Heat host Raptors in matinee affair

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02/05/2012 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh said a few days ago it's important for this team to make the essential adjustments following a loss.

"If we lose one or two, we need to make the necessary adjustments, get it done and cut that down," Bosh told the Miami Herald. "That's the next step."

Bosh, his teammates and the coaching staff aired their grievances and offered suggestions on what they can do to make this team better after blowing a lead against Milwaukee in Wednesday's 105-97 loss. The meeting of the minds worked in a big win at Philadelphia Friday night and the Heat look to build off of that triumph in a Super Bowl matinee this afternoon versus Toronto. The New England Patriots will face the New York Giants tonight in Super Bowl XLVI.

The Heat are back in south Florida following their two-day sojourn and will host both the Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers. Winners in nine of their last 11 games, the Heat recorded a 99-79 victory over the pesky 76ers at a packed Wells Fargo Center and were led by Dwyane Wade's 26 points. LeBron James turned in another solid performance with 19 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for Miami, which used a 27-8 run to start the fourth quarter and outscored the Sixers by a 32-16 margin in the final stanza.

"The most important thing is that this team improved in 48 hours," Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said. "This was a very good team win against a very good team that has been playing well."

Mario Chalmers and Bosh scored 13 and 12 points, respectively, while Mike Miller also had 12 points and Norris Cole added 11 in the win. The Heat shot 51.9 percent and aim for a fifth straight win at home Sunday. They are 10-2 as the host and own a 1 1/2-game lead over Atlanta for the top spot in the Southeast Division. Miami is 12-3 versus the Eastern Conference this season and sports a 5-0 mark against Atlantic Division inhabitants. It has won nine in a row against teams from that division during the regular season.

A win today for the Heat would match their best 24-game start to a season since an 18-6 ledger in both the 1996-97 and 1998-99 campaigns. Another victory would also put them a season-high 12 games above the .500 mark. James is the best candidate to make that happen and is the only player in the NBA to average at least 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists per game. He has posted at least 15 points, five rebounds and five assists in 25 straight games, and only one other player in league history has registered those numbers in at least that many contests. Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson turned the trick on three other occasions.

Robertson, named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA history in 1996, had a 26-game streak in the 1962-63 season and two years later accomplished the feat in a league-best 29 consecutive contests (1964-65). "The Big O" had a 25-gamer in the 1963-64 season.

Meanwhile, the Raptors have won four of their last seven games since a grueling eight-game losing streak and will play back-to-back road games against Miami and Washington. They are just 5-10 away from home this season.

Toronto is coming off of Friday's 106-89 win over the Wizards at Air Canada Centre, as Leandro Barbosa scored a team-best 19 points and Amir Johnson posted 18 points and 13 rebounds. Barbosa was able to shake off flu-like symptoms and missed the team's shootaround.

"It feels good, it was a breakout game for me," Johnson said. "I talked to coach, he told me just to be patient and just play."

James Johnson netted 13 points and Jose Calderon collected eight and a game- high 17 assists for the Raptors, who had a lopsided 61-37 advantage in rebounds and bounced back from a 100-64 loss at Boston on Wednesday. The 61 boards were a franchise record in regulation. Toronto had 65 rebounds in an overtime game against New York back on March 21, 1999.

Toronto's bench scored a season-high 68 points against Washington. The team can match their road win total of last season (6) with an improbable triumph Sunday against the Heat. Raptors center Andrea Bargnani missed his 11th game of the season with a nagging calf injury. Toronto is 2-9 without Bargnani, who is out indefinitely and leads the team with 23.5 points in 13 games.

The Raptors lost all four meetings with the Heat last season and are winless in the previous five contests in this series. Toronto has also lost four straight and nine of 12 trips to south Florida. Raptors forward DeMar DeRozan is averaging 16.0 points in seven career games against Miami, while James is posting 27.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.6 assists in 28 career matchups with Toronto. Wade is averaging 27.5 ppg in 21 career games in this series.

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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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