Overdue Fish finally hits his stride

Tennis Betting Lines

07/26/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota native Mardy Fish is currently enjoying the best stretch of his tennis career since joining the pro ranks 10 years ago.

Don't look now, but the 28-year-old American has now won his last two tournaments, both on U.S. soil, and has performed in no less than three finals in his last four events.

That's hot!

The big-serving Fish's most recent success came in Atlanta last week, as he came from behind to beat 6-foot-9 John Isner in an all-American final at the hardcourt Atlanta Tennis Championships. Isner, of course, made some history in the opening round at Wimbledon last month by playing in the longest-ever tennis match -- a three-day, 11-plus-hour epic against unlucky Frenchman Nicolas Mahut.

Fish's spirited run started with a trip to the final at the grass-court Wimbledon tune-up at The Queen's Club last month. Unfortunately for Fish, he was unable to top Sam Querrey in that particular all-American finale.

Then, two weeks ago in Newport, Fish ran the table for his first title of 2010, as he handled vertically-challenged Belgian Olivier Rochus in a grass- court title tilt on the grounds of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

And his torrid run continued last week in "Hotlanta," where he posted a very- hard-fought 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) victory over the towering Isner, who starred collegiately at the nearby University of Georgia, in 2 hours, 45 minutes to give the Minnesotan only his fifth career title in his sixteenth final. The once-fitness-challenged Fish also had to overcome some extreme heat in order to outlast Isner, as on-court temperatures approached 150 degrees on Sunday. A dehydrated Fish required an IV after the match.

The 6-foot-2 backhand-mashing Fish is now riding a 10-match winning streak, and the only final he failed to reach in his last four outings was Wimbledon, where he gave way to Germany's Florian Mayer in disappointing fashion in the second round.

"This is as top as I've ever been," Fish said on Sunday. "I've never won two tournaments in one year, I've never won two tournaments in a row, and on the ATP Tour, I've never won 10 matches in a row. It's probably as good as it's been."

His biggest wins during this stretch may not have been the championship ones over Isner and Rochus, but rather ones against world No. 4 star Andy Murray at The Queen's Club and former world No. 1 Andy Roddick in Atlanta. Fish stunned Murray in a third-rounder in London on his way to the finale there, upending the Aussie Open runner-up Scot in three sets, including a match-deciding tiebreak, and he surprised his good friend Roddick, the top seed in the ATL, in straight sets in a semifinal last week.

Note: Four of Fish's five wins in Atlanta came against fellow countrymen.

The in-form 2004 Olympic silver medalist Fish, who's shed 30 pounds over the last year, is now up to No. 35 in the world, after starting the year at No. 55. He soared as high as No. 17 on the planet back in 2004, but was outside the top 100 as recently as this past March. The versatile Fish reached a career-high No. 14 in doubles at one point last season.

A two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist (2007 Aussie Open, 2008 U.S. Open), Fish has always had this type of potential, but we all know what that word means. And it doesn't mean much of anything if you don't put in the hard work, which Fish, in the past, has been accused of not doing. The ATP's 2006 Comeback Player of the Year has also battled a series of injuries over the years, including a knee injury that required surgery last fall.

But it's safe to say that Fish is finally firing on all cylinders right now.

On the personal front, Fish is married to the beautiful Stacey Gardner, an attorney and former "Briefcase Model" on the television show "Deal or No Deal." And, former top-five tennis star James Blake served as a groomsman at their wedding two years ago.

For his senior year of high school, Fish attended Boca Prep in Boca Raton, Florida, where he and Roddick were classmates. In 1999, Fish lived with Roddick's family, and the two promising young tennis prodigies played on the same tennis and basketball teams.

How 'bout that?

Also, Fish's father, Tom, is a tennis teaching professional.

The surging Fish is in the draw at this week's hardcourt ATP event in Los Angeles, where he's the eighth seed.

Can he make it three in a row?

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Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

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