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Jim Miller and Roosevelt Roberts meet in a catchweight bout (155 pounds) on the main card at UFC on ESPN 11 – also known as UFC Fight Night 173 – Saturday at the UFC’s APEX Facility in Las Vegas. The prelims kick off at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the main card set for 8 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+.
Miller (31-14) heads into this one with plenty of experience, but he has rather long odds against the up-and-comer Roberts (10-1). The latter towers over the veteran Miller, standing six inches taller with a two-inch reach advantage over the southpaw. Miller suffered a unanimous decision setback to Scott Holtzman last time out, Feb. 15 at Rio Rancho, N.M. The loss snapped a streak of five straight fights finishing inside the distance for Miller. In fact, before the loss to Holtzman, Miller had three wins and a loss, each by submission. Miller has posted 2.83 strikes per minute, landing just 40.77 percent, so he has the potential to rain himself out early. He also has a takedown average of 1.69, while posting a takedown percentage of 41.76.
Roberts topped Brok Weaver in Round 2 by submission May 30 on the Woodley-Burns Fight Night card, and has posted three wins in four outings since reaching the UFC level. Five of Roberts’ 10 career professional wins have come via submission, with the guillotine his choke of choice. He also has three wins by TKO (punches), so he is anything but a one-trick pony.
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Jim Miller vs. Roosevelt Roberts betting odds
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Friday, June 19 at 5:45 a.m. ET.
Roberts (-250) will cost you a pretty penny, and he is just not worth the risk against the crafty veteran Miller (+200) – at least not worth the risk on the 2-way line. Instead, look to ROBERTS BY KO/TKO, DQ or SUBMISSION (+140), which is a much better value, and a sound play as long as he obviously doesn’t win by decision. As such, if you’re going to take Roberts to win by knockout or submission, rolling with the UNDER 2.5 ROUNDS (-112) is also highly recommended.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on Roberts (-250) returns a profit of just $4. A $10 play on Roberts by KO/TKO, DQ or submission (+140) fetches a profit of $14, while a $10 bet on the Under 2.5 rounds (-112) returns a net profit of $8.93.
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