Hoiberg returns to Iowa State

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

04/28/2010 - Ames, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fred Hoiberg was introduced Wednesday as the new men's basketball coach at Iowa State and called the return to his alma mater "a dream come true."

Hoiberg, who starred for the Cyclones in the 1990s, agreed to a five-year contract with a base salary of $800,000 on Tuesday.

"It's a Hollywood script for me to take the reins of a program that I cheered for as a kid, played for as a collegian and followed closely for more than a decade as an alum," said Hoiberg on Wednesday.

The 37-year-old Hoiberg played for Iowa State from 1991-95 and then spent 10 years in the NBA, with stops in Indiana, Chicago and Minnesota. He averaged 5.4 points over a 541-game career.

Hoiberg received the nickname "The Mayor" when he received a write-in vote for the Ames, Iowa mayoral race. He was honored as Mr. Basketball in Iowa for 1991 and the following season he enrolled at Iowa State.

The Cyclones won 78 games and played in three NCAA Tournaments in his career. He is the school's third all-time leading scorer with 1,993 points and his No. 32 jersey was retired in 1997.

"We are all familiar and proud of the distinguished career of Fred," said school president Dr. Gregory Geoffroy. "Bringing an All-American -- both in the classroom and on the basketball court -- back to our staff is cause for celebration and it's even more thrilling since he is a native son."

Hoiberg served as the assistant general manager with the Timberwolves for three seasons after retiring from the NBA in 2006 and spent the past year as the team's vice president of basketball operations, but apparently had previously campaigned for the Iowa State position.

"Four years ago, Fred expressed interest in our head coaching position and he's been on my short list ever since," said Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard. "It did not take very long for me to see his passion, his quiet confidence and his plan to have success in our men's basketball program. Based upon his personal experiences, Fred is better equipped and positioned than anyone to take the reins of this program."

Iowa State needed a replacement for Greg McDermott, who left Monday to take the head coaching job at Creighton. He spent the past four seasons as head coach of the Cyclones, going 15-17 a year ago with a 4-12 record in the Big 12, and was 59-68 overall since arriving in Ames in 2006.

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Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook

Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds.  The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.

Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.

Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).

Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.

World Series odds

Adam Dunn 15-1

Albert Pujols 5-1

Alex Rodriguez 12-1

Alfonso Soriano 15-1

Andruw Jones 25-1

Barry Bonds 50-1

Carlos Delgado 40-1

David Ortiz 8-1

Jermaine Dye 40-1

Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1

Lance Berkman 40-1

Manny Ramirez 20-1

Richie Sexson 40-1

Ryan Howard 6-1

Travis Hafner 20-1

Vladimir Guerrero 40-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.