding a six-game winning
streak and are 3-0 in road games this year. Akron
has shot better than 50 percent from the field in each of its seven contests
this year and boasts a team shooting percentage of .521.

Bowling Green-Wright State

Press Notes

The Wright State
University men’s basketball team,
after opening with six of seven games on the road, will host Bowling Green. The Raiders, now
3-4, defeated the Falcons last year at Bowling Green 70-51.

Sunday, December 17,
2006

 

NFL

Jets-Vikings

Journal News

Jets QB Chad Pennington has a career-high 15
interceptions, including four in the last two games. Pennington and the Jets’
passing game will be crucial Sunday at Minnesota
because the Vikings’ defense is allowing an NFL-low 54.1 rushing yards per
game.

Browns-Ravens

Gainesville Sun

The Ravens (10-3) lead the division by two games over Cincinnati
and if they win Sunday and the Bengals lose at Indianapolis
on Monday night, will be division champions for the second time in team
history. Baltimore also won the
division in 2003, the last time it made the playoffs. Even if Baltimore
loses to Cleveland (4-9), something
that doesn’t happen very often, it can still clinch a playoff spot through a
multitude of other scenarios. Since leaving Cleveland
for Baltimore after the 1995
season, the Ravens are 10-5 against the team that replaced them. The Ravens
have won six of their last seven games and are tied with Indianapolis
for the second-best record in the AFC. Baltimore
is 5-1 at M&T Bank Stadium this season and has
won 15 of its last 19 home games in December. As the
Ravens continue to win, quarterback Steve McNair seems to grow more comfortable
in the offense. He has completed 68.1 percent of his passes and thrown for
eight touchdowns in his last seven games, and didn’t throw an interception in
six of those contests. McNair has thrown nine touchdowns passes and only one
interception in his last five starts against the Browns, posting a 98.6 passer
rating. The Ravens are first in the NFL in total defense, allowing 268.1 yards
per game. Baltimore has allowed a league-low 170 points and has held Cleveland to 14 points or less in 10 of their 15 all-time meetings. The
Browns, who have lost eight consecutive road games to division opponents, are
trying to avoid a winless season against AFC North teams.

Dolphins-Bills

Gainesville Sun

Miami and Buffalo,
both 6-7, resurfaced in the crowded conference race after convincing victories
over East opponents last Sunday. Neither team can clinch a berth with a win
this week, but both can improve their positioning. The Dolphins, who have won
five of their last six games, recorded their first shutout in six seasons with
a 21-0 home victory over division-leading New England
last Sunday. It was the 10^th time this season that Miami
has held an opponent to 20 points or fewer. Taylor
and safety Yeremiah Bell combined for 15 tackles and
two sacks as Miami’s second-ranked
defense held the Patriots to a season-low 189 yards. The Dolphins allow 278.2
yards per game.

Steelers-Panthers

Steelers.com

The Steelers know they have an uphill battle if they are
going to get into the post-season, as they not only have to win their last
three games, but a variety of other things have to happen as well.